Coquitos South of the Border UYE

Coquitos South of the Border UYE happened on Saturday December 5, 2015. The last day of my vacation from work.
Background story:
Ever since meeting and becoming friends with Jerrae before the UYE Dinner at Max’s of Manila… we both were wondering about having a UYE in the Waianae Coast. Where would the UYE be held: restaurant or at the beach. Was a UYE ever held in the Waianae Coast before?
Back in October 2015 while attending Kathy A’s Masquerade UYE @ Champs I had mentioned to few individuals that I was thinking of hosting a UYE out in Waianae. Couple of the individuals encouraged me to do one.
Also in October 2015 I started a talk thread about Waianae Coast UYE to see who would be interested in attending one. Mahalo to everyone who responded to the talk thread. Members of the Unilocal Hawaii community were interested in a Saturday lunch at one of my favorite Waianae restaurants. Mahalo Paul for letting me know about the first Waianae Coast UYE.
One day in November 2015 while having lunch at Coquitos I had asked the cook about the restaurant’s maximum amount of people. Several days afterwards I had met up with Mel at the restaurant. I asked Stevina, the owner, about the room max. Mel wanted to ask her about the slowest times for dinner. I had to say «I want to get the lunch crowd out of the way. In 2016 the dinner crowd can enjoy Coquitos.»
The date was set for December 5, 2015 with approximately 25 guests with the event starting at 11am. After leaving the restaurant it was time to head on to grandpa’s home and create the UYE page. Mahalo Mel for coming up with the title and helping me setup the UYE event page.
Days leading up to the event: make sure everyone who RSVPed to the event input their food order into the comments section of the Coquitos UYE, message people to remind them about their orders, text individuals reminders of their orders, typing up a list of attendees as well as the orders, and make sure to give Stevina three days advance notice of everybody’s order.
Day of the event: I was the first to arrive, met up with the staff members and gave the cook a list of everybody’s order. Played landmark to everyone who have not been to Coquitos before. Mahalo to everyone who attended my first solo UYE. Sorry if you weren’t able to park in the parking stalls in front of the restaurant. Normally the yard next door would be off limits and any unauthorized vehicles parked in the yard would be towed. I’m happy that didn’t happen.
Being that it was the holiday season… attendees who brought a gift to the event will walk away with a gift. I ended up bringing two gifts to the event. I’m curious on who grabbed the puzzle gift and I know Jerrae got the coffee mug. As for the two leftover gifts… I gave them away (thank you Ashton for suggesting it). One gift to Victoria A’s mom and the other gift to Mel’s mom. Mahalo Darrell and Sophie for the poi doughnuts from Kamehameha Bakery. Mahalo Jerrae… I took the balance of the thin slices of beef jerky with me. Mucho gracias to Stevina and her workers for an outstanding job in getting all the attendees appetizers and meals out in a timely matter. Thank you again Stevina for making the mondongo as a special menu item… it was very delicious.
³⁷⁄₂₀₀

You know I had to stop by and check out this UYE. I believe this was Jeana’s first UYE and she knocked it out of the park. I have been to this establishment many times before so no need for me to comment on the food. Jeana wouldn’t invite you if it wasn’t good.
I had a good time and got to meet some Unilocal peeps in real life: Fran C, Jules Y, Mel B, Tara Marie, Angel, Victoria, Jerrae to name a few. BIG SHOT OUT TO LYNETTE ALSO! You know Darrell came through with the Poi donuts. They were on point. I couldn’t stay long, just long enough to eat but it was a successful UYE and I would like to thank Jeana for putting this on. Looking forward to the next one in 2016.
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Pernil, pastele and tres leches??? Si, si, SI!!!
I would be crazy to miss a UYE with Boricua food! Not to mention mi abuela would be standing hands on hips ready to call me loca, if I didn’t attend!
When I heard about this UYE I was beyond ecstatic! Yes, because of the food but mostly to finally have an event on the westside! What better hostess than the westside’s own Jeana P!
I love the look of the restaurant. Rustic wood building with a lanai dining area along with plants and trees adorning the outside. Reminiscent of old homes in Puerto Rico or most nostalgic island settings.
