Ka 'Ikena | Honolulu, Hawaii

9/15 UPDATE: Melissa posted her blog today. Check it out here.
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Ka 'Ikena is a restaurant operated by students in Kapiolani Community College's culinary program. The menu is all-inclusive and the price is determined by which entrée you order. I've been there on several occasions for dinner and it's always "hit or miss." Sometimes, the food is phenomenal. On other occasions, it's just been ho-hum. Twitter buddy Melissa Chang (@Melissa808) and I decided to take a chance and hit it up for a lunch meeting this past Thursday. This is my take on the experience; watch for Melissa's on her blog, Urban Mix Plate on NonstopHonolulu.com.
Overall, the food was good. I felt badly for the waitstaff though, many of whom were looking just a little awkward.

KCC Ka 'Ikena Dining Room
4303 Diamond Head Road
Honolulu, HI 96816
(808) 734-9499
Website (There's a separate page for dinner.)

I started with the Petite Salad Nicoise. A few greens, some baby asparagus, tomato, egg, and there's a sliver of ahi (tuna) hiding in there. Nothing about this dish really wowed me.


I really enjoyed the biscuit. The outside was nice and firm, while the inside was soft and buttery.


I went with the Roast Rack of Lamb. The portion was very generous for lunch (in this case, 4 thick cuts of lamb sitting atop a mountain of potatoes.)


The two pieces on the left were cooked to a perfect medium rare. The two on the right were just a little overdone for my liking, so it was good that there was some Cumberland Sauce served on the side to balance it out.


Melissa tweeted a picture of the full dessert cart and got 12 immediate responses. I settled on the pecan pie and it was awesomesauce. All that was missing was a scoop of vanilla ice cream.