There are certainly many very popular items available at the Waikiki Beach Walk Open Market.
Personalized miniature surfboards? Check. Exquisite, handcrafted wood sculptures? Got ‘em. Exotic henna tatts? Roll up your sleeve.
As popular as those things are, the farm-fresh treats at the Waikiki Beach Walk farmer’s market always draw the biggest crowds, both for a quick snack or a delectable gift.
Here are some of the most popular.
CRAZY GOOD
Family finances have been known to drive many people crazy. For former banker Matthew Chun, it was the slavish faith in quantitative statistics that drove him to his nearly maniacal quest to deliver the perfect banana bread.
It all started when he woke up one morning with a craving for banana bread (like we all do, right?)
After a trip to a few stores that didn’t deliver what he was looking for, he naturally (for a banker) sat down and created a chart of all the attributes he considered essential for the perfect banana bread and promptly set out to make it.
By all accounts, he did.
And the evidence is available for everyone to test at the Waikiki Beach Walk Open Market, every Monday from 4 to 8PM at the Waikiki Beach Walk Plaza, where you’ll find Matthew’s perfect banana bread, hand-crafted with farm-fresh local bananas in 7 fantastic flavors and all with these 6 qualities deemed by Matthew to be essential for the perfect banana bread:
- Moistness
- Density
- Sweetness
- Consistency
- Crumbs (yes, crumbs)
- Color
And to prove he’s not kidding around, each delicious flavor is rated in all the above categories. (Spoiler alert: They nail each category - including crumbs).
Before you think this is a tad too calculating (which, to be fair, is what bankers do), Matthew notes that all their banana bread is proudly made from scratch.
Banker Gone Bananas www.koloheking.com
EVERY FAMILY HAS AT LEAST ONE JERK
For the Paradise Jerky family, it was Uncle Bobby.
Uncle Bobby invented the thin and crispy Premium Beef Chips that Paradise Jerky is famous for. Family and friends loved it so much that he decided to team up with his childhood best friend and launch their own business which thrived for 10 years until Bobby retired.
Rather than let this locally loved delicacy retire with him, they decided to carry on the legacy of Bobby’s original recipe and perfect it by adding fabulous new flavors.
Of which all are delicious and creative, made with the same painstaking care evident from the very beginning; all unwanted fat precisely sliced away, leaving razor-thin strips of lean beef. These careful cuts are then marinaded in their signature blend of traditional Hawaiian and Japanese flavors, then dried to perfection. The result is a delectable slice of jerky that not only provides an unbelievably satisfying crunch but also leaves you with a burst of umami flavors with every bite.
Now available to you every Monday at the Waikiki Beach Walk Open Market.
Paradise Jerky www.paradisejerky.com
(Not da) Kine Smoothies
There’s a common term in Hawai‘i pidgin called “da kine.” It’s a very popular term because it’s an easy catch-all word/phrase that can mean almost anything you can’t quite describe in detail or even in the moment.
There’s no doubt that locals will think that the name Kine Smoothies is somehow derived from “da kine.”
But it’s not. Kine Smoothies takes its name from Kine Thammarong, who has operated this delicious snack stand for over 8 years.
Kine Smoothies is where you can get farm-fresh fruit blended in sumptuous smoothies at your request. These are crafted from locally grown fresh fruit from the farms of O‘ahu and purchased at the daily market in Chinatown.
Those with a knack for names may note that Kine’s last name is Thai, and they would be right. That’s why along with farm-fresh fruit smoothies, Kine Smoothies also offers a delicious choice of Thai-influenced delicacies.
Like the sweet and tart green papaya salad, and the fabulous Mango Sticky Rice that combines fresh mango slices with the unique Thai sticky rice and a side of sweet coconut cream sauce. Another fan-favorite menu item is the tapioca bowl topped with your choice of fresh fruits straight from the farm.
Not as sweet, but just as savory, is Kine’s delicious Thai-style summer roll with your choice of shrimp or avocado and a side of Thai peanut dipping sauce.
This brings us to another common term in Hawaiian pidgin, “‘ono,” which means delicious.
ANOTHER TASTY TREAT: COMPLIMENTARY PARKING IN WAIKIKI
Waikiki Beach Walk has complimentary valet parking from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. with a $10 purchase from any Waikiki Beach Walk merchant or restaurant! (Regular parking rates apply after 3 p.m.) Just make sure to present the receipt to the valet!
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PHOTO CREDIT
All photos courtesy of Waikiki Beach Walk