Lately, by the time the official lunch hour rolls around, I’m famished and as much as I love leftovers, it’s been for something else. Usually, I’m a creature of habit, a bowl of poi with a quarter pound of shoyu poke will satisfy my hunger for weeks in a row. But, not on this particular day. Since moving to Maui, I had yet to eat at Honokowai Okazuya & Deli even though it’s a half-a-block walking distance. I’ve been there several times years before, so I knew that it would be smarter for me to call in my order. Well, I didn’t call it in, my sister did. My default meal is always a hamburger steak plate lunch so that’s what she ordered, but she added in “sloppy.”
What? I brushed it off thinking it had nothing to do with my anticipated plate lunch. We could have walked, but hunger made us lazy so we drove. The restaurant is small, it’s a grab and go type of place, and sitting oceanside at a park bench or picnic table is only across the street. We choose to eat in the luxury of our home.
As we paid for our meals, my sister shouted to the cook, “Sloppy right?”
He responded, “Yes, all sloppy.”
What?
We returned home, and it took me mere seconds to uncover my plate lunch. Oh sloppy! My homemade hamburger patties, one large scoop of rice and an equally same scoop of macaroni salad had homemade gravy with fresh mushrooms poured all over.
If you’re ever on the West side of Maui, make Honokowai Okazuya & Deli one of your dining experiences. You will not be disappointed with a variety of choices of Japanese, Korean, Vegetarian, American and Italian dishes of hefty portions that will require two hands to carry your plate.
A friend and I stopped at Honokowai Okazuya & Deli two or three times during a recent trip to Maui. Great menu, great food.
–Mike