Indigo is now open with a new menu, after a fire caused the restaurant to shut its doors March 19. –Nadine Kam / nkam@staradvertiser.com
COMPILED BY NINA WU / nwu@staradvertiser.com
Indigo rises: Indigo Restaurant has reopened with a new menu and new partners, including chefs Robert McGee and Dave Cruz, who have joined forces with owner-chef Glenn Chu. The restaurant had been shuttered by a late-night fire March 19.
The revamped menu offers Western-style comfort cuisine in addition to Indigo’s trademark Asian fusion dishes.
New lunch and dinner offerings include carpaccio of beef “Chinatown-style”; chilled gazpacho soup with celery and crab salad; summer tomato salad with cress, organic coconut oil, sea salt and lime; barbecued lamb chops with passion fruit hoisin and risotto-corn cake; seared monchong with unagi-glazed bacon in dashi broth; Grilled Eye of Rib Eye Beef with Indigo Dragon Fire Sauce and Chimichurri.
At lunchtime Indigo’s time-honored original buffet will still be available, along with a preset menu.
Lunch is available from 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tuesday through Friday, and dinner is from 5:30 to 9 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. Call 521-2900 or visit www.indigo-hawaii.com.
Vintage Cave’s Fifth: Three guest chefs will work alongside Vintage Cave Honolulu’s executive chef Chris Kajioka for its fifth chef collaboration event on the evenings of July 12 and 13.
Guest chefs collaborating for those evenings will be Vinny Dotolo, executive chef of Animal in Los Angeles, who is best known for his gastronomic dishes inspired by whole animal cookery; Jeremiah Langhorne, chef de cuisine at McCrady’s in Charleston, S.C., and one of the respected forerunners in contemporary Southern cuisine; and Ron Mendoza, executive pastry chef at L’Auberge Carmel in Carmel, Calif., a veteran of French Laundry who excels at both savory and sweet.
The team will prepare a 10-course degustation dinner menu. Cost is $295 per person. Seatings will be available each evening at 5:30 and 7:30 p.m.
Vintage Cave Honolulu is in the lower level of Shirokiya Department Store at Ala Moana Center, 1450 Ala Moana Blvd. Call 441-1744 or visit vintagecave.com.
Big Island Brewhaus beers are now available at 12th Avenue Grill. –Courtesy photo
Dessert Face-off: Japengo at the Hyatt Regency Waikiki has launched a “Facebook Faceoff” on its Japengo Facebook page. Throughout July, Japengo asks guests to vote for either the longtime favorite Coconut Creme Brulee or new Sticky Date Pudding desserts.
At the end of the voting period, the winning dessert will be given away for free with each paid entree on Aug. 2, 3 and 4.
The Sticky Date Pudding ($8) is a traditional Australian dish served with Hawaii island vanilla-mascarpone and caramel sauce. The Coconut Creme Brulee ($12) is shredded island coconut, creme brulee and toffee crumble served in a coconut shell.
Japengo is at the Hyatt Regency Waikiki, 2424 Kalakaua Ave. Visit www.fb.com/JapengoWaikiki to participate. Call 237-6180.
Kim chee and kalbi: If you love Korean food, check out the 12th annual Korean Festival July 12 and 13 at Kapiolani Park and Bandstand.
On July 12, food booths open at 4 p.m., followed by a movie at 7 p.m. The festival runs from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. July 13. Besides food booths offering kalbi (barbecue short ribs), bi bim bap and kim chee fried rice, there will be Korean cooking lessons and a kim chee eating contest.
Visit www.koreanfestivalhi.com or fb.com/KoreanFestivalHI.
Meaty Mondays: Celebrate Meaty Mondays at 12th Avenue Grill with special plates paired with Big Island Brewhaus beer this month, with the next one scheduled for July 15.
Chef J. Schoonover will offer toasted fennel and saffron with cioppino — clams, mussels, shrimp and local fish — which would ideally be paired with Big Island Brewhaus’ Golden Sabbath.
On July 22 the small plate special is ale-battered Kako’o ‘Oiwi pohole (edible fern) shoots with fried egg and Big Island celery aioli to be paired with Golden Sabbath as well.
For dessert on July 29, try the Big Island cinnamon Meyer lemon doughnut holes and spiced nuts with a peppercorn and smoked salt Madre chocolate dipping sauce, with a suggested pairing of White Mountain Porter.
Special craft beer pairings are available a la carte at 12th Avenue Grill, 1145 12th Ave., in July. Call 732-9469.