Hawaii Food Tour – Lunch at the Rainbow Drive In

That’s right – we said “Hawaii Food Tour”.  We’re spending a week in Honolulu, on the island of O’ahu.  When we first moved to Indiana, twenty years ago, we began taking February vacations – to go someplace warm in the middle of winter.  Somehow, we fell out of the habit over the last ten years, but decided that in 2019 we would start again. So here we are, back in Hawaii.  We’re looking for places that are off the tourist maps, where the locals go, that let us eat well without costing a Hawaiian king’s ransom.

We’re doing a series of quick posts to report on what we’ve seen, smelled and tasted.  So, “Aloha” – here we go!

Hiking out of Waikiki

After our hike to the harbor on the first day, it was late morning and we decided to start back toward the other end of Waikiki to get lunch.  We hiked from the harbor to the opposite end of the Ala Wai canal – about a mile and a half. The Ala Wai canal forms the northern and western border of Waikiki.  It was built over seven years, from 1921 to 1928 to drain the rice paddies and swamps of what would become Waikiki.

On the Waikiki side of the canal is a wide concrete walk that is popular with walkers and joggers.

At the end of the canal, we passed the public library and turned left onto Kapahula Ave. At this point , we felt like we were out of Waikiki and the tourist zone.  We walked past “The Purrfect Pour”, a cafe for cats. (Really? Yes, really.) We kept going, past the Kapahula Stop and Shop, a tattoo parlor and an iPhone repair store.  Then, at the corner of Kapahula and Kanaina, above a couple of dumpsters, we saw the sign for the Rainbow Drive In.

A Honolulu tradition

The Rainbow Drive In has been here for years.  It was started by an island-born US Army cook after World War II, and has been dishing out hearty portions of simple food ever since.  On Sunday at noon, there were a few people there who were obviously tourists, like us, but most of the diners appeared to be local workers and students.  We had read that Barack Obama had been a regular customer as a teenager, and still comes back today when he visits Hawaii.

You order your meal from a nice lady in one of the windows and then wait while it’s being prepared. Some of the items on the menu are not available every day, like the Beef or Curry Stew. But some dishes are served every day, like Loko Moco – two hamburger patties and bacon, covered in Thanksgiving gravy and topped with two eggs – an island favorite. Boneless fried chicken is another Paradise specialty. The chili got mixed reviews on Yelp!.

I’d read that the portions were large, so we decided to split a “Mix Plate”.  It came with three meats – a big piece of fried chicken, a couple slices of barbecued beef and some fried fish – along with french fries.  We ordered a side of cole slaw to round out the meal.

When our lunch was ready, we carried it to a picnic table in front of the drive in.  (There are spots for cars to park, though we didn’t see any carhops. If you want to eat in your car, you’ll have to order at the window like everyone else.). There are tables on three sides of the drive in, all under cover, though the roof above our table was leaking and there was a puddle of water at one end of the table.  The table was made of heavy wood, painted green. It was the exact same picnic table that we’ve seen in public parks all our lives. There were a few places where the wood had splintered away, but otherwise it had survived the years gracefully.

The rain had stopped, the sun was out, there was one group of teenage girls who livened the place with their laughter as they ate their lunch at another table.  We had hiked several miles already, and were ready to tuck in to a big lunch. Oh… and we were in Hawaii!

I’d be lying if I told you this was the best lunch I’d ever had.  But it was the best lunch I’d had this week. The first thing we tasted was the fish.  It was a white fish, hot and crispy, just recently out of the fryer. The BBQ beef was dry (no sauce), and had a deep, smoky taste.  The chicken was also hot. It was breaded and nicely seasoned. The french fries were french fries. “What can you say about fries?”, Mary asked.  But the treat of the meal was the cole slaw. It was finely shredded in long strands and had a taste that was sweet and vinegary at the same time. We fought over the last bite.

While we ate, we looked around at the other diners.  In front of us was an older gentleman who was almost head down in his takeout box.  Behind us was a stocky guy with a full beard and a small child in a sling on his chest.  They were sharing an order of chicken wings.  Several other tables had young families with small children.

A variety of birds walked among the tables, looking for scraps.  They were counting on the fact that many people ignored the “Please don’t feed the birds” sign posted above the trash can.

We were happy with our lunch at the Rainbow Drive In.  It’s on our list of places to come back to, if we’re ever in the neighborhood again.  We’re betting it will be here for years to come.

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We’ll be back shortly with another update from O’ahu.  Mahalo (thank you) for coming along for the ride.

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