Hawaii Eats: The Plate Lunch

HawaiiEats

Photo credit: hellochris on Flickr

Growing up, the plate lunches of my childhood came from Diner’s Drive-In on Keeaumoku Street once located among warehouses, where Wal-Mart now stands. I remember eating chicken katsu, with two scoops of white rice and one scoop of macaroni salad, and I remember their thick double-fried (or maybe they were lard fried) French fries…but that’s another story!

Of course, the plate lunch in Hawaii has its roots extending far back beyond my childhood memories. According to fascinating article on the subject, Honolulu Magazine seems to have tracked the first plate lunches to push cart peddlers who began selling plate lunches to workers down at Honolulu’s waterfront during the 1920’s. Long standard plate-lunch-elements began back then; the white rice, the macaroni salad, the portion of protein (usually a meat; pig’s feet, hamburger steak, butterfish, SPAM™, etc.) along with Japanese pickled vegetables or kim chee.  According to the Honolulu Magazine article, a huge plate lunch like this could be had for 50 cents.

Everyone has his or her favorites, to be sure. Among the most popular plate lunches are chicken katsu, hamburger steak, teriyaki beef, mahi mahi, beef stew, and the ubiquitous mixed plate—a plate lunch made up of various main entrees and a safe bet for the famished or undecided among us!

A close cousin to Hawaii’s bento **Hawaii traditions link here**, the plate lunch goes one step further as a microcosm, truly reflecting Hawaii’s rich ethnic heritage. On one plate, there is rice (Japanese), meat jun (Korean), pork adobo (Filipino) and macaroni salad (Caucasian). A diverse mix to be sure, but not just diversity—the foods that make up a plate lunch, just like Hawaii’s people, are a complementary mix that makes for a uniquely pleasant multi-cultural experience.

Here are just a few places to get you started:
Keneke’s Plate Lunches (Waimanalo, Oahu)
Café 100 (Hilo, Hawaii)
Rainbow Drive-In (Kapahulu, Oahu)
Tex’s Drive Inn (Honoka’a, Hawaii)
Hana Hou (Haiku, Maui)

President Obama, a Hawaii native, listed Rainbow Drive-In in Honolulu as a must visit during his summer trip back to the islands. Where are your favorite plate lunch destinations?