Upon entering, the restaurant looked different. I’m guessing it was because they had joined the tables which created a grand dining table for us. The first familiar face I saw when walking in was the smiling face of Angel H. I knew this was going to be fun!
I ordered the pernil with maduros (sweet plaintains) and gandules rice with a side pastele. As usual the pernil was delicious!!! The maduros was melt in your mouth tasty! It was my first time trying their pastels and it was good! The masa’s consistence was perfect. I would prefer more achuete but can’t complain since it was filled with meat which was perfectly cooked, not hard or over cooked (thank goodness)!! That alone made me grin from ear to ear. I had the tres leche for dessert which I enjoyed greatly. Unfortunately, someone who ordered the same dessert received a piece that wasn’t as moist. Thankfully it wasn’t mine, lol!
We had a Christmas gift exchange. Come with a gift, leave with a gift. It was a great afternoon seeing all the usual wonderful Unilocalers and finally meeting some in person and of course making new Unilocal buddies. Jeana P. did a terrific job as hostess. She stood outside so no one would pass the restaurant. If you’re going over 10 mph you will pass this place! Inside she ushered orders to the right person, ensured everyone got their meals and that they were okay and also chatting with everyone. She seemed like a UYE veteran, we had to remind her to sit and eat.
Another of my favorite treats showed up that day… poi donuts, baby!!! Thank you, Darrell and Sophie! Me love you guys looong time for that! These two are always so generous, awesome!
I had a wonderful time, thank you, J! Always so wonderful seeing some of the Unilocalers mom joining us. It touched my heart to see the older generation joining us especially around the holiday season. Beautiful YOUNG ladies, Mel B and Victoria A’s mommies.
Can’t wait for the next westside event, you go get’um Jeana!

Thank you Jeana for creating this UYE! Amidst the shopping and holiday frenzy I managed to squeeze in time «for eats» at a place I ordinarily would not go to solo. I recounted to several friends there of my very first experience in Waianae years ago and since then I’ve been baptized to the westside ways. I was happy to re-​visit Waianae to check out new culinary digs.
It’s been a long minute since I’ve had a chance to participate in any UYE’s or Unilocal events this year but given the opportunity to try a new place with a bunch of old friends and new is always a welcoming treat. I’ve found that with every UYE I’ve gone to my circle of Unilocal friends keep getting larger and larger. It’s always good thing when you get to meet Unilocal celebrities in real life (they’re all celebrity columnist IMHO). Luis is JUST as he writes (and more)…funny, witty and charming. Jerrae… with her charismatic ways (she just draws you in with her smile and personality)(it helped that she had that yummy beef jerky as bait — not that she needs it), Darrell and Sophie with their very generous ways of ALWAYS bringing food and/​or booze to a UYE, I wanna be like Ed and Lyla — eating all over the 808 and never sitting still except to eat, Jules and her bf… they’re new couple but I swear they’re beginning to look alike, good to see Angel does the same thing I do to my hubby — give him all her leftovers when she’s had enough and Mel and his new plus one (my mom’s new bff).
Advice to anyone who has never gone to a UYE before — JUST GO! Even if you don’t know anyone — you’ll be ok. Hawaii Unilocalers exude Aloha and will make you feel welcomed and not so awkward (it’s like new shoes, you’ll have to be broken in). As Anthony Bourdain puts it, «you learn a lot about someone when you share a meal with them.
I apologize for my extreme lateness! I’ll be honest… I was at the mall saving tons of money from a super fabulous sale PLUS handling the chaos from a triggered fire alarm at our place in which the Fire Department responded to (rather quickly might I note)! Better late than never and I was relieved to finally get a chance to sit and stuff my face. Thanks again to Jeana who not only arranged all this fellowshipping but also accommodating my last minute plus one guest.
Like Lyla (my «slithering snake» friend with the full belly), I was stuffed to the eyeballs with Latin cuisine and ended up taking my dessert home in a take out box. Great eats and even better camaraderie amongst the Unilocal community.

