Mix Things Up At This Takeout Gem

Honey Roasted Barbecue Pork ($12 per pound) File photo

Since opening in 2012, Asian Mix in Honolulu has continued to grow its number of regular customers, including some who have followed owner and manager Daniel Leung from his previous restaurant Panda Cuisine near Ala Moana.

Asian Mix offers restaurant-quality food, but in a convenient, takeout setting and at reasonable prices. The menu features traditional Chinese dishes, as well as some Japanese ramen and local favorites.

Among its most popular items is Roast Duck ($12.50 half, $24 whole), which sells out every day usually by 6 p.m. According to Leung, what makes the duck so good are these three things:

“One is quality control — we get our duck from the same farm (through the same wholesaler) every time, so it’s consistent,” he says. “Second is the sauce. It’s a sauce the chef has made for many years, since day one, and it’s a recipe from a very famous roast duck house in Hong Kong.

“The third thing is the process. We clean the skin and apply vinegar, sugar and honey, so when they roast it, the color comes out naturally and evenly. We don’t add color to it. Then, we put the sauce inside the duck, seal it and hang it in the refrigerator for 24 hours to marinate. The next day, we dry out the skin and then roast it in the oven for about one hour. It’s cooked well done, so the meat is really tender,” Leung says.

The last batch of duck is made around 3 p.m. each day, and customers are welcome to call in their orders to pickup for dinner.

Asian Mix also offers a great selection of refreshing bubble teas, milk teas and smoothies. There also is a fast-food counter from 10:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. with ready-made foods of some of the eatery’s top items, such as beef broccoli, orange chicken, noodles, chow fun, fried rice and more. Lastly, enjoy a plate lunch for $7.45 (includes two choices, plus a starch option).

GO FOR THE PORK

Also popular at Asian Mix is Honey Roasted Barbecue Pork, or char siu ($12 per pound), which is prepared using quality meat and a tasty homemade sauce.

“A lot of places that do char siu don’t put honey, but we use honey to make it,” explains owner and manager Daniel Leung. “We use shoulder meat because it is the most tender, and we make sure there’s not too much fat or (that it’s) too lean, otherwise it’ll be too dry. We marinate it the night before for about 12 hours, and then roast it in the oven the next day for about one hour.”

Asian Mix

1234 S. Beretania St. (Below Safeway)
521-1688
Daily, 10:30 a.m.-8:30 p.m.
Hiasianmix.com