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If you haven’t been to Hawaii or have and are missing the tastes of our 50th state, head over to Hale Noa Café in Chatan.
Hale Noa literally means “a house where people gather voluntarily.” You will see why the café lives up to the name. The interior is decorated with basic colors of white and soft pink, with various pictures and objects from Hawaii as decorations, making it a cozy and casual space to enjoy Hawaiian dishes, according to the café manager Rina Kochi.
Along with the welcoming atmosphere at the café, Hawaiian dishes of rich flavor, authentic tastes and artistic presentation have been attracting a wide-range of customers since its open in January, including many from the military community. Located between American Village and Araha Beach, the Hale Noa is only five-minute drive from Camp Foster.
Hale Noa Café’s head chef Bee Jay prides himself in offering authentic Hawaiian tastes in an artistic arrangement, according to Kochi.
Try the café’s signature dish, Hale Noa French Toast for 1,100 yen ($9). The well-balanced flavor of a sweet and sour berry sauce and crispy brulee sauce perfectly matches the thick and rich tastes of the French Toast, according to Kochi.
Eggs Benedict for 1,400 yen ($11) is another recommendation because of its picturesque arrangement on the plate.
“The dish looks just like tropical flowers in full bloom,” Kochi said. “You can choose two toppings from five options, such as bacon and spinach, basil chicken with mixed mushrooms, kalua pork, smoke salmon and Florentine for crisply toasted English muffin.”
The café serves up breakfast from 8 a.m.-11 a.m. The café staff recommends its breakfast set for 800 yen ($6.50). You can enjoy the set by customizing it with your favorite food option from eggs (scrambled or fried), meat (bacon, sausage or spam), along with pancakes, toast or rice.
The café’s Veggie Omelet for 1,100 yen ($9) is also a popular breakfast menu item. A large omelet stuffed with eggplant, zucchini, onions, green bell peppers and cheese is served with a pancake, toast, rice or country potato (mixture of white potatoes and beni-imo potatoes).
And to wash it all down, Hale Noa free coffee or iced tea with breakfast.
You may want to visit the café on weekends, as the café offers limited number of poki don (rice bowl of spicy tuna and octopus), an award-winning dish in the poki contest in Hawaii only on weekends. As Kochi says that the dish is very popular and often sold out in the morning, you may need to visit the café around its opening time at 8 a.m. for sure.
Hale Noa Café is a highly rated café for Hawaiian dishes near Camp Foster. Why not visit it and enjoy the authentic Hawaiian tastes in a cozy atmosphere?
The café can accommodates 21 guests. Parking lot for 8 cars is available.
takiguchi.takahiro@stripes.com
Hale Noa CaféHours: Sun-Mon, Wed-Thu, 8 a.m.-4 p.m., Fri-Sat, 8 a.m.-4 p.m., 5 p.m.-10 p.m.Address: 2-18-6-102 [1F] Chatan, Catan Town, Nakagami-gunFacebook: www.facebook.com/halenoacafeTel: 098-989-8244