It’s been awhile since I’ve been on Unilocal or attended an event. When Jeana said she was going to put this UYE on, I knew I had no choice to support my wing girl.
We knew parking was going to be rough but Jeana, being the great host, secured parking and we were all able to park our cars in the puny parking lot.
There were some people I was anxious to meet. Right when I came in, I’m greeted by Lynette N. and TaraMarie P. That takes care of that. Meeting them for the first time was so exciting. Wish I had a chance to talk more with TaraMarie P. but I’m sure it will happen later on. Lynette N. is a barrel of laughs. I also met Aggie C. who is a firecracker. So glad she came to this UYE making it her very first. Whoohooo! Gotta be careful with that one. I was glad to see Lyla D. and Ed., Jerrae R, Victoria A., Luis R., Angel H. and Anthony and Jules Y. Victoria A. brought her mom, Perla, like I did so they could keep each company. And, we decided if we’re gonna get some time of relaxation we will need to bring them with us. As long as they behave, this can be good. Cross fingers. There were some other new Unilocalers I haven’t met but I was not sitting in the best of locations where I could move around without imposing on other’s space. Will have to catch them at next event. Sorry.
Jeana was smart in getting everyone’s orders before the day of the event. It saved time for one, and allowed the staff to prepare ahead of time with what they could. She brought the owner, Stevina, and introduced her. She looked intimidated but we showed our aloha showering her with words of appreciation. Stevina and her staff did a wonderful job getting the food out, and to the right person, with 1^st class customer service.
The food was fantastic. We all enjoyed it. So glad mine was one that came early cuz I was starving. It seemed like everything on the menu was ordered by someone. The dessert round was interesting. It was nice to see what everyone got. I’ve been ordering mine off the secret menu and it’s the same thing. It’s gonna change the next time I am here again. Thanks to who brought the poi malasadas. Thats my fave color. Can’t help it I’m filipino. Delicious.
Being in the month of December, Jeana set up secret santa. Being busy with Thanksgiving, Animé Matsuri and mom, the time to shop escapes. And no, I have not started my own shopping yet. Thank goodness there’s online shopping now. So, made a mad dash to Starbucks to get a gift card for the secret santa and well, since i was there, might as well get myself a drink. I needed it. When my name got called to pick a gift I saw to envelopes there. Of course one is mine which I could not choose. So, I chose the other. It was a $ 10 Outback Steakhouse gift card. Funny bc when I passed Outback on the way to the event that got mom and I talking about going there. What’s even funnier is Mz. Lynette Starbucks actually picked my envelope. I wonder if she knew there was a Starbucks gift card in there? Things that make you go hmmm.
The end came too soon. I felt like I just got there and now it’s time to go. Well, that’s how it is with these UYEs. Having so much fun time just flies by so fast. I don’t know what to do. Keep going and have blast, or don’t go and stay young. Yolo, man, gonna have a blast. And you should too. Don’t be shy. Attend a UYE.
Jeanna came out and completed her first host of UYE. Can’t wait for her next one. Congrats Jeana, and thank you so much for a wonderful event where we met more of our brethren Unilocalers, and those we already call friends.

Wooo Hoo! I had da GRINDAGES yesterday!
It was my first time having Puerto Rican food… I’ve done Cuban, & of course my favorite… Mexican, so this was truly a treat for me today.
«10 Stars» to my Unilocal buddy Jeana P. for hosting this wonderful event! She really knocked it out of the park for this event!
She was so well organized, as she took all of our food orders in advance, so when we came here for the event, there was no worries about ordering your food… Just sit down, & enjoy each other’s company, and the food came out shortly.
She even got special food orders for a few of us, as some items were not on the menu, but she was able to have to owner make it for us. You da BESTEST Jeana!
Jeana also made sure there was enough parking for all of us, since the parking lot was a bit small. She even waited for all of us by the parking entrance so we wouldn’t miss the little entrance area.
I would also like to give much «MAHALO’S» to Jerrae R., bruddah Darrell P. & Sophie P. for sharing some extra treats at the UYE function. Jerrae brought this beef jerky chip… and I must tell you… it was AMAZING!!! I’ve never had anything like that… great flavor, easy to eat, & amazing texture! WOW!
