The Nighthawk — Restaurant in Honolulu

It was 9:30pm and I wanted a burger. Most places were closed. I was in Kakaako after work and asked a friend that lived in Chinatown if they been to NightHawk. He said he never had more than a hotdog here but meet the owner that was very friendly. We walk in and it’s pretty full with some people eating and then get slapped in the face with the sewage smell. As an old health inspector this can be a red flag. But no I stayed on the positive recommendations of our friend and the 4.7 google star review. The bar was full and active, so didn’t expect anyone to come to us so went to the bar to order. The music was so loud it made it very difficult to talk over the music. The Bartender looks at me and ask what I will have, I ask if the kitchen is still open, he shakes his had and I ordered 2 burgers then he ask if I want fries too and then I yes and asked how much a pour of the blanton’s was. The bartender told me $24 a pour. I answered no thank you and only having the 2 burgers. Then he turned around and got 2 glasses and started motioning toward the blanton’s. I said no… No (he is opening thr blanton’s), then had to scream (right before he pours) NO, JUST THE 2 burgers please (note it was so loud in here that was the only way I could get his attention and prevent him from wasting a pour of blanton’s, which I thought I was doing them a favor because I didn’t say I wanted it). The guy then gets the receipt and taps it by the register on the bartender side of the bar where the alcohol is at and walks away. So, I’m at this weird moment, wondering why he didn’t take my payment or ask any questions about the order or if I wanted anything else to drink. As a female, I spoke with respect and was treated subhuman at this point. I go to the person I’m with and tell them I’m not sure if we are getting our food or if we are being serviced then say we should leave. He goes up to the bar that has now cleared of several people and speaks to the other bartender and told him we ordered food but not sure if we are being served. The bartender says yes and he then orders a beer. The original bartender comes over and throws paper plates in front of us with other items including utensils, salt and pepper, ketchup, coasters and glasses of water while being completely silent and I get an inner gut feeling our food and water has been compromised. But we were at a point where if we have complained this would not be tolerated. The buns were stale, the quality of the burger was subpar with the center completely raw. Second strike on the health inspector handbook with ground beef needing to be cooked to an internal temperature of 160 degrees. And I mostly ate the fries and didn’t dare to drink the water. The second bartender was very kind (unfortunately he could not recover this review due to the rest being so wrong) but the original bartender continued to get the ick when on the way out staring at us while we got up to leave after paying.

Original bartender was an older Asian man as I did not...

A co-worker and I were looking for a place to have lunch and stopped in at The Nighthawk, just a block from our office, on King Street. We’ve passed by for years, but the place always seemed empty, so we never tried it as our rule has been to bypass places that aren’t crowded. As it turns out, it’ been our loss.

We started with a Ko’olau gin & tonic ($7) and a Jameson on the rocks ($7) as we perused the menu (on a blackboard at the back of the restaurant). Yes, this was a Mad Men’s lunch.

My friend ordered the Italian Beef Sandwich ($17.99); I tried the Kung Fu Ham (deep-fried pork belly) with fries ($16.99), and we split an order of Loaded Tots ($9.99) after hearing how good they were from a fellow foodie. Uh, the tater tots were okay but not “to die for” good. However, my deep-fried pork belly was crisp yet moist and tender … It was great! It came with a Thai chili / garlic sauce and some (I think) pickled cucumber. I say I think because I don’t like cucumbers, so I didn’t try it. It looked like namasu. The chili / garlic sauce was great … I needed more! My friend said the Italian Beef Sandwich was good. Our dishes came with fries … They were of the crinkle variety and were crisp; just how we like them.

We enjoyed our meal at The Nighthawk; it’s been added to our rotation of lunch spots. The staff is friendly, and the service is great....

What to say...

I stopped in for lunch with a friend. They(the bar) had a recent death of one of their cooks. So the typically jovial atmosphere was a little mournful. If you are local and care about local places and people, please, please stop by and have a toast for their newly departed. We are all in this world alone but the comfort of good people in our time of sadness goes a long way to our own path back to normal.

Now about the place, the food was great! Gyros were just like one on a Greek island. I would recommend the cheese curds or the loaded tater tots. The drinks are drinks, I don't need to tell you about how a beer tastes.

The atmosphere is very mid west. If you've never been to a local Chicago bar this is the closest that you can get to outside of Chicago.

Next time you're in Chinatown stop by and kick back,...