Giovanni's Aloha Shrimp

Warning: Long review, but possibly interesting. I cannot believe that no one has reviewed this place before, as it's the worst kept secret on Oahu (or so I'm told). We heard about Giovanni's from our Hawaiian hosts, from a cab driver, and read a quick blurb about it in some rental car guide book. Yet here I am, the first kid on the block, scribbling something. So be it. First off, the location is interesting. The natives told me that this place was in Kahuku next to the sugar refinery, on the Main Drag (King Kamehameha Highway) and easy to find. The telephone book lists this place as being in Laie, so I've got to go with that, I guess. I've checked my map and one town kind of melts into the next, and I give up. Hey, the Main Drag is REALLY LONG, so keep going long enough and you'll find it. At any rate, Giovanni's sits on the north end of Oahu. This set-up is not what I expected, and I hate to give away the surprise, but we almost m ... more

Warning: Long review, but possibly interesting. I cannot believe that no one has reviewed this place before, as it's the worst kept secret on Oahu (or so I'm told). We heard about Giovanni's from our Hawaiian hosts, from a cab driver, and read a quick blurb about it in some rental car guide book. Yet here I am, the first kid on the block, scribbling something. So be it. First off, the location is interesting. The natives told me that this place was in Kahuku next to the sugar refinery, on the Main Drag (King Kamehameha Highway) and easy to find. The telephone book lists this place as being in Laie, so I've got to go with that, I guess. I've checked my map and one town kind of melts into the next, and I give up. Hey, the Main Drag is REALLY LONG, so keep going long enough and you'll find it. At any rate, Giovanni's sits on the north end of Oahu. This set-up is not what I expected, and I hate to give away the surprise, but we almost missed it, so I feel I should reveal that this is no fine dining establishment, but al fresco dining at its tackiest yet finest. Giovanni's consists of a big ole truck (the proverbial "roach coach" of Hollywood days) with an in-vehicle kitchen where the staff (3 twentysomething girls) prepares the shrimp. There are three kinds of shrimp, all costing $11 (when we went): garlic shrimp, shrimp in butter, and hot 'n' spicy shrimp. In parentheses next to the hot 'n' spicy shrimp, one reads NO REFUNDS. Enough said. If that weren't enough, the "dining" such as it is, takes place outside under some cheapola tent/sunhshade that's spanned across an overgrown parking lot. Tables much like those at Oktoberfest in Munich are lined up. People sit with strangers (part of the fun) and eat, spill, and drink. The drinks range from cola and water to beer. There's another truck just across from the shrimp kitchen which sells freshly-squeezed native fruits (papaya, pineapple, etc.). There are also resident cats who hang out and wait for the diners to either drop something or throw something. This is not dining for the timid. I had the garlic shrimp because the "No Refunds" sign scared me away from the hot stuff. My husband, ever the chicken-liver, had the butter shrimp. The big portion of shrimp came with our choice or rice or something else (I don't recall what else). We opted for rice. It was tremendous. I swear, I still stink of garlic, and the butter in my husband's shrimp gave him cholesterol problems, but who cares? It was a great meal. We traded a couple of pieces of shrimp to see how each offering was, and the buttered stuff was as good as my garlic-infused. We sat next to nice Australians who were brave enough to eat the hot 'n' spicy, and they drank a lot of beer to put out the fire! At Giovanni's, one sees all sorts of people from the tourist to the local, from beat-up Toyotas to very expensive vehicles. There was a limo parked when we got there which I thought was interesting 'til I sat down next to some guy I recognized as a big-time movie star. Sure enough, there was a film shooting on the north side, and this guy had the afternoon off, yet here he was, eating and spilling like the rest of us. I don't know if anyone else recogized him, but no one said anything. My husband and I, not caring about celebs, talking to this guy like he was just another guy (which he was). I think he liked that, 'cause he talked to us for a long time and we found out that he had worked in Munich once, where we lived. Had anyone made a big fuss over him, I don't think he would have talked, and might have left. As it was, we just shot the breeze, said good-bye, and he got into his limo, and we into our rented Jeep. Only in America, eh? If you do nothing else, come to Giovanni's. The food is outstanding, the "staff" are friendly and funny, and one never knows what big shot one might meet. I am counting the days 'til I can go back! less