where jess ate

Serving up Hawaiian regional cuisine, MW Restaurant is brought to us by the husband-and-wife team Michelle Karr-Ueoka and Wade Ueoka. They each spent almost 20 years working alongside the famous Alan Wong, so they’ve got some serious street cred.

Don’t let the ho-hum decor of the restaurant fool you. It’s not a fancy space and is… well, rather boring. But the food really speaks for itself.

I decided to go with the 5-course menu tasting for $65 which started out with the Chef’s Selection of Appetizers. It consisted of pork belly, a beet salad, fried chicken, poke and an oyster. Each bite was more delicious than the next. As someone who loves variety, this was the ideal way to start off the meal.

Next up next was their signature dish, the Mochi Crusted Opakapaka – yuzu kosho soy vinaigrette. One bite and you’ll immediately understand why this is customer favourite. I loved the mochi crust which was fried to perfection – an incredibly light and crispy batter with the fish still wonderfully moist on the inside. Who knew that mochi would make for such a great crust? My mom ordered this as an entree which comes with saimin noodles. She was also quite pleased.

My third course was the Kona Lobster – seafood ravioli, mentaiko butter sauce. It consisted of one plump ravioli topped with well-cooked chunks of lobster. Delish!

The fourth course (and last savoury course) of the tasting was the Stew and Rice – Big Island beef tenderloin on oxtail risotto, peanuts & mushrooms. The tenderloin was cooked nicely and the oxtail risotto was a lovely accompaniment. Overall, it was a solid dish but the least memorable dish of the evening.

The dessert that came with the tasting was the Chocolate Banana Cream Pie – graham crackers, chocolate pudding, banana cream, butterscotch short bread. Served in a little mason jar, this was a great take on the banana cream pie. Delicious layers of chocolate pudding, bananas and banana cream…it’s a must-order for banana cream pie fans.

All in all, I thought the tasting menu was amazing value at $65. I highly recommend ordering this if you want to get a little taste of some of their most popular dishes.

Now, let’s take a look at what everyone else had. To start, Mike ordered the Unagi & Butterfish Arancini – nori Tsukudani, Kabayaki mustard ($12). We love arancini and this was such a unique take on one of our favourite Italian dishes. The arancini were crisp on the outside and gooey on the inside. Your tastebuds will love this – each bite was packed full of flavour.

My mom started with the Onaga and Nairagi Ceviche – avocado salsa, corn tortilla chips ($12). She can be a tough critic but this was a winner for her. It was fresh and just really appetizing. A great way to whet your appetite.

My sister ordered the Ahi Poke – with Ikura, uni, crispy rice crackers ($20). It’s definitely an upscale take on the poke as you can tell from the refined presentation. The tuna poke was spot on and I loved the addition of the crispy rice crackers which gave it a nice crunch.

My dad decided on the Seafood Chowder. It was a damn good chowder – it had just the right amount of creaminess and had this really deep seafood flavour. My only complaint was that it arrived at the table quite a bit after the rest of the appetizers arrived.

The Seafood Gumbo – scallops, Kauai shrimp & clams, housemade andouille sausage ($32) caught Mike’s eye. Since it seemed a bit out of place in the Hawaiian-themed menu, I didn’t have high expectations but they certainly proved me wrong. Like everything else at MW Restaurant, each bite of this delicious gumbo was packed full of flavour. Definitely a home-run!

My sister went with the Adobo Braised Duroc Pork Shank – mung bean potato cake, Hau’ula tomato salad ($26). The huge honking pork shank was fall-off-the-bone tender. The combination of the adobo pork, light tomato salad and potato cake worked beautifully. It’s a hearty dish so I only recommend this if you’re very hungry.

My dad always goes for seafood so it was no surprise he decided on the Pan Roasted Monchong and Kauai Shrimp – dried scallop gravy, sauteed Ho Farms vegetable ($28). With the dried scallop gravy and choice of greens, it was a heavily asian-inspired dish. My dad found the monchong and shrimp to be perfectly cooked and was very pleased with his choice. He kept comparing every other meal we had in Hawaii to this one, so that says a lot!

For dessert, Mike ordered the Strawberry Shortcake – Kula strawberry shortcake frozen souffle, strawberry yuzu sorbet ($10). This was my favourite dessert of the evening. I loved the tartness of it and found it to be the perfect refreshing bite to end off the meal.

My sister ended with the MW Doughnuts – Waialua Chocolate Fondue ($10). They aren’t your average doughnuts. They were nice and crisp on the outside but super airy on the inside. You won’t feel too guilty eating more than your fair share of them!

Overall, we had an amazing time at MW Restaurant. Like I mentioned, the decor and atmosphere might not be very impressive but the food speaks for itself. It turned out to be one of the most memorable meals we had in Honolulu!

At a glance:

• Serving up Hawaiian regional cuisine
• Owned by a husband and wife team (Michelle Karr-Ueoka, who was a 2014 semi-finalist for the James Beard Outstanding Pastry Chef award, and Wade Ueoka)
• High-end food at reasonable prices in a casual atmosphere
• Don’t let the ho-hum decor fool you. The food speaks for itself
• The 5-course tasting menu is great value (currently $65) and will give you a taste of their most popular dishes
• Lunch is served Monday to Friday; dinner is served everyday
• Located in a plaza with limited parking; valet parking is $4

Ratings (out of 5):

• Food: 4 stars
• Service: 3 stars
• Atmosphere: 2 stars