Seafood shines with true flavor of freshness

Bento No. 6 ($12)

You can find all sorts of poke bowls in Hawaii, but at Ahi & Vegetable, owner Sam Seo says the fish he gets daily from Pier 38 is so fresh that he doesn’t want to overwhelm the flavor of his poke with condiments.

That’s why you can find simple, glistening chunks of ahi on his menu, lightly seasoned with soy sauce, sesame oil and onions — just like Poke Salad ($10), in which the ahi is served over freshly cut lettuce.

Sushi Special ($12)

“We also serve dishes for people who might want cooked items, whether it’s a preference or part of their diet,” says Seo. Bento No. 6 ($12) features unagi, or cooked eel, served with a special soy sauce-based sauce, along with sweet teriyaki beef and grilled chicken over a bed of furikake rice.

Another popular item is Sushi Special ($12), serving individual nigiri topped with generous slices of ahi, salmon, hamachi, ika, tamago and ebi. The rest of the menu includes filling donburi and bentos, healthy and light salads, craveable poke bowls with spicy and shoyu ahi and more. You can make most of the menu items into a set with miso soup, rice and/or salad for just $1 more, and also choose between brown rice, white rice or sushi rice.

Poke Salad ($10)

Ahi and Vegetable’s second location at Kapalama Shopping Center is currently undergoing renovations and will be expanding this summer to the vacant space next door. According to Seo, there will be enough seating for 80 to 90 customers, a bigger kitchen and more menu items. The first store can be found in Downtown Honolulu, where it has been open for the past 11 years.

Ahi & Vegetable

1210 Dillingham Blvd., Kalihi
845-3500
Daily, 9 a.m.-9 p.m.