Explore the world of dim sum at Panda Cuisine

One of my favorite dim sum places is Panda Cuisine located on Keeaumoku right across from Walmart. I have been going there with my family ever since my children were small. My kids love it. It’s comfort food for them even if they don’t have an ounce of Chinese in them! The food is tasty and the price is reasonable. It’s a perfect place to celebrate an occasion like Mother’s Day because you can go there even without reservations. And if it is a bit busy, you can sit on the couch in the waiting area and look at the all the pictures of celebrities, actors, singers, sports people that have experienced Panda Cuisine. It’s a nice way to kill time. Daniel, the owner, is usually there and greets you with a friendly smile. He acknowledges the fact that you’re a frequent customer, that’s a nice feeling!

Once you get seated the servers will make sure you have Chinese tea, Panda serves jasmine, and water with a little slice of lemon in it. A nice touch. Then they start coming around with their carts full of dim sum freshly steamed in their baskets. Other carts arrive displaying fried items, cold meat dishes and desserts. Pick and choose what your stomach desires. And don’t forget the mustard and hot sauce!












Dim sum literally means “touch the heart” and refers to light and small Chinese dishes served with Chinese tea. Dim sum was originally a snack and therefore only meant to touch the heart. Today it is considered a main meal in Chinese dining culture. This dining experience is called Yum cha meaning “drinking tea.” Authentic dim sum restaurants normally serve from morning to afternoon for the breakfast and lunch crowd. Small steamer baskets and plates of meat, seafood, vegetables and desserts come in carts. What is nice that you can see them and choose. Or many places have menus with pictures of each item on it. You can also order other Chinese dishes such as soup, noodles, fried rice and vegetables.

Tea time is a wonderful cultural tradition practiced by many people. Americans enjoy their coffee and black tea, the British their afternoon spot of tea, the Japanese their green tea and the Chinese all sorts of tea including jasmine, oolong and bolay. The bolay tastes a bit moldy but it is best for digestion. What is interesting is that the Chinese began serving dim sum with their tea after they realized that tea can aid in digestion.

Panda offers dim sum in three price ranges: Small is $2.75, Medium is $3.50 and Large is $4.50. Noodles, rice dishes and soups can be ordered a la carte. Our favorite small dish is the steamed cream bun. They are to die for and no matter how much dim sum we eat, there is always room for the steamed cream bun for dessert. Some of our favorite medium dishes are the steamed shrimp dumpling, the shrimp and chive dumpling and siu mai. The seafood bundle (seafood wrapped in tofu skin) and the look fun are our favorite large dishes. When ordering noodles, we go for either the Singapore noodles or the chow fun with beef, vegetables and gravy. As you can see we enjoy the steamed, healthier types of dim sum. But the fried items such as the shrimp dumpling, taro puffs, spring rolls and gyoza (potsticker) are very delicious. The mochi rice and steamed and baked buns are ono too. Meat dishes like the meatballs and spare ribs in black bean sauce are very tasty.

As you can see, I am an experienced dim sum eater. It is a great thing to do on the weekend with family and friends. The more the merrier and of course, the more variety of dim sum you can choose. Yum cha…relax and enjoy an affordable and tasty meal!

Nice and elegant decor



















Cart full of steamed dim sum

Shrimp and chive dumplings, siu mai and shrimp dumplings






Singapore noodles


Fried shrimp dumplings






Favorite...
steamed cream buns


Steamed seafood bundle






Steamed Shanghai dumplings

Fried turnip cakes







Honolulu Festival

Ulupō Heiau, a special place where energy is captured from the stars

Let’s talk about a special place on the island of Oahu that you can feel close to the mana (spiritual power) of the gods, chiefs and people of ancient Hawaii. Ulupō Heiau is the second largest heiau on the island of Oahu (the largest is Pu'u o Mahuka Heiau overlooking Waimea Valley on the North Shore) and is said to have been built by the menehune (little people) in the 1400s. “Ulupō” means “Night Inspiration” in the Hawaiian language and is said to
be a special place where energy is captured from the stars. This sacred temple is located in Kailua. The function of Ulupō Heiau changed over time. It probably began as an agricultural heiau or heiau mapele (temple for ceremonies to insure fertility of the crops). But over time, according to history and its shape, it was made into a heiau luakini (temple dedicated to the success of war). If so, then the heiau luakini was considered a restricted area that was only for those of high hierarchy. Today, this heiau is a sacred site for all Hawaiian people.


Ulupō Heiau is listed on the National and Hawai'i Registers of Historic Places. The State Parks continue to preserve the heiau and heighten public awareness of the cultural history of Kawai Nui. History indicates that Kawai Nui Marsh and Ka'elepulu Pond were ocean bays and that the first Polynesians came to the shores of Kawai Nui Lagoon and built heiau, fishponds and taro terraces.


