Hamura's (with Olena Heu)

Aloha mai kakou, welcome to a new episode of What School You Went? where we start every conversation with this question because, well, that's how we connect here in Hawaii Nei. I'm Ron Mizutani, and today we're talking about one of Hawaii's iconic food destinations: Hamura Saimin on the island of Kauai. Charles and Aiko Hamura opened the tiny hole in the wall restaurant in 1952, and they've packed the crowds

Hello.

Good to see you.

Great to see you.

Thank you for being here. Before we get started, what school you went?

I'm a graduate of Kapaa High School. And a lot of people actually ask me when I graduated from Kamehameha.

Because they are the Warriors too.

Yes. And then when I tell them Kapaa, they usually tilt their head a little bit to the side and go, "hmm, Kauai?"

So you know, when Lanai was here I asked him to sing his alma mater. And he said, "I forget." You still remember?

Yep.

Give me a line.

Um, well, everybody knows, like, kind of, I guess the chorus-y part. But um, I'll start off with: "hail, hail, hail thee, Kapaa High." And then, "the woodlands shall echo, they shall ring as always the tops of the peaks shall echo, mau a mau" and then they repeat. And yeah. It's ingrained in there.

You know, my favorite memory of Kapaa... gosh, was it "Honeymoon in Vegas," Nicolas Cage? And so he was at the telephone booth in Kapaa.

Yep.

And he was talking to... I forget who? Maybe it was uh...

James Caan

James Caan. I was gonna say the son's name, Scott. And he said, "Now is it Kapa-a-a, or is it Kapa-a-a-a? And so I did this special when I was at KHON on movies on Kauai. And we, we, you know, intertwined movie clips with whatever we were doing. And we, you know, we had Nicolas Cage on one phone. And then I was on the other phone that I found that phone because there was really a payphone in that area.

Cool.

And we were going back and forth. And it was fun. But yeah. "Kapa-a-a, or is it Kapa-a-a-a?" So, lifer in Kapaa?

Well, I'm from Kilauea.

That's right.

So, North Shore, and I went to Kilauea Elementary and then went to Kapaa Intermediate, and then Kapaa High School.

Okay, my mom is Kilauea.

Oh!

Yeah, she was a Kilauea girl.

Aw, I love your mom. She's so sweet.

Well, she loves you, too. So let's get to Hamura. You know, it's the old Kress Lane.

Kress Street.

Kress Street. If you go all the way down, you see that army barracks, well it used to be, the Blue House if you will, and you're there. And boy, no matter where you from: Oahu, Kauai, Hanepepe, Kilauea, you know where Hamura's is. Why?

Well, 'cause it was the only place that was open late. Right? So you would go to like a concert or a football game, and then there was nothing else open. And then you have those comfort foods that are super salty and delicious.

What do you think? You know, when they first opened in 1952, and, you know, they, from what I understand they still have the same recipe when it comes to the broth. And I know they make their own noodles. Who would have thought this thing would still be going strong. And it's, you know, every... what do you call the online review and social media, they pitch it so visitors arrive there too.

Yeah, it's interesting, though, because it's not gourmet by any means. But I think it just has that comforting combination. And it's so local. I've actually had a lot of people when I visit Kauai tell me that they want the chiffon pie. So I think that's kind of emerged as like the latest thing to bring back because, you know, obviously everything else isn't as easily transportable, but just yeah...

That's that's, uh, her daughter created that, the lilikoi chiffon pie, and from what I understand they sell like 50-75 a day.

I believe it.

Yeah. And everybody kind of goes there for that too.

What's your favorite dishes?

You know, I go there for the won ton min. And then gotta have at least one barbecue stick. How about you?

Same, same or even if it's just like plain, like, saimin. And then yeah, you gotta get at least the chicken or the beef stick to gnaw on.

And their menu is very simple. I mean, you know, you can have your kamaboko, you can have your side, or you can have fried noodles if you want it, you know, fried... I just have such fond memories of Hamura and it's pretty much communal seating. I mean you sit there with strangers, most time, you know somebody in there, but it's never lost that ambiance and local, localness.

And I think rain or shine too. Like I think more in particular, when the weather is bad, you know, you want the hot saimin, but it's, it's just so iconic and, and especially after doing something you know, you just want something to satiate whatever your hunger cravings are. And another place that I also like is Oki Diner.

