Kenko-Ya – Kaneohe Bay Shopping Center
Living in Hawaii, Japanese food isn’t hard to come by. There are tons of options out there: from neighborhood okazuyas to the more expensive steakhouses and sushi restaurants. The middle ground of those options, in my opinion, are the teishoku spots. You’ve probably been to a few (e.g. Gyotaku or Spicy Ahi & BBQ). I tend to depend on these spots for having something for everyone, and so far I haven’t been wrong. Teishoku spots are the no-frills neighborhood restaurants where you go for good food and value rather than overly complicated or fancified plates.
Kenko-Ya is located in the Kaneohe Bay Shopping Center across from Windward Mall. Tucked in the corner of the strip mall, you’ll find Kenko-Ya among a Pho restaurant, ramen restaurant, and soon-to-be Panda Express.
I’ve been here a couple of times and the service is efficient and friendly. The food is tasty, priced well, and I tend to go home with some leftovers.
Here are some of my favorite dishes!
As you can see, every plate has tempura on it. Their tempura is so crispy, doesn’t taste too much of batter, and also keeps well when taking it home. I recommend getting it as one of your choices if you’re getting a teishoku!
Pictured in the first picture on the left, we have the 3-choice teishoku with sashimi, shrimp and vegetable tempura, and saba. This plate only came out to $23.95 before tax. It was so filling and such a great deal! Next to that, we have the 2-choice teishoku with ahi tempura and spicy ahi. The ahi tempura was soft and flavorful on the inside, while crispy on the outside. Also, fair warning: the spicy ahi is for spicy lovers as it’s not the mild spicy ahi you find at most places! The 2-choice combo comes out to only $18.95. All teishokus come with miso soup and a small appetizer of edamame and bean sprouts.
In the second photo, we have the tenzaru soba (tempura and cold soba). Like I said, you can never go wrong with tempura here, so of course I had to get it again. The soba tasted like any other soba, but I would never expect homemade soba in a spot like this. If you’re craving this combo, it won’t disappoint.
Do you have a favorite teishoku spot? Let me know in the comments so I can try it out!
My family orders take out from here often. I like their combination options. Even the 2 combination plate is very filling, especially the tonkatsu and the mochiko chicken.