Description
Absent is Roy Yamaguchi's corporate polish and Don the
Beachcomber's tiki kitsch--this is a Hawaiian restaurant in the real world.
Hapa J's wooden structure could conceivably exist near a sandy beach on the
island state, the wall paint a soothing green, the sunlight flooding in from
openings in the ceiling. There's a surf shop just next door and the ocean's
a few blocks away. Bruddah Iz's creamy voice floats through the air as his
ukelele's pluckety-plucks tickles your soul. The waitresses have flowers
tucked behind their ears, and the food seems as though the dishes have been
extracted from your fondest vacation memories. Dinnertime brings the most
people in for kalbi ribs, steak moco, shrimp-truck shrimp, burgers with a
slice of pineapple, or the most popular dish, nachos erupting with Kalua pig
heaped on in volcano-like mountains.
