NEAROF

When I think of Steinlager beer, I think not of its native New Zealand, but of Hawaii, where it seems to be about as readily available as Bud Light. While you couldn’t call it a local beer (it isn’t), you could probably fit it into a category between import and domestic. It’s sort of like [...]

The Look: Palm trees, a big wave and a surfing Maui onion are printed on the foil bag. Inside, the chips themselves are all curly and thick. They’re what I’d call a golden yellow colour, not much different from the regular salted potato chips I’m used to. They look more gnarled than standard potato chips [...]

It’s no secret that I love mochi ice cream. I reviewed the tiny ones made by Lotte earlier on NEAROF!, and I’ve loved almost every other brand of mochi ice cream I’ve tried so far. I’ve only recently started to experiment with non-ice-cream mochi, and let me tell you, I’m nuts for those, too. Instead [...]

I know a lot of people love macadamia nuts, but I don’t quite understand their passion. They’re crunchy and nut-like, yes, but on their own, I find them bland. Their most remarkable trait is their lack of a strong, distinctive flavour. On the surface, that sounds like a complaint, but it isn’t necessarily so. The [...]

First and foremost, is the new Starbucks “trenta” size for iced coffee and tea spectacularly refreshing? Yes. Yes, it is. But, of course, that’s not the whole story. Some numbers: The iced trenta cup holds 31 oz. (917 ml), compared to the iced venti cup, which holds 24 oz. (710 ml). Really, for all the [...]

The Look: Like frozen yogurt, served in either a cup or a cone. The Pitch: It’s a lactose-free frozen dessert that’s similar to frozen yogurt or soft-serve ice cream. Comes in several flavours — pineapple and vanilla appear to be the most common. The History: I first tried Dole Whip as a kid at Disneyland. [...]

Is there any more Hawaiian a souvenir than chocolate-covered macadamia nuts? Based on the shelves and shelves full of them at every corner store in Waikiki, they’re clearly a popular gift to bring back from the Hawaiian islands. But are they, you know, any good? In a word, yes. But I’ll qualify that by saying [...]

I adore Hawaii. I love the sunshine, the people, the atmosphere, and the effortlessly tropical/Polynesian/Asian/American melange of the place. I’ve been to Hawaii often enough to know what I’m missing when I’m not there. And what’s just about the first thing I do after I arrive on the long-haul flight from Canada? I grab a [...]