My last Dine About Town 2004 experience was at Roy's Restuarant, located on Mission between 1st and 2nd streets. I ate there last night with a friend of mine.

My friend had been there before, and wanted me to try it since it was Hawaiian style fusion food. I had never heard of the place, so I was intrigued.

The restaurant was crowded, and while there were hawaiian sounding dishes on the menu, it wasn't exactly what I would call Hawaiian food. It's more east and west fusion food, with a Hawaiian accent. They did have butterfish on the menu however, which was cool because butterfish is like a staple in Hawaiian eating.

Anyway, the food was excellent and probably a notch below Chez Panise. Considering the prices and the quality of the food, it's a heck of a bargain. Chez Panise has unbelievable food, but it is so not cheap.

Here's the what I had from from the Dine About Town menu:

Appetizer:
Roy’s Hawaiian Fusion Sampler - Shrimp Stick, Szechuan Baby Back Rib & Kalua Pork Lumpia

Dinner:
Charred Garlic Honey Mustard Beef Short Ribs with Hanalei Poi and Lomi Lomi Tomato (I had to see what the poi tasted like. The colour was off, but it was real poi.)

Dessert:
Caramel Macadamia Nut Almond Tart With Our homemade vanilla bean ice cream (what's a hawaiian meal without some macadamia nut?)

My friend says the Szechuan Baby Back Ribs are her favourite. She had the Roy’s Classic Roasted Macadamia Whitefish with a Lobster Butter Sauce for her dinner choice.

They play cheesey loungey Hawaiian music, so it's like you're eating in a hotel in Hawaii. You can't escape cheesey Hawaiian lounge music when you're in Hawaii; it's everywhere.

Still, the food is so good that it warrants a return visit. Supposedly they have their own hawaiian cocktails on the menu, but we didn't try any of those and I'd go back just to see if they can get a cheesey Waikiki mai tai right.