Oki Diner!

And I was thinking that was like their major competition.

They still...?

I don't know, because didn't they move? They were kind

They did move. They were by McDonald's in of...

And then they were at where Eggbert's used to be or Lihue. something.

Right? Right, right. Gosh, you just sent me back. That's another late night, you know, after Club Jetty and, what was the old one? Vanishing Point. All the discos we used to go to. You remember any of those names?

Well, they didn't have any when I was growing up.

Gilligan's?

No...

Not even Gilligan's?

Was Gilligan's at the hotel?

At the hotel. At the bowling alley.

Okay, okay. They tried to have stuff at Lihue Yes. For us kids. But you can't beat the bonfires at the beach, right? Lanes when I was growing up.

And those are legal by the way, on Kauai, correct?

Correct. Correct.

I know a few braddahs who they take their four wheel drives at Lydgate Park and they tear up the sand. That's illegal.

I feel like you know, obviously everybody loves Kauai, they always say the beauty of it. But I think for us, being from there, you do have a different energy, a different type of presence when you meet people. And so I try to carry that with me every day.

So I recently went home to Kauai. And I was doing a function over by, well, I keep thinking of the bar over there. But there was an event for Christmas. But I went back to Hamura because I parked right there.

Nice.

And you know, I said, "you know what, I gotta eat saimin." And I know that a lot of my friends and family still go there as often as they can. And there's just something very special about saimin. But with Hamura's it's, it's it's a part of Kauai. And the fabric of the island. You know, the original stools, from what I understand, are still there. Oh, yeah.

I wouldn't doubt it.

Yeah. And now, of course, they've expanded a little bit, but you know, they can now seat about 35 people, but it's still that same, you know, home feeling?

Well, I think, you know, when it comes to food, what's the number one thing you want? Consistency, right? Like, you want to know, when you go, it's going to be the same flavors and the same textures and the same combinations that it always is. And so, if you can produce something that's consistently the same, in that context, then I think you have a recipe for success. And obviously, because the menu is so small, you know, it's simple and cost effective for them.

It's cheap.

You know what to expect.

Inexpensive. I don't want to say cheap. But yeah, even foodies love it. And it's nothing fancy. It's just a bowl of saimin. And you can put on your green onions and your roast pork. And if you want won tons on the side... yeah, I'm getting hungry, just thinking about it. You know, people come from far away and visitors to tourists, Japanese tourists, they're all in there.

What I love too about the meat sticks is that char, like even when my father-in-law makes ribs, I love to eat like the burnt ones. And I know like it's probably not the best for you. But every once in a while, right?

Moderation.

Yes.

In moderation. You know the sad thing about businesses and really during COVID is we saw some of our best places to dine close their doors, and sadly, many of them will never reopen again. I just learned a couple of years ago in fact before COVID, that Ono Char-Burger in Anahola...

Yes.

Is gone!

Yep. I remember hearing about that.

I did not know that. And I sent somebody there. One of my son's friends was visiting Kauai. He's like, "oh, where to go? Where do we eat?" I said, "oh, go to this place called Ono Char-Burger, ask for..." what was his name, Dwayne?

Yup, Dwayne.

"...and go enjoy that burger." And it was nowhere

Yeah. So in 2018, my mom passed away. And then I was to be found. there for a good, like, year. She's a little bit of a packrat. So we had to like clean out the house and then renovate it. And, you know, Home Depot was in Lihue. So, you know, there was a lot of driving back and forth, but I had turned, my husband's a carpenter, and so I had turned him on to Dwayne's, or I guess it just turned into Ono Char-Burger. But oh, man, it was

Peanut butter.

No, no. Boysenberry.

Boysenberry?

Yeah, I think was boysenberry.

Yeah, you're right.

But he also loved their onion rings. So I feel like almost every week we were stopping at Ono Char-Burger and getting a burger and onion rings and a shake. And just yeah...

You know what? You would wait like 45 minutes for the burger to come. But it was so worth it.

Yes.

It was that good.

Absolutely.

I was absolutely stunned to learn that, that he was no longer open.

I think they closed maybe the next year. And it was kind of sudden, because we were still kind of going back and forth selling the house. And then it was like the next thing you know, like, "it's the last week to get your you know, burgers." And it's like, "what? They're closing? No way." So I think Daniel went, and yeah, so sad.