To bruddah Darrell & Sophie, they are the most generous & kind couple. They brought a huge box of my favorite POI DONUTS!!! Day’um! I had da GRINDZ!!!
It was great to see a few familiar faces — Ed & Lyla D., bruddah Darrell & Sophie P., Anthony & Angel H. & Jerrae R.
It was also great to meet a few new faces — Aggie C., Lynette N., Luis R., & Victoria A.
What can I say about the restaurant & grub?
The restaurant is a bit small… looks like somebody’s house converted into a restaurant. The restaurant is nicely decorated & clean.
The grub? Can I say «Unconsciously Good»!!!
My sweetie ordered the following — Scallops with mofongo, plantains, & gandule rice. I know she liked her lunch, as she raved about it! Looks like we will be back here in the near future for more grindz!
As for me, I ended up ordering the Mahi Mahi, with a garden salad, & Habichuelas (kinda like a Portuguese Bean Soup is the best way to put it).
Loved my grindz! Especially the Habichuelas! The Mahi Mahi was done perfectly… soft &
flavorful!
And for dessert… I just had to try this thing called Tres Leches! What is that? It’s a milk cake… so smooth & creamy! DELICIOUS!!! Ummmmmmmm! I would come back here just to eat that again!
As the holidays gets near… I would like to wish you all a Healthy & Happy 2016!
Enjoy each others company, don’t sweat the hard stuff… and keep on enjoying da GRINDAGES!!!

When Jeana P. first listed this UYE, I wasn’t sure about going. I live in town and Waianae is kind of far for me. I wanted to try this restaurant out and support her first UYE, so I signed up.
The drive was 45 minutes from town without traffic. The scenic drive out there was actually very pretty. As we pulled into the driveway, Jeana was already there. She was standing on the sidewalk checking people in. That girl is so organized. She had asked us for our orders in advance, so when we sat down, the food was already coming out. The way Jeana had things set up, made things so much easier. They just called our names and handed us our food. It was the same way when paying our bill.
The food was good. I don’t eat Latin food that often, so I’m no expert on it. Some of the items that they serve, I’ve never even heard of.
I had a blast with my tablemates. Thanks to Jerrae, Mel, and Victoria for all the laughs. Thanks, Sophie and Darrell, for the Poi donuts. The crunchy beef jerky that Jerrae shared was so good. My favorite was the teri flavor. Thanks, Jerrae!

This is my first time at Coquito’s and what better way celebrate the first time than at Jeana’s first solo UYE.
I ordered the ribeye steak that was big and juicy and came out excellent medium rare. The fried sweet plantains was so delicious! A little on the caramelized side made this stand out. The Habichuela was really good too. It would go great over rice and if they added Ham hock to that, it wouldn’t be that far off from Portuguese bean soup. Would be great if it came in a meal by itself.
I was told by Jeana while I was eating that the owner made the ribeye special for me because they don’t serve that here anymore. They serve the ribeye at her other restaurant down the road Valentina Ristorante. Talk about going out of your way to satisfy! Thank you Stevina for going out of your way! Guess I’ll have to make a trip back this side!
It was a great time with new and familiar faces. Jerrae shared three bags of some awesome beef jerky. I brought some Poi donuts from Kamehameha Bakery to share with everyone. For those who brought gifts for the secret Santa went home with gifts too along with a whole mess of picture taking.
Parking is small with six to eight stalls max. If you blink you’ll pass this place up so if you haven’t been here before keep an eye on the addresses or you’ll be turning around at the harbor.
Special thanks to Jeana for putting on a great first solo UYE and for being a wonderful host throughout the event and to the owner Stevina for opening the doors of her restaurant to a loud and noisy crowd and to the staff that worked really hard getting the orders out as fast as they could all with smiling faces. You all did a great job!

