Apartm3nt

Best for: Happy Hour, Drinks
Location: Century Center
Foodgasmic dish: Bombay Passion (cocktail)

$5 pizza

Lounges that actually serve good food blow my mind. Apartm3nt is a bit awkward - it's located in the same building as my old piano teacher, and for a while Erin and I weren't sure how to order - but once we got past all that, we had a great time here.

$5 happy hour

It's a pretty dressy place, at least by Hawaii standards. During happy hour, food is half off, which means $5 pizzas. I've heard complaints about their other dishes, but I am a big fan of their pizza. Cocktails are also $5, and my bombay passion (Bombay Sapphire, raspberries, passion fruit, and vanilla) was so good that I didn't even bother to try a different cocktail and instead ordered it again.

There are supposed to be different rooms for dancing and playing pool, but we were having such a good time eating that we forgot to explore. However, the bathroom is another story. While the rest of the lounge is beautiful, the bathroom, while designed to be just as classy, is not maintained at all. It was as disgusting as a nightclub on Kuhio. Work on that, Apartm3nt, because I'd like to come back.

Royal Garden

Best for: Dim Sum
Location: Ala Moana

  
I tend to alternate between my four go-to places for dim sum, depending on my mood: Mandalay for the best char siu bao and siu mai; Kirin for a more traditional Chinese atmosphere; Jade for the best service and snow mountain; and Happy Day for the best deal. Royal Garden is the last of my top five.

Like Kirin, Royal Garden is one of the remaining Chinese restaurants at which waitresses still push carts around the room, and you have to call out to them and point at the dim sum you want, which is always a fun experience. The dim sum here is good, but none are really memorable, unlike at the others, which each have a few unique dishes. However, the parking is more convenient since you can easily park at Ala Moana and walk over.

Yotteko-Ya

Best for: Ramen
Location: McCully

Yotteko-Ya is my favorite place for ramen. It's located on the second floor of McCully Shopping Center. Apparently their paitan soup has a special ingredient - collagen, which is supposed to keep you looking young. So that's why I look so young! As a 21-year-old who can still pass for a high school student, age-defying potions are not my highest priority. However, good taste is. The noodles are cooked perfectly, the broth tastes like nothing I've tasted anywhere else, and the char siu is always juicy.

I usually order gyoza and a bowl of ramen, a set that costs about $13.

Coffeeline Campus Coffeehouse

Best for: Coffee
Location: Manoa

  
Coffeeline is to UH as the Paradox is to Reed. Only about 2 of you will get that analogy. Coffeeline is a homey coffeeshop across the street from the University of Hawaii. It is cluttered with magazines, random plants and pieces of artwork. If I was a UH student, I'd probably be spending a lot of time here, since Glazers is a bit of a journey, and Hawaii doesn't really have any other coffeeshops conducive to studying

The interior space is pretty large, but what I really like about Coffeeline is that there are a couple of tables on the outside balcony. The view just overlooks the YWCA, but I'm always looking for ways to drink coffee outside. My only complaint with this place is that it doesn't provide coffee cups to-go. I know the owner is being environmentally-conscious, but what are desperate students supposed to do when they forgot their thermoses?

Goma Tei

Best for: Ramen, Gyoza
Location: Ala Moana

I always forget that Goma Tei exists because it's located on the ground floor of Ala Moana, a floor I tend to avoid. However, it's great when I do remember because Goma Tei happens to be my second favorite ramen place (after Yotteko-Ya). You can tell they take their ramen seriously because their spoons are those huge wooden ones.

It's a fairly large space, with half of the restaurant dedicated to tables and the other half dedicated to a double counter with a walkway in the middle for the waiters, which is a pretty cool arrangement. I usually order the gyoza ($6.25), which is stuffed with fresh pork and vegetables, cooked just right to provide the perfect amount of crisp on the outside and warm filling on the inside. You create your own dipping sauce using the various ingredients on each table. Next I order the char siu tan tan ramen ($9), which is a hearty, slightly spicy broth with juicy pieces of char siu. There are other ramen variations, such as chicken or seafood. Service is always efficient.

Edge of Waikiki

Best for: Happy Hour, View
Location: Sheraton Waikiki

$5 cocktails

The Edge of Waikiki is the poor man's Mai Tai Bar. The drinks are not quite as fancy, the view is not quite as breathtaking, even the hotel is not quite as nice (Sheraton vs. Royal Hawaiian). However, at five bucks during happy hour, who cares if the cocktails are served in disposable plastic cups when you can still stare out into the Pacific Ocean?

