Hotdog Sushi and more on the Big Island of Hawaii
I don’t think I’ll ever become a true “sushi connoisseur.” It‘s just too expensive to wolf down raw fish on a daily basis. That said, when I’m on vacation, I don’t hold back. Sushi becomes a non-stop obsession. An everyday quest for ultimate sushi power!
I recently had a trip the Big Island of Hawaii where my girlfriend showed me around her home town for some super sushi action.
First Stop : Genki Sushi
Sushi Conveyor belts are hard to come by, so I was pretty excited to see this.
YEAAAAAH!!!
There’s just something inherently fun about picking food off a moving conveyor belt. The only thing better than eating raw fish is staring at a never ending train of raw fish while eating more raw fish.
Like most conveyor belt joints, this was some cheap stuff and the crew isn’t afraid to have a bit of fun making some weird rolls. How weird? Hot Dog Sushi. I loved it.
Up next is a Spam sushi roll. That might sound crazy, but believe it or not, Spam and rice rolls are actually very popular in Hawaii.
These are called Musubis. The unofficial “Hawaiian Powerbar,” featuring fried spam and egg placed on a bed of sushi rice and wrapped with seaweed. They are available at almost every supermarket and even most gas stations. Great for on-the-go munchin’.
Speaking of local favorites, Nest Stop: The Pine Tree Cafe
Spicy Tuna Poke Combo
Poke is small chunks of raw fish (usually tuna) marinated in sea salt, shoyu (soy sauce) and sesame oil. The acidic oils actually cook the fish a bit. It makes for a tangy bite that goes great with rice, mayo and pickled cucumbers.
Nest stop Sushi Shiono:
Rolls listed from top left to bottom right: Spider roll, Mauna Kea roll, Special California roll, and Yum yum roll.
Some have called this shop “The Best Sushi on the Big Island.” I obviously haven’t spent enough time in Hawaii to make any such claim, but I will say that it was damn good and made me dance a bit.
Last stop, Hilo Bay Cafe:
We set a course for the other side of the Island to the big little city of Hilo. This is the last meal I’d like to share with you. Please forgive the poor image quality. I wish I had a lighting rig and a better camera because this bowl is the best food I’ve ever eaten. Yes, I know that sounds crazy, but this is it! My all-time favorite dish: the Lobster Duck Chirashi Sushi.
This bowl has got all the best things in life. Lobster poke, hamachi, unagi, chilled duck breast, kimchi, radish greens, a two-minute egg and a pickled cucumber.
That concludes my little sushi extravaganza. If you enjoyed this kind of content, let me know. I’ll keep pulling my phone out at dinner!
[Sushi charicter in header image drawn by “Animegirl15″@dragoart.com… I took the photo of the beach]
About the Author
Joe-Lou is an offbeat musician from Providence RI. His real job involves designing exhibits, but by night he does this stuff.
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