The Portuguese Festa (prounounced “FESH-tah”; a.ka. festival) took place today, Saturday,  September 20, 2008 in the McCoy Pavillion at Ala Moana Beach Park from 9am to 5pm.

This was my first time attending this event (shame yeah?), yet I’m sure glad I made it this year! I found this experience very, very enlightening and interesting in tracing my roots.

As you might know, I’m half Portuguese, with my late and great father being pure Portuguese, while my mother is Hawaiian, German and English, in that order of quantity.

Being in the blood, it’s due time I be here.

The folks working at today’s event were friendly and just fantastic, with plenty of knowledge about our Portuguese culture. I really felt like I was around one big extended ohana and right at home.

If you missed it, don’t fret, I got you covered. Following is a pictorial walk-through of today’s festivities. Enjoy!…

Like the Greek Festival, there’s a $3 donation/entry fee at the door.

Ani’s Portuguese Sweet Breads and other baked specialties….

Hawaii Lieutenant Governor James “Duke” Aiona serves up Portuguese Bean Soup to the people…

Duke - a former first circuit court judge - is Portuguese, Chinese and Hawaiian. That’s a common ethnic mixture in Hawaii. In person, he’s a very friendly, down-to-earth guy.

I also got a picture with Hawaii Governor Linda Lingle, who made a round at the event. The picture came out blurry though, as the person with her taking the photo didn’t hold the shutter on my camera to activate the auto focus. Oh well.

This is the Vinha D’ Alhos…

Looks and has the texture like Kalua Pig, but WAY different in flavor.

Portuguese style chicken with a roll, beans, pickled onion and pepper…

Cod Stew (the master batch cooking in a wok on a propane burner)…

A Portuguese Hot Dog, made with a jumbo hot dog-sized Portuguese Sausage and Portuguese Sweet Bread Bun…

One of the workers there raved about this, saying it was so ono. I just wasn’t in the mood for that kinda’ “heft” on this hot sunny day (ya’ know?), so didn’t try it.

I’m getting flashbacks from my “Great Portuguese Sausage Shootout” entry here (lol)…

Tostinhos…

Chow Chow…

Also for sale were these delicious boiled and salted Lupini beans, which are called Tremocas (c is pronounced as ’s’) by the Portuguese. They’re similar in texture to boiled peanuts, except more “legume-like”, flavor-wise - like a cross between a kidney bean and a peanut…

Tremocas, a.k.a. Lupini beans

Portuguese cook books for sale ($10 each)…

I’m diggin’ this shirt!…

I’m guessing Vin D’ Alhos is what was served in this particular dishware…

My father had a massive Portuguese flag, which my sister now has it.

A  traditional Portuguese table setting…

The dance group in traditional Portuguese dress…

Turns out that image-stabilized 12x optical zoom on my new Sony (gently used) DSC-H5 works out quite well! I was standing from the backside of the pond in the courtyard taking the photos. Nice.

The crowd enjoying the day…

Back to the displays and goods for sale…

As you might know, the Ukulele was introduced to Hawaii by the Portuguese. The beautiful instruments on display here today are from KoALOHA Ukulele Company.

The “Pineapple” Uke’…

Get a load of this one!…

That would be a great one to display at a Tiki Bar.

Highly detailed fretboard inlay…

I like their headstock design as well.

Gettin’ jiggy wit’ it…

The Portuguese (such as Magellan) were some of the greatest sailors in the world…

Portuguese men like sailing, while Portuguese women enjoy doll making…

Wow, Barbie and Ken ain’t got nothin’ on them! They’re kinda’ creepy-lookin’ though, huh? lol

A majority of the population in Portugal are Roman Catholic…

FATIMA

Hand-crafted dishware imported from Portugal…

The rooster is the symbol of Portugal, and it’s prevalent everywhere you look at the Portuguese Festa. I’ll explain the story behind it later and add into this entry…

The following items for sale at the Festa today are more Japanese, yet you might find them interesting to see…

That just about wraps things up. I really enjoyed it, and will be back for next year’s Festa for sure!

Final note, I’m really happy with the photos coming out of my new/used Sony DSC-H5. The flash metering is well-controlled, preventing over-exposure in just about all the shots I took using it. Also, I hardly need to post-process most of the photos, as the color accuracy and sharpness look spot-on straight off the memory card. Most of all, that 12x optical zoom and image stabilization has already proved to be a valued feature. Very nice!

