Joining Diane to bring Nonstop to fruition are former Metromix contributors Tracy Chan, Melissa Chang, John Garcia, Mari Taketa, Catherine Toth and myself. We have all been working tirelessly building the site, covering events, writing blogs and putting together food galleries. Exactly two months after our first meeting, we are now ready to launch Nonstop Honolulu this Monday, August 23rd.

Aside from our coverage of events and nightlife in Honolulu, Tracy, Melissa, Cat and I will have our own blogs on Nonstop where you can follow our adventures out on the town. You can follow our blogs at the following urls:

Baker’s Hours by Ed Morita

Night Lights by Tracy Chan

NoCache by John Garcia

The Daily Dish by Cat Toth

Urban Mixed Plate by Melissa Chang

If you live in Hawaii, or plan to visit Hawaii, I invite you to visit Nonstophonolulu.com, the NEW definitive site for covering food, events and nightlife in Honolulu!

Read more at:

Former Honolulu Advertiser employees producing NonstopHonolulu.com – Pacific Business News

Nonstop Honolulu Coming Monday – Hawaii Blog

The end, the beginning – The Daily Dish

Song stuck in my head at the time of this post: Cotton Eye Joe by the Rednex

It was slow at work, and I was bored, Nuf said.

According to culinary legend, the chef toque, which was invented by French chef Marie-Antoine Carême, has 100 pleats that signify the 100 different methods there are to prepare one of the most versatile ingredients in the world, the humble egg.

Yesterday, Alan Wong’s Restaurants announced their month long celebration of the versatile egg with a recipe contest. Foodies are invited to send in their favorite egg recipes between now and August 24th. The most original and inspirational recipes will be judged at an event at the Pineapple Room on September 21. Various chefs and Poultry professionals will be on hand to judge the entries and pick a winner in each of three categories, Appetizer, Entree & Dessert.

Winning Recipes will be (reproduced) ‘reinterpreted’ in the style of Alan Wong’s
Restaurants, to be recognized on the dinner menu and served at The Pineapple Room for a minimum of one month, as well as receive a gift certificate for a dinner for four at The Pineapple Room. You can download the complete contest rules here.

However, Chef Alan isn’t stopping there. Throughout the month of August, Alan Wong’s Restaurants will be celebrating the 100th anniversary of local egg producer, Petersons’ Upland Farm with egg themed menu specials.

Alan Wong’s King street location will be featuring:

Specialty Libation
Okolehao “Pisco Sour” / 11.00

Entrée
Opakapaka, Short Tail Pink Snapper

Dried Scallop Risotto “Chawan Mushi” / 32.00

Dessert
Classic Crème Brûlée with Menehune Gardens Vanilla / 7.00

The Pineapple Room will be featuring:

Breakfast
Tuna Moco, Petersons’ Upland Farm Sunny Side Up Eggs / 16.00

Malasada Breakfast Sandwich with Ham Egg Salad Croquette, Bacon / 9.00

Lunch
Crab Fried Rice “Egg Rolls” / 12.00

Dinner
Shrimp Flan with Soy Truffle Oil / 8.50

Dessert
Old Fashioned Custard Pie / 5.00

Song stuck in my heat at the time of this post: Fireflies by Owl City

Song stuck in my head at the time of this post: Just The Way You Are by Barry White

Throughout the month of June, Burgers on the Edge has been holding it’s annual Burger Genius contest to find the best burger that their customers can imagine. As the month draws to a close, seven finalists have emerged. Divided into three categories, Veggie, Turkey, and Beef, Burgers on the Edge has been tracking the sales of the the seven finalists, with part of the proceeds going to the Hawaii Food Bank. The winner becomes the new featured burger for an entire year, and it’s creator pockets $200 along with free burgers for a year.

