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FUUD: Pablo's Cantina in Ward Centre

By Catherine Toth Fox • November 12, 2010 • Musings, The Daily Dish

It’s not every day you come across an Irish-themed pub that serves Mexican food.

But that’s exactly what Pablo McGinty’s is, a pub-slash-cantina that’s popular on the Mainland.

Too bad that’s not what opened last month in the space vacated by Compadres Bar & Grill in Ward Centre.

Instead, we have Pablo’s Cantina, a Mexican-style restaurant with maybe a couple of Irish-themed dishes such as Guinness beer-battered fish and chips and a solid lineup of beer. Not that I’m complaining — but the fusion would’ve been interesting.

The principal owner, Oahu native Steve Hamile, is a part-time Lanai resident who wanted to move this Long Beach, Calif.-based chain of Irish pubs to Hawaii. He saw the void left by the closing of Compadres, a fixture in the Ala Moana area and famous for its Taco Tuesdays, which offered cheap tacos and drink specials. (Pablo’s is bringing that traditional back, by the way.)

In all, the food was, well, good enough. It didn’t blow my mind, but Pablo’s did offer some unique dishes that are worth trying. And you can’t beat the prices — you get a lot of food for a fairly reasonable price — the hours — open daily from 11 a.m. to 2 a.m. — or the bar selection.

It’s a great place for hanging with your friends — there was ’80s music by Cyndi Lauper, Billy Joel and The Cure playing on the house speakers — or meet with coworkers. Not the best date spot — but still, a fun restaurant to check out before watching a movie or heading home after a long day at work.

Here’s what we ate:

no images were found

Pablo Cantina, Ward Centre, 1200 Ala Moana Blvd. Hours: 11 a.m. to 2 a.m. daily. Phone: 808-591-8307

***

To read all of Cat’s blogs, visit www.nonstophonolulu.com/thedailydish. Follow Cat on Twitter @thedailydish or send her an e-mail at [email protected].

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10 Comments

  • Reply russkar November 11, 2010 at 9:32 pm

    Hey Cat ,
    Hate to be a party pooper but we were just there last tue and nothing was very good, in fact disappointing. I’m curious what other think?

  • Reply WildeOscar November 11, 2010 at 11:41 pm

    Pablos had me with the Negra Modelo sign outside the door. Just the thing to slake my thirst for a brewed beverage. Una cerveza no es nada; dos, dos son la mitad de una; tres, tres son una; vamos a empezar…

    You mean they serve food too?

  • Reply 808marv November 12, 2010 at 1:00 am

    What no corned beef & cabbage burritos? 😉 The steak and al pastor look ono, and desserts sound good. Looks worth a try one of these days.

  • Reply matti2d November 12, 2010 at 2:20 am

    I’m a little wary about ethnic food in cities where that particular culture isn’t really established. kinda like eating seafood in Kansas City. One of the good/bad things about living in California is that I was introduced to good Mexican food. the bad thing about it is my local carniceria has spoiled me for chain type mexican food.

  • Reply turkfontaine November 12, 2010 at 3:48 am

    I’m always leery of heavy handed, large scale, high concept, in-your-face Mexican restaurants. I’ve usually found them to be too long on color and too short on cooking. They seem to have gimicks, like blue corn tortilla chips or margaritas the size of your toilet.

    As a long time Texan and anglo-wetback, when it comes to Mexican food, I’m a poverty snob. The cheaper it is the better it is. Like the awesome asian holes in the walls of Honolulu, small dives that can bring tears and humility to the most exacting gourmand, the little Mexican restaurants in places like east Austin, or El West Side, San Antonio know how to get it right.

    I’m surprised there are not such in Honolulu, cause, y’know, Mexicans are really Polynesians who got there first.

  • Reply m November 12, 2010 at 6:49 am

    Hello Cat!
    Fuud pixs Friday!
    I have tickets for Ward Center this weekend for the Festival of Giving. I will be checking out the discounts the merchants will be having all weekend long!

  • Reply miyashiro November 12, 2010 at 10:04 am

    Yikes, those are some wimpy looking tacos!

  • Reply ChuckvonArnswaldt November 12, 2010 at 10:40 am

    Yay for the magaritas

  • Reply DKMomus November 13, 2010 at 7:45 pm

    wait, why is it ‘curious’ that cheese was placed atop the black beans? and was it feta for sure? it is very customary to serve cotijo or anejo cheese atop black beans, which is often mistaken for feta. i’d say there’s nothing curious about that. hmm… curious, but not enough to ask the server?!

  • Reply ron November 13, 2010 at 11:20 pm

    Fuud Pix Fridays!

    Next time, check out their nachos. Its HUGE. Wound up splitting a set of chips/salsa, a plate of nachos and had a margarita. It was plenty for the night. I’ll try the fajitas next. Great place to kick back on Friday afternoon before starting the weekend.

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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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