Grindz in Kahuku

Kahuku sits at the top of Oʻahu where the highway meets sugarcane fields and the last shrimp farms on the island. It is fifty miles from Waikiki, which means tourists who make the drive are usually serious about eating.

The shrimp trucks (Giovanni's, Romy's, Fumi's, Andy's) are clustered along Kamehameha Highway. Each one sells garlic shrimp — buttery, garlicky, head-on shrimp from the aquaculture farms a mile away. The argument over which truck is best has been running for thirty years with no resolution.

Kahuku Superette is the one that visitors miss entirely. It's a convenience store with a poke counter in the back. The shoyu ahi is as good as anything in Honolulu. There is no sign for the poke counter. You just walk to the back of the store and look in the deli case.