HALEIWA FUN

Carl and I had been busy bees for the past couple of weeks, as you might have noticed in our previous blogs. We both decided we needed a breather - after his busy SIFE schedule and before finals hit us on our necks.

Since I have been working in Wahiawa, I get the chance to see the north shore practically everyday on my way to work. And I realized we haven't gone there for a date since we've met! So I suggested that we go to Haleiwa for a Saturday afternoon date....

We took the bus towards Northshore at around 2:oopm.

ALOHA THE BUS! - Carl waiting for the Bus 55-Kaneohe Circle Island

We got to Haleiwa at like fifteen till 3. We knew we wanted to eat at Haleiwa Joe's - but we weren't really hungry yet!!! So we went on a stroll. Carl has been fascinated with surfing lately (he actually enrolled on a surfing class for spring), so we dropped by Surf and Sea and he checked out on surfboards.

I seriously thought he wasgonna take surfing lessons on the spot!

I have been telling Carl about this really narrow bridge in Haleiwa. The bridge is really narrow - no two cars driving on opposite directions could pass the bridge at the same time. I didn't quite get why Carl wanted to take a picture on that bridge, but i took his picture anyway! LOL!

We also strolled by Haleiwa Ali'i Beach Park. We had fun watching people fishing and paddling on their long boards. It was a really pretty view of the boat harbor. It was also fun watching children run to and from the dock.

And then finally, we were hungry!!! We headed to Haleiwa Joe's and we were ready to CHOW!!! Our early dinner was awesome! We also picked seats in the patio area overlooking the boat harbor.

Seriously - plating alone had us feeling full already! . Carl really went crazy on the fries. They were super crispy on the outside but super soft inside - like they were gonna melt on our tongue! LOL! My salad had the best caesar dressing so far - I super love tangy caesar dressing! The dijon in the dressing really made it pop!!!




Carl and I decided we would eat something NOT SHRIMP this time - because we figured shrimp stuff is easily available anytime compared to other specialty seafood dinners. So he had something CRAB and I had something SCALLOPS. Carl picked Joe's Tempura Crab Rolls. He debated with himself wether he'd have the crab rolls or the Thai Fried Calamari. But I guess he was intrigued how crab rolls in tempura would look like. When the crab rolls came out, he was thinking and eating all at the same time - how did they roll this stuff in nori with tempura?It was so fun watching him eat and think at the same time! When I tried it though - what really stood out to me was the wasabi ranch!

Joe's Tempura Crab Roll

I would have to confess that I've never had scallops before - and having them at Haleiwa Joe's was an amazing first time. I had Grilled Scallops on Cilantro-Lime Greens. Even though I haven't had scallops prior to this date, I know that cooking scallops is pretty challenging. Over cooked scallops end up being too tough and undercooked ones would taste really slimy. But these scallops that I had were perfectly grilled. The meat is tender and would kind of bounce back when you press them against the plate (meaning its not too soft and not too t ough). The green slaw was a hit - it had the perfect hint of lemon and lime, really complementing the fishy-salty taste of the scallops.

Grilled Scallops on Cilantro-Lime Greens

Of course any trip to Haleiwa wouldn't be complete without dropping by Mr. Matsumoto's Shaved Ice! YES - we did stand in the usual very long line, but it was well worth it - AS ALWAYS!

Carl and I really had fun that day - especially when we've been so tied up to so many things lately. It was a well deserved break!