Gohan (Oahu)

Gohan is a made-to-order musubi restaurant in Honolulu! It's a great breakfast and lunch spot. Good for solo meals or with a friend. Get a seat at the bar and enjoy housemade soups and excellent musubi (and handrolls) made right in front of you ^_^

How fun does this setup look ^_^

This is 9am on a weekday morning at Gohan. Get a seat at the bar and get ready to eat. There are several tables but the sitting at the bar is more fun (especially if you're dining solo) because you can see the musubi being made.

Whether I come for breakfast or lunch, I like to start with soup and then add 2-3 musubi. The musubi comes warm, such a delight. It's a complete meal that feels relaxing and very satisfying at the same time!

Location

Gohan is on King Street. It's on the ground floor of a big office building. Enter the building first and then the restaurant entrance is immediately on the right.

It's in a central location. 5 minutes to Ala Moana and 10 minutes from Waikiki.

They validate parking, but the parking lot is a little tight so I prefer to find metered street parking. There are several spots along King Street outside the restaurant, so just make sure to bring coins for the meter.

What To Order

Now we come to the tasty part! The menu is grouped by different types of musubi and handrolls. And soups and sides (pickles, extra nori).

Soup
Let's start with soup! They have two kinds of soup: miso and tojiru.

Get the tonjiru. It's a pork and vegetable miso soup. Carrots, daikon, gobo, and mushrooms. Hearty but clean and nourishing. Always feels wonderful to drink! I love having soup when I eat musubi...a great combo.

P.S. Texas Fujiyama also makes great tonjiru (and Japanese breakfast).

Grilled Musubi
The Grilled Musubi section of the menu is really fun. Who doesn't love hot musubi right off the grill? Four options:

• Original Shoyu - with dashi soy sauce.
• Mentai Cheese - with mentaiko and cream cheese.
• Bonito Cheese - with bonito, soy sauce, and cream cheese.
• Shoyu Cheese - with dashi soy sauce and cream cheese.

Pictured above is the Mentai Cheese. I love anything with mentaiko ^_^

Nori Musubi
Nori Musubi is makes up the bulk of the menu. This section has all the "classic" musubi. From the plain shio (salt) musubi to tuna-mayo (everyone's favorite!) to ikura, you can't go wrong with any of these.

Speciality and Handrolls
This section has handrolls and special/more fancy options. Think shrimp tempura and pork kakuni. There's also a chicken karaage handroll along with a spicy karaage.

On my next visit I plan to try the teriyaki Spam and egg handroll!

Daily Specials
They also have several daily specials on a separate menu. These often sell out later in the day so the earlier you go the better.

Pictured above the hamachi-jalapeño handroll, so tasty with sliced jalapeños on top. Eat fast so the nori stay crisp. Other popular specials include fresh spicy tuna handroll and a pork tonkatsu handroll.

Breakfast Menu

Gohan also serves a special breakfast menu! It goes from 8-10:30am. There are two different set deals: musubi plate or dashi chazuke plate.

I really like the musubi plate, pictured above. It's a good deal, nourishing and very tasty. The plate includes your choice of two musubi (I ordered saba and tuna) and a small appetizer plate with pork belly, hijiki, and a trio of pickles.

Plus miso soup. For $2 more you can upgrade the miso soup to hearty pork and vegetable soup called tonjiru. Note: Fujiyama Texas also makes great tonjiru!

Takeout / Pre-Made Musubis

They have a bunch of pre-made musubis available for grab-and-go. It's on the left right when you walk into the restaurant.

The pre-made options are convenient but nothing compared to getting a fresh and warm musubi for the same price. I'd recommend dining in if at all possible.

Insider Tips

Gohan is open from 8am-2pm. It is often packed at lunch (lots of office buildings nearby) and there's a good chance you'll have to wait for a seat.

The better option is to go for breakfast. They serve the full menu all day so you can still order the same dishes. Another bonus? They are sometimes sold out of daily specials by peak lunch hour. Go during breakfast to be sure you can get everything you crave ^_^

Fun note: this restaurant is from the same owner of Sushi Que (sushi omakase) and Golden Pork (ramen). They're both located across the street. So if you like Gohan, definitely check out these other two spots.

Gohan: Info

• Address: 1314 S King St #G3, Honolulu, Hawaii 96814
• Hours: Monday-Saturday, 8am-2pm
• Instagram: @gohan.hawaii
• Prices (approximate): $3-6 for each musubi and soup. My meals here usually come out to $20 per person.