Orange County Register

By Niyaz Pirani

Let’s face facts: Hawaiian food is made of awesome.

Fact #1: Teriyaki sauce is good. Therefore, anything fried or grilled and covered in teriyaki sauce should be just as good if not made better.

Fact #2: Gravy is good. Therefore, anything fried or grilled (fried preferably) and covered in gravy should be just as good if not made better.

Fact #3: Mayonnaise is good. Therefore, anything made with mayonnaise, this case macaroni salad, should be just as good if not made better.

So maybe I’ve stereotyped Hawaiian food a bit, but hey, I’m not Hawaiian so I’m going to call it like I see it.

And the way I see it, Aloha BBQ in Mission Viejo is the place to get Hawaiian food.

To be fair, I’m pretty sure there is nothing covered in gravy (though any L&L location can do that for you) but this strip mall joint definitely does right by teriyaki and mayonnaise.

What is best about Aloha is the vibe – laid back with just the right amount of island style. The pictures of hula girls and a ukulele on the walls, the fact that the sign says it’s an “ohana (family) restaurant,” – these touches make you feel at home.

It also helps that this is a mom and pop shop and in that vein, everything coming out of this kitchen is cooked to order and takes some time.

On this visit, homeboy Erik and I decided to break from the typical chicken plate and give some other menu options a try.

First up, an Aloha Sub ($5.75). Layered with BBQ pork and lettuce, then slathered with a coating of mayo, the only downside to this sandwich was the too-thick French roll. The dry bread created a barrier around the sweet pork, so I just got rid of the bread and ate the pork and lettuce. Now that’s being carb conscious.

Next, some Wiki Wiki Noodles ($6.25). The glass noodles, stir fried with broccoli, onions, carrots and soy sauce then smothered in BBQ beef, were tasty for sure, but the thickness of the noodles made each bite a bit too bouncy for me.

That’s all subjective though. Erik, who prefers the thinner glass noodle to the thick typically, said this dish was delicious quite eloquently (“I like this”).

Because I offended Kat this summer by saying I hated Spam, I decided to give her “ghetto canned pork” another shot. And hey, when the Spam’s not battered and deep fried, it’s pretty darn tasty. Here, we ordered the musubi (under $3), a sort of Spam sushi with the meat, egg and rice all wrapped in dried seaweed. Not being a fan of sushi, the seaweed seemed too pungent at first, but the smell didn’t come through in the taste. Instead, the sweet-salty meat balanced perfectly with the egg and rice for one delicious portable snack.

Last, as if we hadn’t tried enough already, we went for a plate just to get a sampling of everything ($10.72). Aloha’s chicken isn’t cut in big slabs; instead the bites are fairly flat and get a nice char on the grill. We included some pork spare ribs too, the spicy ones, and we both cleaned those too the bone. While the meat wasn’t too hot, the rice that had soaked up the sauce burned my tongue.

The real start on these plates is the stellar macaroni salad. Aloha’s has bits of carrots and celery in it with one interesting twist – potato. It doesn’t make it chunky, instead the potato pairs with the mayo and only adds to the creaminess of this side. You can buy it by the pint and that’s exactly what Erik did.

Wash it all down with some Shave Ice and you’ve got yourself a lunch or dinnertime luau that’s good for both a relaxed dine-in or a quick to go.

Aloha BBQ

24000 Alicia Parkway #4

Mission Viejo, Ca

949-581-0976