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FUUD: Hanaki in Manoa Marketplace

By Catherine Toth Fox • April 1, 2011 • Food, Musings, The Daily Dish

Last year my parents debated between Waioli Tea Room and Hanaki, both in Manoa, for our annual Christmas Eve dinner.

Waioli won out for two reasons: 1) My mom had always wanted to eat there and 2) Hanaki, we had heard, was different.

The restaurant tucked in the back of Manoa Marketplace was once a favorite spot for my family, back when it offered a Japanese buffet.

But recently it changed, adopting the whole hot pot trend we’ve been seeing lately.

And I wasn’t sure what to expect.

So on my birthday, my parents decided to take me to Hanaki — to check it out. And let’s just say, I’m going again next week.

Here’s what my birthday dinner looked like:

no images were found

Hanaki, Manoa Marketplace, 2756 Woodlawn Dr. Phone: (808) 988-1551

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Catherine Toth Fox

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22 Comments

  • Reply Annoddah_Dave March 31, 2011 at 8:13 pm

    CAT: Aaaiiiyyyaaahhh! Fuud Pix! Tenks! Shabu shabu I really don’t get. You pay money to cook your own fuud! I’d rather pay to have someone else cook. I prefer the buffet even though I have to serve myself.

  • Reply M March 31, 2011 at 8:47 pm

    Hello Cat,
    Fuud pixs Friday!
    I enjoyed it when I went too. Time to got back!
    Happy April Fools Day! Happy Friday! Have a great weekend!

  • Reply Cat March 31, 2011 at 8:57 pm

    @Annoddah_Dave My mom says the same thing about paying someone else to cook! Hah!

  • Reply Cat March 31, 2011 at 8:57 pm

    @M I completely forgot about April Fools’ Day! I gotta get to scheming!

  • Reply matti2d March 31, 2011 at 9:30 pm

    Hotpot places are ok, but i don’t get their appeal in hawaii. there’s nothing like cooking over a steaming bowl of broth to top off a muggy, hot island day. I eat it sometimes up here in cali, but only in the winter and preferably when it’s been raining. hits the spot then.

  • Reply MaxMaxMax April 1, 2011 at 3:31 am

    I have been rudely refused service here twice over ten years when me (haole) and my GF (local-Filipina) have tried to eat here. I mean, “rudely…” and “twice!” We were dressed nicely, were only a couple, can’t think of why except for the obvious reason.

    I will refrain from posting my speculation as to why, but I think you know where I’m going.

  • Reply nonstopmari April 1, 2011 at 11:36 am

    @MaxMaxMax racial prejudice hurts, whether it’s committed agnst u or whether u witness it agnst someone else. it’s always shocking and base. idk abt ur specific situations, being a local jpnese in hawaii, but having lived and traveled elsewhere, i just wanted to say i’ve felt the same sting.

  • Reply MaxMaxMax April 1, 2011 at 1:04 pm

    @nonstopmari Yes, it is shocking, and no one is immune. After it happened the first time, we were like, “did that really just happen?” We thought maybe we read too much into it. But after the second time… Well, there’s lots of other places to eat!

  • Reply reehasmith April 2, 2011 at 1:45 am

    Thanks for sharing this great information about Japanese meals and Hanaki

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  • Reply dbjack April 2, 2011 at 4:28 am

    First time I had hot pot was in Chongqing, PRC and it was so delicious no way to forget it. Having said that it’s pot was in the form of ying and yang and the hot sauce side was so hot it would strip your palette of all skin if you weren’t careful. It was always alka seltzer before the meal and after!

    The thing I remember was ordering shrimp, shrimp is excellent in Sichuan Province. The only thing is it is still alive on the stick so you drop them in the sauce as fresh as fresh can get. It was weird but in the end so remarkably delicious.

    Of course life was not complete without Chongqing city Beer or 1956 Brand. Anything and I mean anything but Mao Tai.

    Can’t wait to try hot pot in Hawaii and see how it compares.

  • Reply 808marv April 2, 2011 at 6:27 am

    Wow I had no idea Hanaki stopped doing the buffet. I mean it was never all that great but I had many a workplace special occasion lunch there. One thing I will always remember is the shrimp tempura tray. Every time a new batch would come in it would be like throwing chum in the shark tank, just a total frenzy then only the batter bits would be left until the next batch lol. I like cooking my own meat at yakiniku places, but hot pot I can take or leave.

  • Reply Cat April 3, 2011 at 11:13 am

    @matti2d I was just talking to some of my Japanese students about this — how “seasonal foods and dishes” don’t apply here.

  • Reply Cat April 3, 2011 at 11:13 am

    @808marv Chum in a shark tank — I love the image!

  • Reply Cat April 3, 2011 at 11:14 am

    @dbjack Aw, man, you just made me hungry again. And for something I can’t readily eat.

  • Reply dbjack April 3, 2011 at 1:40 pm

    @Cat Sorry about that! Happy Birthday BTW. A trip to China is worth it, good food and interesting people.

  • Reply Weddings » Blog Archive » The Royal Wedding obsession | Nonstop Honolulu | Entertainment … April 4, 2011 at 7:23 am

    […] FUUD: Hanaki &#1110n Manoa Marketplace […]

  • Reply WildeOscar April 4, 2011 at 7:51 pm

    No spring chicken for this meal (last week’s birthday blog), but getting better with each year.

  • Reply Nanigurl April 5, 2011 at 4:08 am

    Does Hanaki give Hot Pot Heaven and Sweet Home Cafe a run for their money?

  • Reply Jayparasco April 7, 2011 at 2:27 am

    @Nanigurl

  • Reply Jayparasco April 7, 2011 at 2:29 am

    @Nanigurl I think SHC is waaaaay better and the best hot pot on island. I live in walking distance to Hanaki and will gladly make the drive to SHC when I’m in the mood for hot pot.

  • Reply Jayparasco April 7, 2011 at 2:29 am

    @Nanigurl I think SHC is waaaaay better and the best hot pot on island. I live in walking distance to Hanaki and will gladly make the drive to SHC when I’m in the mood for hot pot.

  • Reply Nanigurl April 7, 2011 at 3:20 am

    @Jayparasco Good to know! I guess they can all imitate but not duplicate.

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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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