The former Grand Cafe & Bakery location at 31 N. Pauahi St. will soon be home to HASR Bistro, once HASR Wine Co. completes its expansion.
It will be business No. 3 for Terry Kakazu.
In addition to HASR, a retail wine store and tasting venue Kakazu owns and operates with her husband, Michael, she owns Terry’s Lounge in the Chinatown Cultural Plaza at 100 N. Beretania St., which has live music most nights.
HASR Bistro is a new business, separately owned by Terry Kakazu and Vice President and Executive Chef Rodney Uyehara. If the latter name is familiar, it’s because he has worked his kitchen magic at Chai’s Island Bistro, The Bistro at Century Center and the Sheraton Moana Beach House. "He’s one of the best chefs on the island," she said.
The new restaurant will be a "country-style French bistro" with local influences, open for lunch and dinner, and will source as many local ingredients as possible, Kakazu said. Given its adjacency to HASR Wine Co., "if you buy your wine through HASR, there will be no corkage fee," she said.
Still in the planning, Uyehara’s menu is likely to include dishes that became among his customers’ favorites, such as his French onion soup, beef cassoulet, steak tartare and "I really like cioppino," so he has developed a Kona lobster cioppino, Kakazu said.
Additionally, Mama’Nita Scones LLC owner Anita Rhee will prepare her upscale baked goods in the bistro kitchen for sale in the restaurant as well as to Rhee’s other clientele.
This is to be Kakazu’s first restaurant venture, though she grew up working in the restaurants owned and operated by her mother, Young Ok Oh, including Young’s House of Fine Food, New Korea Restaurant, Continental Korean Food at Ala Moana Center and New Arirang, Kakazu said.
Pending permitting, the double door that opens to the courtyard will be widened, enabling a better view of the garden and courtyard for diners inside the restaurant. Kakazu and Uyehara were hoping for an August opening, but "I know probably September for sure," so they can have a grand opening as part of First Friday festivities Sept. 7. Staff training and a soft opening will precede the grand opening, she said.
REMEMBER RECORDS?
Hungry Ear Records in Kailua will stage its first Hawaii Record Fair from 11 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Aug. 5 at the McKinley High School cafeteria.
Dennie Chong, co-owner of the store, which specializes in new vinyl, hopes the event will be a buying, selling and trading showcase for vinyl records, compact discs, cassettes and music memorabilia of all sorts.
"We’re putting it together and (are) looking for individual vendors, volunteers and other possible sponsors," he said.
Vendors already lined up are from around the island and include retailers, collectors and hobbyists. Some plan to "bring cool items like collectible 8-tracks, reel-to-reel tapes and vintage audio equipment to sell." Commercial vendors such as Audio Lab, a sponsor, will display for sale goodies for audiophiles, from entry level to high end. Placement preference for new sign-ups will be given to vendors who pay in advance.
Door prizes are planned, and volunteers are sought to help move stuff, update social media, assist fair-goers and so on, said Chong.
Hawaii Public Radio used to have an annual "Almost New Record Sale" but hasn’t staged such an event for at least the past five or six years, said Judy Neale, director of promotion. HPR stopped accepting donations of records and CDs, hence the end of the sale. Donors are now redirected to Friends of the Library, which sells the recordings along with books at its annual summer sale.
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Reach Erika Engle at 529-4303, erika@staradvertiser.com or on Twitter as @erikaengle.
