Fun Factory-Kahala Mall

On the way to the Kahala Mall Consolidated Theathers, we passed by Fun Factory. DS1 saw the mini merry-go-round, which he said he wanted to ride, and I told him he could after the movie.

Well, after the movie, he didn't want to on the merry-go-round, and instead wanted to play games.

DS2 was happy to go on the merry-go-round though!

Here is DS1 playing some of the kiddie games.

His favorite games are the driving/riding games.

DH needs to help him play since he can't even reach the pedals.
DS2 copying his big brother.
A motorcycle game DS1 also needed help with.

Fun Factory at Kahala Mall is a lot smaller than the one in Pearlridge. There were a lot less kiddie rides, but there were a lot more kiddie games (there were a lot less "big kid" games though).

It was a fun way to end our afternoon at Kahala Mall!

Fun Factory: Kahala Mall, Ste 7070, 4211 Waialae Avenue Honolulu, HI, 96816-5350 - (808) 732-9600

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Crybaby Matinee at Consolidated Theaters

A few weeks ago DH and I took the boys to their first movie ever (and it was the first movie DH and I went to in over two years), and since we didn't know how well-behaved or not the boys would be, we took them to a Crybaby Matinee at Consolidated Theaters.

After checking the movie listing, we found the only "appropriate" movie for our boys was Toy Story 3 at Kahala Mall (most of the other movies playing at the Crybaby Matinee at other theaters were Rated PG-13 movies, like Salt).

According to the website, "Every Week, Consolidated Theatres presents the Crybaby Matinee! We keep the lights dimmed, the sound volume down and the movies coming. We provide a baby changing table and stroller parking for the convenience of our parents. Regular matinee admission for adults and children under 5 get in FREE!"

We arrived at the theater, and upon purchasing our tickets ($8 adult for a matinee), we were advised (warned) that it was a Crybaby Matinee movie. Since we had intended to see the Crybaby movie, of course we had no problem with it, but it's great that people are warned just in case there are those who weren't aware and may end up not enjoying the movie after discovering they're in a theater full of crying babies.

There were about 30 or so people in the theater--families with babies and toddlers, and there were families with older kids too.

We found our seats, and since we had a few minutes left until the movie started, the boys played with the iPhone to keep themselves distracted.

Although I didn't see any changing tables in the theater or a designated stroller parking area, there was plenty of room for strollers to be parked throughout the theater, and if a baby had to be changed, I'm sure the restroom would've sufficed.

The lights were indeed dimmed and the theater was not really dark as usual, and the sound was definitely not as loud as usual too.

The boys did pretty well throughout the movie. They didn't cry and for the most part they seemed to enjoy the movie and all the popcorn.

There were babies crying in the theater, but they really weren't too distracting.

There was, however, one girl who roamed around the ENTIRE movie. She would often come into our row too and she'd pat my legs, and each time, the mom just waved some food in front of her to get her to stop, but not once did the mom say "sorry" or anything.

The little girl just walked up and down the aisle and through the rows; she'd pick up stuff from the ground...and each time the mom just tried to grab her attention with a piece of food.

Other than that distraction, we all enjoyed the movie and it's great that Consolidated Theaters offers Crybaby Matinees for families with little ones.

To find showtimes and theaters, visit the Consolidated Theaters website.

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WW: "Hawaiian Squirrel"

aka Mongoose

Photo taken at Ko Olina

For more participants, visit Wordless Wednesday or 5 Minutes for Mom.

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Wendy's New Salads Review and $10 Gift Card Giveaway

On my other blog, Sage and Savvy, I recently posted about how I participated in an online blogger presentation showcasing Wendy's new Salads, featuring Chef Rick Tramonto and Beth Thibault, Manager, Menu Innovation, and was given a $10 gift card to try one of the new salads.

Here is an excerpt from my post:

In response to customer feedback, and requests for more texture (e.g. croutons), drier lettuce, smaller pieces (e.g. chicken), and "flavor excitement, " Wendy's introduced four new salads: Apple Pecan Chicken, Baja, Spicy Chicken Caesar, BLT Cobb"

We picked up food from Wendy's in Kapolei,...and since I love Mexican food, I decided to try out the Baja Salad.

