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Cat Chat: Rainbow’s turns 50

By Catherine Toth Fox • June 1, 2011 • Food, Videos

In 1961 Seiju and Ayako Ifuku took a risk and opened Rainbow Drive-In on the corner of Kapahulu and Kanaina avenues just outside Waikiki.

They served 50-cent chili and rice plates and $1 barbecue steak plate lunches, along with 25-cent hamburgers and 14-cent french fries.

It was an instant hit with residents, many of whom hit the drive-in after spending the day at the beach. (There’s really nothing like eating a barbecue pork or chicken cutlet plate lunch after a few hours in the surf.)

And now, 50 years later, the iconic eatery in Kapahulu is known the world over. It’s been featured on national TV — including a recent episode of the Food Network’s “Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives” — and in magazines around the world. No trip to Oahu is complete without stopping at Rainbow’s for one of its chili plates, fried rice or slush floats.

We stopped by — and ate, of course — to talk to co-owner Jim Gusukuma about the drive-in’s history and plans to celebrate its golden anniversary. (And it involves a menu with prices from 1961.)

Here’s what he had to say:

Rainbow Drive-In’s 50th Anniversary Menu

June 18, 7 a.m.-1 p.m.: Fried rice, $1
July 16, 10 a.m.-5 p.m.: Hot dog and a drink, 25 cents
Aug. 14, 10 a.m.-5 p.m.: Hamburger, 25 cents
Sept. 17, 5 p.m.-9 p.m.: Saimin, 25 cents
Oct. 16, 11 a.m.-7 p.m.: Chili plate, $1

Next up: Surf movie night at 6 p.m. Saturday at Hawaiian South Shore, 320 Ward Ave. Rainbow Drive-In will be serving poke bowls ($6), saimin ($3), chili bowls ($3), barbecue beef or chicken sticks ($2 each) and barbecue beef or chicken stick bowls ($6).

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13 Comments

  • Reply M June 1, 2011 at 6:55 am

    Hello Cat! I got to keep those dates in mind for those cheap prices! I going try make that Surf Movie night too!

    • Reply Catherine Toth June 1, 2011 at 7:36 am

      Put them in your calendar!! I know I’m going to forget, so I’m going to go every day this summer 🙂

      • Reply M June 1, 2011 at 7:42 am

        You going everyday? Jim is going to really like you a lot!

        • Reply Catherine Toth June 1, 2011 at 10:26 am

          I’d be 1,000 pounds if I went everyday! 🙂

  • Reply WildeOscar June 1, 2011 at 7:44 am

    Two people really relaxed and enjoying food. This was a great Cat Chat. I would like to grow up to be either Jim or Cat.

    • Reply Catherine Toth June 1, 2011 at 10:27 am

      I think Jim has more fun — and more vacation time 🙂

  • Reply aloharoy June 1, 2011 at 9:00 am

    Don’t forget us non-surfers too! Wow, hitting Rainbows for a plate lunch after a day at the beach was so good … that I still remember the feeling to this day!

    Unfortunately, I don’t remember the 50-cent chili plates, though. I do remember I loved the chili plate and it was just the right price for us starving students who had no money. Maybe a few bucks but not sure exactly.

    Too bad I’m not on that side of town too often, othewise I’d surely stop by.

    • Reply Catherine Toth June 1, 2011 at 10:27 am

      I think if you figure how much you’d save on buying, say, 20 plates of fried rice for $1 each, it would be less than the money you’d spent on gas!

      • Reply Miles September 17, 2011 at 7:48 am

        Chili plates would give me more gas than that.

  • Reply M June 1, 2011 at 9:21 am

    I remember getting the chilli plates for a dollar.

    • Reply Catherine Toth June 1, 2011 at 10:28 am

      Hey, you’re dating yourself! 🙂

  • Reply David Jackson June 1, 2011 at 9:42 am

    Well now I have a plan for when I come home to visit 🙂

    • Reply Catherine Toth June 1, 2011 at 10:28 am

      You gotta plan your vacation around those dates!

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About Me

About Me
Born and raised on O‘ahu, Hawaiʻi, Catherine Toth Fox has been chronicling her adventures in her blog, The Cat Dish, for more than a decade. She worked as a newspaper reporter in Hawai‘i for 10 years and continues to freelance—in between teaching journalism, hitting the surf and eating everything in sight—for national and local print and online publications. She’s currently the editor of HAWAIʻI Magazine.

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