Tonight, I got an opportunity to sample all seven burgers, but before I get into the individual flavors of the different burgers, I feel that I should disclose that I personally feel that the concept of a “Healthy Burger” is one of the most oxymoronic things I have ever heard of. I don’t mean to belittle people who like healthy burgers, they are just not my cup of tea. Hamburgers should be juicy, and greasy, and all the things that your cardiologist warns you to avoid. Carl’s Jr said it best, “If it doesn’t get all over the place, it doesn’t belong in your face.” However, even though I wouldn’t necessarily order a veggie or turkey burger, that doesn’t mean that the foodie in me can’t appreciate them. That said, let’s start with the Plan B Burger.

Plan B Burger

Patty: Panko Crusted Veggie Patty
Cheese: Muenster Cheese
Sauce: Tonkatsu
Toppings: Tomatoes, Lettuce, Sautéed Onions

This high protein veggie patty made from Quinua really caught my attention. At first, I thought that it was made from rice due to the fact that it tasted to me like the dirty rice you would find in a Mexican burrito. I am pleasantly surprised at how filling the quinua patty is.

I was expecting the tangy tonkatsu sauce to be stronger to add some flavor to compensate for the lack of fat in the burger, but it tilted more to the sweet side. Add the sweetness from the sautéed onions, and the flavor of muenster cheese was just lost in the mix.

Garden Isle Burger

Patty: Veggie
Cheese: Havarti Cheese
Sauce: Basil Pesto
Toppings: Vine ripened tomato, Island baby greens with sprouts and purple onion

The Garden Isle has the same quinua patty that is in the Plan B. I really enjoyed the pesto, which went well with the baby greens and sprouts. The basil added a lot of flavor while keeping the burger fresh. The Havarti cheese stood out a lot, and the bite of the raw purple onion did a good job of preventing the cheese from coating your mouth.

Although I still am not a fan of “healthy burgers” I can say that if you order this burger, you will definitely leave the table satisfied. Of the veggie burger entries, I would have to rank this one as my favorite.

Save the Chickens Burger

Patty: Turkey
Cheese: Mozzarella
Sauce: Cream of Mushroom
Toppings: Sauteed Onions, Thin Crispy onions, Green Leaf Lettuce

By far the burger with the catchiest name, the Save the Chickens burger would be the odds on favorite of advertisers. As of this post, the Save the Chickens burger is leading in contest, and I’m sure that the catchy name is not hurting sales any.

This burger reads very well on the menu. The cream of mushroom alone would make me order this burger if I saw it on a menu. However, the lean turkey burger doesn’t pair well with the rest of the ingredients. The mushroom gravy and onions over power the burger making the turkey patty mostly sandwich filler rather than adding to the flavor profile. I think that this would be a phenomenal burger if it were with a hamburger patty. The beef juices would pair beautifully with the cream of mushroom and crispy onions.

Mr. Smarty Pants Burger

Patty: Turkey
Cheese: Pepper Jack
Sauce: Basil Pesto
Toppings: Tomato, Fried Egg, Baby Spinach, Sprouts

I’m still not sure how the ingredients of this burger relates to the name “Mr. Smarty Pants”, so I’m assuming that the name refers to it’s creator. I really enjoy how the pesto compliments the lean turkey meat. Mean while the fried egg helps compensate for this burger’s lack of fat without making it greasy like bacon would.

Mr. Smarty Pants is a great burger, and I think that more people should order it. Of all the finalists, I would rate this one in my top two.

Kung POW Burger

Patty: Chuck
Cheese: Parmesan cheese
Sauce: garlic hoisin sauce
Toppings: Red onion, Mesclun greens, Green onion, fried egg roll wrapper

Similar to the way how I felt that the Save the Chickens burger had the wrong patty, I think that the Kung POW would be better with a turkey patty. The fattiness of the beef does not pair well with the hoisin sauce. When I hear Kung Pao, I definitely think poultry.

I do like the creativity of using fried egg roll wrappers in the burger. The added texture and slight saltiness is a pleasant surprise when you bite into it. One thing to keep in mind is to not let your burger sit for too long because the egg roll wrappers don’t stay crispy for long.