View of Kawai Nui Marsh


Top of heiau






Kailua was the place of political power for the district of Ko'olaupoko in the 1750’s. The ali'i of O'ahu favored this area for its abundance of fish and good canoe landings. As notes taken from our ancient text show, the houses of the ali'i (chiefs), their families and their attendants surrounded Kailua Bay. Behind the sand beach was the large, fertile expanse of Kawai Nui which had been converted to a fishpond surrounded by an agricultural field system. Kawai Nui was a large, 400 acre fishpond with an abundance of mullet, awa, and o'opu. Ka'elepulu and Nu'upia fishponds were nearby.

Farmers grew kalo (taro) in the irrigated lo'i along the fishponds. Dryland kalo, banana, sweet potato and sugarcane were grown around the marsh area. The fishermen harvested fish from the fishponds and the ocean. The kahuna (priests) performed their religious rites around Kawai Nui at Ulupō Heiau on the east and the Pahukini Heiau and Holomakani Heiau on the west.

Ulupō Heiau measures 140 by 80 feet with walls up to 30 feet in height. The legendary association of the heiau with menehune suggests the antiquity of this site. The construction of this massive temple required a large work force as well as a large amount of rocks. It has been noted that one source of these stones was Kualoa, more than ten miles away.

Several O'ahu chiefs lived at Kailua and probably participated in ceremonies at Ulupō Heiau. Maui chief Kahekili came to O'ahu in the 1780s and lived in Kailua after defeating O'ahu high chief Kahahana for control of the island. Kamehameha I worked at Kawai Nui Fishpond and is said to have eaten the edible mud (lepo ai ia) of Kawai Nui when there was a shortage of kalo. But by 1795 when Kamehameha I conquered O'ahu, it is believed that Ulupō Heiau was already abandoned.

The Chinese planted rice around the edge of Kawai Nui Marsh in the 1800s. The kalo fields were converted to rice fields. A cattle pen was said to have been built on top of the heiau in the 1920s. The cattle changed the shape of the heiau due to heavy usage. The last people to have used the heiau are the Japanese. There is evidence of their pig pens and homes dating from 1949 to 1974, not too long ago.

You will feel a wonderful sense of energy when you visit Ulupō Heiau. There is a beautiful view of the mountains and the Kawai Nui Marsh. Many trees grow there, kukui, noni, macadamia, hala, palm, ulu (breadfruit) and banana to name a few. Taro and ti leaf are also grown. The marsh is a habitat for Hawaii’s endangered waterbirds. I ask that you be respectful of this sacred area. Stay on the trails for the rocks may be loose. Please also be respectful of the offerings that are left there. Ulupō Heiau…definitely a place that you must visit to understand the value of the Native Hawaiian culture.

Ape, related to kalo


Macadamia Nut






Ti leaf, heiau in background


Kukui Nut






Sugar cane

Ulu, Breadfruit







Hala


Ginger










Banana


Kalo (taro)






Banyan


Palm









Hula Mound

Terraces, remnants of home





Honolulu Festival

Maguro-Ya Restaurant in Kaimuki, for fresh fish teishoku

The folks in Hawaii love to eat raw fish, especially tuna. The most common ways of eating it is sashimi and poke style. For those of you who would like to read more about “poke,” please refer to the “Let’s Talk Story” section of the Honolulu Festival website. “Ahi” is yellowfin tuna, commonly used in Hawaii for poke and sashimi.

I would like to introduce a Japanese restaurant in Kaimuki, right on Waialae Avenue, called Maguro-Ya. “Maguro” is a Japanese term for “bluefin tuna.” “Ya” means “shop.” This restaurant is famous for serving the freshest fish, seafood and sushi. They have specials each week featuring the freshest catch. There is also a very nice sushi counter where the master sushi chefs serve their very best. And for those that can’t eat fish, there are a few meat dishes.

As we all know maguro has been a staple in Japan for many years. With the popularity of sushi spreading worldwide, maguro has become difficult to find. The bluefin tuna has been severely overfished. It has become a delicacy especially the fatty belly part called toro. In Hawaii it is a common fact that the price of maguro goes sky high for New Years. This is also the trend in Japan. Did you know that back in the samurai days of Japan that maguro was a fish that was considered unclean, therefore not eaten? Maguro has come a long way. It is one of the most popular fish in Japan and also all over the world.

There are so many items on the Maguro-Ya menu to choose from, very mind boggling. Their fish teishoku menu includes salmon, butterfish, aji, sanma, saba, hamachi, karei and moi. Some are seasonal. You can also request it to be grilled, cooked in a shoyu sauce or deep fried. What is great about these teishoku is that they come as a complete meal including rice, miso shiru, salad, pickles and kobachi (small dish of something tasty, usually a veggie). I decided to eat their well-known Magurozukushi Teishoku. It’s very popular because the maguro is served in every which way possible-sashimi style, yakimono (grilled) and agemono (deep fried). I am assuming that the term “zukushi” comes from the word “tsukusu” which means to “exhaust or serve.” For example, if you tsukusu a person, it means to “dedicate yourself completely to the person.” I realize that I went off on a tangent but that is the nice part of writing a blog, that I can write about anything I think about, including a Japanese language lesson.

