Sidewalk Deli

Best kim chee jun (pancakes) ever. The aunty who works here is like my own aunty, feeding me at reasonable prices. This place is such a hole-​in-​the-​wall that I’ve passed by so many times thinking it was just a convenience store selling sketchy food. Thanks to a friend and Unilocal,I found the courage to try this place.
During lunch, it can get super busy and you’ll end up waiting for a while… Be understanding! The aunty is runs a one-​woman show and there’s like two stoves for her to cook. I ordered the ddukboki (Korean rice cake) and kim chee jun (kim chee pancakes). It’s classic Korean home-​cooked comfort food. The kim chee jun is out of this food! For the same quantity and quality, I’d need to pay double the price at Korean bars.
Not the healthiest fare by any means, but sometimes when you have a rough day at work, you need that comfort food to pull you through the rest of the day. It’s a no-​frills place and one of the cheaper options on Fort Street Mall. Aunty said you can call or put in your order on your way to work in the morning to reduce your lunch time wait time.
They’re also open for early morning breakfast fare. Visit aunty!

I had spent some time living and working in Seoul, South Korea so Korean food has become comfort food. After moving to the island from a couple of months ago, I started venturing out to explore Honolulu’s food scene and stumbled upon this gem!
Wonderful place to have a good plate of Kimchee fried rice (with spam), served with Korean banchan (kimchi and egg soup) that is not overpriced. The no-​frills interior and group of Korean ahjummas (aunties) chatting among themselves while I ate brought me right back to my time in Seoul. This will probably be my go-​to place for lunch at least once a week!

Comfort Korean food at Rock bottom prices. Aunty and G-​ma are super nice and it feels like having a home cooked meal in Korea.
$ 5 Kim chee fried rice. Whaaat?! $ 6 Bibimbap. Whaaaat?! $ 6 Kim chee pancake. Whaaat?! You can feast like a boss here for under $ 20.
All orders come with a bowl of rice, egg soup and a side of kim chee. Mmmmhmmm.

Definite hole in the wall Korean place. But fantastic lunch plates for around $ 7. I had bulgogi which was great. My wife had a noodle dish (sorry, forgot the name) that she liked too. Friendly service, large servings for the price. And … surprise, they’re open in the evening unlike most of the other cafes in this area. Score, since we live two blocks away!

A hidden hole in the wall w/​a small menu, great Kim Chee, and good value convenience store items.
For $ 2.75, got the egg soup with Kim Chee and rice. For another $ 6, got a giant portion of Kim Chee Jun. Even their canned beverages were priced below average. What a great value! I’ll be back to try the Kim Chee fried rice and to buy their kim chee.
The interior has plenty of seating, surprisingly, and even has a homey little library with Korean books and magazines.
Find this little gem from one of two entrances: 1) from fort street mall, find the hanging sign that says «Sidewalk Deli» and walk past the small coffee shop. Look for the Korean sign on a door in the back. 2) From chaplain lane, enter from fort street mall side between the crêpe shop and HPU, or from Bethel street. Look for an alleyway with parked mopeds and you’ll see a small hanging sign in Korean.

Great hole in the wall. I had the $ 5 kimchee fried rice which came with a fried egg and a side of kimchee. Plenty of fried rice in this portion, so I’ll have leftovers for lunch tomorrow.
The grammas who work here are darling. :)
I want to go back to check out some of their other options for lunch. I saw one lady construct what looks like a plate lunch but with lots of fun toppings and beef as the meat. Mmm.
#100in2015 (#4)

Aloha,
I love this place, its a very cozy, warm located on Chaplain lane.
Their breakfast plate is reasonable and tasty.
Their bibimbap is very tasty too, food is made to order and am thankful for the fast service.
Thier homemade kimchee is out of this world.

This is a true hole in the wall with some of the best kimchee on Fort Street Mall. If you’re on a budget this is a great option. My favorite quick, lite lunch is the egg drop soup which is only $ 4. You will be so full afterwards and she gives you a side of kimchee to enjoy.
Kimchee fried rice is pretty good as well as the kimchee pancake.

6 FACTS FO’ KNOW
1) MEAN, AUTHENTIC KIMCHEE! (pickled Korean dish made with Chinese cabbage, salt, and crushed red peppers). None of dat weak Halm’s BS. It’s red, spicy, and will make you grow chest hairs (if you’re a wahine). Kimchee fried rice is winnahs, too! Also sells beverages (h20, soda, juice), cigarettes, Spam musubi, muffins, and features an array of Korean/​local food (ramen, bulgoki (beef), bibimbap, ramen, etc.).
2) Hole-​in-​da-​wall convenience store/​eatery run by 1 – 2 middle-​aged Korean wahines located at corner of Fort St. Mall + small side street called Chaplain Lane. Adjacent to Le Crêpe Café and right next to The Mercury Bar.
3) BREAKFAST SPECIAL: $ 3.25 fo’ 2 eggs, 2 piece Spam, and rice. Great deal!
4) Cash only! No credit cards accepted.
5) No designated parking, so find it weaevah you can in Chinatown.
6) During certain days, dey feature racks of donated clothing (shirts, dresses, sweaters), handbags/​bags, footwear, and small toys/​stuffed animals dat are donated items being sold for charity. All proceeds are donated to such non-​profits as da Institute fo’ Human Services (IHS), Red Cross (to benefit typhoon Haiyan victims in da Philippines), etc. One time, a fellow classmate scored hea by finding + buying a Lululemon top in like-​new condition.
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* I go school nearby & usually donate $ 10 or $ 20 hea & dea wen I can … da ahjumma (older Korean lady) and halmonis (grandmas) who help run da joint always tell me «Kahmsahmnida» («thank you» in Korean) and «I’ll pray for you.» I no attend church + am far away from being religious, but it still touches my heart knowing sum random biz in downtown has a philanthropic focus.
REVIEW #243