Da Local Kine Burger

Patty: Chuck
Cheese: Pepper Jack
Sauce: Li Hing Mui Mayo
Toppings: Grilled Pineapple, Grilled Spam

This burger is everything that your cardiologist warns you about when you get your yearly checkup. This burger wastes no time with greens what so ever, and if the beef patty isn’t fatty enough for you, then creator Mike Smith added grilled spam! (My fellow tasters and I were all surprised when we found out that this concoction was dreamed up by someone from Michigan)

Da Local Kine Burger grabbed all of our attention when we took our first bite. The sweetness of the grilled pineapple and saltiness from the spam is a real eye opener. The problem for me occurred when I got a taste of the li hing mui mayo. Reading the menu, I expected the sauce to be on the tart side, which would have gone well with the Pepper Jack cheese, but the opposite happened. The li hing mui mayo made the sandwich very sweet, and even added a slight pina colada flavor to everything. Although, not necessarily a bad thing if you are a fan of pina coladas.

The Southern Bell Burger

Patty: Chuck
Cheese: Sharp Cheddar
Sauce: Ranch Dressing
Toppings: Bread and Butter Pickles, Fried Green Tomato, Bacon & Raw Onions

By far my favorite burger among the finalists, which is astounding considering that two things that I loathe, ranch dressing & pickles, are in it. The thing that really makes this burger unique are the fried green tomatoes (which Burgers on the Edge now sells as a side dish). The crispy texture goes great with the ranch dressing. The “southern” theme is further complimented with the inclusion of bacon and good old fashion sharp cheddar.

I am amazed that a burger this good is not higher in the standings. Although 4th out of all the the entries is nothing to be ashamed of, I personally feel that this burger is the most deserving of winning. It has it all, a catchy name, unique ingredients, and it tastes great.

How do they stack?

The Burger Genius contest ends on Wednesday June 30th. In my opinion, in terms of taste, my top three are the Southern Bell as the best of the group, followed by Mr. Smarty Pants, and Save the Chickens as number three. But, don’t take my word for it, there is still 5 days for you to head over to Burgers on the Edge and try one of these seven finalists for yourself.

Song stuck in my head at the time of this post: Thriller by Michael Jackson

Recently, the folks at Waikiki Beach Walk asked the question, “Who makes the best Loco Moco in Waikiki?” Their smackdown pits Ocean House Restaurant, Cheeseburger Restaurant Waikiki, Jimmy Buffett’s at the Beachcomber, Giovanni Pastrami, Keoni’s by Keo, and Hula Grill against one another.

To help promote the Waikiki Beach Walk Loco Moco Smackdown, I’ll be guest hosting Mix It Up Hawaii with Neenz Faleafine this Friday at Hula Grill. If you would like to attend, here is the twtvite. While there, we’ll be sampling Hula Grill’s Loco Moco as well as talking story with whomever shows up. However, this Loco Moco Smackdown got me thinking, why stop at Waikiki?

After my Loco Moco gallery was published on Metromix, I got a lot of feed back from the restaurants involved. The owners of Nico’s at Pier 38 (the place I rated as having the #1 Loco Moco) contacted me and told me that they had people wanting to try their Loco Moco lining up out the door. One restaurant owner e-mailed me and offered to give me a free Loco Moco. He assumed that the reason why his restaurant wasn’t on the list was because I didn’t try his Loco Moco. The thing was, that I did try his Loco Moco, but I didn’t consider it top 10. I was confined to 10 for my list, but now, I have an opportunity to open up that list. So, I have put together a guide on Foodspotting.com of 30 Loco Mocos from around Oahu.

Are you up to the challenge? Can you handle the Loco Moco Smackdown?

Song stuck in my head at the time of this post: I Won’t Dance by Frank Sinatra

One of the popular features on Fodspotting are the guides and scavenger hunts where users are provided a list of food items that they must seek out. When the guides were first introduced, they were intended as a fun activity for the users. However, when combined with the eat-up concept, they have started to become social affairs. Wanting to nurture the eat-up idea in Hawaii, which ranks as one of the top metro areas for food spotted (second only to Foodspotting’s home city, San Francisco), during their visit to Honolulu, Alexa and her husband have organized the Farmer’s Market Eat-Up at Kapi’olani Community College on June 5th from 9 – 11 am.