Thanks Jeana P. for hosting this UYE so we can enjoy some yummy Puerto Rican today for lunch! You were so awesome with standing out by the road to greet us Unilocalers and walking around the restaurant making sure we got our orders. Thanks also for getting our orders on Unilocal so that the restaurant to feed us! The food was delicious and filling! I was thoroughly stuffed with empanadas, mofongo, gandule rice, garlic shrimp, tembleque (like haupia), and strawberry flan cocho. The staff were very friendly and helpful. I had a great lunch today with great food and awesome Unilocalers! Thanks for creating this opportunity to try out Coquito’s. Also, thanks to the Unilocalers that gifted me with the Bath & Body Works and my husband’s cast iron grill pan. We will put both to good use!

West end girls, you rock! When Jeana posted her UYE at Coquitos, I quickly jumped in as I had heard so much about this restaurant and saw an opportunity for getting together with fellow Unilocal friends before the Christmas Holidays. My husband and I joked about the «distance» that we’d have to travel (33 miles) to an area of our beautiful island of O’ahu that we rarely go to. So, with the UYE we now had good reason.
Congratulations to Jeana P. on expertly putting together your first UYE. Wow, she even played as a «landmark» to us townies as she stood by the driveway in to Coquitos. If she hadn’t been there, many of us would’ve zipped past as this restaurant is set back from the street. We liked that there were at least 7 parking spaces available right in front of the restaurant.
As the UYE date drew near, Jeana messaged all of the attendees and asked us to make our meal selection (s). This restaurant is in a former house and the kitchen is rather small. So, thank you, Jeana, for taking our food order early so the kitchen could prepare for the «onslaught» of hungry Yeeps. The turn-​out was huuuge as our group basically commandeered the restaurant. We met a lot of our familiar Unilocal friends as well as made new ones.
Before any food was served, fellow Unilocaler, Jerrae, shared several bags of Salcedo’s Crunchy Jerky. Oh, these thin slices of beef were crisp like potato chips and packed a lot of beefy flavor (Teriyaki, Sriracha and Ponzu Ginger)…we could fully appreciate the 5-​star rating that Jerrae gave to them on her review. In the meantime, Jeana went around the room to check off meal selections with one of the servers. There were dishes that we weren’t familiar with but I must say, the presentation of the food matched their website. We selected a Puerto Rican dish called «Mofongo» (mashed plantains mixed with garlic, olive oil, broth and pork cracklings) topped with either fried shrimp or steak with sides ranging from gandule (pigeon peas) rice, tostones (fried plantain slices) and yuca/​yucca fries. The food was well-​seasoned but seemed to take a backseat to the camaraderie and conversations.
We were all about to go into food comas when thanks to to Darrell P. and his lovely wife, Sophie P. whipped out a huge box of Kamehameha Bakery’s famous poi doughnuts to share with everyone. Woo! I was already feeling like I looked like a snake that swallowed a cow but my low resistance allowed me to take a couple of doughnuts.
Jeana had planned a Secret Santa drawing that many participants engaged in to. Oops, my bad, for not reading the UYE festivities plan more thoroughly before driving out here.
We owe our gratitude to Stevina (owner of Coquitos), Jerrae for the delicious crunchy jerky and Darrell and Sophie for those onolicious poi doughnuts. Extra BIG Mahalos to Jeana for hosting this fun UYE and getting us out from our «townie» mode to explore the Wai’anae Coast.
#480

Deeeeeelicious!
It would be the first time I’d visit this place and I was excited to try figuring out what I wanted to eat when I saw Jeana P.‘s UYE invitation posted in Unilocal Events!
Fran C. & I had a nice drive in to Waianae. Traffic out here was pretty good.
Very much ahead of the UYE date, smart and gracious Unilocal Elite Host Jeana P. somehow magically remembered Fran C.‘s and my fish-​loving diet. She contacted us to offer a couple fish choices, mahimahi and salmon and worked out the details with the owner. Fran C. quickly & easily decided upon the mahi. Meanwhile, I had a tough time deciding! Been looking thru this restaurant’s reviews & photos and literally wanted to try everything but knew it all could not fit! Hehe! Scallops — also one of my fav things to eat — here are served as an appetizer so I finally asked Jeana P. if their scallop-​mango-​onion sauté appetizer could be ordered as a mofongo dish too. Jeana P. checked with the owner & voilà my order was set!