I’m frugal sometimes and get tired of eating bentos in the HPU area. I’ve been here multiple times. I crave the beef bulgogi every once in a while. I love how they make the egg over and easy so I break the yolk over the beef, onions, and rice. They also serve that with kimchee and sometimes include a soup with egg whites. It costs $ 5.75 and it gets me full. I tried the spicy squid once and that wasn’t bad. The place is usually empty. People come here to buy cigarettes, not to eat.

This is a true buried treasure! I would have never guessed that in this little hidden section of the HPU student center, I would find my favorite kimchee! The aunty/​owner of the place makes it herself & you can tell she puts love in every batch. I cringe at the thought of buying from the store anymore when she sells her homemade kimchee in different sizes at her store.
She is super sweet, too. I’ve never seen anyone else working there and she remembers my BF from when he went to HPU years ago!
The breakfast specials are really affordable there, too. Pretty generous portion of her kimchee fried rice and egg for $ 5 with a side of straight up kimchee. The BF likes the 2 eggs, 2 – 3 pieces of spam, rice and side kimchee for $ 3.25! Can you get any better than that?
I can see mainland people saying that it’s not clean or doesn’t look nice, but that’s cause they just don’t get it, lol. It’s just the way it is. Doesn’t bother me one bit! I’ll keep going here till they close down. :)

BEST KIM CHEE
I’ve tried many different kim chees like Halms, Kohala, all of them, and nothing compares to the kim chee sold at Sidewalk Deli. It’s so flavorful and fresh. I don’t like sour and tangy kim chee (and I know some people do), but this one is sweet and not too spicy, just perfect. Be sure you pick the chopped one, since one time I accidentally picked up one that wasn’t chopped and it was a big mess chopping it up at home.
This place is a hole in the wall and the owner is a one-​woman-​show! She does the prepping, cooking, cashiering, etc. She works hard. I enjoyed her kim chee fried rice with egg on top. It’s so good!
I also come here to hide and eat if I don’t feel like being social. It’s hard to find, but you feel very welcomed. Sidewalk Deli needs to be renovated and have a good scrubbing, but it adds to the intimate and hole in the wall experience. The prices are really cheap, and I hope she never closes shop because she supplies my kim chee at home. I’m not sure if she makes it, but if she doesn’t, I want to know who is supplying her.
31 Unilocal Review Challenge — 25 of 31

This place is definitely a hole in a wall convenience store and literally right next door to Hole In A Wall. I go here whenever I need a cheap Korean fix in Downtown. The menu items are made to order and almost remind me of my mom’s cooking, which is always nice. The owner is really sweet and friendly, and you can’t beat the price.

Not to be confused with the «sidewalk bento» place around the corner… Tucked away an an alley called «Chaplain Lane», right next to Mercury Bar, with crude signage and an actual pachinko machine in the front, usually with a tray of blackened roast garlic cooling off nearby — ta da! Sidewalk is a one (hardworking, kickbutt, kind) woman show. Not only does she cook all her breakfasts and korean lunches in one tiny kitchen, she also makes the kimchee — OMG it is super. I buy kimchee from her to take home every now and then. It’s a sort of convenience store slash korean restaurant, and the food is really good. Bi bim bap, soups, kimchee fried rice — cheap and plentiful. Arguably the best spam musubi downtown. Tiny dining room makes you feel like you’re in the 40’s…really dingy and run down, but full of heart and garlic. What’s not to love?

Have to agree with Anita L. about this being a different kind of deli. This place is a «deli» like sidestreet inn is an «inn».
This place is cheap and has good breakfast bentos of the spam, egg and stuff variety. Gotta plug my favorite place, though– not as cheap or delicious as Happy Mini Mart on Richards.
I’ll be back to sample some other foods. Next lunch time, probably.

I’m not sure that this place can be called a deli. A Korean deli maybe, but definitely NOT your regular type of deli. It’s a small little place with a few booths. They serve breakfast for $ 2.50 with 2 eggs, 2 slices of spam and rice (boy, now THAT’S a Hawaiian breakfast), spam musubi, California roll. For lunch they have a whole bunch of Korean style foods including kim chee fried rice, bul-​go-​gi with rice and egg and bento boxes too featuring meat jun, fish jun and mandoo.
I’m not really sure where the lady cooks all this stuff. All I saw was a one stove heating device behind the cashier area.