I’ve been blessed to have two grandmothers, both of whom have always made their home comforting, loving and soulful. They taught me to be patient, warm and kind. That’s what it feels like when you walk into Faria (308 Kuulei Road), a new Portuguese restaurant in Kailua.
As soon as we got through the door, which was made of wine cork material, we were greeted by a wall of beautiful rosaries. Now granted, my last name is Martin, and I have Portuguese blood — but both of my grandmothers are Japanese. So, I had to use my imagination, and I imagine Faria is how a Portuguese grandmother would decorate her home — from the cozy lighting to the colorful flatware and furniture.
Certain areas of the biz had couches instead of dining room chairs, which added to the ambiance. The restaurant had beautiful blue and white rugs, an old-school chest filled with treasured tea sets, and framed photos of loved ones. My guest for the evening was the stunning Lisa Marie. She had been to Portugal before and claimed that Faria reminded her of her time there.
I had heard nothing but positive things about Faria and could not wait to dine there. We had to make a reservation, which we could only get for 8 p.m. Readers, I’ve already confessed that I’m not the most patient person, but I understood that this was a new restaurant with a lot of buzz surrounding it — thus, I knew if we showed up without a reservation, we’d have to wait awhile to be seated.
Once we got to our table, we found a card that read, “But what does it all mean?” followed by a glossary of Portuguese food terms.
Bacalhau was the first item on the list: “cod fish; the term typically refers to salted, dried cod; bacalhau, in all of its forms, is arguably Portugal’s most beloved food.”
Now who was I to deny Portugal’s most beloved food? I knew cod dish was something we had to order, and there were several options at Faria. We started with the bolinhos de bacalhau ($16), which was salted cod and potato fritters served with fresh lemon and piri piri aioli.
Fritters are an interesting texture for me, and I don’t always love their grittiness. However, these fritters were fantastic, seasoned well and surprisingly not dry.
A good friend of mine had suggested we order the pao caseiro ($14), Faria’s bread basket. It came with a trio of different breads — pao da lareira, bolo do caco and sweetbread — a sweet cream and several types of butter, including the Faria bay butter.
My favorite was the sweetbread, but if there is one thing I would recommend you try at Faria, it would be the bay butter. It was savory but not spicy and added an extra element to the already wonderful bread.
If Faria were my Portuguese grandmother, I’d be asking her to send me home with a jar of her bay butter.
I will admit I went a little insane ordering. In my defense, the menu was extensive and there was no other Portuguese restaurant on the island, so I took advantage by trying as many dishes as possible.
In addition to Portuguese dishes, there were hints of local cuisine that made me curious, like the laulau stew ($16).
This stew came with taro leaves, marinated pork and seasonal vegetables. I have to tell you, it was immaculate. The meat fell apart with every bite and the vegetables were softened wonderfully.
The flavors of the laulau stew were so good, it made me feel as if I was at a backyard graduation party that was serving heavenly Hawaiian food.
I’d be doing you a disservice if I went to Faria and didn’t order the Portuguese bean soup ($10).
This is going to get me in trouble, but I will not lie to you. Every other place you’ve ever had Portuguese bean soup (no, I will not mention where) can step aside. This soup was astounding. Several types of meat were used in this dish, and the vegetables soaked up the flavors beautifully.
I was getting full, but wouldn’t Grandma be disappointed if I didn’t try her chicken? Thus, we ordered the Granny Pereira’s Piripiri chicken ($24). It ended up being my favorite dish of the night.
It was a generous serving of a whole roasted chicken leg, seasoned with piri piri spice rub, which I learned from the glossary is Portugal’s signature chile pepper.
It wasn’t that spicy, but it sure was flavorful. The chicken was juicy, cooked to perfection, and paired well with the lemon potatoes.
We also ordered the Alcatra ($26), which was slow-cooked pot roast in white wine, and an onion jam served with salt pork and mashed potatoes. It came with cabbage, which I learned is a staple in Portuguese cooking. The pot roast was soft, flavorful and fell apart easily with my fork. It is the quintessential dish I’d think of when it comes to comfort.
Now, Grandma would not let us leave her house without dessert so we ordered the arroz doce ($11), which was a creme brûlée rice pudding. In my opinion, rice pudding is an acquired texture. However, the contrast of the burnt sugar crust, the arborio rice and three-milks custard in Faria’s version was spectacular.
Here’s what I’ll leave you with: There is no other restaurant on this island like Faria. Every single dish I ate was wonderful. However, something to keep in mind is that I wasn’t the only one who felt this way and so the restaurant had run out of some of the items we had wanted to try by the time we got there. I recommend making a reservation and getting there early.
That being said, it’s a darn good thing my grandmothers taught me to be patient, warm and kind.
Faria
Address
308 Kuulei Road, Kailua
Phone
808-200-4953
Hours
5 – 10 p.m. Wednesdays – Saturdays;
Closed Sundays -Tuesdays
Instagram
@fariahawaii
Food: 5/5
Price: $$
Ambiance: 4/5
Service: 3/5
Parking: Limited stalls in front, street parking available
