Come on, get happy with Ichiriki’s specials

The clamor of cooking utensils dipping into pots of soy-based broths and the satisfied slurps of diners can be heard throughout the spacious and ethereal venue of Aiea’s Ichiriki Japanese Nabe Restaurant. As customers fish into their hot pots, treasures of delicious proportions emerge in the form of an assortment of veggies and thinly sliced meats of ultimate quality.

With a dedication to customer satisfaction, the eatery continues to serve only quality local products to fill its patrons’ pots and bellies. And if Ichiriki can give you these delicious meals for a deal, it will.

Enter Happy Hour Shabu ($16.95 happy hour, $22.95 regular). The special set is available during happy hour times and includes 6 ounces of USDA Choice ribeye, cabbage, green onion, enoki and shiitake mushrooms, carrots, tofu, glass noodles and your choice of udon or ramen noodles. A bowl of rice also comes with the meal, alongside goma and ponzu sauces. With a delicious deal like this, you won’t want to miss happy hour, and luckily, Ichiriki offers two opportunities to enjoy it each day.

Need a cold beverage to wash all that shabu shabu down? Order a 16-ounce mug of Kirin on draft for $2 during happy hour ($4.95 regularly) in all its foamy, refreshing goodness, and it surely will be the happiest of happy hours indeed.

Next to the variety of beers on tap, the restaurant also serves a selection of Shochu Cocktails ($4 happy hour, $6 regular), which include White Peach, Green Apple and Lychee flavors. To really get the night going, opt for the larger portion of the cocktail in “Party Glass” ($7 happy hour, $9.95 regular).

Always thinking of new ways to satisfy, Ichiriki now offers kobocha (Japanese pumpkin) and watercress on its list of sides. The vibrant orange of the kobocha stands out in the bubbling hot pot, softening and sopping up all the flavors of the broth, while the watercress adds variety to the medley of other greens.

And the best way to end a hot meal during these even hotter summer days is with an order of Ujikintoki Shave Ice ($4.95). The dessert includes a heaping mound of green tea shave ice, draped in condensed milk and topped with azuki beans, mochi balls and an optional scoop of ice cream (additional $1), which really isn’t an option, but rather a no-brainer!

Ichiriki Japanese Nabe Restaurant

Westridge Shopping Center
98-150 Kaonohi St., No. C-216, Aiea (one of three locations)
484-2222
Lunch: Daily, 11 a.m.–3 p.m.
Dinner: Monday–Thursday, 4–11 p.m.; Friday-Saturday, 4 p.m.–midnight; Sunday, 4–10 p.m.
Early happy hour: 4-6 p.m.; Late happy hour: 9 p.m.-closing (times vary by location)