Luxury condos tower over Ala Moana Beach Park: Hokua Tower (left), Nauru Tower (center - the half-round one) and Hawa Iki Tower (right)…

Ala Moana Beach…

Castella Honey Cake (brick shape), Mikasayama (round) & Apple Turnover (semi-round) from Bunmeido of Hawaii

If you’re wondering how I discovered Bunmeido of Hawaii, the truth is, although this place has been here for decades, only in the last week have I heard about it via, of all people, a New York-based television producer interested in taping a segment for one of their shows at Bunmeido, which I’ll share more about later when the time is appropriate. Anyway, this TV producer requested if I could go and check the place out for them. Of course, no problem, so I did just that this past Sunday, early at about 9am.

Before I continue, I’ll need to come forward and say I’m really not a cake fan. Call me unsophisticated or whatever else, but I’m just not into the sweetened bread-like form that most cakes are based on, much prefering the fresh, cool and moist fruit and custard-based fillings and crisp, baked crust offered by PIE. Still, all the Yelp user postings gave highly favorable reviews of the Castilla sponge cake here, so that was all-the-more encouraging in paying a visit to try it out.

Bunmeido of Hawaii is a small bakery located on the Makai side of South King Street, just past McCully, tucked between several other businesses who share the ground floor of a low-rise walk-up office building. It’s a one-man show here, owned and operated by Akira Sugiyama, who you can tell is a hard-working and humble man.

He’s there from early morning, 7 a days a week preparing, baking and wrapping the various treats displayed in the shop’s front display case. Speaking of which, he’s also the sales person and cashier. Hey, when you want the job done right, sometimes you gotta’ do it (all) yourself!

There were Raspberry roll cakes, various mochi, cookies and the items I bought to try as shown here today.

First let’s look at the Mikasayama…

Mikasayama - “Red Bean Jam Pancake Sandwich”

Let’s open it up and and cut one in half see what’s inside…

Mikasayama, net weight 3-1/4 oz.

The pancake has a spongy, airy texture and sweetness similar to sponge cake, having you wonder if it’s the same recipe as the Castilla, in comparing the ingredients, it’s different. As the name suggests, the sweet Azuki “Red” bean filling is made into Jam form, with a good balance between sweet and robust. Overall it complimented the pancake shell nicely.

Next we have the Apple Turnover…

Bunmeido Apple Turnover, net weight 2 oz.

Let’s open it up and see what’s in it…

I liked this better than the Mikasayama, prefering the gelatinous texture and chunky, tender apple filling over the more Jam-like Azuki Bean. I’m not particularly an Azuki Bean fan either, which further explains my preference for the apples. Again, the same “pancake” (Castella?) batter is used, being soft, spongey and slightly sweet. That said, this certainly was an interesting twist in comparison to the classic apple turnover, which of course uses a flaky, baked crust. Cake lovers rejoice!

According to Akira san, you can also get the Bunmeido Mikasayama and Apple Turnovers at Shirokiya in Ala Moana Center. Forgot to ask if they also carry the Castilla.

Finally, speaking of rejoice, here’s where cake lovers everywhere might do just that after trying the Castilla Honey Cake…

Bunmeido of Hawaii Honey Castella sponge cake ????, net weight 10 oz.

The size of the box reads:

Bunmeido Castella
King of Cakes

In Delicate Natural Honey Flavor.

Castilla is made exclusively from choice ingredients. No substitutional agents are used.

Castella is famed throughout the world for its rich nutritious flavor and quality. You will be amazed with Castella’s delicate texture and smooth crust.

It’s a favorite dessert with everyone, wherever you go!

In Japan, it’s referred to as “Kasutera”, obviously being an accented iteration of “Castella” - the latter of which is pronounced “Cas-tee-ya”. It’s said that Castella found its way to Japan via Portuguese Merchants (my peeps!) back in the 16th Century, with the name evolving from the Portuguese Pão de Castela, which translates to “Bread of Castile”.

Anyway, getting back to the Honey Castilla we have here, as always, the Japanese tradition of quality and attention to detail reflects all the way down to the packaging. Looking at the box, you’d just as well assume a bottle of $1000 perfume were in there.

