Like any distant relative, the bento box so beloved on Kaua‘i bears little resemblance to its Japanese ancestor. Short of the white rice and a small portion of pickled vegetable, Kaua‘i bento has evolved into a representative of the many
Like any distant relative, the bento box so beloved on Kaua‘i bears little resemblance to its Japanese ancestor. Short of the white rice and a small portion of pickled vegetable, Kaua‘i bento has evolved into a representative of the many cultures sharing the Hawaiian Islands.
When ordered as a sit-down meal, the traditional Japanese bento arrives in a pretty lacquer box with separate compartments for each entree. Typical fare would be a small portion of meat or fish, rice (of course), a pickled or cooked vegetable and usually egg, such as tamagoyaki (a slightly sweet layered omelet). As take-out, it is commonly sold in train stations or prepared as a packed lunch for schoolchildren.
Here on Kaua‘i, though, bento has not only transformed slightly, it has also grown in size.
“Bento boxes on Kaua‘i are local-style,” said Jason Brown as he sat at the picnic area beside Daly Up Take Out on Papalima Road in Kalaheo. “Local style is a mix of all the different cultures in Kaua‘i: Filipino, Portuguese, Japanese, Chinese, white.”
Before him on the table was a Styrofoam box packed with food. Daly Up’s large bento includes teriyaki beef and boneless chicken, a jumbo shrimp, two pieces of fried chicken, Spam, hot dog, a breaded hash potato cake, two triangles of rice, macaroni salad and a Kimchee cucumber salad.
“Bento means a lot of food,” said Brown. “And always two scoops of rice and smoked meat.”
Daly Up owner Skyla Grace confirmed the bento’s popularity: “We sell 100 bentos a day.”
Grace opened this tiny haunt two and a half years ago with her husband, Shawn. “I was a nurses’ assistant at the school and Shawn worked at the Hyatt,” she said.
Competing schedules, combined with the burgeoning demands of three sons, provided the impetus for opening a family business. “Daly Up gives us some flexibility,” she said.
The name of the restaurant came from a rodeo team roping event. “To ‘daly up’ means to wrap the rope around the pommel of the saddle once the rider ropes the calf,” said Grace. “My son Kalani rides rodeo and came up with the name.”
“One of my customers told me that ‘daly up’ means to hurry up where they come from,” said Grace. But as one customer chimed in, “You no can hurry up good cooking.”
One specialty item that makes the Daly Up deluxe bento stand apart is the presence of home-smoked beef. However, Grace explained, “We’re out right now because we just did a fund-raiser for rodeo season.”
The rodeo season dictates more than just the name and menu of the family business. “Beginning now we shorten our hours since Kalani is riding,” Grace said.
Daly Up won’t re-open for the evenings or on Saturdays until May when the rodeo season concludes.
You can find a bento box lunch on nearly every corner of Kaua‘i. They are consistently generous in size and affordable (prices rarely exceeding $8). As an extra bonus, these typically small eateries are open during the wee hours of the morning.
“I open at 6,” said Po Yamamoto of Po’s Kitchen in Lihu‘e. The arrival of construction workers and schoolchildren at her door dictate the early hour.
Yamamoto, originally from Malaysia, defines her bento as something easy to eat. “It’s not messy. I make dry so you can eat with fingers.”
She also takes the warm temperatures into account with her bentos. “Most the things not going to spoil in the heat,” she said. “My bento has a lot of processed foods, but in business you do what people want.”
Yamamoto has operated her small restaurant in Lihu‘e for eleven years.
While most takeout for bento is in Styrofoam or plastic, Yamamoto still insists on folding cardboard boxes. “I use boxes because biodegradable,” said Yamamoto. “People say use foam container then you won’t have to fold box, but I want to use the box. My son tells me there’s a box made of cornstarch that is biodegradable, but I think cost maybe too much.”
Fish Express in Lihu‘e offers a slightly different twist on a local-style bento by including baked or grilled salmon or saba, which is mackerel.
“We also put in nishime,” said Alan Yamamoto. “Nishime is a Japanese-style vegetable made with potato.”
If you’re on the Westside, Ishihara Market in Waimea makes both a breakfast bento and lunch bento. Guy Ishihara estimated an average of 300 bentos are made every morning.
“We pretty much sell out. It’s a local favorite,” said Ishihara.
Ishihara Market began making the bento lunch in the mid-1980s and offers between 10 and 15 different varieties. “The only difference between the breakfast and lunch bento,” said Ishihara, “is the omelet.”
There is plenty to choose from, he said. “We have many different assorted bento: Spam musubi, chicken katsu, chicken and sushi.”
Ishihara explained, “Bento itself is traditional. You don’t really see it anywhere else, only Hawai‘i. Maybe on the Mainland where there are local people.”
Bento boxes range in price from $1.30 to $6.45 at Ishihara Market.
In most establishments on the island, the bento is clearly one of the quickest and cheapest meals for lunch on the fly.