Fran C. ordered:
— Mahimahi with two sides, fresh salad and beans
— Tres Luches (dessert cake)
Fran C. really enjoyed his meal + dessert! It was so good! :D
I ordered:
— Scallop mango-​onion sauté on a kinda fried mashed plantain cup (aka mofongo) with two sides, gandule rice & plaintains
I am STILL in scallops-​mango-​onion-​sauté HEAVEN!!! I LOOOOOOOOOVED my dish so much that I just had to let Jeana P. & the owner know thank you for accommodating my request & to lhk just how much I REALLY REALLY REALLY REALLLLLLLY REALLLLLLLLLLY REALLLLLLLLLLLLLLY ABSOLUTELY AND WONDERFULLLLLLLLLY LOOOOOOOVED it!
Teehee! :D
As the waitress suggested to me to let the owner know — I suggested to the owner that their scallop appetizer be sold as a mofongo (what I had) bc um well selfishly, I soooooooooo wanna eat that again at my next visit!!!)
What was so good about it?
— The mango-​onion sauté lightly drenched the mofongo underneath enough to further season the midly crunchy thick mashed unripened plantain bowl (I Googled it: a mofongo is made of unripened plantains that are mixed with garlic & some savory bacon/​crunchy pork shaped into a sorta crunchy outside «bowl»).
— Fran C. & I had previously agreed to share our four sides with each other and I spooned my portion of his beans (called habichuelas which is kinda like a salsa-​y Portuguese Bean Soup without ham hocks/​Portuguese sausage) onto my gandule rice (this one is a very mildly seasoned rice that contains small green peas — what were those? Lol) which went sooo fabulously well together. The different tastes all put together on my good sized platter-​plate made everything taste SO GOOD!
THANK YOU FOR THE BEFORE/​AFTER DELICIOUS TREATS!
— Crunchy Beef Jerky — Thank you to Ms. Jerrae who brought bags of her niece’s thinly sliced delicious beef jerky! There were three flavors to try, spicy Sriracha, teri, and what was the other one. Aack but all three were sooooo good!
— Poi Doughnuts — Thank you to Darrell P. & Sopie P. for your company & for bringing the delightful, fresh, out-​of-​the oven poi doughnuts! I am in LOVE with those things!
THANK YOUS!
— Thank you everyone who attended & to Jeana P. who graciously hosted this yummy event!
— Jeana P. made sure we placed our orders ahead of time, kept it all efficient and organized, ensured we were able to fit all of our cars inside the sorta limited, that is for our huge group, parking lot (hey, she even stood outside to greet us at the parking lot entrance and make sure our cars fit!), made sure our orders we were good to go & OK, & held a holiday-​spirited Secret Santa! You made us all feel cared for & special ((hugs))! :D
— Thank you to whomever was my Secret Santa! I need & now can have head massages regularly! Hehehe: D
— To my Secret Santa recipient, Dona Lynn’s hubby! :D Thank you for appreciating the cast iron pan! Yipee! Hehe: D
— Thank you to the Coquito’s owner, Stevina! The FOOD was DELICIOUS, your place is cute clean and quaint, your order process is extremely efficient & organized, & even our waters were kept magically filled — so you just know the SERVICE there ROCKED, too! :D
— In order of who I saw first/​next & by category lol: It was nice to be there with Fran C. — Thank you for driving us comfortably there & back, Fran C. You’re a treat to hang out with! It was so nice to see very familiar faces I get to see regularly + all the time (which I love), Jeana P., Angel H. & hubby Anthony, Lyla D. & hubby Ed., Sophie P. & Darrell P., Ms. Jerrae, Victoria A. & her mom, Mel B. & his mom! It was so nice to see Lynette N. & Donna Lynn B. (& hubby) again! Last but not least: It was so nice to meet Tara & hubby Ashton, Aggie, & Luis R.!! I didn’t catch Jeana P.‘s two friends names but one of them in the teal tee-​shirt endlessly took our group photos. Heehee So nice of her! :D
All in all, I had a great time trying something new & different (for me) food here with awesome Unilocal friends! What a GREAT time! :D