In childhood, I was made aware of my ethnic identity not by being told outright, but by following the traditions and rituals of my parents who both identified as 100% Chinese.
But as a kid with an overactive imagination, a penchant for reading and a view of the world as a nuanced sea of gray rather than black-and-white, I doubted that purebred humans actually existed. I suspected I might have had a Caucasian ancestor because I was made to understand I was different by the pronounced way my kindergarten and grade school teachers marveled over my fair, translucent skin and the blue veins visibly coursing through it, confessing to my mom during parent-teacher meetings that they w a n t e d to pinch my cheeks every time they saw me, something that would get them arrested today.
I suspected Russian blood ran through my veins because the country’s proximity to China made border crossing a no-brainer, but when DNA testing became available, I found my ancestors had traveled from much further abroad. A reading turned up small percentages of Southern European and Balkan DNA.
Ha! Maybe that would explain my affinity for Mediterranean food, and sadness that there’s so little of it available in Hawaii when it fits so well with our ethos of sunshine and simple pleasures.
One reliable spot over the years was Il Buco, a hidden poolside hole-in-the-wall at Waikiki Sand Villa Hotel. With a change in business partners, the restaurant is now La Vela Wine Bar, still run by original owner Darko Vidak, who shares his Croatian roots on a basic menu notable for the spare simplicity you’d find in the Mediterranean and Balkans. For me, it’s a welcome change from the chaotic throw-everysauce-on-a-plate philosophy that characterizes so much of local fare.
It was great to rediscover this spot at this point in the pandemic, when those who are still leaving their houses to dine seek spots with open-air seating options to de-stress and unwind with a glass of wine. The wine list here comprises reds largely from Italy and South America, whites from Italy, sparkling wines and champagne that partner well with the restaurant’s antipasti, tapas and pastas.
To start, there are antipasti platters well-suited to grazers. A small platter ($21) is perfect for two, also sharing a salad or other pupu like two pieces of Spanish sausage ($21) or mussels steamed in wine ($24). A recent platter comprised prosciutto, chorizo, salami, brie, blue cheese, Swiss cheese, pepper jack and olives.
Larger platters are available for $40 and $58. You’ll need bread to ac company your platter, but it’ll cost you $3 for the bread with olive oil and balsamic vinegar. At least they’re upfront about making it available to order off the menu, unlike Portugal’s covert practice of bringing bread or other small dishes to the table, then charging $3-$4 per person for what American tourists typically assume are complimentary. (Yes, I learned the hard way.)
You can enjoy a caprese ($18) or house salad ($13) of arugula with olives, cherry tomatoes and lemon vinaigrette, as well as a Croatian-style octopus salad ($21), in which the olive oil-and-lemon dressed octopus is sliced thin, sprinkled with spices and served with house- made potato salad dressed with olive oil, vinegar, salt and pepper.
For a fuller meal, there is a short list of entrées that include the day’s fresh catch ($31) sautéed in white wine with garlic, cherry tomatoes, olives, capers and chili pepper, as well as pan-seared salmon ($26) with pesto and lemon, served with a house salad.
Two pastas available are a bolognese ($23) and linguine puttanesca ($23) with cherry tomatoes made slightly bitter by being tossed with white wine, kalamatas, capers and garlic.
A highlight is the grilled Croatian lamb chops ($45) finished with lemon-garlic dressing and served with more of the house potato salad. The price seemed steep for the smallish chops but you can blame that on COVID-19, which has driven up the cost of meat, and just about everything else.
You can also blame the pandemic for a lack of desserts, as fewer people are opting to dine out, restaurants are unwilling to stock extras. But I’m guessing that once omicron is done with us, we will return to a level of normalcy we’ve been longing for … at least to the end of the year.
La Vela Wine Bar
Waikiki Sand Villa Hotel,
2375 Ala Wai Blvd.
Food: ***½
Service: ****
Ambiance: ***
Value: ***½
Call: 808-921-3210
Hours: 6 p.m.-midnight daily
Prices: About $65-$90 for two without alcohol
Nadine Kam’s restaurant visits are unannounced and paid for by Honolulu Star-Advertiser. Follow Nadine on Instagram (@nadinekam) or on YouTube (youtube.com/nadinekam).
