Ninnikuya

Take a look at the sign, Ninnikuya is known as the Garlic Restaurant.  And oh is this good stuff - if you like garlic!

Dinner at Ninnikuya

We shared a spinach salad for starters.  In the salad there was cooked garlic and it tasted great.  Dinner was a ribeye steak served sizzling on a platter with large chunks of garlic.  We cut pieces of the steak and chunks of garlic and the taste was just fantastic.  A side order of garlic-fried rice balanced out the meal.

Each time I've been to Ninnikuya, everything I ate had garlic in it.  I think nearly everything on the menu has garlic.  The desserts are non-garlic foods, but you can have some garlic sauce added to your ice cream if you're in the mood.  Oh, and if you get gas easily, bring some…

The Surf Room at The Royal Hawaiian Hotel

The Surf Room is an oceanside restaurant with a full menu.  On Friday nights there's also a seafood buffet.  We visited the Surf Room recently and tried the buffet.

If you're not a seafood lover, don't worry.  The buffet has a wide variety of foods.  On the evening of our visit, the seafood selections included crab, shrimp, sashimi and oysters.  Other main courses were chicken, pasta and prime rib.  There were several different salads that were tasty and healthy. 

We talked with the waiter and learned that the menu changes frequently.  We looked at the array of desserts and tried hard to just take what we could eat.  That night we enjoyed pumpkin mousse, bread pudding, haupia cake and a pastry with green tea…

Oahu low flush $100 toilet rebate will expire this year

Have you replaced your toilet lately?  If you've been thinking about it, now is a good time to get it done.

Ten years ago, the City and County of Honolulu decided to offer a rebate to people replacing their toilets with a low-flush toilet.  The rebate is $100 for toilets installed no later than June 30, 2008.  The application form must be filed with the City and County no later than July 1, 2008.

The new generation of low flush toilets works great

You may remember the first generation of low-flush toilets didn't work very well and often required more than one flush to clear the bowl.  I'm happy to say that the newer toilets work great!  I'm no toilet expert, but professionals told me to buy a…

Keo's Thai Cuisine

This popular restaurant has been on Oahu since 1981. Keo's used to be at the corner of Date Street and Kapahulu Avenue, where a Starbucks is now located.  In 1997 the restaurant moved to Waikiki at 2028 Kuhio Avenue, where it intersects with Kuamoo Street.

Parking is by valet service.  In this area, street parking is in short supply and it will save you some hassles to use the valet. 

If you're planning for an early dinner, checkout the Dining Out section in Sunday's Honolulu Advertiser for early bird coupons.

We ate at Keo's during the holidays on a weekend evening.  The service was good and Keo personally greeted customers. 

We ordered the panang curry, cashew chicken and pad thai noodles.  We also ordered sticky rice for…

Deadline for filing Oahu tax appeals is 1/15/08

If you're a homeowner on Oahu and want to appeal your assessed property value, the deadline is next Tuesday!  Your letter must be postmarked by that date or you'll have to wait until next year and try again.  The tax assessment office does not accept appeals sent by fax. 

The form for filing appeals is BFS-RP-P-51.  You can download it at our website: http://www.oahumls.net/realestatefaq.php.

Please note that there's a $25 fee payable to the City and County of Honolulu for filing an appeal.

Good Luck!

Mike Bates

Hawaiian Winters - it's not always sunny here

Two thousand and seven was a pretty dry year in Hawaii.  Ironic, because in 2006 we had the "40 days and nights" of rain in March and April.  

On December 4, 2007 we got another heavy dose of rain.  I woke up around 2 a.m. to the sound of wind and rain, pelting the south side of our home.  It was unusual because Hawaii normally experiences trade winds, which come from the northeast.  The rain was traveling in a near horizontal pattern, flying into our south-facing windows and covering the kitchen floor with water.

I looked outside to check on our two dogs.  Our kitchen porch is covered, but with this unusual strong wind and rain from the south the porch was soaked.  And so were our two dogs.  The dogs…

Jason Scott Lee in Honolulu

Last Friday night my girlfriend and I were eating dinner at a favorite restaurant in Kapahulu, a neighborhood near Diamond Head in Honolulu.

We were just about finished eating and my girlfriend noticed Jason Scott Lee was sitting down with friends.  We're both Bruce Lee fans and really enjoyed Jason's portrayal of him in the movie, Dragon.

Lucky for us, I had my camera in the car.  I walked to the car, came back and paid the bill and then we looked in Jason's direction.  My girlfriend was nervous about asking for a photo, I figured it wouldn't hurt to ask. 

I walked over to his table and asked if I could get a picture of Jason with my girlfriend.  He said yes, then his friend offered to take the photo and I could be in the…

Heavenly Hana is happening!

Why do I say that?  Because Hana is a favored area for people that want to be away from the crowds.  The most famous example is probably Oprah Winfrey.  Olivia Harrison (George Harrison's wife - George passed away in 2001) also has property in Hana.

I've been looking at properties with customers in Hana lately and it's interesting to see people that like this life of seclusion.  Okay, Kahului is a 2-hour (or less) drive and only about 20 minutes by airplane.  Being a Honolulu resident, I am more used to driving a couple of miles and getting what I need at the big box stores.  Also, work is plentiful in Honolulu.  In Hana... there probably aren't so many jobs.

Hana town has a population of about 1,000 and another 2,000 or so…