I remember once being asked while having some sushi, "geez what do you do, drive around different neighborhoods looking for interesting places to eat?" I remember answering with an affirmative, "Yes, doesn't everybody?" And getting a strange look in return. I don't quite know how to describe the expression on that Gentleman's face, maybe pitiful amazement would suffice, but that look has remained imprinted upon my memory. And every so often when I do "take a drive", I chuckle to myself thinking about that look.
And those drives do pay off, as in the case of Leilani's Cafe. I was driving up the "quiet" part of Cass street in Pacific Beach, when the banner for Leilani's Cafe caught my eye.
Leilani's looks like another one of the almost endless number of coffee shops and cafes in the Pacific Beach area....I do think there's one on every corner. And I would have just driven past, except that I saw the Kikkoman Soy Sauce bottles sitting on the tables lining the outdoor patio tables, I can spot a Kikkoman bottle a hundred yards away...okay I'm exaggerating...make it fifty yards away. The significance of the shoyu bottle is important, telling me it's more than muffins, croissants, and sandwiches being served at Leilani's. When I got home, I did a quick search on the indispensable Southern California Plate Lunch Connection, and found a listing for Leilani's, which pretty much sealed the deal. I dropped by Leilani's on a quiet afternoon.
As I walked into the tiny cafe, I could hear the sounds of Bruddah Iz
in the background. The interior of Leilani's is quite small, and the fireplace in the corner and later on, when I saw the shower stall in the restroom, it pretty much confirmed that this was a former residential studio or duplex. The walls are lined with photos of Leilani's Grandchildren, and other "local-kine" knick-knacks.
Initially, the menu seems a bit long and somewhat intimidating. The first thing that strikes you are what seems like every single type of Frappa-Zappa-Crappa-Nappa-Cuppu-cino known to mankind. It did seem as if Leilani's was just a Coffee Shop. But wait, a little to the right, and you'll start seeing familiar items.
And there among the Hot Oatmeal, and Cream Cheese Bagels, were the Loco Mocos, Spam and Eggs, and even a Spam Bagel! Most items ran in the $6 to $10 range.
Being absolutely famished, I went for the most expensive item on the menu, the Big Luau Plate ($12.50). After I placed my order, Leilani went to the tiny back kitchen, and started cooking everything up. The aroma of the food cooking triggered off some memories....it smelled like my Mom's cooking......
After a short wait(Leilani was doing all the cooking Herself), my plate arrived. Where to begin....let's start with the starch, there were two scoops of rice, with some Teri-Sauce on it(this is scary, it really is like Mom), A piece of Local-Style Teri Chicken, Kalua Pork and Cabbage, and a rather large piece of Fried Mahi Mahi. The Kalua Pork was moist, and had a nice smoky flavor, and wasn't too salty, overall it was quite good. The cabbage was a bit undercooked for my tastes, but this goes to show that it was made to order, not sitting around to to be microwaved. You can't really see it, but there was a pretty large portion of Kalua Pork and Cabbage. The fish was a simple seasoned and fried piece of Mahi Mahi. I'll readily admit that this isn't everyones cup of tea, it's a bit more fishy, and there were more than a few bones. But this is almost exactly the same way that my Mother used to fry up Aku, and other fish, no frills, simple, and the fish will stand on it's own. The fish was moist and flaky.
The piece of Teriyaki Chicken thigh was full of flavor, sweet yet not too sweet, very good! Beats that generic Hawaiian BBQ stuff any day of the week. The macaroni salad had a good amount of mayo, just enough salt, and the addition of celery was a nice flavor and texture bonus. This was a satisfying and filling(to the point of a nap) meal.
So, of course I had to make a return visit. There were two items that I was a bit interested in, Leilani's Spicy Hawaiian Fried Rice($5.75), and of course the Loco Moco($6.25). Lucky for me, I could get the best of both worlds, it's called a Hilo Style Loco Moco($8.75):
This Loco Moco featured a nicely browned hand formed hamburger patty. I'm pretty sure that the patty was almost all beef without filler, which meant a drier and tougher patty, but with a more pronounced beef flavor. The gravy was home-made, dark in color, with a mild beef flavor. The eggs were done a perfect over-medium.
The spicy fried rice was studded with pieces of Portuguese and Spicy Italian Sausage, which added great flavor. As did the shredded carrots. The rice was indeed fairly spicy.....I really enjoyed it.
The food at Leilani's has that "home cooked" signature, something that Mom or your favorite Aunty might make for you. The food may take a while longer, but it does carry that bit of TLC that is missing at those generic, corporate, all-business type restaurants.
I did manage to chat a bit with Leilani, but unfortunately didn't get much info on Her, other than She's from Hawaii...we were too busy talking about getting Local-Kine stuff in San Diego, and how she prepares Her food, and other "stuffs".
Hey even your Pooch can get a little bit of Aloha!
For some reason, I don't do very much exploratory driving anymore...maybe I need to get back into the groove.......you never know what you might find!
Leilani's is open 7 days a week, from 630 am to 2pm.
Leilani's Cafe
5109 Cass St
San Diego, CA 92109
Open Daily 630am-2pm
I'll leave it for you Kirk to check out all of the plate lunch places. I've been disappointed too many times and I just can't eat another L&L-cloned meal.
Posted by: Jack | Wednesday, 08 November 2006 at 07:55 AM
Hi Jack - The food at Leilani's is pretty good.
Posted by: Kirk | Wednesday, 08 November 2006 at 09:10 PM
You are one of the few that I trust when it comes to the plate lunch "scene" in town. I will definitely have to check it out.
Posted by: Jack | Wednesday, 08 November 2006 at 09:26 PM
Hi Jack - Let me know what you think....
Posted by: Kirk | Thursday, 09 November 2006 at 10:10 PM
Does anyone know when Leilani's will re-open for business? And I hear she's opened another restaurant somewhere...where? I really miss the Aloha Plate!
Posted by: Marie | Sunday, 15 July 2007 at 12:43 AM
Hi Marie - Hang in there, the info is coming up.
Posted by: Kirk | Monday, 16 July 2007 at 08:44 AM
Leilani's new restaurant is at 3232 greyling dr. in san diego, ca 92123 in sera mesa 858 565 4637
Posted by: timothy | Monday, 06 August 2007 at 07:11 PM
Hi Timothy - Thanks and welcome. I did a post on Leilani's new location here:
http://mmm-yoso.typepad.com/mmmyoso/2007/07/post.html
But I haven't updated this post yet, because Leilani said she'd be reopening this restaurant in the future.
Posted by: Kirk | Tuesday, 07 August 2007 at 09:48 AM
I met with the owner(Leilani), a wonderful person on Friday(10-05-07, about 2pm)and was told that they are open for breakfast also. I went on Saturday at about 8am and they were closed. Well, breakfast, Hawaiian time maybe about 11am our time here in San Diego. Also, I was not told that they are closed between 2pm and 4:30pm. Anyway I'll try again
Posted by: Okinawa | Sunday, 07 October 2007 at 06:44 PM
Isn't it time someone posted a list that gives names/addresses of all the Hawaiian food places in San Diego County? These guys (see below) do an okay job but don't stay as up-to-date as I would like.
http://www.alohaworld.com/platelunch/
Posted by: Clay Welch | Monday, 23 June 2008 at 10:16 AM