#floweats

WORDS: Vina Cristobal PHOTOS: Peter Cheng 

This week’s Flow Eats adventure took us to a popular Kaka’ako favorite, Hank’s Haute Dogs. Hank’s has been in the business for well over ___ years, but is immensely growing in popularity through social media. Along with its storefront on Auahi St., the hot dog stand has also opened a food truck – now located at the parking lot on 555 South Street.

Now these hot dogs aren’t your typical hot dog, in a bun, ketchup/mustard/relish deal. Hank’s encourages its customers to experience beyond the average hot dog meal. Sausages from far and wide can be found in this small hole-in-the-wall restaurant.

I ordered the Brat - a white sausage drenched in sauerkraut and brown mustard with a soft bun covering the dog. Peter [Cheng] ordered the Chili Dog – a soft bun wrapping a sausage smothered with chili beans - along with the crunchiest French fries that would make McDonald’s jealous.

The Brat was an acquired taste. Upon taking the first bite, it was a bit chewy. But the brown mustard and sauerkraut added more flavor to this otherwise pale meal. On the plus side, it allowed me to try something new. The same could easily be said for my colleague and his Chili Dog.

The French fries are an ideal addition to any meal, especially at Hank’s. It might cost another $3 or $4 to get a side order of fries, but it is definitely worth it if the hot dogs didn’t completely satisfy your appetite. The fries are the perfect mix of soft and crunchy, and not too much salt was added. Good show, Hank’s. Good show.

WORDS + PHOTOS: Raelyn Batacan

A friend of mine really loves beer, so we always use food and good company to bring our friends together just to get some drinks. This week we decided to take a visit to Honolulu Beerworks a small brewery on Cooke Street that brews their beer in-house daily.

Walking into the brewery you’ll find a set of recycled picnic tables, high chair seats, and the bar. Looking up at the bar, you’ll find the beer menu and their featured beer. Right outside, around the corner are more picnic tables that makes up the beer garden. We took a seat at the bar just we so we could have a chat with the bartender (we’re very social people). 

 While waiting for a friend, we ordered something just to get some things going. Their menus change from lunch (11 a.m. to 4 p.m.), to dinner (4:30 p.m. to closing), and we got dinner just as it started.

As you’re not encouraged to drink on an empty stomach, we started off our meal with the Miso Pork Sliders, kalua pork in their farmhouse ale and miso, topped with creamy wasabi Asian slaw on taro buns.

I’ve never had taro buns before and I don’t usually get pulled pork in my burgers. So this was definitely different - and I love different. The taro bun was the only sweet thing about it. The wasabi Asian slaw gave it the kick and the kalua gave the punch, It was a battle in my mouth.

As everyone’s all trying to get over the Oktoberfest hangover, we tried out the bratwurst that comes with the side of their coleslaw. The bratwurst lay on a bun with a blanket of grilled onions, horseradish and the comfort of their own mustard. What makes this dish has got to be their homemade mustard. Mustards seeds are something we should all try.

Now, I never really was a fan of beer, but spending quite some time in Europe changed that.

The beers on tap are all labeled by their Alcohol by Volume (ABV) and International Bitterness Units (IBU) and not knowing what any of that stuff means, I had to ask. To put it simply the ABV is how much alcohol is in it and have you ever wondered what made some beer so dark but others so light? That’s where the IBU comes in, if it’s darker, the more bitter and the lighter, the less bitter.

These two drinks pictured up top are the tasters, 4 oz for $2. Left is the Pia Mahi'ai Honey Citrus Saison 5.0% ABV 25 IBU and the right  Makakilo Brown Ale 5.6% ABV 35 IBU. See the difference? The Pia Mahi’ai was sweet and light compared to the Makakilo Brown which was mildly bitter.

They have a small list of home made brews but if you ever get stuck of only choosing a few, get the Flight, you choose any six you’d like to sample, write them down and you get to try them all!

WORDS + PICTURES BY: Vina Cristobal, founding editor-in-chief

This week’s Flow Eats feature goes to The Nook, which is tucked away in a small corner of Puck’s Alley on University Ave. As I’ve heard, this was the old Kiss My Grits before it closed down not too long ago. Nice to know that they’ve filled up this space with something equally quaint and small. 

I recently went on a solo expedition to the little bistro - and after five straight minutes of searching, I found it. 

