Nijiya Market Ala Moana Store — Local services in Honolulu

I love Nijiya Market. Alot of my favorites are here, too many to list and have pictures of but one of my favorites is the Strawberry Mochi. Always fresh and Yummy. Kansai Yamato brand makes the mochi, a tart local strawberry 🍓 perched on top of a soft, sweet pillow of mochi with a bit of azuki filling. I like to have more mochi in my bites, so it’s just right for me! Yum! 😘 They have tons of other great things there, hoping to post their specialty seasonal items to come really soon.

Updated: 06/08/2023 I love croquettes. My favorite is Yasai flavored croquettes but the Curry ones at Nijiya are tasty. Not a Super strong curry flavor though but mild. I recommend toasting them for a bit to make them crunchy on the outside. They also had creamy seafood ones available as well.

Updated:07/18/2023 My Sister & Nephew picked up the Nijiya Choco Croissant for me. Not bad for $2.50. A drizzling of chocolate on the outside. Mid tasting. Around C rating. Best if heated in the microwave 25 seconds or so. Perfect with Tea or Coffee but I had absolutely no energy today so I drank a Red Bull. Lol. (Sorry I didn’t get mine from here. Its The Blue Edition Ocean Blast but you can order it on most Japanese websites)

07/24/2023 Tried the curry croquette. It was good. The Yasai (vegetable) is still my favorite but I would eat this again. I love croquettes anyway. (sorry the sakura cola was my personal drink i did not buy from Nijiya) The Bentos 🍱 are good here too. Especially the Okonomi. Nice mix of stuff.

08/05/2023 My Sister and Nephew picked up mini melon 🍈 pan from Nijiya. My first time trying it. The texture was a bit mushy. Kind of on the super sweet side. Not to my liking but I appreciate any gift so I ate a few and shared the rest. The loaf 🍞 of Nijiya brand bread was good though 👍

Update: Their Yakisoba is quite good for something out of a Convenience Store. Flavor is good with bits of beef and veggies throughout. I would buy it again. Also, it goes well with another Summer favorite, Ramune. They have Hata brand here which is one of my favorites. My mom picked up a Strawberry 🍓 and Orange 🍊 for me 😍 it was yummy! Tried a different bread too. Nice and thick. Perfect for a loaded sandwich, or use for...

Aesthetically, the new store isn't a major improvement over the old location on Pi'ikoi. It's sleeker but very gray and harshly fluorescent-lit, which clashes with the wood accents they added in an apparent half-hearted attempt to give the place somewhat of a softening appeal. It's vaguely reminiscent of the Foodland just yards away but without the design sense or appreciation for pleasant lighting.

The dining area is bare-bones basic and feels extremely, off-puttingly exposed; to paraphrase Marie Kondo, it sparks no joy whatsoever. Do they even actually want people to sit here, let alone eat? The entire effect felt odd at best. They had a chance to do something nice if not special (rather than just adequate) with this space, and wow, they really squandered it. I nostalgically recall the lovely atmosphere of Shirokiya just around the corner (RIP), and this place feels like its hostile, brutalist antithesis.

The available product selection is pretty much the same as before and as pricey as ever. One good thing though is that I guess the aisles aren't as cramped as they were at the previous location. 🤷

At first I was going to give them 3 stars, but now that I'm done with this review, I feel like that's slightly...

Nijiya is a small chain of markets in California and Hawaii specializing in Japanese foods.

THE STORE: Formerly part of the Ala Moana Plaza, they've relocated to the first level of Ala Moana Center in the Ewa (west) wing, I believe it took over part of the space that used to be the Vintage Cave restaurant. It's a lot smaller than I expected. Parking can be at a premium.

On top of the expected goods, they also had a nice selection of sushi, bentos, beer and wine. A small dining room was available at the front.

What I was on the hunt for and found was the Kagome-brand katsu sauce. It has the best balance of savory, sweet & tart of any brand on the market. Plus, it came in a size double of what I'm normally accustomed to with an affordable price to boot (500 ml for $6.29!).

Another product I was looking for but believe is no longer made are the big sleeves of Shirakiku-brand teriyaki nori. I used to find it at Walmart but haven't seen it for years, nor on Amazon.

Cashier service wasn't anything special as there was no greeting or gratitude.

OVERALL: Broad selection of specialized groceries at...