Da Ala Cart

Chef Chris is very particular about his ingredients and food quality. Definitely worth every penny! Must try everything on his menu which he changes often. Love his ribeye, musubi, lamb, iCrab, gyu tongue, chicken wings and musubi! Really delicious!

I’ve heard amazing things about this place so I finally decided to try it. And I was thoroughly disappointed. First off, we waited an hour and 45mins our food… Seriously. For little grilled things. I could have gone to a market, bought the ingredients for what I ordered and grilled them myself at home in that time or less. I think it was because it was a windier night? At least that’s what I was told. The wind was messing with the fire.
I could’ve been more understanding about the wait if the food was actually good. But it wasn’t. And we tried a lot of things. The grilled musubi was okay. Easily something you could make. The corn was nothing impressive. It was just corn grilled. The grilled chicken was nothing special either. The mushrooms and mochi stick was okay too. I don’t know what else to say. Nothing was that memorably good. I did like the sauce that came with it but in my opinion thats just what «saved» the taste of the food.
Also the cashier, not sure if that’s the owner or the owner’s wife but she was incredibly rude. I could tell she was frustrated because there were people waiting a long time but in that case, you should be more kind. When we asked what sauce is good for what, she snapped at us and basically implied to figure it out ourselves. Yep. Not coming back

Yummy food all the time. Love the grilled musubi extra crispy. But you have to go there at 9 or he might sell out.

Da Ala Cart is an awesome pop up for night owls. Chris opens around 9pm on select days and cooks up all kinds of goodies on his robata grill. The menu is always different and all the items are fresh (never frozen). He buys the meats and preps it in the same day. To find out where he’s going to be «popping up,» you have to check his instagram (@daalacart). So far I know he’s over by Launderland and then sometimes at the back door of The Little Oven. You can usually spot him if you see a white tent, 2 tables, and lots of smoke coming from the tent. If you’re on foot, you can probably start to smell the deliciousness of the food cooking on the grill as you approach the tent.
My favorites are the prime rib, lamb lollipop, pork belly, grilled musubi with pork, and grilled mochi. All of the meats are seasoned with different spices as they cook. The grilled mochi gets a special sauce after it’s done grilling. The meats are sold by the stick and they range from $ 2 to $ 6. It is on the pricey side but you’ll walk away with a very happy and full belly. If plan to try this place, you need to come when they open because sometimes he sells out of certain items real fast. If you’re a first timer, the pork belly is a must. The fatty pork melts in your mouth and it’s nice and salty. The food takes 20 – 30 minutes to cook so find yourself a comfy spot to stand in or meet the other regulars who always eat there. It’s pretty casual and everyone is friendly. Both locations have parking near by.

Having heard positive and enthusiastic reviews from a number of friends, I expected quite a bit from them. I went for a pop-​up behind Little Oven and was underwhelmed, if not angered, by the end of the night. I had to settle down and think about this for a few days before I wrote. I hope this doesn’t fall upon deaf ears.
We got there just before they opened. We were headed into Little Oven for desserts. They took our orders and payments and promised to deliver to us inside. Within a reasonable amount of time, three out of four of our items (yaki onigiri, grilled mochi, 1 spicy tsukune) were delivered. My regular tsukune was not delivered at the same time for some reason. It didn’t bother me at the time, thinking it wasn’t quite ready yet.
Roughly 45 minutes later, I wondered what happened to my tsukune that wasn’t delivered. I walked back outside to ask. I was given some story about how there was a big order in front of mine and that mine was set aside and would be delivered. I found this very hard to believe since we were the only customers there before they opened. No apologies either, mind you.
10 minutes AFTER that, still no tsukune. My friend went out back to ask again, and was told that it would be coming. No apologies.
10 minutes AFTER that, it finally gets delivered. I waited over an hour for essentially the same item that was delivered in a reasonable amount of time to my friend. Oh, and NO APOLOGY from the cashier (Da Ala Cart cashier) who delivered. Everyone at our table noticed the lack of apology as well.
I understand that orders get mixed up, cooks get backed up, and mistakes are made. I understand that certain foods take time to prepare, but absolutely none of this makes any sense to me.
1. How could you mess up your first two orders of the day? Only 4 items?
2. Why would you concoct some ridiculous excuse rather than just give me one that’s already being fired? Any other restaurant would expedite the order to ensure that the customer doesn’t have to wait longer.
3. Why wouldn’t you apologize at least once for not getting me the item on time?
All of this came from the cashier, who in my opinion is the front of the business. Not the way you want to interact with customers. Needless to say, I will not be doing business with them again.
Here’s the review in case you’re still interested:
— Grilled Mochi — Okay at best. It was so big that it was cumbersome to eat. Smaller bite sized pieces would have been manageable. I felt like I was eating a really hot sandwich. The ends were not cooked through as well and were harder than I would like.
— Tsukune — The onions were so big and so plentiful, that it dominated the flavor and texture of the item. I’ve had many tsukune at many different places in Hawaii and Japan and this doesn’t hold a candle to those standards.