“The Farmer’s Market Eat-Up is the first of what we hope will be many eat-ups in Hawaii!” says Alexa. “We’re planning a “photo scavenger hunt” around the farmer’s market and are going to try something silly and experimental: Instead of challenging you to spot specific items at specific vendors, we’re going to challenge teams of 2 or 3 to snap photos of foods that you think match certain adjectives, like “Most Interesting,” “Most Cute,” “Most Shiny.” We’ll pick the winners based on which photos we think best match the adjective. It’s kind of silly but we thought it was a fun twist on the food scavenger hunt, and fitting for a place where you never know what you’ll discover!”

The key part of social networking is the word “social”. Over the past few years, there has been a growing trend of people stepping away from their computers and meeting the individuals behind the online avatars. The most popular of these are known as a “Tweetup” where Twitter users get together to socialize. Recognizing the social aspect of food and how it can bring people together, Alexa and Ted have started to encourage their users to have “Eat-Ups”.

“We want to find ways to encourage these local communities that really made Foodspotting take off in the first place,” explains Foodspotting co-founder Alexa Andrzejewski. “One way we want to do this is by getting foodspotters together in real life through a series of Eat-Ups in various cities. We’d like to plan or have foodspotters plan regular eat-ups in their cities, where people get together, and try a specific dish from Foodspotting.”

If you would like to participate in the KCC Farmer’s Market Scavenger Hunt, you can RSVP at twtvite.com/fs-hnl. Don’t forget to download the Foodspotting iPhone app.

Don’t have a iPhone? You can still participate by e-mailing your sightings to: food@foodspotting.com.

Song stuck in my head at the time of this post: Papa’s Got A Brand New Bag by James Brown

Fret not Metromix fans for there still may be hope. Gannett, the company that owns Metromix is still negotiating with local media outlets to find a partner that will continue to manage the popular events, food, and nightlife site. In an attempt to raise support, A “Save Metromix Honolulu” page has been started on Facebook. If you have visited Metromix for the food galleries, or to see if your picture made it into the nightly Party Pics, then please visit and “like” the Save Metromix page on Facebook.

In the event that there is not last minute rescue for Metromix, it was a great run. Below are a few party pics taken at the “Wake” for our beloved Metromix.com.

Song stuck in my heat at the time of this post: All I Do is Win by DJ Khaled Feat. Ludacris

Song stuck in my head at the time of this post: A-ring-a-ding-ding-dingy-doo Ring-a-dingy-dong-ding from the Geico Commercial

With the growing demand to buy local, and to once again have sustainable agriculture in Hawaii, Kuahiwi Ranch will now fill a much needed void on Oahu by providing Locally grown and processed beef. Starting May 29th, Kuahiwi Ranch will now be selling their beef at the KCC Farmer’s Market. To mark their debut at the farmer’s market, Chef Alan Wong will be on hand to cook up hamburgers and loco mocos.

Owner Michelle Galimba will be at KCC from 7 – 11 am selling:

• Ground Beef ( 2 lb pack)                       $9.00
• Chuck cubed for stew (2 lb pack)           $9.00
• Thin Sliced BBQ (2 lb pack)                    $10.00
• Top Round steaks                                    $6.00/lb
• Ribeye/Spencer steaks                            $13.00/lb

Hopefully this will be the first step towards seeing locally grown beef in Hawaii’s supermarkets. Be sure to stop by the KCC Farmer’s Market this weekend to get a taste of Kuahiwi’s phenomenal beef, and maybe even take some home for dinner.

Song stuck in my head at the time of this post: Too Much Mustard by Prince’s Orchestra

Song stuck in my head at the time of this post: Wild World by Maxi Priest