So what is saimin? I got this from Wikipedia:
"Saimin is a noodle dish unique to Hawaii. Inspired by Japanese udon, Chinese mein, and Filipino pancit, saimin was developed during Hawaii's plantation era. It is a soup dish of soft wheat egg noodles served in hot dashi garnished with green onions. Kamaboko, Char siu, sliced Spam, linguiça, and nori may be added, among other additions."
When we first moved to Chicago, I was really disappointed that we couldn't find saimin anywhere.... not in Chinatown or any of the Asian type restaurants. Ramen came closest, but it still wasn't the perfect Hawaii type saimin that we loved.
OK... I know it's not the best thing for me to eat. It's carbs. That's why I ordered the small bowl while Art ordered the large.
I ordered the vegetable saimin so there wasn't any char siu...shucks! I like having that one slice of char siu (roast pork).
However, the saimin was great. The noodles were different from Shiro's or Zippy's. It was more old style, flatter.
This saimin stand reminded me very much of Art's small family restaurant on the Big Island. It was nostalgic for Art too. He says their restaurant was smaller, but they served ice cream, sundaes, floats and malts too.
It was a very marginal business but his parents scrimped and saved to send Art and his sister to colleges on the mainland.
Anyway, back to Shige's before I got distracted.
I'm going back again! I want to try their teri beef burger or maybe their fried saimin. If we go there after the Aloha Run, I wouldn't feel so guilty.
Ahhh.... something to work towards!
Saimin? Never heard of it, lol. All those packaged asian noodles are labeled "ramen." Even the sound of the term takes away from the tastiness. Perhaps, it's only in Hawaii that people still refer to it as saimin.
ReplyDeleteadd the pork next time, you need protein...lol!
ReplyDeleteIt looks really healthy to me! I have never been a fan of noodles of any sort, preferring hearty vegetables, but that soup looks really good, if you ask me. :-)
ReplyDeleteKay - Mahalo for sharing your adventure. I'd seen the funny circles of red and white. When at Zippy's with Gigi, she said it's fish cake. Okay -- I was afraid to be a dumb tourist, and can't figure how they made the fish fillet rolled up like that. I had a very rich white fish that was almost too rich. Little Art is sooo cute. He stayed slender around all that food! DrumMajor
ReplyDeleteWow...so nostalgic. Thanks for the review. We love a good saimin now and then and now have one more place to try. Boulevard Saimin (now Dillingham Saimin) is also a winner. We tried Violet's Grill recently and had some good Okinawan homestyle food there too. Hope these local joints never go out of style and continue to be favored. As our parents no longer cook (though your mom is such a good cook), some of the recipe secrets and techniques from their generation might soon be lost. I'm not much of a cook and didn't learn much from my mom (the kitchen was her domain and I was encouraged to study in my room instead...that was my job as she said), so I have nothing to teach my children and grandchildren. Lately it seems families are too busy to cook at home, so I imagine the art of cooking local style will be lost forever one day soon, very sad...
ReplyDeleteL.
Kay, was the noodle shop in Honokaa? Is the building still there?
ReplyDeleteWhile I lived in Hawaii, I learned how to cook a number of dishes, but not Saimin. I wish we could get it here. Anyhing i could make would not be the same.
ReplyDeleteDianne
PS love the All-American Mom and Pop shop Art's family ran.
Hattie: Yes, it was in Honokaa, but it wasn't a noodle shop. It was more a counter restaurant/soda fountain/bakery/comic and candy store. It was called The Sweet Shoppe.
ReplyDeleteToo bad I'm so far away, I'd sure try this place! Sounds great.
ReplyDeleteThis sounds like a great place for a delicious, reasonably-priced meal. Wish I were on Oahu to try it!
ReplyDeleteWONDERFUL, KAY!
ReplyDeleteJust a wonderful post. I'm nostalgic for places like IGE's though I've only grown up here since the eighties.
Art must REALLY feel it! Hows his training going?
Thanks for being such a fun and worthwhile part of my day.
Aloha from Waikiki
Comfort Spiral
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Cloudia: He's up to 13 miles on his training run so he's pretty sure he's up for the 1/2 Marathon as well as the Aloha Run. I'm getting some walking poles and will see how I like it. Sigh....
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