Couldn’t figure out what I wanted to eat tonight and was driving home and like it was meant to be «Da Ala Cart»! Had a stuffed jalapeño, yakitori, and a grilled musubi. Talk about «hit da spot»! All you have to do is watch Chris cook and you know it’s going to be «ono» or taste good! He is very meticulous on the grill and transfers his joy for food and cooking into each piece that goes on his grill. If you’re ever in the area, highly recommend. Follow him on Instagram to see the menu each night.

Amazingly addicting… This food that Chef Chris dishes off the grill! Love to treat myself to delicious food and even better when its deliciously healthy. I try to make healthy choices (with the occasional break for mochi ice cream or memorable crème brûlée) and its great you can do all of that here. For those that want that sweet decadent finish, visit the location on Liona St, just behind The Little Oven… then dessert just inside.
Menu is ever changing depending on Chef’s desire. If in stock, must always get the grilled «yaki musubi» rice ball. Chef Chris kicks it up a notch by stuffing it with a scrumptious miso pork or salmon or…“surprise us” other flavor!
Other favorites of mine include: stuffed jalapeños, pork belly wrapped zucchini and asparagus, tsukune, pork belly wrapped shishamo. Last nite Chef kicked up the tsukune with goya (bittermelon)…add a dash of spicy daikon sauce and BAM! …we have a winner!
Chef Chris and his assistant, Sadie (not his niece, not his wife… just stunningly spectacular Sadie!) work their magic @ mobile and different locations yet predominantly @ parking lot setups on 1) Beretania St close to McCully and 2) Liona St just off Kaheka St. Follow them on IG @daalacart, twitter, or their website at
to watch for location and times.

Da ala cart has been a late night go to for me ever since his days at the Don quiote parking lot. Back then, he actually had a truck. Eventually the truck retired and he didn’t, putting out great «on the stick» foods. Tsukune, jidori bonjiri, and his more recent lamb lollipops and steak. My all time favorites for him are his chicken wings. Nothing special, except when cooked to perfection it’s as good as you can get without deep frying. His go to items are his grilled musubi and pork belly sticks. The musubi is made with quality rice, none of this «diamond g» crap you see on lesser trucks. Usually with pork, but occasionally stuffed with Kim chi or salmon, and heated crisp on the grill before rolling in nori, its the bomb. The pork belly sticks are instant Foodie crack, juicy soft, tender and primed for a bed of rice if you so choose. Back in the wars street days, he would make 60 sticks and it wouldn’t even make it to midnight.
Tips, read the reviews that tell you how to find it, order, then be patient. Chef is particularly cognizant of quality and wants the best possible flavor so he will not rush things. I often order, then go back to my car or sit on a bench and hit Facebook while waiting for food. You can do that, but you will find his customers to be friendly, chatty, and social. Feel free to strike up a conversation with some of the regulars. They tend to be enthusiasts of food yumminess and will share all their knowledge at will.

Always a treat! Everything is good, but the extra crispy musubi is the bomb! The tsukune is better than Tskuneya. I’m sure the grilled asparagus wrapped in pork belly is an aphrodisiac. Whether it’s rib eye, chicken wings, lamb, pork belly, gyutan, tofu, or vegetables, it’s all cooked and seasoned to perfection.

Well; it seems lack of a full kitchen on wheels has not affected his quality of food! The tongs-​wielding grilling wonder continues to delight with his products! New delights and specials that have popped up here and there:
Grilled shiitake mushroom filled with minced pork belly topped with pepper jack cheese — like an open-​faced slider. OMG — I think my tongue just up and left me for this man!
Grilled ika (squid) with salt and pepper or garlic sauce
Pork «hot pot» — a hearty «stewp» (part stew, part soup) of miso, pork belly, mushrooms, tofu, and napa cabbage
Beef ribeye — tender cubes of beef grilled up how you want, with optional oroshi ponzu (grated daikon infused citrus soy) sauce
Jidori chicken bonjiri (tails) and nankotsu (chest cartilage)
Also, his ever-​rotating menu of what’s fresh and available is sure to hit the spot!
Credit cards welcome and encouraged!

