Waikiki Weekend.

The Royal Hawaiian “The Pink Palace”: Oahu’s most beautiful, vintage hotel.

It’s sad, really. I live in one of the top tourist destinations: Hawaii. And I rarely go to the beach. I rarely even go into Honolulu. Seriously. (Yeah, I'm a homebody!) So giving myself a change of pace, and being a beautiful (and unbearably hot!) day in Hawaii,  I took a rare drive into Waikiki this afternoon to treat myself to a lunch buffet at Five Star International. Driving to Waikiki can be such a pain because of all the traffic, parking fees, and all the tourists who have no clue that jaywalking is illegal (and dangerous!) in Hawaii. I’m serious. You have to pay a big fee if a cop catches you jaywalking. Don't do it.

Five Star International Buffet is located in the Royal Hawaiian Shopping Center next to Forever21. They claim to be Hawaii’s ONLY gourmet buffet. I was only able to snap a few shots in before I devoured everything. Five Star specializes in comfort Japanese inspired foods. They have an array of Japanese style dishes, gourmet Hawaiian desserts (lilikoi*, haupia*, and pineapple galore!), and of course, sushi. Everything was pleasantly done. From the casual, chic decor to the details on the food.  Best of all, only $19 for all-you-can-eat lunch.

The food may not cater to American tastes though. It's more of a mild, subtle flavor yet still very tasty. Not a BLAM-IN-YO-FACE-TASTE-THIS-FLAVAH kind of taste. More of a do-you-detect-the-mirin-in-here kind of flavor.

This little guy was interesting. Chawan mushi It’s a steamed egg dish cooked with tea. A light, slightly savory Japanese dish with chestnuts, bamboo shoots, and bits of chicken cooked through. It’s like custard, but savory.

*Lilikoi: Passionfruit

*Haupia: Hawaiian coconut panna cotta-like dessert.

Location: Five Star International Buffet & the Royal Hawaiian | Honolulu, Hawaii // Price: $$$$$