Arancino at The Kahala — Restaurant in Honolulu

You know those places that everyone leaves amazing reviews for and then you go and try it out and it is NOT AT ALL what you expected or anticipated or HOPED for? Yeah, that's not the case with Arancino at the Kahala...

It's better than the reviews, better than the pictures and no description of the food or the warm, incredible service could EVER do it justice. But... it doesn't hurt to try!

Beau and I have been coming to Arancino for a few months now. The first time we went, we decided to go "all out" with the pre-fixed tasting menu with the wine pairings and black truffle add-ons which was a great way to try a bit of everything. We regret nothing. We left our car with valet, strolled toward the beautiful open patio, walked beneath a roof of thick green vines and across the stone floor to the hostess. The evening began with a "Buona sera!" and a smile from every single staff member that saw us walk in. The hostess lead us to a table where we were then greeted by our main cameriere (server), Matt. He was assisted by a few different people throughout the night with different parts of the dinner. For example, one white-gloved gentleman brought us knives to choose from and the chef himself shaved the truffles for us, etc. Amazing service. Pampered to the max. I have the tendency to modify every dish wherever I go or ask for 'this instead of that' and they willingly and graciously obliged here.

What we ate that evening...

1. PALATE CLEANSER (pea mousse with prosciutto).... I would have happily had that for an entire meal.
2. BAGNA CAUDA (veggies in a pot w/ garlic dip)
3. FOIE GRAS TERRINE (just envision a culinary orgasm... like... oh.... my... where did you come from?!)
4. LOBSTER BISQUE (REAL lobster claw meat in a succulent, creamy bisque)
5. PAPPARDELLE W/ WAGYU BOLOGNESE (homemade pasta with bolognese made of wagyu beef... I don't even know what to say... I cried when I took a bite)
6. UNI PASTA (rich and buttery sea urchin roux pasta)
7. STRACOTTO DI MANZO w/TRUFFLED MASHED POTATO (here I cried for real- best dish of my life smothered in a wine-glaze reduction/gravy, truffled mash and shaved black truffles... I was afraid to keep eating because at some point there would be no more left on my plate and that was going to be a sad moment...) e cosi fu'!
8. BREAD - focaccia single serve, multi-grain roll/ciabatta, grissini di formaggio, unsalted butter and black lava salt.
9. Baba' (good, but I was not entirely impressed with this as I was expecting something more similar to the authentic Baba' napoletana... but beggars can't be choosers!! The flavor was there it was just the texture that wasn't spongy the way baba' should be... kudos for trying!)
10. Tiramisu deconstructed (yummy!)
11. Gift box of biscotti on the house!! Mmmmm!! 12)WINE... lots and LOTS of wine... We probably shouldn't have driven afterward...

Since then, we've been hooked. That, to this day, is the best meal of my life. When foodies like Rob and I are in the mood for extreme culinary orgasms, we order: -foie gras -stracotto di manzo -carbonara deconstructed -any custom cocktail that James whips up for us

Our favorite servers are Matt and James. Best service ever. Mr. Matt Stancato is an amazing Manager and understands what customer service is all about. We came for lunch one day and the wait for a table we reserved was extremely past the reservation time and he compensated us very well for our patience and made sure we were taken care of. It wasn't a huge deal for us that we had to wait as two suckers in love just keep drinking to the moment and we forgot how long we'd been waiting for anyway... But then James and Matt S. started making unforgettable drinks and we were slurring "You sneaky, sly baristas/magicians!" And all was forgiven.

If you are fortunate enough and come at a good time, there's an amazing accordion player that just enriches the atmosphere in a characteristic kind of way.

Beau and I have traveled all over the world and in our experience this is one of the BEST restaurants...

The world food tour made a stop in Italy, Arancino at The Kahala style. It had been a while (two years) since we last visited and we heard they made some changes to their menu so we looked forward to stopping by.

We started with a 2015 Paulownia, a Napa Cabernet Sauvignon I hadn’t seen before. Limited production; just 134 cases produced. It featured notes of dark fruit, chocolate and a hint of coffee; I really liked this wine and want to find more.

We paired the wine with the Affetato Misto, a charcuterie board that featured five kinds of cured meats, bits of parmigiano Reggiano, gherkins and pitted green olives. On the side were little pillows of fried bread; these were scrumptious!

We ordered three mains, spaghetti ai Ricci di Mare, a personal favorite and the reason I come to Arancino’s, Spaghetti alla Carbonara, and Pizza Carbonara as the food duo can never get enough of guanciale (sort of like bacon) and Waimanalo TKG eggs. The spaghetti Carbonara was redolent in truffle oil but we put it over the top by adding shaved truffles. The intoxicating scent of truffles was “to die” for. My Ricci di Mare was fine but I sensed something was missing … I couldn’t place it but there was something different. It didn’t stop me from cleaning my plate with some of the pillows from the misto.

The Pizza Carbonara was served last (by request) and we ended up taking more than half of it home. It was delicious and the scent of truffles was heavenly but I had eaten too many bread pillows so I had to tap. The crust was a little too soft in the center but the edges were perfect. The richness of the TKG yolk made it a luscious dish.

We didn’t have room for dessert though several sounded tempting. I had a French Press coffee; no Americano for me.

Final thoughts? We enjoyed our dinner. Service by Mike and Corie was professional and unobtrusive. The pace was leisurely, which we enjoyed. Too many restaurants now seem to want to rush you or place a time limit on your stay; we find that to be overbearing and dampens our experience....

Awesome! My daughter took me to Arancino's for Father's Day Dinner and it was awesome!

We've been there for many celebrations and it was on par for our expectations.

We arrived for our 5:00PM reservation and were seated promptly. Kudos to Arben and Justin for providing excellent service throughout the dinner.

The Focaccia bread was warm, soft, with the golden crisp crust.

We started with the Lobster Bisque which is consistently good. Next was the Tartare di Mare which is a nice combination of fish (ahi, kanpachi), avocado, and tobiko. It provided an inviting presentation. My daughter thorougly enjoyed it!

A new item for us that we needed to try was Carpaccio di Manzo. It was thinly sliced raw wagyu beef, tableside parmigiano, arugula, and a lemon dressing. It was terrific! It was superbly prepared, presented, and finished! My wife, daughter, and I enjoyed it immensly. A must try item!

Two other items that we specifically go to Arancino's for is the Affettato Misto (cured meat and cheese) and Calamari. Those two items were on point and goes well with the Foccocia bread and Lobster Bisque. My Asahi Beer refreshes my palate.

My wife and daughter ordered the Risotto which is something they always look forward to, prepared tableside, and was great!

We were disappointed that the Pesce al Sale (Sea Bass) was not available. But we understand the seasons. Branzino next time.

I had the Filet Mignon, which was rare, tender, and flavorful.

For dessert, My daughter had the Fragole con Gelato (strawberries and gelato), my wife, the Gelato Affogato, and I had the Bonet (my favorite). All desserts were on point!

We ordered a Porcellini Pizza to take home. It's a well-balanced delicious prosciutto pizza.

Again, kudos to Arben and Justin for providing excellent service to a terrific Father's Day Dinner at Arancino...