Tag Archive | diners drive ins and dives

Foodie Friday #FreshCatchKAIMUKI #Hawaii #foodie

It’s Foodie Friday!

Fresh Catch KAIMUKI
3109 Waialae Ave.
Honolulu, HI 96816
(808) 735-7653
MON to SAT 10:00 a.m. – 7:30 p.m.
SUN 10:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.

I heard about Fresh Catch from Guy Fieri on the show Diner’s Drive Ins and Dives. As you know I have said before, Guy’s recommendations can be hit or miss. I have gone places that were as awesome as he said they would be. However, I have also gone places and wondered if they cooked a special meal for him and had actors posing as dedicated restaurant patrons ( I heard that happens).

So here we were.

I ordered the poke shrimp and fries covered with pork gravy and cheese.

Hubby ordered the deep-fried sushi roll.

The poke shrimp were okay. The sauce that coated them was too sweet for my tastes. I am used to shrimp cocktail with extra horseradish. Salty and a little spicy. This was not. Poke is okay but I do not envision myself eating it by the pound.

When I tasted the fries covered in pork gravy and cheese my reaction was very different.

WHAT IS THIS DELICIOUSNESS ?

The pork gravy was more of a pork stew. There were big chunks of pork in brown gravy sauce with melted cheese on top. The dish did not look very appetizing and I honestly did not expect it to be a flavorful as it was. I only ordered it because I knew the poke shrimp would not fill me up and I wanted something hot.

Everything about this dish was good. The fries were cooked just long enough that they were not crispy but held up well enough so as not to become mush under the gravy. The seasonings were on point. No additional salt needed. It was such a wonderfully made dish that I still dream about it. If this restaurant was not a 12-hour flight away, I could see myself trying to arrange another trip just to eat this dish.

The hubby also enjoyed his deep-fried sushi roll.

I agree that Fresh Catch is a great place to eat. Guy Fieri hit a home run featuring this restaurant. Personally, I needed to redeem myself because the last few of Fieri’s picks that I suggested to hubby were not up to snuff. I was beginning to lose my “restaurant selection” rights.

If you are ever in Honolulu, you need to try this place. If you did not rent a car, you need to rent one to go here. I am telling you, it is worth the trip.

Rainbow Drive-in Honolulu, Hawaii

Apr8

Our first stop in Hawaii was to get something to eat. I already checked to see what Guy Fieri triple D restaurant was between the airport and our hotel: Rainbow Drive In.

I told hubby that was where we were going. He was understandably hesitant because he knew that the quality of triple D restaurant were sometimes hit or miss. We have had awesome experiences and then there have been mediocre ones.

When we arrived, I was excited. I do not let hubby’s lack of enthusiasm affect me. And the crowds of people there bolstered my confidence that this was a good place to eat. I ordered the mahi-mahi plate with fries and coleslaw. Hubby ordered a hamburger.

The best part of the meal was the anticipation. It did not live up to the hype. In the picture is my food. The mahi-mahi was tough like it was overcooked. I think maybe they fried it and had it sitting under heat lamps (I do not know, just guessing). The coleslaw was good. It had a nice vinegary, light peppery taste. The fries were okay-nothing outstanding or special about them. Hubby’s hamburger was one sorry little sad piece of meat between two pieces of bread slathered with their special sauce. To me, it looked like one of those 59 cent burgers from McDonalds.

Hubby said that he was picking the next restaurant meal. Justifiably so. I did not even argue. I felt like I wasted my pick because I bought into what Guy Fieri was selling.

Overall, if you are in Hawaii, do not fall for the hype. The food is average, not spectacular.

Farmer Shed – Tuesday lunch

Jan1

I was on my way to Savannah and was driving through Lexington, SC at lunch time. How fortuitous for me! I decided that I needed to stop by Farmer’s Shed for lunch. I was all ready to order the cranberry pork chop, when the lady taking my order said "That is Wednesday’s menu. Today is Tuesday."

Oh.
I was in a quandary now. I did not know what I wanted to order. I finally decided to get the chicken pot pie, collards, and squash casserole. The collards were very tasty as usual. And the squash casserole was equally wonderful. However, for me, the chicken pot pie was just okay.

