where jess ate

Born and raised in Honolulu, Chef Andrew Le was always inspired by his mother’s authentic Vietnamese cooking. In 2011, he started a pop-up called the Pig and the Lady (@PigandtheLady). While the pop-up still makes an appearance at the farmers markets, the Pig and the Lady now has a permanent location in the heart of Honolulu’s chinatown.

They are open for lunch Monday to Saturday and dinner Tuesday to Saturday. While it isn’t a small restaurant, I recommend making a reservation.

The restaurant has a very familiar feel. Loud music, tightly packed tables, communal tables… the decor reminded me of a typical hipster joint we often frequent.

At the Pig and the Lady, you’ll be served creations from Chef Andrew Le and his family. According to their website, “the eclectic menu is inspired by Mama Le’s home cooking and the rich culinary heritage of Vietnam, Asia and the Pacific.” The menu is broken down into bites, shared plates, noodle soups, house-made fresh pasta and mains.

You can also opt for one of their “Primal Offerings” (24 hour reservation in advance) which feeds 6-10 people depending on what you order. Current offerings include mouth-watering options like the lechon pork shank, porchetta and pig head.

I started my meal with the Cobra Commander – avocado mezcal, pink-grapefruit liqueur & sriracha ice ($11). It was such a unique cocktail which got progressively spicier as the sriracha ice melted.

Mike went with the Early Harvest – apricot, persimmon shrub & rye ($10) which he enjoyed.

We started off with The Works – crostini of uni butter, bone marrow, seasonal black truffles, french chives, a shot of mescal poured table side ($24). It’s quite the show as they put the dish together table-side.

Show aside, I really loved this dish. With uni butter, marrow and black truffles, it’s a very indulgent combination of flavours. While quite rich, the ingredients made for a very intensely flavoured (and REALLY delicious) bite!

After our server finished preparing the dish, he poured a shot of mescal into the bone… for bone luge!

From the “Shared Plates” section of the menu, we also ordered the Kiawe Grilled Pork Jowl – cilantro, shallots, chili, toasted rice powder, artisinal fish sauce, chilled lettuce ($16). I love this fatty cut of meat and the pairing of it with the fish sauce, shallots and spice from the chill was a match made in heaven. Delish!

After reading some great things about the Laotian Fried Chicken – pickled chili, fried shallots, roasted peanuts ($12), we had to order it (although who am I kidding… if there’s fried chicken on the menu, we’re going to order it anyway!). My dad was the first one to dig into it and he had nothing but great things to say about it. Unfortunately, everything we had ordered came at the same time which made for a very unenjoyable experience. Since there were so many dishes at the table, by the time I took a bite out of the chicken, the skin was terribly soggy. So a word of advice: eat this immediately!

We couldn’t come to the Pig and the Lady without trying their signature P&L Pho – smoked bacon, 12 hour brisket, soft egg, braised green onion, baguette, handcut noodles ($14). The broth was incredibly flavourful and the tender brisket was a nice accompaniment. I was surprised to see the slice of baguette already in the bowl of soup – it reminded me of a french onion soup crouton but I found that the baguette became too soggy and kinda just disintegrated into the broth.

Our server sold us on one of the specials, the Fried Whole Fish which was a locally caught Hawaiian fish (the name is escaping me) flash fried and topped with sambal. The fish was fried to perfection – crispy on the outside while still moist inside. The spicy sambal paired nicely with the fish and the dish was a real crowd pleaser.

To accompany our dishes, we ordered a side of Chicken Fat Rice ($2) which was topped with crumbled chicken fat. I expected it to be like the rice that comes with Hainanese chicken but this wasn’t the case. It looked and sounded promising but it was rather bland.

For the most part, we really enjoyed the food. It’s just too bad every dish we ordered arrived at the same time. When dishes are served as they’re ready from the kitchen, we’re usually warned beforehand so I was surprised to see everything served at lightning speed. Good food but not the greatest experience, overall.

At a glance:

• Serving up an eclectic menu inspired by Vietnam, Asia and the Pacific
• Located in the heart of Honolulu’s Chinatown
• Takes reservations; open for lunch Mon to Sat; dinner Tues to Sat; closed Sundays
• Nominated by Bon Appetit as one of “America’s Best New Restaurants 2014”
• Delicious food but unfortunately all our dishes arrived at once so some of the dishes were cold/soggy by the time we had a chance to eat it; felt very rushed

Ratings (out of 5):

• Food: 4 stars
• Service: 1 star
• Atmosphere: 2.5 stars