I have fond memories of growing up in Kalihi Valley on O‘ahu.

We used to walk up to a statue of Mary on the hillside — it’s a replica of one in Madeira, incidentally — near our house, watch movies at the old Holiday Theater at Kamehameha Shopping Center, and buy butter rolls at Valley High Bakery.

And I loved going to Kenny’s Burgerhouse at Kamehameha Shopping Center where McDonald’s is now. I remember the burger joint before it was enclosed — and, of course, I remember the tabletop video games, too. Highlight of any visit there!

But that place closed down in December 2012, after 42 years. But that was OK. Kenny’s Coffee Shop and Restaurant across the strip mall was still open — and most of the burger house’s patrons just went over there instead.

But now that restaurant has closed yesterday.

It’s truly an end of an era.

I took my mom (top photo) to the restaurant this weekend for one last meal at Kenny’s. (She used to work at the burger house and the little okazuya that was open next door to the coffee shop, oh, almost 50 years ago.)

As expected, everyone turned up for their last — or maybe first — chopped steak, Chinese chicken salad, fried rice or Cheesy Gal Burger. We had to wait about 20 minutes for a table for two — and we were there at 1 p.m., well after the lunch rush — and the line was still out the door.

The menu tells the story of this place: it’s old-school, with old-fashioned dishes to match. Stuffed cabbage, turkey pot pie, pork chops and — of course — liver with bacon and onions.

John Fujieki Jr. — the son of the owner and part of the family who started the Star Market chain — decided to close the restaurant after a series of recent health complications, including a stroke, he told Pacific Business News. He closed its Kenny’s Hawaiian Barbecue location in the Royal Hawaiian Center on July 4. The restaurant closed yesterday.

No word on what restaurant or business will move into the prime location at the mall at the corner of School Street and Likelike Highway.

Here’s what our last meal at Kenny’s looked like:

My mom will order fried saimin anywhere it’s sold — so it’s no surprise she ordered it here, too. It came topped with generous amounts of kamaboko (fish cake) and green onions.

While I really wanted the hamburger steak plate, I opted for the Suzie-Q, thinly sliced marinated ribeye grilled in teri sauce and topped with melted American cheese on a toasted hamburger bun.

It was your basic teri beef sandwich, balanced in saltiness, with the meat cut thin and tender. All it needed was mayonnaise!

I ordered a burger because I wanted dessert. This is, by far, my favorite item NOT on the menu: the Manager’s Special. I used to get this with chocolate ice cream when I was a kid. But on this day, I didn’t have a choice. The thin waffle was topped with vanilla ice cream, strawberries and whipped cream. It was like a strawberry shortcake but better. Man, I’m going to miss this!