The salad consisted of a bed of fresh and spring mix lettuce, and was topped with cheddar and pepper jack cheeses, guacamole, pico de gallo, tortilla strips and a Creamy Red Jalapeno dressing.

It was DELICIOUS! (Note: the Baja Salad comes with Chili, but since I don't eat beef, I requested no Chili).

The lettuce was fresh (I saw no brown or wilted pieces), the guacamole was really good (some of the best I've ever had), the pico de gallo was tasty (I just wish they gave a little more), the tortilla strips added a nice, savory crunch, and the dressing gave the salad a nice, spicy kick.

Although I do wish they offered chicken instead of chili on the Baja salad, I thought it was still really good without the chili, and the next time I'll either get the Baja salad again, or I'll try the BLT Cobb since it has bacon, and to me, just about everything tastes better with bacon!

To find a Wendy's near you, click here.

Win: One lucky winner will receive a $10 Wendy's Gift Card!

• To enter, comment on which of the new salads is your favorite, or which are you most eager to try.
• You’ll get one extra entry each if you do any of the following (be sure to leave a comment for each “entry”):
• 1)Blog about this giveaway and link back to My Island Views and Wendy's (leave the link in your comment)
• 2)Subscribe to My Island Views' feed
• 3)Add our button to your sidebar
• 4)Follow My Island Views on Twitter (leave your Twitter name in your comment)
• 5)Tweet this giveaway (leave the link in your comment)
• The deadline for entries is August 29, 2010, 11:59pm HST.
• If you submitted an eligible entry and it is chosen by random.org as the winner, you will be notified via email on August 30, 2010 (make sure your email address is in your profile or comment) and will have 3 days to accept.
• Valid for US addresses only.
• By entering in this giveaway, you have read and agreed to My Island Views' policies regarding giveaways.

Thank you to the sponsor for providing the gift card for review and giveaway free of charge. I received no compensation for this post other than the gift card. All opinions are my own.

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Blue Truck Teppanyaki

I love teppanyaki (a Japanese style of cooking on an iron griddle), and now I don't have to go to Benihana, Kobe Steakhouse, Restaurant Suntory, or Tanaka of Tokyo. All I have to do is head to Blue Truck Teppanyaki which parks on University Avenue (@ Metcalf Street) right in front of Yogurtland after 4:30 p.m. They have steak, shrimp, and chicken on the menu. I tried the steak and shrimp for $10. It's not as good as the sit down restaurants, but it satisfied my craving for teppanyaki at a fraction of the cost.

When I arrived in front of the window, it looked like the guy was half asleep. I must have been the first customer. After I placed my order and he took my money, it took him a while to get set up. But once he started cooking the food, the aroma had my mouth watering.

I would suggest calling ahead, as I can only imagine how long it would have taken if there was a few people ahead of me. (808) 389-6808

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Cha Cha Cha Salsaria

After spending the afternoon at Sea Life Park, we went to dinner at Cha Cha Cha Salsaria.

We started off with some complimentary Chips and Salsa, which were good!

DH ordered the Carne Asada Fajita Burrito, which he enjoyed.

The entrees come with some kind of slaw on the side, which I thought was a little strange, since I'm used to having rice and beans on the side whenever I dine out at a Mexican restaurant

I ordered the Chicken Chimichanga.
It was really good, I just wish there was rice and beans to complement it!

DS1 ordered the Kids Chicken Quesadilla.

He enjoyed it.

DS2 ordered the Kids Chicken Nuggets.

It's the first time we ordered kids chicken nuggets at a restaurant and got Disney chicken nuggets! Usually we get chicken nuggets that are prepared on-site or they at least look like they're prepped on site...I thought getting served these Disney chicken nuggets was a little strange too. Despite that, DS2 still enjoyed the chicken.

The prices were pretty reasonable, and we used an e-coupon from the website to get 10% off.

Our server was really nice and friendly, however, she failed to tell us that getting take-out boxes would cost us $.35 a box.

