Hawaii
TOP FOUR: places to eat in honolulu
Fête This neighborhood restaurant in Chinatown serves top-notch food made from local ingredients. Diners can expect classic comfort dishes by a James Beard Foundation Award-winning chef, desserts by a top New York City pastry chef, French bistro touches, plus the best wine list in town, featuring mainly natural kinds.
Arden Waikiki At this restaurant, set in a boutique hotel overlooking Kapi‘ olani Park, chef Makoto Ono and his partner, pastry chef Amanda Cheng, create delicious wonders. Makoto crafts dishes like hamachi sashimi with Chinese ginger-scallion sauce, Japanese yuzu kosho and tart local sorrel leaves, while Amanda plates desserts such as her twist on a baked Hawaii— coconutmango sorbet wrapped in toasted meringue with pineapple, a sesame tuile and dark rum sauce.
Giovedi Drawing on Italian, Vietnamese, Japanese and Chinese influences, Giovedi serves innovative dishes like shimmering prosciutto slices covered in shaved Parmesan with giardiniera( pickled vegetables) and topped by Vietnamese banh tieu( hollow sesame donuts).
The Pig & The Lady This modern Vietnamese restaurant, owned and operated by the Le family, serves staples such as pho and bahn mi, plus creative originals including Le Fried Chicken Wings— sticky, crunchy and salty with tart kaffir lime and pickled vegetables.
SPRING 2026 • 51