Kalbi and garlic shrimp plates, along with pan-fried poke plates, are just three examples of the standout dishes from Da Bald Guy food truck, located at Kahuku Sugar Mill.

“Our boneless braised kalbi is marinated in secret sauce for at least 24 hours, then slow-cooked to give it that tender, melt-in-your-mouth feel,” states owner James Martin.

Martin says Da Bald Guy originated from a brick-and-mortar eatery he ran with his father.

“Our place was called Road Side Kitchen,” he reminisces. “Our local customers called us ‘da two bolo heads’ for our lack of hair. Eventually, we changed our name to Da 2 Bald Guys because tourists didn’t know what ‘bolo head’ meant.”

Martin says that after parting ways with the former location, he took time off and worked as a chef at a private school. His father opened Da Bald Guy food truck; Martin eventually joined him and took over when his father retired.

He describes the offerings as “local plate lunch with some Asian flair.” The pan-fried poke plate is the perfect example.

“The catch of the day is cubed and marinated in an oyster sauce blend and pan-fried with caramelized onions,” he says. “It’s topped with furikake, then we drizzle sweet chile aioli and our own teriyaki sauce.”

Anyone heading to the North Shore will want a garlic shrimp plate. Da Bald Guy’s shrimps are peeled and finished with Martin’s special preparation, complete “with compound butter sauce (made) with roasted garlic, smoked paprika and onions.”

Customers can follow the truck on Facebook and Instagram (@dabaldguy_foodtruck) for updates. Speaking of updates, Martin recently announced that he’s opening a second location in June.

“I wanted to be in town to make it more convenient. Our next location will be at Ohana Hale Marketplace.

“I haven’t finalized the menu, but we’ll be serving our kalbi for sure,” he adds.