Summer Harvest

My lovely wife and I, culinauts that we are, have the bad habit of discovering wonderful local eateries which, through no fault of the quality of their delectable delights, end up closing shortly after our first visit. Needless to say, it’s terribly annoying to find a spectacular little out-of-the-way treasure with exceptional cuisine that exists in an ephemeral state due to poor advertising or location. There are also some places we love that’ll never go out of business, but are worth mentioning for their sheer gustatory audacity.

As a semi-regular feature on this site, I’ll be pointing out a few of our faves and hopefully directing local readers or visitors to the area to some of our favorite places that deserve your business for one reason or another. These are mainly some impressions, links provided as needed, and the list is not in any particular order. The preferences are personal, and as a bonus, as my wife is vegetarian, each of these will include at least one or two recommendable veggie dishes. A caveat: we do not equate slow service with poor service, provided it’s reasonable.
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Hawaiian Breeze — A casual Hawaiian barbecue joint with what is quite simply the finest macaroni salad you’ll ever find. People: this is not your nasty old picnic macaroni salad! It is infused with some kind of warm Hawaiian lava magic! The spareribs are supple and tender, the prices very reasonable, and hooray for spam musubi! Veggie friendly. Good gravy that macaroni salad!

Jamjuree Thai — In a town where there are ten Thai restaurants per person, Jamjuree stands out. I fell in love with the place when I ordered the garlic trout and they brought out the whole fish, beautifully encrusted in what looked like at least an entire bulb of garlic, deep fried to spicy perfection. Jamjuree is to your average Thai food as Van Gogh is to your average first grade fingerpainting. *Extra Special Jamjuree Bonus:* The wife and I had our first date here!

Daly’s Drive-In — Sadly, this little burger house which has been around since 1962 is already slated for destruction in January due to a pretty typical ‘evil condo developers versus noble-but-not-as-wealthy-hole-in-the-wall’ scenario. If you get the chance, *do not miss the fries at Daly’s.* The burgers are also arguably the best in town, but the fries are THE BEST FRIES PERIOD: crispy on the outside, creamy on the inside and steeped in that ‘aged oil’ flavor that only the kind of fryer that sits under stalagtites of grease can provide. Oh HELL yes.

Chiso Japanese — My wife recently mentioned that if Chiso ever closed, she would never stop weeping. I don’t think that’ll be a problem, as it’s always crowded, but they’re also always willing to accomodate with a short wait time on busy nights. I have only ever had exceedingly fresh seafood at Chiso, and the veggie options are a sheer delight (especially the Crunchy Roll and an Eggplant Nigiri that cannot be described). It’s a bit on the pricier side as local sushi joints go, but the consistently high quality of the food keeps us coming back. (A Hint: Mackerel is the Best Sushi Litmus Test. If the mackerel at a place is fresh and delicious, it’s likely a good place to frequent. If it’s chewy or fishy, do not ever return.)

These four places are a good start. If you’re a local reader, feel free to leave your impressions and recommendations in the comments! If you’re from out of town, perhaps a visit is in order specifically to eat at these places.