(1) I thought I was going to order pork chops. I was so thrown off, that it did not really matter what I ate. The enthusiasm that I had going in was gone.
(2) Even though there was a lot of good flavor in the pot pie, there was so many peas. I don’t like peas. I spend more time picking peas out of the pie than actually eating it.
Complaints aside, the crust on the pie was flakey, delicious goodness. There was a lot of meat which made this very filling. That being said, the peas are a deal breaker so I would not order again. I hate peas that much.

If I do, I will make sure of the day’s menu so I can avoid taste bud disappointment (that has to be a first world problem). All in all, this a Triple D pick that was on point. Sometimes his suggestions can be hit or miss. I am not above giving credit when credit is due. Good going Guy Fieri!

Farmer’s Shed – Lexington SC

Feb8

Farmer’s Shed is another triple D (Diners Drive-Ins and Dives) pick located in Lexington, SC

This is a Southern food joint with different meats and sides for each day Monday through Friday. The allure of this place is that it is located next to their farm where a lot of the vegetables are grown. I was fortunate to have a vacation day on a Wednesday and was able to visit. The food was so good!!!!

I ordered the cranberry pork chop because I like all things pork. I was served a thick cut pork chop with cranberry/meat broth drippings. I do not even think that is the proper way to describe it. The cranberries were not too sweet or too tart. In any case, the pork-cranberry flavors worked very well together. After I finished my plate, I wanted more. The collard greens were some of the best that I have tasted in a restaurant. I think they might even have rivaled Daddy Dz (Atlanta, GA) and that is saying a lot. Their cornbread has a little sugar on top before they bake it and so there is a little crunch on the top. It went very well with the collards. The hint of salt from the collards paired with the hint of sweet from the cornbread had my taste buds performing gymnastic flips of

joy in my mouth. At one point, I had to close my eyes to fully enjoy the experience.

If you have read any of my other posts featuring restaurants that have been featured on TV, you know that I hold the restaurants to a higher standard than normal. If a place is rumored to be so good that it is on TV, the food quality has to be perfect. Sometimes Southern food restaurants fall short because the food is not as flavorful as it appears to be on TV. I can say that is NOT the case with Farmer’s Shed. This restaurant is worth all the accolades they have received. I wished that I lived closer so that I could go there every day. I am already trying to figure out how I can get there on a Friday. There Friday menu

looks really good too.

Overall: Farmer’s Shed is definitely worth a trip! Check out their menu beforehand so that you can decide what you want to eat. Otherwise, you
might to order one of everything 😀

Jamaica Kitchen

Oct26

Guy Fieri talked about this Jamaican restaurant in Miami Florida on Diners Drive Ins and Dives (http://www.foodnetwork.com/diners-drive-ins-and-dives/index.html). Of course I knew the next time I was in MIA, I was going to check it out. The food looked so good on TV.

When I got there, I was surprised that it was smaller than I expected. From the outside, it looked like an unassuming little store next to a Winn Dixie. Unless you know ahead of time, you would not think it was a restaurant. They had retail items like a mini Jamaican Wal-mart in addition to serving food. I wondered how did Guy get his camera crew in there to record the episode. Once I got over the size of the location, I was like a kid in a candy store in overload (see picture).

I got a menu but really wanted one of everything. I ordered curried oxtails (comes with rice and beans, plantain), curry chicken patties, rum cake, and ginger beer. Everything was DELICIOUS. It was just like I imagined it would be. The oxtail meat was falling off of the bones. The pastry dough of the patty was light and flakey. The patty filling was finely minced and full of balanced spicy flavor. To top it off, while I was eating, the owners/cooks came out of the kitchen and stood near the entrance. I approached them and said that I found out about the place from Triple D. They were really nice and friendly. I wanted to ask for a picture, but was too shy (that is saying a lot about me). I told them that I wish they had a restaurant that was closer to where I lived.

This is my type of comfort food and the next time I am in Miami, I am definitely going to eat here.
http://www.jamaicakitchen.com/