Please look at the pictures of the Magurozukushi Teishoku at Maguro-Ya. The pictures look appetizing. The taste was even better, so delicious. It’s a good teishoku to start with on your first visit. And once you think you’ve gotten enough of the maguro, your maguro fix, then I insist that you be bold and try the other delicacies on their menu. The deep fried moi which was a special the day that I went looked so good. I hope to try something like that on my next visit. Oishii!

Appetizer includes edamame, tamagoyaki (egg dish) and maguro on mini skewers.









Sashimi. Deep fried maguro with shredded cabbage and potato salad (use mustard and tonkatsu sauce for condiments). Pickles. Kobachi (mountain yams). Lettuce and tomato salad. Miso shiru. Rice.









Grilled maguro with grated daikon.










Honolulu Festival

Kayak Paddling, a terrific ocean sport in Hawaii

Today I would like to talk about a wonderful ocean sport that I recently picked up…kayak paddling . My husband moved over from the mainland in 1990. He became an avid paddler while living at the Moana. Can’t beat the convenience of getting up early each morning, stepping out on Waikiki Beach and paddling for an hour before work. It’s healthy because you lose weight and build muscles. It’s refreshing out in the water, feeling the waves and the breeze. And it’s just beautiful, gazing at Diamond Head, the other boats and the blue sky!


We had talked about it for many years. We finally started paddling on a regular basis last month. It’s addicting. Of course now that we live in Makiki, it’s not that easy. We have to load the kayak on our car, make sure it’s tied down just right, go to Magic Island, unload, carry the kayak to the waters…you get the picture. But I have thoroughly gotten into the whole thing. I figure that even the setting up with all the lifting is a good work out. And I make sure that I have plenty of sun block on, a long sleeve shirt, a huge brimmed hat and sunglasses. Not a pretty sight, but who cares. I cannot believe that it took me this long to start enjoying Hawaii’s ocean.

Lucky to have a good teacher who is very much into safety. Safety First! We got a float that looks like the ones used by the lifeguards on “Baywatch.” It is strapped to my ankle so that I can use it in case I fall out. A leash connects my husband to the kayak. The paddles are also strapped to the kayak with different leashes. Yes, safety is most important. My husband learned from his mistakes and is making sure that they are not repeated. He even made me practice climbing into the kayak just in case I do fall out. Balance is the key so that you won’t tip your partner and the kayak.











We have the Ocean Kayak Malibu II, 12 feet in length and 34 inches in width. Did you know that nearly one of every three kayaks sold today is a sit-on-top (SOT)? It is basically a paddleboard equipped with a seat. The brand that we have is one of the most popular compact lightweight tandem sit-on-tops in the world. It can be paddled solo or tandem, good for two adults plus a child or pet. We took our dog Mulan for a spin in the marina at Hawaii Kai where the water is calm. She seemed to be enjoying it although she wouldn’t leave my husband’s lap which made it a bit difficult for him to paddle. I’ll let you know how Mu enjoys Waikiki’s waves when we attempt that in the future.











So let’s talk about the SOT kayaks. They have similar hull shapes as their traditional counterparts but instead of sitting in the kayak, you sit in a molded-in depression on top. Some are made of fiberglass but most are made from durable plastic like ours.

The SOT is easier to use than the sit-inside and is less expensive. Most of the SOTs are built for multi-purposes such as for fishing, surfing, touring and scuba diving. They are recreational and built with beginning paddlers like me in mind. It is very comfortable because your legs are not confined. It is also easy to rescue yourself because you are on an open deck therefore aren’t trapped in any part of the kayak.

I like the tandem kayak that we have because I feel safer paddling with my experienced teacher. He sits in the front and I follow his movements and try to paddle in synch. I like being in the back so I can cheat a little and rest when I get tired and my husband won’t notice. Actually he’ll notice right away, but still, he won’t be able to see me resting right away!

So what is the origin of the kayak? It was first used by the native Ainu (indigenous people of Japan), Aleut and Eskimo hunters in the sub-arctic regions of northeastern Asia, North America and Greenland. Historically and to this day, paddlers use double bladed paddles. Kayaks are referred in some parts of the world as canoes.

The term “kayak” seems to have come from the Inuit, a group of indigenous people who inhabited the Arctic regions of Canada, Greenland and Alaska. Their language is considered an Eskimo-Aleut language. The natives hunted sea animals from a single person, covered seal-skin boat called “ qajaq”. The Europeans copied their design and the name. Wooden kayaks and fabric kayaks on wooden frames were first made. The fiberglass ones were introduced in the 1950s and then the rotomolded plastic kayaks in 1973.

Kayaks sure have come a long way. And boy, am I glad that we have them today! Remember…Safety First! Check out Go Bananas Watersports in Honolulu on Kapahulu Avenue. They have kayaks, paddles, stand up paddle boards, racks for cars and trucks, camping gear and accessories for ocean sports. You will find everything you need there, including a wealth of knowledge about ocean sports. Ocean sports in Hawaii, it’s the best!































Honolulu Festival
Go Bananas Watersports