Bubba Gump was born from the major motion film Forest Gump. The movie was a huge hit earning over 677 million during its theatrical run and nominated for 13 academy awards and taking home 6 of them. The first Bubba Gump Shrimp Co. opened up two years later in 1996 in Monterey California, I’ve been to that one too by the way. Today there’s about 29 Bubba Gumps around and not just in the U.S. but they also branched out to Mexico, Japan, Bali, Philippines, Hong Kong and even Malaysia.

The inside was open so you could eat and watch shoppers stroll by.

Today was one of those days that I wanted to start off with something sweet  so I ordered Mama’s Best Strawberry Shortcake, $6.99. I was surprised because this looked just like the picture on the menu. Like all strawberry short cakes the cake part was a little dry but when it’s served with ice cream, strawberries, whipped cream and bathing in a pool of heavens sweet nectar it changes everything. I really liked this. It was big, so big that we couldn’t even finish it and there was 4 of us. I think the only thing that could of made this one better is to add a bit more whipped cream and strawberries.

For our main course Ray and I shared Shrimper’s Heaven, $18.99. It came with Coconut Shrimp, Chilly Shrimp, Fried Shrimp, Tempura Shrimp, Fries, Cole Slaw and a trio of dipping sauces. I figure you can’t go to Bubba Gumps and not get shrimp right? I know it’s not exactly cheap but it had a little caricature of a shrimp next to it on the menu as a symbol of one of the house special dishes, so I figured it was worth a shot and and a few extra bucks.

Shrimp Tempura. I’ve had better. In my opinion, if your in the mood for tempura shrimp get it from a Japanese Restaurant. It came with about 4 pieces.

The Fried Shrimp. Bor-ring. This came with about 4 pieces too.

Coconut Shrimp. This was very heavy and greasy. It too came with about 4 pieces.

Chilly Shrimp. This is just shrimp cocktail with the shell left on. I’m not a fan of shrimp cocktail but if I were I’d say they were delicious. I think I would of preferred it if it were prepealed, is that a word, but only because we were having lunch with our friends Nate and Taylor from San Francisco that we hadn’t seen in a while so I had to behave like a civilized human being, not that civilized human beings don’t peal shrimp, but you get my point; wow, talk about a run on sentence. Anyhow, usually I love getting down and dirty with my food, like picking up a nice handful and chucking it straight across the room right beside Ray’s pretty little head, knocking him out. TKO baby, I hit you, you hit the ground. One day, I promise you, one day. Back to the shrimp, I have to say they gave a good amount of these chilly shrimp. I didn’t count but if I had to guess I would say there were about 10 little critters just waiting to be consumed.

It came with cole slaw. I want to say it was about 6 oz. Not very much, but who needs a lot of this stuff?

Fries were basic. Nothing amazing but not bad.

While we were there two tables down from us someone had a birthday so if you ever come here you could pretend like it’s your kids birthday, like everybody else does and get a free dessert, while complete strangers sing to you guys.  I do it all the time.

The best time to come is at sunset which is around 6:30. They have a great view, being on the second floor and all. Overall I have to say this place just didn’t do it for me. I know it attracts tons of tourist and all I’m saying is leave this place for the tourist you deserve better.

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Bubba Gump
1450 Ala Moana Blvd # 3253
Honolulu, HI 96814

Get Directions(808) 949-4867

Have you notice that there’s not a whole lot of Southern Restaurants here? Well, if you feel like taking a drive to the Makaha on the West Side you’ll find one called Southern Swell. The first time I’ve been here was on vacation back in February. Since then there’s been a change of ownership. Of course we didn’t know this until we last came here.

Along with the ownership there have been a lot of changes, like the decor of the whole place. Before, the name suited the place well. When I say that I mean it was really hot and draggy. I don’t remember exactly, but I do recall seeing a lot of gray when I think of it last. Now, as you can see, they managed to liven up the place rather nicely. I do want to mention however, this was the nicest part of the restaurant, the rest looked like a dirty, cluttered mess of someones home.

There was seating out in the side patio as well. It was a pretty large area that was covered so we were able to enjoy being outside, yet still feel like we were inside and not burning up under the sun.

Now, if you come here expecting expecting a huge array of southern comfort foods like collard greens, crawfish, sweet potato pie and grits you won’t find it here. But they do have the traditional country fried steak, biscuits and gravy, mac and cheese, beer batter catfish, chicken wings, smoked pulled pork, baby back ribs, BBQ chicken, corn on the cob and potato salad to name a few.

We came here for smoked, BBQ anything. Last time we were here there was a huge smoke pit out front where they smoke your meat all day until it was as tender as a baby’s ass. It was a bummer to not see it here this time. We decided against ordering any serious BBQ and shared the Smoked Chicken Quesadilla, $7.50. It came in a 12 inch flour tortilla with cheddar cheese, pico de gallo, refried beans, smoked chicken and tomato jam. Yes tomato jam. It’s that big red blob that looks like, well, I don’t want to ruin your appetite so I won’t mention it, but contrary to what it looks like, it was de-licious. I can’t say I ever had tomato jam before and now that I have, I’m a fan. There wasn’t a whole lot of chicken and the refried beans gave it a mushy consistency. Overall, the quesadilla was good but didn’t have the heartiness you’d expect from southern food.

