My mail:

Honolulu, Hawaii

Dear Sir/madam,

I am planning to visit Honolulu next month, but I have still have got some doubts.
I am writing to ask you some information about the food in the city. My first question is about the
price of the food. Some flyers showed certain prices and I noticed that those were a little bit more
expensive compared to the rest of the country. I guess that this has something to do with the tourism
in the city, but could you maybe confirm this? Because I would really like to know the reason.
Secondly, I would like to know or the food is checked by professionals. Because last year I visited
Avarua, and this was not the case there. Some uncooked fish caused by this made me very ill for two
weeks long. One more thing that I would really like to know, is some information about the culture in
Honolulu. Because I love visiting some cultural accommodations every vacation.

Thank you for your time. I look forward to hearing from you.

Yours faithfully,

Lisa Klessens

Veldhoven, The Netherlands

Mail Honolulu:
Dear Lisa,

How are you doing, thank you for contacting Hawai‘i Tourism Europe.

We are excited that you are visiting the Hawaiian Islands, we are confident that you will have a great
time. The food in O‘ahu is very diverse and caters to every taste, from food trucks on the North shore
to high end restaurants at the many luxury properties. Food does not have to be expensive and you
are certainly able to eat on a budget on the island, it really depend on what your taste would be.
Honolulu can be deemed more expensive than other parts of O‘ahu and the Hawaiian Islands in
general, this would be due the large amount of tourists that visit this part of the island. This would be
no different to visiting Times Square in London or Leicester square in London.

I am not quite sure I understand your question regarding food being checked by professionals? The
state of Hawai‘i does have the Hawai‘i state department of health that has protocols for all
establishments preparing and selling food to the public, so all establishments would be monitored for
standards.

We would love to share some of our favourite places to eat in O‘ahu, please see below:

Jacks Restaurant - 820 W Hind Dr, Honolulu – small family run business where service is everything! It
is known for warm biscuits with honey that are split and then topped with eggs rice and then a meat
of your choice. This is a good value breakfast place for a very local breakfast

Arancino at the Kāhala - 5000 Kahala Ave, Honolulu - This is where to go for a romantic night or
celebration dinner. Start with the Miyazaki Wagyu carpaccio and then move on to the generous and
heady uni spaghetti. This would be at the higher end of the scale, price wise

Zippy’s - 4134 Waialae Ave, Honolulu - Zippy’s is Hawaii’s iconic family diner chain with many
locations throughout the state. This is the place to go for big portions of comfort food (fried chicken
and side of chili-cheese fries) But also for a proper dinner, the Zip Min (a deluxe bowl of saimin, a
noodle soup) or Zip Pac (mahi mahi, fried chicken, Spam, and teriyaki beef over furikake rice) never
fail to please

Mud Hen Water - 3452 Waialae Ave, Honolulu - Mud Hen Water offers Hawaii-born chef Ed Kenney’s
modern interpretation of traditional Hawaiian food. Standouts include the yaki o pa'i 'ai (pounded
taro root), local Kualoa Ranch oysters, baked Molokai bananas with curry butter, and grilled he'e
(octopus) with lu'au
Malasadas at Leonard’s Bakery - 933 Kapahulu Ave, Honolulu - a hot-from-the-fryer malasada at
Leonard’s is an iconic Honolulu experience. These glorious orbs of deep-fried dough tend to be on
the eggy side, moist with a perfectly golden exterior and just enough sugar. They come plain or
dusted with li hing mui (salty dried plum powder) or cinnamon sugar, but it goes without saying:
plain is best

Gina’s Bar-B-Q - 2919 Kapiolani Blvd, Honolulu - There are many great places for Korean plate lunch
in Hawaii, but locals know that Gina’s does it best. Tucked inside Market City Shopping Center, Gina’s
is a family-run operation where regulars are greeted by name and everyone has a go-to order. Make
yours the #1 Gina’s Special plate: It comes with barbecue chicken, bulgogi, and kalbi, plus rice and
your pick of four vegetable/starch sides

Poke at Ahi Assassins -2570 S Beretania St, Honolulu - Hands down, this is the ideal spot for perfect
Hawaiian poke by the pound. Owners Josh Schade, Erika Luna, and their crew catch all the fish that’s
served at Ahi Assassins (they firmly operate by the store's motto: "Caught here, not brought here.
Slayed. Weighed. Filleted. MADE in Hawaii").

Andy’s Sandwiches & Smoothies - 2904 East Manoa Rd, Honolulu - Andy’s is the Hawaii sandwich
shop. Tucked inside Manoa Valley — and a perfect place to get lunch before or after doing the
Manoa hike — this tidy shop bakes bread daily and uses it for the base of simple but consistently
great sandwiches, like the outstanding smoked ahi spread. Don’t forget to pair your lunch with a
papaya smoothie.

Romy’s Kahuku Prawns - 56781 Kamehameha Hwy, Kahuku - Shrimp plate lunch is a thing in Hawaii,
and the rendition at Romy’s, a roadside shrimp stand with lots of covered seating is worth the far
drive to the Kahuku side of Oahu. The butter garlic shrimp plate (so fresh!) is a garlic lover’s fantasy,
served with plenty of rice to soak up the sauce. And the can’t-miss order for dessert is li hing mui
pineapples.

If you have any further questions or need any information from us, then please let us know.

Thanks

Alex
Summary both mails:
Why are the prices of the food higher in Honolulu?
Because of all the tourism.

Is the food checked by professionals?

I don’t understand your question, but we do have a standard protocol for the food, so it would be
monitored for standards.

Could you give me some information about the culture in Honolulu?

He did not answer this question in the way I meant it, because he gave me information about nine
restaurants instead.

Jacks Restaurant – good place for breakfast

Arancino at the Kāhala – (Expensive) restaurant for a romantic night or celebration dinner

Zippy’s - 4134 Waialae Ave – many locations throughout the city, lots of comfort food but a proper
dinner is also possible

Mud Hen Water – lots of traditional Hawaiian food

Malasadas at Leonard’s Bakery – ‘iconic Honolulu experience’, lots of love to the deeply fried orbs

Gina’s Bar-B-Q – Great place for Korean plate lunch, according to locals, Gina’s does it best. Gina’s is
a family-run operation where regulars are greeted by name and everyone has a go-to order

Poke at Ahi Assassins - this is the ideal spot for perfect Hawaiian poke by the pound. The owners
catch all the fish that is served there themselves (they firmly operate by the store's motto: "Caught
here, not brought here. Slayed. Weighed. Filleted. MADE in Hawaii").

Andy’s Sandwiches & Smoothies – — this tidy shop bakes bread daily and uses it for the base of
simple but consistently great sandwiches and smoothies

Romy’s Kahuku Prawns - Shrimp plate lunch is a thing in Hawaii, and the rendition at Romy’s, , a
roadside shrimp stand with lots of covered seating is worth the far drive to the Kahuku side of Oahu.