Shortly before the holidays I was able to accompany my mom on a business trip to Honolulu. I found several great places to eat and will write a full post on the trip soon. However, one restaurant stood out enough that I thought it warranted its own review. It was so good that we actually ended up going there two nights in a row.While looking for somewhere to eat in Waikiki for both myself (vegan) and my mother (gluten free and not vegan) I stumbled upon mention of Roy’s Waikiki. Roy’s is a chain of “Hawaiian fusion” restaurants that started in Honolulu, but now has locations all over the US. Each location (at least in Hawaii) has it’s own menu of specialties in addition to the chain’s signature dishes. I was startled to find that the Waikiki location apparently offered a full vegan pre-fix menu. Better still, it was located in the same building as our hotel.
Now this isn’t a “if you call ahead and ask real nice they will come up with something” sort of thing. They offer a periodically updated four course vegan menu. There is no mention of it online, or on their normal menu, but ask for the vegan menu and they bring a second printed menu with a four course vegan meal (complete with dessert and a wine pairing option). None of the dishes on the vegan menu appeared on their standard menu. The standard didn’t even offer a vegetarian entree.
The first night I just went for the pre-fix menu as it was.
The first course was “Crisp Garlic Humus Tortellini, Spiced tomato dill sauce”. The slightly warm humus in the center of the fried tortellini was a little odd, but mostly served as a creamy, garlicky filling. They were surprisingly delicious. The sauce was wonderful, and had a nice bit of spice to it (which is always a pleasant surprise, since many restaurants are afraid of serving spicy food).
The next course was “Big Island Hearts Of Palm Carpaccio – Nalo arugula, grape fruit, Kahuku sea asparagus with soy ginger vinaigrette. What emerged from the kitchen was a very elegantly put together (both in terms of presentation and flavor) salad. The palm hearts (which I like, but they don’t have a particularly strong flavor) served as the base. On top you had peppery spice from the arugula, saltiness from the sea vegetable, and bitter from the grapefruit that melded into an wonderful experience.
The entree for the vegan menu was “Roasted Eggplant Steak – grape tomato chili Nalo herb relish, coconut peanut sauce & sweet potato fries”. From the get go I was excited. What isn’t to love about peanut sauce? The eggplant was well cooked. The tomato relish was phenomenal. It was spicy (so much that I have a feeling some people would have taken issue, but I loved it), and the herbs and seasoning were fantastic. The peanut sauce was creamy and wonderful, as peanut sauce should be. The fries were lightly battered and well cooked (they were crisp and not soggy).
Perhaps the most astonishing part of the whole meal was the dessert. “Orange and Coco Nib “Ricotta” Cannoli with Dark Chocolate Sorbet”. It is always a pleasant surprise when there is any vegan option for dessert at a non-veg restaurant. Usually, though, it is sorbet or maybe a fruit crisp. In this case they went above and beyond and prepared a dessert that was superior to what I have found at some veg restaurants. Crisp cannoli shells were filled with a Grand Marnier and coco nib “ricotta” filling. They were served along with a scoop of dark chocolate sorbet (that was rich and awesome).The meal was one of the best I have had, and surpassed what I have had at several nicer veg restaurants. The whole pre-fix was very reasonably priced at about $35 for four courses (versus about the same price for a single fish entree).
The next night when we returned I decided to try and make a meal of the limited vegan options on the normal menu for the sake of mixing things up (none of the dishes on the vegan pre fix appear on the standard menu). The previous night my mom had had the pressed water melon salad as an appetizer (which was vegan and gluten free without modification). I had tried it and it was fantastic, with a chili dressing, onions and radish. I elected to get that, as well as the “vegan roll” (actual name on the menu) sushi roll and the tofu and tomato carpaccio (which I had to have them leave of some fish flakes that normally top it). The waiter also suggested a few dishes that could be done with grilled tofu instead of fish, but I went with the selections I had found on the menu.
This turned out not to have been the best choice, and I would have been better off, and much happier, ordering the same four courses from the night before.
The tofu and tomato carpaccio was the most disappointing. The tofu was fresh and creamy, but the tomato was terrible. It was just a crunchy, flavorless, grocery store type tomato. Not the sort of thing I would even serve on a burger, let alone as a main component to the dish. The dressing was a well spiced mustard dressing. The heart of palm dish from the vegan menu was certainly a superior dish.
The pressed watermelon salad was great, as the night before. Well presented, well put together, and delicious.
The “vegan roll” was, good, but only one step above your average veggie roll. I expected more from a restaurant of this level (especially what I had seen the night before). The roll included asparagus, avocado, and I can’t remember exactly what else. It was served with a tart fruit based (maybe Japanese plum) sauce. It wasn’t terrible, but even with the restaurant being just across the lobby from the hotel, I never considered running over to grab another.So, if you end up in Waikiki be sure to get dinner at Roy’s. Just be sure to order off the vegan menu. The wait staff were very friendly and accommodating, both of my veganness and in finding gluten free options for my mom. I’m not exactly sure how they would deal with a gluten free vegan, but I’m sure they would come up with something for you. They do stock gluten free tamari as well.
