North-South dining on Oahu

After a week in Maui, I took the short flight from OGG to HNL and felt my mood magically lift at touchdown. It helped that the sun was shining, but I knew that even if/when the rains came, there’d be enough to do in Honolulu to keep me busy for the few days I was there.

If I learned anything in the previous week, it was to cherish the sun while I could, so even before I could start planning my time on Oahu, on my first night I celebrated being in Honolulu with an umbrella laden cocktail while watching a brilliant sunset at House Without a Key at the Halekulani Hotel.

A beautiful place to settle into a Mai Tai while watching the sunset in the background.

The next morning there were clouds in the distance but the rain seemed to be holding off. Knowing that the Volcom Pipe Pro Surfing competition at Banzai Beach was in its waiting period, I checked the website to see that it was “on” for the day. Watching pro-surfing is a favourite of mine in Hawaii, so a trip to the North Shore was a no-brainer for the day.

I could have watched the competition all day, but unfortunately the rains started coming down hard and my grumbling tummy started telling me that it was time to hit the shrimp trucks. I’ve eaten at my fair share of shrimp trucks in the North Shore, but this time I really hoped that I’d get to sample the one that I’d still yet to try, Macky’s coconut shrimp. Luck would have it (or perhaps the rain kept the masses away), but Macky’s wasn’t sold out of their coconut shrimp and after so many years of thinking of it, I finally got to order it!

Satisfyingly crunchy with a hint of coconut, I was not disappointed at all after waiting years to try them.

A trip to the North Shore, for me, is not complete without a trip to the Dole Plantation specifically to have a Dole Whip.

I was a little water-logged after the day, but a quick nap had me revived to visit one of my favourite Honolulu restaurants for dinner.

The quote on Town’s website “Local first, organic whenever possible, with Aloha always” is a snapshot of the restaurant’s philosophy. What they don’t mention is how delicious their food is. I was almost hesitant to go back to Town seeing as there are so many restaurants on my list that I still want to try. But I remembered enjoying Town on my visit a few years previous, and something was drawing me back. I’m happy I returned as it was one of the best meals of my trip.