Bring your own beverage, or he may have water or iced tea for sale. (if he has room on board to bring it out!)
Catering on-​site requests are welcome, but must be arranged in advance.

I’ve been eyeing Gary N.‘s fabulous IG photos of Da Ala Cart for awhile now and finally had the opportunity to try some great food from here. This is the cutest little mom and pop set up, and they offer great food! Definitely check them out on Instagram for updates on menu items, etc.
Location: I had a hard time imagining where this place was, so unless you’re looking for it and driving slowly down beretania, it’s easy to miss. The easiest way to explain where it is is the laundromat right before the shell station. You’ll want to park in the diamond head side lot, not the lot closest to the shell station, so drive slow! If you pass it, you’re gonna have to loop back around since Beretania is one way. However, we did see more than a few people driving illegally (the wrong way down beretania) from the shell station into the parking lot. Such daredevils! I was looking for an actual food truck, but it’s actually a little tent set up by a van.
Food: the food is simple, but soooo yummy! I only got to try a couple items, but what I did try was amazing. The lamb lollipops have an herb rub that was interesting, not my favorite, but good. The sweet potato was a little plain; it’s just a potato wrapped in foil, but since they forgot the musubi on the day I went, the potato served as a great simple starchy side for all the other yummy food. My favorites of the night have to be the garlic mushrooms and the ribeye. The mushrooms were coated in the yummiest garlic sauce and cooked perfectly while the ribeye was seasoned well and came with a very delicious ponzu sauce. The sausage was also surprisingly good! Next time, I will have to try the corn, musubi and chicken wings!
Cost: it seems inexpensive, but you literally pay per stick, so it can really add up, especially if you’re hungry! I could probably eat 5 of those ribeye skewers, and at $ 4 a pop, that’s already $ 20. You might be thinking that I’m a crazy person and could just buy a steak at Safeway and grill it at my house. 1) it won’t come with yummy ponzu, and 2) let’s be honest, even though I love grilling, I’m no pro and I can’t possibly make it taste as good as da ala cart:) the guy grilling the skewers is definitely a pro. He rotates the skewers and seasons constantly. It looks exhausting!
Hours: da ala cart is open 9 – 12 on certain nights, but the night I went, they had already sold out of meat by 9:30, so if definitely try to go at 9. Even if I couldn’t go until later, I would be satisfied with the veggies and sausage though, so no worries if you miss out on the ribeye or lamb, there’s always next time!
The husband and wife who run this little «cart» are cute and sooo sweet! Once your order is taken, they will call your name as your food finishes cooking, so everything is really fresh and hot. There is some seating by the laundromat and if it’s full, you can always stand by the grill to watch the chef work his magic (this option might be more preferable since its been so cold outside). I know I will be back for late night snacks. :)

We need more of this in Honolulu!
Serious. Mom and pop street food is seriously lacking here. We have plenty of food trucks, but they don’t provide the same experience.
It is best to follow @daalacart on IG to see what the opening times are and what food is available. Also, some items, like the gyu tan, sell out quick and you can call it in early if you want them to save you some.
My favorite item from them are the more recent rib eye with the ponzu sauce. Don’t just get one order, get multiple ones. Also, their grilled musubi’s are a must have. Their lamb pops are quite popular but lamb isn’t something I love, so I pass.
Adequate parking available on the laundromat and between it and Ito En.

This place is pretty bangin’.
It’s a small pop up that changes their menu regularly. Its a guy, a girl, and a grill… and the food is awesome.
I ordered nearly the entire menu when I was there last and can’t wait to go back for more.
Edit: 4 months later. Still awesome so added a 5^th star. Nothing bad comes off that grill.

What can I say about this lovely man and his wonderfully grilled assortment of delicacy? His grilled musubi is what dreams are made of, that’s how Ono this food is. His menu changes with requests and for what items are locally seasonal. He recently grilled prime rib with a dipping sauce of ponzu and pineapple and I thought I had died and gone to heaven. He opens after 9PM to cater to the people whom work late and he posts often on his Instagram to give people a heads up. I can’t sing the praises of his food enough, his lamb lollipop is always cooked to perfection as is his garlic pork. I haven’t found any of his food to ever be cooked unevenly or less than perfect. The crew are kind and the wait may be long at times but it’s worth it.

