No7 JAPANESE FOOD TRUCK
ADDRESS: 66-235 Kamehameha Highway, Haleiwa, HI 96712
WEBSITE: https://www.no7japanesefoodtruck.com/
After a rainy morning spent out at the Dole Plantation, my brother Kevin, sister-in-law Alina, and I decided to venture up further to the North Shore to check out a spot to get some lunch. We had looked over a few different places, and one of the spots that seemed to get some good reviews on Yelp was the No7 Japanese Food Truck, right off of Kamehameha Highway. We ended up parking in a nearby plaza and walked down the street back towards the food truck.
Along the way, we had passed by quite a few food trucks that were situated similarly to No7 Japanese, where they were permanent fixtures where they were parked. There was a nice covered seating area with picnic benches and some string lights for decoration, shared with a Thai food truck next door as well.
The menu from the food truck offered a mix of different Japanese food options, ranging from poke to tempura to curry plates to ramen. I was really in the mood for poke, especially since we were in Hawaii, so that definitely got my attention immediately. I also did see that there was the option to do a combo with two different items on the menu, where I thought that I could make my own “surf & turf” plate. My combo consisted of the spicy garlic ahi poke paired with chicken karaage.
We had gotten to the North Shore closer to mid-afternoon, around 2PM, so there really wasn’t anyone else at the food truck at the time. That meant it was pretty quick to get our food, with us waiting no more than six or seven minutes overall. The two item combo (called “Da Combo” on the menu) was $19, and I thought that my container ended up having a good amount in it. The poke and chicken karaage were presented on opposite ends of the container, with the poke served over rice and mixed greens, and sliced avocados dividing right down the middle.
I decided to get started with the poke first, which was topped with spicy mayo and garnished with furikake, scallions, crispy onions, and smelt egg. The ahi had good flavor, even if the cube sizes of the poke were slightly larger than I was used to. The texture of the fish was slightly different than other poke I had in the past, so I wasn’t sure what to make of that. But that didn’t take away from the tasty savory flavor resulting from the combination of all of the ingredients. I also thought that having both the rice and the mixed greens were a nice complement to the richness from the poke.
Moving on to the karaage, the pieces of chicken were fried pretty well, being nice and crispy. The only slight downside for me was that it ended being sauced pretty heavily over the top, with Japanese mayo and soy-based karaage sauce. It could be just personal preference, but I enjoy getting more of the taste from the chicken itself and not having it overwhelmed by sauce. But the crispiness of the karaage was certainly there, so it definitely delivered in that regard.
It’s quite possible that some of the reviews I read may have overhyped this place for me in my head. Multiple people had said that it was the best food they had eaten while on the island; while it was definitely good for me, I don’t know if I would go so far to say that. I definitely would say it’s some solid food coming out of a food truck, for sure. If I was already in the North Shore area, No7 Japanese would be a place I’d consider if I was in the mood for Japanese food. But I wouldn’t say that I’d make the trek all the way out there just for the food.
Let’s now take a look at the No7 Japanese Food Truck Dish Spotlight. Asterisks (*) below mark my recommended dishes.
** Spicy Garlic Ahi Poke (pictured left) **
Ahi tuna with spicy mayo, crispy onions, furikake, scallions, and smelt roe. Served with rice and mixed greens. Pictured with added avocado.
** Chicken Karaage (pictured right) **
Pieces of chicken breast deep-fried, topped with spicy mayo, karaage sauce, and scallions.
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And finally, here are my rankings for No7 Japanese Food Truck:
Food: 4.25 / 5
Both the poke and the karaage were good, and satisfied some food cravings I was having at the time. My combo plate also provided good portions of both items, and the array of Japanese food options offered helps you find something you might be in the mood for.
Atmosphere: N/A
It was definitely a nice little dining area that they had set up with the neighboring Thai food truck, with the overhangs, picnic benches, and string lights overhead. But since there isn’t a formal space for the food truck, this ranking won’t be applied.
Service: 4 / 5
The guy helping us out inside the truck was pretty nice, helping to answer a few questions about the menu. The food itself was turned around pretty quickly as well.
Price: 4.25 / 5
My two-item combo came in at $19, and I thought that for the portions provided, it was a pretty fair price, given that it had both meat and seafood.
Overall:
12.5 / 15
(83%)
Categories: Hawaii, Restaurants
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