Mariah's first mai tai!

Wailana Coffee House

Best for: Hangovers
Location: Waikiki

Wailana is the perfect place for sobering up. The last time I was here was after a night of two Long Island iced teas in a row at the Lobby Bar. It's located across the street from the Hilton Hawaiian Village, open 24-hours, and is there for people just like you - all craving cheap food and no judgment.

It's basically like a Denny's, but I think the portions are slightly less grotesque. Pancakes are the best remedy.

Amuse Wine Bar

Best for: Wine tasting
Location: Honolulu Design Center

Amuse seems like it would be a great date place. It's a wine bar at which you purchase a prepaid card that allows you to taste different wines at the push of a button. There are over 80 wine dispensers that pour one ounce samplings - feel free to hold the button longer if you want more than one ounce. Enough cabernet, chardonnay, pinot noir, and riesling to keep you happy. I had (too much) fun with the moscato.

They also serve food (dinner and happy hour), but I come for the wine. Next door is Stage Restaurant, which I need to try some time.

Top of Waikiki

Best for: Happy hour, Late-nite, View
Location: Waikiki

gorgeous views of Waikiki, whether you come before the sun sets or after

The Top of Waikiki is Hawaii's only revolving restaurant. Located at the top of the Waikiki Business Plaza, this three-tiered restaurant offers a 360-degree view of Waikiki and much of Honolulu. The hour-long revolution is slow enough so that you barely feel the rotation, but sure enough, especially after a few cocktails, eventually you'll wonder why you are suddenly facing the mountains instead of the ocean.

I've been here four times, at three different times of the day. The first time was the only time I came for an actual meal (dessert), so I was seated at a table on the edge of the top tier, close to the bar. Dessert is okay. I had the Candy Bar, which is exactly what it is: a glorified deconstructed candy bar... Twix, perhaps. Not the most memorable dish, but who cares what you're eating when you have a view like this?

The next two times I went were for the 5-7 pm happy hour, which offers $4 martinis and $7 appetizers. You are only allowed to sit at the bar for happy hour, which is at the very center of the top tier. None of the appetizers are very memorable, even though the chef is obviously trying to be innovative. However, for the price, it is certainly a good deal. The 5-7 happy hour is packed, mostly with tourists in their 40s and above. Not exactly my kind of crowd, which is why my fourth time coming to the Top of Waikiki was the best.

A couple of months ago, I returned with Mariah for the 9-11 pm happy hour. Just like the 5-7 pm one, martinis and appetizers are cheap. The main difference is that, instead of swarming with old people, the bar is now almost empty. As someone who values privacy and good service, I will now only be coming at this time. The bartenders are much more attentive and friendly this late in the night, which usually means you can order cocktails that aren't even on the happy hour menu for the same $4 price. Love it!

Orchid's

Best for: Brunch, View
Location: Halekulani

kalua pork omelet and lomi lomi tomato

I'm not a huge fan of this place, but I come here when I've gone to Plumeria Beach House too often. Orchid's and Plumeria are similar in many ways, and not just because they are both named after flowers. Both are located in Honolulu's two best hotels, the Kahala and Halekulani, both are pretty pricey, and both are beachfront. Now I will tell you why Plumeria is so much better (and I swear I'm not biased just because I'm from Kahala).

First of all, Halekulani is in Waikiki. It happens to be in a serene, secluded part of Waikiki, but you're still just steps from throngs of tourists from who knows where. The Kahala Hotel is located at the end of a ritzy street of a residential neighborhood. No unwanted tourists from the Hilton, no locals who bum around the beach all day.

classic eggs benedict

Secondly, Plumeria offers a completely unobstructed view of the ocean. By this I mean you can literally get out of your chair, lie on the ground, and start rolling until you are on the beach. If you please. Orchid's claims to be beachfront, but what is the point of being beachfront when there is a 3-foot hedge blocking your view? No rolling possible here.

why is there a hedge blocking my view??

Third, Plumeria has its famous Three B's: Beachfront Brunch Buffet. No buffet at Orchid's. For that, you'll have to go to the other Halekulani restaurant, House Without a Key, which doesn't really belong in the same sentence as Plumeria.

Well, we got an unobstructed view of the next restaurant

Now that I've criticized this place sufficiently, I will tell you that it is a lovely beachfront restaurant in Waikiki. Usual breakfast food presented beautifully, and you can listen to the waves while you dine. Also, Orchid's is highly rated for dinner, so perhaps I should be coming here when the sun goes down instead.