Let’s open it and see what we got…

Detail, detail, detail. Even the inner wax paper wrapper is folded and taped-down meticulously, while making sure that it’s sealed properly. According to the box, the ingredients are sugar, eggs, wheat, flour, honey and corn syrup.

Once again, unwrapped, it looks like this…

It measures 7-1/2″ long x 2-3/8″ wide x 2″ thick.

Let’s cut a few slices to try out!…

Looking at that, are you thinking what I’m thinking?  Coffee!  So I ran to the kitchen and fired up the pot, making myself a hot cup o’ joe to go with it.

How is it? It has that familiar light and airy sponge cake texture, while being soft and moist, with a sort of sweeter, slightly sticky browned, yet still soft crust. That sticky crust is where you can distinguish the honey flavor. While even if this were the best Sponge Cake on planet earth, it still hasn’t turned me into a cake convert. Yet for those who are into sponge cake, I can see them going through leaps and bounds to get their hands on the Honey Castilla at Bunmeido. Sure was great with my cup of blended Kona Coffee, gotta’ say that!

The Honey Castilla cakes are boxed in varying sizes from small to large. I forgot to write down or make a mental note of the exact prices for each item here, but my receipt total came out to $7.25 for the Castilla sponge cake (I think was medium size), and 2 each of the Mikasayama and Apple Turnover (5 items total), so the prices are very reasonable, especially considering the quality and level of craftsmanship he puts into each and every item on the shelf.

Here’s the shop front…

Bunmeido of Hawaii
2065 S King St Ste 109
Honolulu, HI 96826
(808) 949-0555

Business Hours:
Monday - Saturday 8am to 5pm
Sunday 8am to 12pm

Related Links:
• A Sweet Slice of History - Hana Hou! The Hawaiian Airlines Magazine
• Bunmeido of Hawaii - Yelp user reviews (there’s a photo of Akira san on that site)
• Oyatsu and kasutera (castella), a Japanese sponge cake - A pictorial cooking demo’

Beard Papa’s new Breakfast Puff, Barbecue Kalua Pork Puff with Pineapple Coleslaw and Fresh Strawberry Shortcake Puff

When reader Debbie-chan left a comment mentioning seeing a Kalua Pork Puff at Beard Papa, I just had to settle my curiosity about it. So I stopped by Foodland Ala Moana on my way home from work today and picked one up. I also picked up their new Breakfast Puff to try out. Finally, returning to the tune of sweet, I picked up another new menu item in the form of a Strawberry Shortcake Puff.

The last chain restaurant I recall applying Kalua Pig into new and creative menu ideas was Taco Bell with their Kalua Pork Soft Taco, Kalua Pork Quesadilla and Kalua Pork Stuft Burrito; most of which turned out to be quite good.

Now here we have Beard Papa, attempting to diversify their highly regarded, fresh baked choux pastry, going above and beyond their foundational cream puffs, in an effort to lure those seeking a more hearty meal.

First let’s look at the Breakfast Puff…

Beard Papa’s new Breakfast Puff, $3.50

Beard Papa’s marketing description for it goes like this: “A savory combination of cheese, egg and your choice of bacon or Portuguese sausage in our signature shell.”

Let’s take a peek inside and see what we got…

My apology for the over-exposed shot. I rushed the photo shoot.

What they do is take their choux pastry - the same one they use for all the other cream puffs - and cut in half to make a “bun” out of it. The base part of the choux cream is really thin, but thankfully with this one, the egg - which is that thick yellow (looks white due overexposure) part on the second layer - helps keep everything else firmly supported.

On top of the beaten, formed poached egg are several thick pieces of Portuguese sausage, and on that is a slice of melted American Cheese, then capped off by the  choux pastry “bun” top. There was also a slight scattering of green onions between the egg and the sausage. If you don’t care for Portuguese Sausage, you can also opt for bacon (or none of the above for that matter).

How was it? Very good. Due to the airiness of the choux pastry, It’s similar to a croissant breakfast sandwich, just not as flaky, but it still has that nice texture contrast, along with that tasty baked outter shell. I couldn’t pinpoint the brand of Portuguese Sausage, but it was on the hot and spicy side. The formed poached egg had a generic, mass-produced shape, but thankfully in taste it was flavorful and fresh tasting, not frozen (although it might have been). At $3.50 each, it’s not the best breakfast sandwich value in town, yet still worth a try. As with all other items at BP, the quality of the choux pastry part of its sum is the selling point.

