About daKine's Hawaiian BBQ
daKine’s Hawaiian BBQ is owned and operated by Ronnie and his wife Wendy. Ronnie resided on the island of Oahu, State of Hawaii for almost 2 decades. The family operated a catering business in Nanakuli for years and ran a local grocery store in Liliha. Like many college graduates, Ronnie came out to the “mainland” to find work and opportunities. He moved to the Bay Area after graduating in June of 1996 from the University of Hawaii at Manoa.
In early 2003, he took a trip to Los Angeles with his wife and realized that there was a growing trend of Hawaiian BBQ lovers. There were stores popping up everywhere and businesses were great. So in late 2004, daKine’s Hawaiian BBQ was in its planning stage. The store was finally opened for business in mid July of 2005.
daKine’s Hawaiian BBQ is “a place where you will find great island food and tropical drinks.” Check out our food and drink menus. Remember, we also offer catering services.
What is daKine?
If you have ever lived in or visited Hawaii, you probably know what it means. Hawaii is known as the gathering place where many immigrants from all walks of life and all parts of the world (Chinese, Filipinos, Japanese, and Koreans) had come to work in the fields beside the native Hawaiians during the plantation period. With no common language except for a little English, these diverse groups of people soon developed their own language that slowly emerged into a type of local language called Pidgin. Today, Pidgin is the common language used in Hawaii. You may call it “simplified” or “broken” English. It’s basically English without regard to proper grammar, and where body gesture plays a role in expressing what you are trying to say. The word “daKine” (the kind) could have multiple definitions and uses. It is one of the most common phrases that we used back home. You could use “daKine” to refer to any subject you are talking about, especially when you don’t recall the name or just simply don’t want to say it. Instead of saying, “Let’s go eat at Justin’s restaurant!” the pidgin way would be, “Eh, let’s go grind at daKine’s restaurant!”
So when you forget the name of our restaurant, just simply remember what daKine means!!
- “Eh, what’s dat one barbeque place?”
- “Oh, das daKine’s Hawaiian BBQ!!”
- “Oh yah, I heard dat place is onolicious!!”