The place resembled a classic Italian restaurant - similar to Buca di Beppo but more indoors and less room to move in. Regardless of the tiny space, the inside of the restaurant had that cabin-esque feel. A bevy of waiters dressed in gray Nook tees and denim pants trotted around to greet guests and to take their orders. 

Now, whenever I go out to eat at any restaurant setting, I’m not usually alone. I’m surrounded by loved ones or any sort of group that I familiarize myself with. I looked around and saw the other tables filled with couples or small groups of friends chatting away - or probably Yelping the place, for that matter. 

But anyway - onto the food, which is what I’m more focused on. 

To give you a quick tip, the Nook always has its own take on classic breakfast foods. Forget your typical daily Eggos. The Nook switches it up with a selection of mochi waffles. Egg and sausage sandwich? Scratch that. The wheat buns that typically layer the sandwich are replaced with sugary malasadas (which I’ll disucss briefly afterwards).

The server slid a plate of a large horchata chocolate muffin onto my table. I personally don’t eat dessert prior to the main course, but this time, that wasn’t the case. It reminded me of a soft, delicate muffin from the Costco packs (You know what I’m talking about, right?). But it was like eating a pillow - a tasty, chocolatey pillow, mind you.

Not too long after I devoured that delicacy, the main course finally arrived: The Nook’s specialty malasada breakfast sandwich. A Shinsato pork sausage patty was covered by a fried egg, and both components of the sandwich, as I previously mentioned, were smothered between two malasada buns. 

At first, eating a malasada sandwich with a large egg and a patty between it was a bit confusing for my taste buds, but I assume that it’s one of those “acquired taste” type of meals. You still have the sugary and grainy aspect of the malasada buns, but also the breakfast taste of the sausage and egg. It’s a win. 

Regarding the service there, it was still top-notch, even when I was by myself. Though it may have been a bit slow - it was still lunchtime - I was satisfied with the quality of the staff. It’s like the smiles never fade when and after they serve you (which is a good thing, right?). 

If you’re anywhere near University Avenue, I highly recommend The Nook. It’s affordable, perfect for any small group, and hey - I wouldn’t mind coming back for a second round of that horchata. 

The Nook

1053 University Avenue

Honolulu, HI 96826

Tuesdays through Sundays: 7:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. 

WORDS + PICTURES BY: SHAWN SAITO, PHOTOGRAPHER

* Editor's note: Welcome to our first ever Flow Eats segment! We will do our best to update this feature as much as we can. Our inaugural Flow Eats post was made by our photographer, Shawn Saito, with contributions with our two co-founders, Vina Cristobal and Peter Cheng. The shop owner could not be reached for comment. 

* The large Lucy's Lab Creamery wall welcomes all guests into its tiny shop on Kamakee St.  Located in a small street front store that’s conveniently a one or two minute walk from Ward Center and theaters, a new homemade ice cream shop has debuted. Lucy’s Lab Creamery focuses on the art of ice cream making through various item offerings and unique flavors. On my two occasions of having been to Lucy’s, once being Opening Day, I was pleased to meet friendly staff and a variety of ice cream flavors that I would have never thought of or would have tried before. 

*Shawn's choice: a scoop of Earl Grey mixed in with a scoop of Fruit Loop Vodka. 

  My first ice cream was the Sea Salted Caramel. It was a perfect balance of sweet and savory flavors all at once. It was also a popular flavor that night so it was going quickly. Upon my second visit, I tried their Earl Grey and Fruit Loop Vodka offerings. While the Earl Grey has just the right subtlety of flavors, the Vodka was a dream for any sugar or cereal lover. The ice cream is sold by the ounce, with  $1 per ounce being a reasonable cost for a homemade and premium dessert.

Unfortunately, the shop is small so there is no seating room to enjoy your dessert. If you go during the middle of the day, you’ll have to eat the ice cream quickly as the heat will melt the ice cream in a short manner of time. Also, due to the nature of being homemade, occasionally the shop will close for days in order to make a new batch. Just be wary of the times they are open and check their Facebook page for updates.

Overall, I believe that this is a great new shop that shares in the vision of Kakaako as a place for artists and visionaries to thrive in. With no ice cream shop at Ward Theatres, Lucy’s fills in the void for an ice cream shop that everyone can access with ease. If you’re ever in the neighborhood, I recommend that you try Lucy’s for yourself and experience some ice cream greatness. 

*Eat up! The unique variety of choices at Lucy's will satisfy any ice cream lover's cravings - from Tahitian vanilla to Nutella, no flavor is impossible to make.