Hamura Saimin — Restaurant in Kauai

If you decide to visit Kauai, Hamura's Saimin Stand in Lihue is a MUST STOP. It's less than 10 minutes from the Lihue airport. This place has probably been here for 60 years. It's pretty much an unmaintained, local shack of a restaurant and you can tell that the building is probably painted once every ten years.

At Hamura's, you will not be greeted by a hostess, nor will you get a booth to sit and there's no nice view of anything unless there's someone cute sitting across from you. You will find a low u-shaped zig-zag style counter with 30 or so stools around it. If you are a white-boy like me, you will get a few stares from the locals, but just pretend you know what you are doing and grab a stool! Plan on rubbing elbows with the people next to you. If you don't like "clean, spic and span" places, don't go here.

You'll be greeted with a 6-ounce glass of water along with disposable chopsticks and a tiny paper napkin. Order the 'Special Saimin" in whatever size you prefer - I like the Extra Large of course. The people aren't the most personable, so you'll be lucky to get a grunt from the waitress to confirm your order, but do not despair.

Saimin is not your typical ramen noodle, but rather brings together Japanese, Chinese, and Filipino styles into one Hawaiian dish (or bowl). If you like ramen, you'll love this dish. They also have some other side items, like teriyaki beef and tempura shrimp and so on, but they are pretty pricey compared to their famed noodle dish that you are about to enjoy. Once you are finished with the oodles of noodles, order the Lilikoi chiffon pie they have here. It is really THAT good.

Everything here is pretty much NO FRILLS, but you get what you pay for and the Saimin here is GREAT and inexpensive. If you have the chance, grab a shave ice at Halo Halo shave ice inside the Hamura's restaurant. They close it down at 3PM, so don't bother asking for shave ice after that time. Get ice cream on the bottom for a real treat!

Cash only! No reservations - they may not even have a telephone? Gets crowded...

CASH ONLY

Initial impressions were okay. Walking in, you see a very unique snake-like center table in an otherwise fairly average building. After some time to become accustomed, you realize the standards of the building are quite low. The air would be still if not for the multitude of fans constantly running. The walls are yellow, but that only emphasizes the dirtiness of the walls. Table cleanliness is not much better.

Service is okay. Neither good nor bad. That being said, the host reseated some people to help our walk-in group of 8 sit together. Now, that's kind of her towards us, but I think that's somewhat rude to the other guests. Otherwise, they took our orders very pragmatically. Also occasionally came by with some packaged thing to sell us, like a cookie. No standard courtesy "How's the food?" Or "Can I get you anything else?"

Meal wise, we had both chicken and beef skewers. They were decent. Well seasoned and overall solid. The time it took to bring them out made me think they were not made to order.

For the main course, I got the special saimin. It was... disappointing. It tasted and had the texture of a well-prepared, but cheap instant Ramen. My noodles were overcooked and mushy. The quality of all the materials was acceptable, but not good. Some meats were cooked, but cold -- implying freezer prep or similar. But most importantly, the broth was simple and mostly unseasoned. When I really tried, it tasted like a chicken broth. Otherwise, it was just a slightly salty liquid. There was absolutely no depth to the flavor.

And at last, we tried the cake. Which was decent, but definitely not made to order. It had hints of lemon, a spongy texture, and a well-balanced lilikoi cream.

All in all, disappointing. I considered a 1 star, but the skewers, acceptable service, initially good impressions, and low prices are enough to bump...

I finally got to try the infamous saimin establishment of Kauai.

ATMOSPHERE: The plantation-style building looks like someone's former home, as does the feel inside. It's open-air, with a communal table and counter that winds back and forth like a snake with mini stools to perch upon. The open-view kitchen is a bustling factory with steam, smoke, clinging and clanging.

MENU: Saimin, fried noodles, udon, beef, chicken, tempura, manapua, shave ice, halo halo, pie.

FOOD: BBQ Chicken Stick The boneless and skinless thigh looked and smelled great, but it was overcooked and a bit tough.

BBQ Beef Stick Marinated in the same sauce as the chicken, the beef was more tender and finished better than its chicken compadre.

Saimin Special Being the pig that I am, I went extra large, which wasn't as huge as you'd think. Broth sip first... Mmm piping hot, savory and shrimpy-tasting. Very nice! Next, the homemade noodles. Excellent flavor, though I forgot to follow the advice of other reviewers in asking for the noodles to be "half-cooked". It was a little soft but still had body to it. Being the "special", it came loaded with toppings - lots of tender charsiu, sliced bok choy and deli ham, half a boiled egg, green onions, and homemade won tuns with a peppery pork filling. I finished everything including the broth.

SERVICE: It's seat yourself. We came at the right time and snagged four seats before the constant flow of diners filled the place.

Our female server was friendly and quick yet patient, even taking the time to visually show guests the different saimin bowl sizes without attitude.

TIP: Cash only.

OVERALL: Well-deserved James Beard Foundation recognition, delicious and authentic...