Yummy yummy free food!
Wait what?
Every time that I’ve been here I’ve been lucky enough to be super duper full. But my hungry friends order all the delicious items and offer me small bites so I get to eat for free! (MUHAHAHA)
So far I’ve been able to taste the grilled mochi, grilled musubi, asparagus wrap, zucchini wrap, and pork belly.
Next item on my wish list is chicken wings! Anyone feeling generous?

Update 9÷27÷13
Follow him on Facebook. Da Ala Cart.
He is now on 2012 S Beretania St in the Ocean Sports Bar parking lot on TW from 9−12am but he is usually sold out by 11:30pm.

OMG!!! 3 words: Braised Pork Belly. As we were completely full and leaving tonight’s Honolulu Night Market, we stumbled upon this epic food truck and could not resist the sound of the menu. Braised Pork Belly, Grilled Musubi with Pork Miso filling, Da Ala Sausage etc. etc. etc. I don’t know about you, but I could be on the brink of death-​by-​food-​coma and I’d find a way to make room for Braised Pork Belly.
Now I must warn you, the wait time is long. This is really a small dinky food truck so it’s not equip to handle a lot of orders at once. BUT, although i waited maybe 15 minutes for my order, it was WORTH IT!
I swear everything is laced with food-​crack (aka MSG), which makes everything extra salty and incredibly delicious. The pork belly was by far my favorite thing. It was crispy on the outside, and soft and full of melt-​in-​your-​mouth buttery fat with a hint of miso/​teri flavor on the inside. Next time, I will have 4 orders of that. It was happy belly dance, delicious.
The Beef tongue was a little thick and not as soft as I would like, but the shiitake mushrooms had this sauce on it that was sooooo good and the grilled musubi was super salty and delicious.
I can’t wait to stalk this food truck now! I’m already mentally preparing my order for next time. :)

