Name: Hannara Restaurant Address: 85-888 Farrington Hwy. Call: 696-6137 Plate Lunch Prices: $3.50 - $9.25 Hours: 7:00am to 7:30 pm Macaroni salad alternative? Will give assorted Korean style veggies w/ mac salad Specialties: Beef stew, Hamburger Steak, Saimin, (Korean Specialties) Kal-Bi, Meat Jun AND I SEZ: Located on the historic leeward coast of Oahu, Hannara Restaurant is the reincarnation of another restaurant that was owned by the current proprietors about 2 blocks away from its current location. Like so many other budget minded locales, Hannara caters to its local clientele but not like too many others in the Waianae area. A blending of both East and West, this restaurant serves a variety of local favorites with a Korean accent. The plate lunches come with the mandatory two scoops rice/mac salad, but also with two to three Korean vegetable side dishes like Kim Chee, seaweed or turnips-all prepared in the traditional Korean style, making them a perfect compliment to the main course. When going to an eatery for the first time I will always try a specialty- if their best is not that great, why bother with the rest? The hamburger steak plate that I tried was ONO. The generous patty was seasoned with just the right amount of spices and cooked just right. So many times I've had hamburger steak that either came out like a charcoal briquette or was stuffed with so much filler (bread) that I wondered if it was a new type of "inside-out" burger. Not so at the Hannara Restaurant. The gravy they use is more the watery type but still has good flavor. Hawaii is a beef stew type of town. Yes, you have other contenders like shoyu chicken and katsu plates, but the real worth of many plate lunch places is how they handle beef stew- is it just a once a week special? Is it just a throw -in to the menu? Hannara has an excellent beef stew. They're not "manini" with their meat chunks and the potato and carrot servings are in good balance with the meat. When you've eaten this beef stew with the side Korean veggies, it makes for a satisfying meal. Guys living on the leeward coast are truly blessed. Note: I won't even go into the Korean specialty plates, it would take too long- although they are quite good!
Food: Ono!! Service: Very pleasent Atmosphere: Clean and homey Value: A solid 3 can establishment! I will always stop by here for lunch when in Waianae.