Aku Eats Oahu : Bakeries : Traditional Bakeries

Traditional Bakeries

Liliha Bakery. 515 N. Kuakini St. in Liliha/Kalihi. 531-1651. 24 hours except closed on Monday. Parking outside store. Map. This longtime favorite is famous for cocoa puffs, which are basically chocolate-filled cream puffs with a buttercream topping, very similar to the frosting of a German chocolate cake. You’ll need to pull a number and wait to be served a few of these, along with the éclairs, lady fingers, cakes, and other items housed in the main display cases because there is almost always a full-house. When purchasing at least a dozen cocoa puffs, you can instead just grab pre-packaged boxes, either refrigerated or frozen, from holding cases in the back of the small store, but there will likely still be a wait in the cashiers line. You may also be surprised at the number of diners who come for good old-fashioned local comfort foods, especially for breakfast and lunch. There are limited seating arrangements in the dining area, all from a long, single counter with a row of barstools.

Liliha coco puffs are about as popular an item as there is in the islands, and a must-try for every visitor!

Ted’s Bakery. 59-024 Kamehameha Hwy. on the North Shore. 638-8207. 7am-3pm daily. Parking outside store. Map. For me, Ted’s is all about chocolate haupia pie. A semi-sweet layer of chocolate is covered by another layer of coconut haupia custard, and topped with a light whipped cream for an unbeatable combination. They also have other delicious pies of note, such as a pumpkin, strawberry, and blueberry haupia, chocolate custard, and Bavarian cream, as well as other desserts and even sandwiches, plate lunches, and bento! Luckily for me, seeing that I live about an hour’s drive (two during traffic hours) from the North shore, I can grab a chocolate haupia pie in the bakery sections of large supermarkets like Foodland and Times.

Great Harvest Bread co. Main store: 4400 Kalanianaole Hwy. in Kahala, 735-8810. Daily from 6:30am-6pm, except closed on Sunday. Parking outside store. Various other locations also. Map. This national chain has seen a steady rise in popularity with its fresh-baked breads, rolls, scones, muffins, cookies, and other bakery treats. They are most famous for their breads, which come in a host of different varieties and have rotating specials daily, such as spinach feta, low-carb whole wheat, cranberry crunch, lemon sunburst, and many, many others. The downtown location, 233 Merchant st. #100, also caters to the busy morning and lunch crowds with sandwiches and panini’s.

Dee Lite Bakery and St. Germaine’s. Main Store: 1930 Dillingham Blvd. in Kalihi, 847-5396. Daily 5am-9pm. Parking outside store. Various other locations housed within Shopping Centers and grocery stores. Map. Dee Lite Bakery was the creation of Herbert Matsuba, who became famous for its line-up of chiffon cakes – coconut, guava, passion fruit, and lime. As success mounted, his store and recipes were bought by St. Germaine’s Bakery, which has since opened up numerous locations all over the island, mostly in supermarkets and shopping centers. The Kalihi store remains with the Dee Lite name while others may also be listed under the St. Germaine’s title. Besides having cakes, breads, muffins, glazed donuts, and other baked sweets, they also have gained a reputation for their savory collection of light lunches and snacks, such as baked breads with toppings or fillings like ham and cheese, curry, chicken, and onion.

Napolean’s Bakery. Various locations, housed within Zippy’s restaurants. The masterminds behind local restaurant and fast-food purveyor, Zippy’s, have created a full-service bakery to complement their stores, and the idea has become a great success. Their biggest ticket to fame has been the apple napple, which is basically a triangle-shaped apple pie filling wrapped in layers of buttery puff-pastry, and covered with a thin sugar glaze - having it with a scoop or two of vanilla ice cream just takes it to another level. The flaky donuts are also very good, but are so sweet and buttery that you may have a hard time finishing even one! There are also some excellent cakes, like the guava chiffon, dobash, chantilly, strawberry shortbread and haupia, as well many other goodies like palm leafs, long johns, cookies, and donuts of all kinds.

Fritz’s European Bakery. 1336 Dillingham Blvd. in Kalihi. 567-4170. 6am-6pm daily, except closed by 5pm Saturday. Parking outside store. Map. It was Christmas Eve in WW2 Germany when Fritz Vincken, yet 12 years old, saw his mother take three American and four German soldiers into their country-side home for a respite from the terrors of war, but only on condition that they lay their weapons down. In a true story of peace and goodwill, the warring soldiers from both sides, along with Fritz and the entire Vincken family, dined together on a feast of chicken and fresh-baked bread and spent the night under that same roof. The next morning the soldiers departed, but not before the Germans gave the Americans a compass and directions back to the American front lines. The story reached all the way to the admiration of President Ronald Reagan, along with the pages of several publications, including Chicken Soup for the Soul. Fritz has since passed on, but his little bakery that bakes the same breads from his heroic mother’s recipes lives on in humble Kalihi. You can also find bagels, brownies, rolls, cakes, and even sandwich and burger lunches from 6:30 in the morning.

Nanding's famous spanish rolls are so easy to eat, you may want to get a few extra (extra dozen, that is).

Nanding’s Bakery. 2 locations: 94-216 Farrington Hwy. in Waipahu (map shown), 678-0828; and 918 Gulick Ave. in Kalihi, 841-4731. Parking outside both stores. Map. This Filipino bakery has staked a name for itself with their tasty Spanish rolls, which are small, elongated rolls that are feathery-light, and strike a balance of both sweet and salty, with a healthy dose of butter to richen things up. They are often purchased right out of the oven, when the insides are as soft as a cloud, the outside golden-brown, and the smell amazing! They are also very cheap, at 3 per dollar, and it’s a good thing, because you can’t stop at just one. There are also ensamada’s, which come plus-sized and frosted with butter and sugar, ube rolls with a purple yam filling, simple rolls of pan de sal, and other Filipino and standard baked goods.

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