BROKE DA MOUTH!!! Da Ala Cart has some SUPER ONO foods! Chee Hoo! FIVE STARS for this food truck!
I’m back home in Honolulu and visiting my ohana (family). My elementary school gang decided to get together for an informal reunion at a friend’s house, and we invited several local food trucks to come over to provide the food for the party. We chose the BEST local food truck — «Da Ala Cart».
Da Ala Cart serves foods on skewers (I was told that only chicken dishes could be called «Yakitori», but I’m going to do it anyway). The owner of this food truck (Chris) is a HI local who spent 10+ years in Tokyo Japan working. His food is super authentic and tastes just like you would get it in Japan. Prices are super reasonable, and the truck is CLEAN! I tried everything on the menu, and here’s my reviews:
Grilled Musubi (Rice Balls): WHAT? Who would have ever thought of grilling a musubi (rice ball, like sushi)? This item was deelishh!!! There are two types of musubis: Pork Belly & Ginger ($ 2.75) or Salmon and Shiitake Mushroom ($ 3.00). The pork belly is made by slow cooking pork belly meat for hours, then breaking it down and adding a bit of a soy marinade. The pork was super tender and fell apart in the mouth! The Salmon and shiitake mushroom musubi was deelish — nice flavors of the salmon combined with the rice and nori (seaweed wrapping) made it fun to eat! Grade: A!
Gyu-​Tan ($ 2.50): Three to four generous slices of beef tongue per skewer, grilled to perfection! The meat was tender and chewy. Cooked by adding Japanese sea salt, pepper, and a dash of lemon juice. This HAS to be the most popular dish of the truck, so go early and order this one! I must have had 5 – 6 servings of this ono ono ono dish! Grade: A+
Asparagus Stick ($ 2.50): Fun Japanese style yakitori stick where they get an asparagus, slice it into several bite size pieces, and grill it with the usual Japanese sea salt and marinade to perfection! Grade: A-​.
Braised Pork Belly Stick ($ 2.50): This dish has to be the best money for the value. There are about 5 – 6 1″ chunks of braised pork belly skewered on a stick. Taste like these pork belly pieces are slowly braised for hours, then they grill it to give it additional flavors. Meat was fall apart in the mouth and deeelish! Grade: A+
Tsukune ($ 2.25): A traditional Japanese treat of ground marinated chicken on a stick. The ground chicken was super flavorful because they use fresh island chicken (who live with tons of aloha). The meat is shaped into a 2″ x 5″ meat patty on a stick. Grade: A-​.
Shishamo ($ 2.25) One of the more traditional dishes was Shishamo. It was a little Japanese caplin fish on a stick, grilled (with a light batter?) to perfection! The little fish was filled with fish eggs. You just ate the entire fish because it was super tender and flavorful — head, tail, and all. Grade: A+
Mushroom stick ($ 2.00): Several shiitake mushrooms are stuffed with secret ingredients and skewered so that the mushroom meat was tender and still juicy. I kinda felt healthy eating this one! Grade: A-​.
Yaki Mochi ($ 2.00): Imagine yourself on the streets of Tokyo and there is a little old man pushing a cart of charcol and grilling mochi (rice balls). This dish was another one of my favorites. It was Yaki Mochi (square chunks of mochi) that was grilled and they put a kind of a teriyaki sauce and nori (seaweed wrapper). Grade: A+
Chicken Wing ($ 1.75): Everyone at the party was fighting for a grilled chicken wing. These local chicken wings are super juice and tender. They are prepared only with a dash of Japanese & Hawaiian sea salts. Grade: A-​.
Chicken Gizzards ($ 1.75): Another one of my favorites — grilled chicken gizzards (about 10 on a stick). The meat was grilled with Japanese /​Hawaiian salt and pepper. Plain, but nice tasting meat. The meat was chewy and crunchy, yet super tender. Nice texture! Grade: A+
Da Ala Sausage ($ 1.00): This was a cute little mini hot dog on a stick. Grilled with no marinade or seasoning. Fun to eat! Grade: A-​.
Vegi Stick ($ 1.75): Healthy pieces of zuchini and eggplant grilled with a kind of a teriyaki glaze. The veggies are fresh and tasty! Grade: A-​.
The only dish that I didn’t try was the Grilled Hawaiian Pineapple. AUWE — it was sold out by the time I got to the party (only 20 minutes late). The people who did get to try the dish said it was outstanding! They used fresh island Hawaiian pineapple, put it on a skewer, and grilled it to perfection!
To the owner of the food truck, Chris. You’ve got a great thing going here. Thanks for bringing an authentic taste of Japan to Hawaii. The food was super ono, and your prices are wayyyy reasonable. You clearly have the best food truck on the islands! Gambatte!!!

I’ve been wanting to try Da Ala Cart for a long time, and we finally got a chance at the Kakaako Farmer’s Market on a Friday night. One advantage to visiting them here is that there were no crowds.
The food was on the salty side, which was great for me because I love salty foods, but some may find the food to be too salty. It took a while for our food to be made, since everything is made to order, so I’d hate to see what the wait is like when these guys get busy.
But their food has a lot of taste and flavor, and I’d definitely hit these guys again if I’m in the mood for a light meal.

The name of this place doesn’t really appeal to me, which is probably why I had no initial desire to try this place at all. However, I passed by Da Ala Cart on the way to Puffettes Egg Puffs after the Lil Wayne Concert and happened to notice their menu. I’m not sure if it was a special after-​event menu, but it caught my eye.
3pc. Set ($ 6):
2 Chicken Wings
1 Pork Belly Musubi
Ala Carte items were $ 2.50 each:
Pork Belly Stick
Asparagus Stick
Fish on a Stick
Beef Tongue Stick
Pork Belly Musubi
I ordered 1 Pork Belly Stick and 1 Beef Tongue Stick (medium rare) for $ 5.
While waiting, I was given a free chicken wing. (Thanks!)
The chicken wing was so (temperature) hot because it had just come off the grill, but I was starving! I battled with the heat and won. The chicken was actually pretty good.
Once my order was complete, it was hand-​delivered to me. Each stick was neatly wrapped up in foil and placed in a bag with napkins. Now that’s service!
The delicious Pork Belly was incredibly tender and slightly sweet. I’d definitely order it again.
The tongue was an absolute winner! It was extremely tasty and I’m so sad I didn’t order more!!! There were only 3 slices of tongue on the stick, but they were totally worth the $ 2.50. For the rest of the night, I kept thinking about the tongue and how I wished I had ordered more. I also thought about doing a drive-​by to see if I could catch them before closing up…
Anyway, don’t let their name fool you! This place is fantastic! I can’t wait to try more of their items.
Unilocal 365 — #057/​365