We didn't find this out until after we got our check! That was the first time we EVER got charged for takeout boxes.

We still enjoyed our dinner, and if we happen to be on that side of the island and go there again, we'll be sure to share food so we don't have any leftovers.

Cha Cha Cha Salsaria: 377 Keahole St. C-1A Honolulu, HI 96825, 808 395 7797

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Kanpai Bar & Grill

I've been to Kanpai once before. I thought it was good, but nothing out of the ordinary when it comes to bar food in Hawaii. I decided to give it another shot, since a lot of my friends like to go to Kanpai's for drinks and pupus. We went on a Sunday evening, and it wasn't that crowded. Come football season, I'm sure they'll have plenty of business on Sunday evenings.

Garlic Fries - these came out nice and hot, but I wish it came with more garlic.

Fried Rice - Kanpai's fried rice comes with both spam and portuguese sausage. I liked this the best.

Ahi Poke - shoyu ahi with green and white onions and limu

Garlic chicken - perfect blend of spice and garlic

Pork Chops - I'm not a big fan of pork chops. I think the meat is usually on the dry side. These pork chops were like most of the others I've tasted. It's lightly breaded and comes with sauteed onions and ketchup as a dipping sauce.

My second impression of Kanpai was the same as my first - good, but nothing spectacular. Sidestreet Inn is still king of the bar and grills on Oahu. :)

Kanpai Bar & Grill
404 Ward Avenue
(808) 593-9202

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The Food Company

I learned about The Food Company after my co-workers purchased food from them for a couple of our office functions. They have a breakfast menu, and a lunch menu - both looked equally attractive. Thankfully, we arrived after 11 a.m., so the breakfast menu was not available. Otherwise, it would have taken me twice as long to figure out what to order since I would first have to decide from which menu to order off of.

I've been craving fried saimin for a while, so I was happy to see it on the menu. For $6, you get fried saimin and your choice of meat. I ordered mine with Mochiko Chicken. The fried saimin was just ok. The noodles they used looked like packaged ramen, not local style saimin. They also added broccoli and cauliflower, which I thought was unusual for fried saimin. The mochiko chicken was just ok as well, nothing special. It did not taste like it was straight from the fryer.

John ordered a mixed plate (2 choices for $8) of korean style fried chicken and hamburger steak. Two thumbs up for both items.

I'd definitely visit this place again, and maybe next time we'll go earlier to try their breakfast menu. Their 10-ingredient fried rice looked good.

The Food Company
1020 Keolu Drive
(808) 262-6440
Open Tues-Sat 8 am - 8 pm

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Sea Life Park

We recently took advantage of a Foodland Maka`i Card promotion at Sea Life Park-$10 adult admission, $5 junior admission ages 3-11.

Regular prices are $29.99/adult and $19.99/ages 3-11, so we couldn't pass up such a great deal.

The first attraction was the Hawaiian Reef Aquarium.


We saw lots of fish, a couple of sharks, and some stingrays.

We then visited the Sea Turtles.

We then watched the Kolohe Kai Sea Lion Show.

The show was a "pageant" featuring two sea lions who participated in talent and Q&A, and the audience got to pick the winner.

We also visited the Penguin Habitat.

Because we arrived at Sea Life Park late in the afternoon, we missed the Dolphin Cove Show (12:30pm daily), but we still got to see the dolphins!

Here is a sea lion lounging in the sun.

We ended our visit with the Hawaiian Ocean Theater Show.

A penguin came near the audience (the trainers reminded everyone not to rush down or come too close to the penguin).

A sea lion came by as well.

The show then ended with dolphins jumping and doing tricks.

The kids enjoyed Sea Life Park they loved seeing all the fishes and other sea creatures, but I thought a lot of the exhibits didn't seem to be maintained too well or they were shut down. I do like how they added canvases to shade the Dolphin Cove (it didn't exist the last time we visited; there is also some shade in the Sea Lion show), because it can get very hot.

Despite being a very long drive from where I live, it was a very nice and scenic drive, and the next time we visit Sea Life Park, I hope the exhibits that were shut down will be open, and hopefully there will also be another really great admission deal.