Next we have the Barbecue Kalua Pork Puff with Pineapple Coleslaw…

Beard  Papa’s new  Barbecue Kalua Pork Puff with Pineapple Coleslaw, $3.95 each (or $7.50 for two)

Beard Papa’s marketing description for this one goes like this: “Just like the Southern favorite, our version of the barbecue pulled pork sandwich with a Hawaiian twist!”

Let’s take a peek into this one…

This one is made by filling the choux pastry “bun” with a layer of “Kalua” Pork, then topped by a heap of Pineapple Coleslaw.

How was this one? Pretty good. Different for sure. The Pineapple Coleslaw was perhaps the best part about it. Cool, fresh, with plenty of grated carrots and cabbage, accented by a few chunks of pineapple here and there. Very nice.

The kalua pork was moist and smokey, and went really well with the slaw. My only complaint was that the “Kalua” pork had barbecue sauce mixed into it. Wassup wit’ ‘dat? While it wasn’t dominant, it was there, taking the term “Kalua” right out of the pork. They should just be honest and call this a pulled pork sandwich. In essence that’s really what it is. Of course they want to “Hawaiianize” it by adding the Pineapple and using the term “Kalua” for the pork, which is fine with me, but you’ll see when/if you try one what I mean.

As mentioned earlier about the breakfast sandwich, the choux pastry “bun” base is thin, where in this case, the moist Kalua Pork soaks right into it, causing it to practically fall out from underneath as you attempt to grab the sandwich and bite into it. At least, such was the case within the 30 minute window of me buying it, driving home, taking photos, then sampling it.  What they might wanna’ consider is to try putting a slice of lettuce between the pork and the “bun” bottom to create a moisture barrier.  Somethin’ like that.

With the Barbecue Kalua Pork Puff with Pineapple Coleslaw coming in at $3.95 each, it’s a toss-up on value. The ingredients and quality is there, but taste is what matters most and that’s for you to decide whether you’d keep this on your “regular” list. For me, glad I tried it.

Size-wise , these are more like “sliders”, and you’d probably need at least two to fill you up if you’re really hungry.

I’m really glad I thought “long term” and got the Strawberry Shortcake Puff as a little dessert, as it ended up being a perfect way to finish the trial of the other two savory items…

Beard Papa’s new Strawberry Shortcake Puff, $2.65

The marketing description for this one goes like this: “Fresh strawberries floating in a whipped cream base.”

Cross cut view…

This photo perfectly illustrates how “airy” these choux pastries are, with that whipped cream and strawberry “shortcake” filling taking up every void of it’s interior. See how thin the choux pastry is on the bottom? That’s how it is in the savory sandwiches as well, which is why I pointed out that little “issue” with the Kalua pork causing it to get soggy on the bottom.

How is this one? Oishii desu! Of course different than their vanilla custard, as the filling here is made with sweetened whipped cream. Light, yet still decadent. Inside of the whipped cream were generous chunks of fresh, cold strawberries. That’s what I really liked about this one: the filling was cool. I think it’s worth $2.65. I’d certainly buy this again. The strawberries with the choux pastry is a winner. Perhaps I’m biased on that opinion due to my affection for Kachan’s totally amazing Choux Creme with the strawberry and Kiwi fruit in it.

As is usual of most Japanese products, quality and attention to detail is the name of the game at Beard Papa, right down to how they pack the goods…

These were packed nicer than that, with those “cute” little paper wrappers and all.
I kinda’ took ‘em a part for unknown reasons. Perhaps it was too cute for my liking.  lol

We will remember…

Beard Papa is located at select Foodland Supermarkets around the island. The items I got today were from the beautifully-renovated location in Ala Moana…

According to Beard Papa’s Hawaii website (which is currenty DOWN! ARGGHHH!), they also have a new Pita Sandwich, but that’s only available at the Waikiki locations, IIRC. Looks pretty good.

Well, at least you know now, in case wanna’ try something new, Beard Papa’s got a few things to consider checkin’ out.

Related links:
• BeardPapaHawaii.com
• Beard Papa’s Cream Puff