Along with quesadilla we shared the Smoked Pulled Pork, $8.00. It came on a pathetic bun, topped with homemade BBQ, steak fries, and a pathetic slice of pickle to match. Let’s start with the fries. Do these look like steak fries to you? I’m not an expert in the fries department so correct me if I’m wrong, but my idea of steak fries are thick, sizable fries. These were thin, some parts were paper thin and they were seasoned with pepper rather than salt. Also, they didn’t have any chalkiness, which is a good thing. I know it sound like I’m bashing them and I’m really not. Just calling it the way I saw it. To my surprise actually I enjoyed these, “steak fries.” The bun for the sandwich was pathetic. It was the size of a bun you’d expect if you ordered a kids meal. As you can see the sandwich came with no veggies, just meat and BBQ sauce. This didn’t surprise me because Southern people aren’t really known for their large consumption of fruits and vegetables. The pulled pork was really tasty. I don’t think I’ve ever eaten bad pulled pork in Hawaii. The BBQ sauce had a nice sweetness and added great flavor.

Overall, I have to say I’m not a huge fan of this place. I think I prefer the prior Southern Swell. I’m not saying you guys shouldn’t try this place. As a matter of fact I think you should. It was good. More reasons for you to come here is B.Y.O.B. That’s right, they let you bring your own beer. I absolutely love places that let you bring your own alcohol. Did I mention all the free wireless internet you can get. Yes free, who doesn’t love internet these days. I think all business should offer free internet for the fuck of it and the fact that they do is awesome.

Like diners, I’m a little stereotypical when it comes to southern food. I know it’s a little ignorant, but hey, at least I admit it. It’s something I need to work on. I’m just going to be brutally honest here so if your sensitive or get offended easily stop reading. When I think southern food I think obesity. I haven’t had a whole shit load of southern food, but the times I have had it wasn’t very impressive. The vegetables are usually overcooked to the point where ‘ no nutritional value whatsoever, soaked in grease, cooked with ham, and look like a mussy mess. Come on have you seen their collared greens, two words, baby shit. Also, it’s called comfort food because after eating it your doused with a sudden case of food coma, too lethargic to move, so where ever you are, one must find comfort, you have no choice. And over time, you look like one big comfort-able bean bag. How fucking awesome is that? I do want to add that Southern people really know how to BBQ. Look, I’m going to stop before I piss off the wrong people and end up in pieces and ran through a wood grinder. I’m just going to end this post with a few links to back me up.

Obesity in the South

Southern Comfort Food is Too Much of a Good Thing

Religion + South + Comfort Food = Obesity

Southern Discomfort Food

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87-070 Farrington Hwy

Waianae, HI 96792-3114

Get Directions

(808) 852-9893

“Big Boy makes you say ohhh boy!!!” Well not really, but that’s their catchy slogan. The first Big Boy started in 1936 by Bob Wian in Glendale California. Today there are over 455 Big Boys Restaurants throughout the United States and Canada. If hamburgers and diners with an unconventional flare humbles you then Bobs Big Boy might be the place to rekindle old memories.

The place is a total diner inside. I like the big overhead lighting and the big windows that let in an ample supply of natural light.

I started out with a small green salad. It came with one slice of tomato and one cucumber slice, the rest was Romain Lettuce. Not to mention, it was the top part of the tomato, so I had to cut around it just to eat it. I substituted the fries that came with my sandwich for this salad.

I ordered the Mushroom Melt, $8.95. It came with portobello mushrooms, peppers and melted swiss cheese all on toasted, sliced bread. Oh, also, it was flavored with a marinara sauce. I was happy with this dish but I think it would of tasted so much better with a different type of bread. This boring white sandwich bread wasn’t doing it for me.

Shane ordered the French Dip, $8.25. It came with lean sliced roast beef on a hoagie bun and served with au jus. All sandwiches came with fries. Shane said it was, “one of the boriest sandwiches he has ever encounterd.” The size of the sandwich was a little disappointing and the taste had no wow factor. It would have made a good snack if made at home but not a meal. I didn’t taste it, but it did look pretty boring.

His sandwich also came with toast. I don’t get it, who wants to eat bread after a sandwich?

Country Fried Steak and Eggs, $9.49. Ray couldn’t have been happier with this dish. I tried it and yes it was awesome. The gravy was perfect and the country fried steak was fried to perfection and the hash browns were golden and crispy. I liked his dish more than mine but refrain from taking too many bites because he liked it so much.

Overall, I hate to say it, but this place was good enough, definitely better than what I expected. As most of you already know, I’m not a fan of diners. To me, they scream cheap, poor quality food for people that don’t know any better or don’t care but this place proved me wrong. Oh, Boy! But just so you know, service sucks.

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Bobs Big Boy
2828 PAA Street
Honolulu, HI 96819
(808) 833-8440