Sea Life Park: 41-202 Kalanianaole Highway, Waimanalo, HI 96795-1897, (866) 365-7446

Waimanalo Beach on Dwellable

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2010 Pokémon World Championship on the Big Island

Some of the best Pokémon™ Trading Card Game (TCG) and video game players from more than 25 countries will converge on the Big Island, August 14–15, 2010, to compete for the ultimate title—Pokémon World Champion. The Pokémon World Championships, sanctioned by The Pokémon Company International, is an intense, action-packed annual event that follows a season of qualifying tournaments held across the globe. Five talented Pokémon players—TCG champs from three divisions and video game champs from two divisions—will rise from over 300 competitors to be crowned Pokémon World Champions and claim an invitation to defend their 2010 Pokémon World Championships titles in next year’s competition. Tournament winners may also receive a variety of prizes, trips, and merchandise, including scholarship awards totaling over $100,000.

The Pokémon World Championships is an invite-only event. Players must have participated in a qualifying tournament or achieved a high Premier ranking to receive an invitation to Hawaii.

When: Saturday, August 14, and Sunday, August 15

Where: All tournaments and registration will be held at:
Hilton Waikoloa Village Grand Ballroom
69-425 Waikoloa Beach Drive
Waikoloa, HI 96738

Who: Three hundred-plus Pokémon TCG and video game players from the United States, Japan, Canada, the United Kingdom, Germany, France, Spain, Italy, Norway, Hong Kong, and other nations around the world will compete for the title of Pokémon World Champion. Also in attendance will be Pokémon fans, costumed character Pikachu, and family and friends to lend their support.

I received no monetary compensation for this post.

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Luibueno's Mexican & Seafood Restaurant

We recently went to one of the newest restaurants in Haleiwa-Luibueno's Mexican & Seafood Restaurant.

Our dinner started with some complimentary Chips and Salsa, which were pretty good.


I ordered the Pollo Taco.
It was quite good, especially since I could really taste the cilantro in the tacos, and I love cilantro!

DH ordered the Blackened Ahi Burrito.

He really enjoyed his burrito.

DS1 ordered the kids Quesadilla.

It was just a simple cheese quesadilla, but he loved it!

DS2 ordered the Kids Chicken Tenders.

He loved his dinner too!

The kids meals came with dessert, which was a scoop of Vanilla Ice Cream.

The prices were reasonable, the service was great, and the food was delicious.

I'm sure we'll be back again one day soon!

Luibueno's Mexican & Seafood Restaurant: 66-165 Kamehameha Hwy., Haleiwa, HI 96712, 808-637-7717

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WW: Manana Island aka Rabbit Island

For more participants, visit Wordless Wednesday or 5 Minutes for Mom.

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Poke Stop - Mililani

I was craving Eggplant Fries one day, so I decided to go to Poke Stop.

I ordered the Tofu & Portabello w/Basil Pesto Sandwich with Eggplant Fries.

The last time I ordered this, they made a "special" sandwich--they were out of tofu so they put an extra portabello and some cheese.

This time they had tofu, but for some reason, I didn't like the sandwich as much. It was still pretty good, but not as good as the "special" sandwich I had the last time.

The Eggplant Fries were also a little soggy, but they were still super delicious. And at least this time I had a lot more of that yummy Remoulade Dipping Sauce!

DH ordered the Trio special, which consisted of Furikake Mahi Mahi, Bacon Wrapped Scallops, and Pork Won Tons.

He said everything was good and ate them all up in one sitting!

Of course I couldn't leave Poke Stop without getting some desserts.

I got the Peanut Butter Oreo Cheesecake.

YUM! It was rich, creamy, and super delicious!

I also got a Gloppy for DH.


It's basically a brownie covered with all kinds of good stuff--nuts, candies, chocolate sauce. I usually like my brownies plain, but all the stuff that was "glopped" made it really good!

Although my sandwich was not as good as the last time, I know I'll be going back again because those Eggplant Fries are just so good, and so are the desserts!

Poke Stop: 95-1840 Meheula Prkwy, Mililani, Hawaii 96789, 808-626-3400

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