‘Sea’ What’s Cookin’ Inside This Village

As Seafood Village Chinese Cuisine manager Yao Ming Guan explains, Cantonese-style cuisine typically comes to mind when you think of the broad spectrum of Chinese food, such as roast duck and dim sum. At Seafood Village Chinese Cuisine in Hyatt Regency Waikiki Resort and Spa, diners can get a taste of what traditional Cantonese fare has to offer.

To whet your appetite, Guan recommends Salt and Pepper Calamari ($19.95) to complement any meal.

“This is one of my favorite dishes,” he says. “It is very tasty because it’s crispy on the outside and very tender on the inside.”

If it’s all in a name, then it’s safe to assume that seafood is a good place to begin. Wok-Fried Ocean Harvest Basket ($22.95) features four kinds of seafood — prawns, scallop, calamari and fish fillet — stir-fried with vegetables and placed neatly in an edible taro basket.

Even with all that seafood, the vegetables are not to be outdone. Marinated in a light sauce, broccoli, carrots and mushrooms are nice accompaniments to the other ingredients.

If you’re hungry for more seafood, then check out Clams with Black Bean Sauce ($22.95), which features steamed clams bathed in your choice of sauce, be it black bean (as pictured) or ginger scallion.

Another must-try is Zesty Lemon Chicken ($15.95). Guan refers to this restaurant favorite as a special take on chicken katsu.

“We bread and deep fry the chicken breast, and glaze it with a zesty lemon sauce,” he explains.

A new item is Signature Roasted Crispy Beef Tenderloin ($25.95), which consists of tender bitesized pieces of beef complemented with a mildly sweet sauce.

“First, we will steam the beef to cook it. Then, we will roast the skin to make it crispy,” Guan says of this mouth-watering dish.

There’s a sea of flavors to sample. Jump right in!

On the Side

Seafood Village, in the heart of Waikiki, brings an authentic taste of Chinese cuisine to the table.

Restaurant manager and China native Yao Ming Guan immigrated to Hawaii about 15 years ago, and has worked in a string of Chinese restaurants since then. He first came to Seafood Village more than two years ago as a server.

The restaurant, he says, offers traditional Cantonese-style eats.

“Cantonese cuisine is a bit sweeter compared to cuisine from the Northern part of China,” he explains.

Open for lunch and dinner, Seafood Village features a wide variety of noodles, soups, meaty dishes and, of course, seafood-based creations.

Dim sum originated in the Canton region of China, and Guan says that these dumplings are quite popular as well. The full dim sum menu is available for lunch, with select items available in a sampler for dinner.

Contact Christina O’Connor at diningout@staradvertiser.com

Seafood Village Chinese Cuisine

Hyatt Regency Waikiki Resort and Spa
2424 Kalakaua Ave. No. 103
971-1818
Daily, 11 a.m.-2 p.m. (lunch); 5–10 p.m. (dinner)