North shore, oahu | shrimp truck

I have been thinking of the garlic shrimp plate that we had at a food truck while in Oahu during our vacation in November 2019, just months before the pandemic.

We are so glad that we got to go before the world pretty much went on lockdown and when it is no longer currently safe to travel. I thought that I would post the pictures of our trip before I post my Garlic Shrimp recipe. I just had it for lunch just now. It took me all but 10 minutes to whip up this really tasty and comforting meal!

Mr Sweetie and I went for a drive from our hotel in the Waikiki area to the town of Haleiwa (pronounced hah-lay-EE-wah is a historical surf town that’s about an hour’s drive from Waikiki). We rented a car and got to hit up some “must see” spots in the North Shore of Oahu.

Among things to do in Haleiwa is to eat at a shrimp food truck. Giovanni’s is the most popular one among foodies. Sure enough, when we got there, the line was so long and the wait was for almost about an hour. Now, even when I was at the height of hard core foodie-ness, I hardly ever wanted to wait to eat at restaurants. 20 — maybe 30 minutes tops were all we were willing to spend waiting. I always believe that there are so many delicious places in the Bay Area at almost every corner that it is unnecessary to spend precious minutes waiting for one that might possibly have been over-hyped on Yelp. (I know that very dedicated foodies will disagree with me which is totally understandable.)

I applied this principle when we were in Oahu. I told Mr Sweetie to just drive and look for food trucks after seeing how long the line was at Giovanni’s. Sure enough, there were quite a few in North Shore. We chose North Shore Shrimp Truck because it was right across from the beach and it was located at a little open air mini-park with other food trucks selling local foods like shaved ice, pineapple drinks and tacos.

Upcycling sculpture of things found on the beach

It was a breeze to order. We paid cash, sat down and our food was delivered to us in about 15 minutes. We had fun watching surfers and people coming in from the beach to grab a meal.

There were only 3 items on the menu: Garlic Shrimp, Butter Lemon Shrimp and Spicy Shrimp. These food truck shrimp dishes are traditionally served with the shell on. I ordered the Butter Lemon Shrimp while he went for Garlic Shrimp because he loves “garlic everything.” Both came with rice and a salad.

It was a filling meal. He reported that his dish was buttery, and garlicky. Mine was a nice lemony and buttery treat. This shrimp dish gets included on the list of my comfort foods. Being Filipina who grew up eating fresh seafood with rice, this is foodie heaven for me. I have been dreaming of eating this dish since then!

After eating, we continued to explore North Shore. It was a beautiful day of driving around without a care in the world exploring beaches and stopping at local attractions while looking forward to drinking mai tai when we got back to our hotel.

I hope to post more pictures of Hawaii. In the the mean time, if you ever visit Haleiwa in North Shore, please do not miss visiting the following:

• Matsumoto Shave Ice — Sit for a spell and enjoy a shave ice, then walk around to the little outdoor mall to shop for souvenirs.
• Macadamia Nut Farm — We stumbled upon this place by chance. I got to crack a fresh macadamia nut. We sampled their products and bought lots of madacamia treats that we brought home as souvenirs. I did not realize how delicious macadamia nuts are when they are very fresh!
• Try a huli huli chicken at one of the stands.
• Go to a local grocery shop where you will find local products which will make cool presents for loved ones.

Stay tuned for my Garlic Shrimp Truck- Inspired recipe on my next post!