What a sad day. And he had all his chickens running over there. And Kauai is one of those places, there's chickens everywhere. Everywhere. And they greet you at Lihue Airport. Right? I mean, they literally are walking around the airport parking lot, but he had his chickens at his burger place and, and they were the friendliest, friendliest birds ever. Kauai has changed though. Kauai really has changed, hasn't it?

It's definitely grown and evolved. It was interesting though, because I was kind of there when Kapaa turned into kind of like a Haleiwa. Right. Right? And then there was all that traffic and all these different shops and I think everyone was making tacos, I was like, "why is everyone making tacos?"

There's like eight Mexican restaurants in Kapaa now.

Oh and then Bubba burgers is there too.

Back in the day, Kapaa was, when we were young, because we had... we used to go to um... help me out.

Country Kitchen?

No...

Otsuka's?

No no no...

Otsuka's, that's the furniture store.

Otsuka's, my sister used to work at Otsuka's. The Green family store. Oh my gosh, I have... shame on me.

What do they serve or sell?

Oh my gosh, my Kauai family's gonna be so mad at me. But it was a very simple, slow town. And you know, we jump off the bridge right there, right before the Kapaa school and you know, the park across the street, and now it's like, there's a bead shop-- shops everywhere. And there's food, which is awesome. But yeah, like you said traffic is just crazy.

Horrendous. Although, the poke place... uh... oh yeah... my classmate's gonna kill me... Poke Express? Fish Express?

That's in Lihue though, I think.

There's one in Kapaa too, next to Wailua Shave Ice.

You know, we're getting... we're advancing in age, I'll just say that. But yeah, my visions of Kapaa has changed. But, and I want to invite you to talk about this in a future show, but the visual that I have of Kapaa will always be seeing the telephone poles all on their sides after Iniki, and that image of... I mean, every single telephone pole

It was crazy because the whole area was just littered with roofs and pieces of buildings. And yeah.

It breaks my heart to think about it. Let's talk about that in a future show. But coming back to Hamura's, the old Kress Store, there was actually a Kress Store, that's what they call it Kress Street.

Oh!

You remember that?

No.

You remember Yoneji's?

No...

Oh my gosh.

Well, I remember Barbecue Inn...

Dairy Queen?

Small-kine remember Dairy Queen...

Okay that was right across the street. That whole area has evolved too. In fact, that was the only traffic light in Lihue for many years.

Wow.

And Yoneji's in the corner there.

What was Yoneji's?

It was like the place where we went to go buy food and goodies. It was like a little mom-and-pop family store. And I still think they have the logo or the family name on this building. I think it's a bank now or something. Hamura's still lasts after all these years, since 1952. Iconic, iconic, and I hope it never goes away.

Yeah. And usually with those kind of mom and pop shops, it all relies on the children, right? Whether or not they want to put in the work.

It is hard work. Yeah. But so far, their daughter has grabbed the reins and knows this is, maybe, she feels her responsibility to carry on mom and dad's legacy.

Well, hopefully her kids will keep it going too.

Yes, or somebody, because Hamura needs to be here for a long time. So that the next generation can enjoy.

How would you feel if it kind of became like a franchise?

I don't know if I'd like that. I think I like the fact that it's in that same, you know, little building, the stools, you gotta wait in line, you sit next to people you don't even know, and it's okay. And the food is so good. I don't know if I'd like it to franchise out like that. That's, that's part of the beauty of being on Kauai, too.

I bet they've been approached.

I'm sure.

But I could see it kind of being like a Zippy's because it has the name recognition and the simple menu and probably would be quite profitable.

Yeah. I'm sure they make good money. You know, but again, it's inexpensive and, you can go in there with 10 bucks and walk out full. I'm hungry. All right. Olena, thanks for stopping by. I really appreciate it. And then, I hope you can come back and we can talk a little bit more about beautiful Kauai. Anyway, thank you. Take care, mahalo nui for joining us. Tune in next week for another episode of What School You Went? Until next time, a hui hou.

What School You Went? is a PBS Hawaii production. Music by Taimane Gardner. If you enjoyed this episode, let us know on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter and tell your friends. You can find us on pbshawaii.org and everywhere you get your podcasts.