Himalayan Kitchen & The Olive Tree Cafe - Ichi

Since my fellow bloggers have already written pages of wonderful stuff, I suppose the last of the trio least busiest contributing to society and making the world go round, should take a stab at it already. Plus the less then subtle poking and prodding is taking its toll on my procrastinating mind. So here is my take on both the Himalayan Kitchen (H) and Olive Tree Cafe (O).

Accessibility:

(H) Alright I must admit I dont spend too much time on this side of the island nor do I have the keenest sense of direction but if you dropped me off in the middle of kaimuki with directions to get there, it would be very difficult on the last stretch of it. There is no clear entryway or sign or even a direct door connecting the dinning area to the street. If I werent with Drea Im certain I would be walking around in circles. The restaurant is actually on the second floor of small corner building housing an Italian restaurant, pharmacy, and a couple of boutiques. There is ample paid parking and some street parking. We stayed at the restaurant for about 2 and a half hours and had to pay about three dollars so it wasnt too bad.

(O) The Olive Tree Cafe is also on a corner lot but is easier to find since you can see the big sign and entryway from on the street, but the parking sucks. There are about ten stalls designated for the entire building and two of three of us had to park in the kahala mall parking structure (drea you lucky son of a bitch...wait am I allowed to swear?).

Ambiance:

(H) The restaurant's dining area consisted of a small inside dining room which was painted bright yellow and decorated with various Indian wall art, hindu deities, and black and white stills of people I should probably know. Most of the seating however is outside. There were several round tables seating six comfortably under large umbrellas in the front with long stringed lighting connecting the tables. There were large parties of people celebrating, talking, or unwinding from the day, each equipped with a bottle of wine, and smiling faces. There is even a large gazebo to the left of the entryway for bigger parties, adding to the "come together" atmosphere. We were fortunate enough in my opinion to sit in the best area in house, the back balcony. It was a very different feel altogether. There were only four tables and they all overlooked the street and park below. The more intimate setting of the balcony was a huge contrast from the buzzing conversation and roaring laughter of the other two areas even if they were just yards away from each other.

(O) This restaurant has a more casual feel. It is a place you would go to more on a whim than for a planned party but the social atmosphere is very similar. Groups of four or more put together tables and sit in huddles around the bottles of wine they bought right next door owned by the same people as the restaurant. When you enter the glass doors of The Olive Tree right in front of you is a white counter top with a glass display attached with the days appetizers that dont require immediate consumption and above it is a whiteboard with a handwritten menu. There is a seemingly jolly red bearded man smiling back at you, waiting for you to make up your mind. You order at the counter, give your name, but dont pay right away, then find an open seat and wait. The decor is typical for what you would expect a greek restaurant to look like; grape vines and sky blue and white strips but my favorite part of the whole place was the huge signs that said "The Olive Tree, mostly greek food" and "Good food, not so fast food" Hey, at least their honest.

Food appeal/presentation:

For both restaurants they stuck with the common theme of simple food presentation, very clean and not too much pazazz. Our entrees at the Himalayan Kitchen were served family style in deep ceramic bowls and the naans on simple white round plates. The Olive Tree was single serving items that were very similar in presentation to one another, we even had trouble deciding who's was who's.

Tastiness:

(H) Since my fellowmen have gone through the logistical part of the foods we ate, I wont bore you with the same information, just my naive opinions on them. First of all there were no subtleties in any food we ate, they all had a distinctive punch of flavor, and if we had ordered our food spicy instead of mild I dont think I would be able to eat as much as I did. You must know I personally am not a fan of spicy, I believe you should actually taste your food not burn your tastebuds, but that's a whole other debate. The biggest theme that tied everything together was the amount of sauce they used to drench the meat, and that, I think, was the heart of the dish. The lamb and veggie balls were cooked well and added substance but it was more of a side note to the thick, cpice packed sauces. The naan was essential to the dinner for many reasons, first it is delicious on its own and if need be, I would eat it all by itself and be just as satisfied. Secondly the more delicate flavor is the perfect counterpart to the entrees to balance out the flavors and thirdly it is the vessel in which you use to slop up any of the delectable sauce still left on the plate

(O) The menu at this place was very limited and consisted of four or five of each appetizers, salad and entree. Kyle and I had lamb dishes and of course Drea had to have her veggie balls (falafels). We each cut our meal and like good little kindergarteners, we shared. I have never had any of these kinds of foods before coming here, but I found them to be of good quality and taste. Each of us had a side salad complete with sweet tomatoes and this mystery dressing that I completely fell in love with. Both lambs were cooked well done but not burnt or rubbery and even though they were similar in plating, wrapped in pita bread, the shaorma was cooked with peppers and spices to add a slight kick and had a creamy sauce adding to its depth. When Kyle wrote taht it reminded him of a hamburger, he was totally right, it does seem like the equivalent to the American burger. Drea's falafel was interesting to me, I was completely fascinated by its dark green tint and the way it tasted nothing like any combination of veggies I have ever tasted. The hummus as an appetizer was good, it just had too little pita!

Everything else:

Both places are BYOB which is not a problem for us as we can bring any wine we like and not have to choose from their house selections. The prices are reasonable considering its contents. The bill at the Himalayan restaurant for the three of us came out to be about $40 and each of us walked away with the next day's lunch. The greek place was about $10 a plate. They both wouldn't be places where you would go on a daily basis but for the occasional splurge they are perfect.