American

Holokai Grill

Waikiki Beach Walk, 226 Lewers St., 2nd Floor, (924-7245). Lunch 10:30am-4pm, dinner 4pm-10:30pm, bar open until 2am; AmEx, DC, Disc, JCB, MC, V.

Choose from pupu classics like coconut shrimp or build your own burger with toppings like kim chee and spicy guava sauce. Entrees include fresh fish dishes and grilled Sterling Silver steaks and chops. Don’t miss the creative cocktails, including the dirty martini and bloody mary, both gilded with bleu cheese and bacon stuffed olives.

Mariposa

1450 Ala Moana Blvd. (951-3420). Sun.-Wed. 11am-9pm, Thu-Sat 11am-10pm. Entrees: lunch $16-$25, dinner $24-$45. AmEx, Bergdorf Goodman, JCB, Neiman Marcus, V.

The popular warm liliko’i pudding cake, delicate and whimsically topped with a butterfly cookie, is a highlight. While the prices are high, the finest things here are complimentary: warm double manapua-sized popovers and a panoramic vista–from Ala Wai Yacht Harbor to Ala Moana Beach Park.

Poke Stop

Waipahu Town Center, 94-050 Farrington Hwy., next to Sizzlers (676-8100). Mon.-Sat. 8am-7pm, Sun. 8am-5pm. AmEx, MC, V.

You can pick up poi, bags of dried aku and a bowl of ‘deconstructed sushi’ along with daily specials such as perfectly seared opah in a deliciously salty broth swimming with Portuguese sausage chunks and cabbage.

Uncle Bo’s Pupu Bar & Grill

559 Kapahulu Ave. (739-2426). Daily 5pm-2am. Pupu $6-$10, Entrees $10-$25. AmEx, Disc, JCB, MC, V.

The seafood-heavy page-long pupu menu features strong flavors–sweet chili calamari, dynamite shrimp–to pair with successive rounds of drinks from the pink backlit bar. Don’t miss the Thai style steamer clams in a sweet chili garlic oyster sauce. There’s also a full menu of steaks, seafood, pasta and pizzas.

Chinese

Fook Lam Seafood Restaurant

Chinatown Cultural Plaza, 100 N. Beretania St. (523-9168). Daily 8am-3pm and 5-10pm. Dim sum from $1.90. MC, V.

The dim sum cart comes around more often than at the bigger dim sum palaces, and cheap prices mean your stomach can be as big as your eyes. Superior taro gok and shrimp gau, when hot out

of the kitchen, are highlights. Augment your plate with a handful of filled look fun rolls and house specialty braised e-mein.

Happy Day Restaurant

3553 Wai’alae Ave. at 11th Ave. (738-8666). Daily 8:30am-10:30pm. Dim sum: $2.30 per plate. AmEx, Disc, MC, V.

Servers greet customers like old friends. The place is great for big family dinners (Peking duck is tops), but it also has good dim sum. The turnip cake can’t be beat. The cooks turn coarse, bland daikon into delicately crusted creamy, savory-sweet squares.

P.F. Chang’s

1288 Ala Moana Blvd. (596-4710). Sun.-Thu. 11am-11pm, Fri.-Sat. 11am-midnight. Entrees: $10.95-$20.95. AmEx, Disc, DC, JCB, MC, V.

The chicken lettuce cups are good, and the Mongolian beef tastes like tender teriyaki. Try the lemon pepper shrimp, which cleanly showcases its namesake flavors. Among the sweet, fruity cocktails the Asian pear mojito is a highlight. With consistently good service, this is a group-friendly place.

European

Cafe Miro

3446 Wai’alae Ave. (734-2737). Tue.-Sun. 5:30-9pm. Chef’s tasting menus: $32, $43. AmEx, Disc, MC, V.

Serving classic French food while still keeping things on the traditional side. The menu reintroduces the classics like a bright, delicious vegetable terrine. And the crme brulee is quite possibly the best on the island.

Chef’s Table

Hawai’i Kai Towne Center, 366 Keahole St. (394-2433). Tue.-Sun. 11:30am-2pm, 5:30-9pm. Appetizers: $6-$9. Entrees: $16.50-$22. MC,V.

Mitteleuropaosche flavors are to be had in the form of the obligatory spatzle, red cabbage, wiener schnitzel and paprika-red goulash, along with a Swiss cheese fondu. The delicate superflaky apple strudel will knock your lederhosen off.

Downtown @ the HiSaM

250 Hotel St. (536-5900). Mon.-Fri. 7-11am; Mon.-Sat. 11am-2pm. Food: $4-$16. AmEx, Disc, MC, V.

Chef Ed Kenney does it again with this Mediterranean-style lunch spot. The lamb lasagna and Wingnut’s Super-Sized Salad make breaking for lunch the smartest thing you’ve done all the day.

Italian

Baci Bistro

30 Aulike St., Kailua (262-7555). Mon.-Fri. 11:30am-2pm, 5:30-10pm; Sat. & Sun. 5:30-10pm. Appetizers: $3.95-$9.50. Entrees: $10.95-$23. AmEx, MC, V.

Kailua residents keep this neighborhood restaurant bustling. Rustic, home-style food such as pungent puttanesca are on the all-over-Italy menu.

Cafe Sistina

1314 S. King St. between Pi’ikoi and Ke’eaumoku Sts (596-0061). Mon.-Fri. 11:30am-2pm, 5:30-9:30pm; Sat. & Sun. 5:30-9:30pm. Appetizers: $6-$12. Entrees: $9.25-$17.75. AmEx, MC, V.

This cornerstone of Honolulu Italian dining is the perfect place for a contemplative dinner for one. Order some hearty fresh-made pappardelle topped with venison-and-merlot ragu.

Pasta & Basta by Donato’s

Restaurant Row (523-9999). Mon.-Thu. 11am-10pm, Fri. 11am-12am, Sat. 5pm-12am. MC, V.

Donato Loperfido brings quality Italian ingredients–including house-made pastas, sausage and mozzarella–to this counter-service casual eatery. Twenty-three pastas (gnocchi gorgonzola, tagliatelle Bolognese) and an appealing array of salads, pizzas and paninis make deciding what to have a very difficult task.

Middle Eastern

Da Spot

1908 Pumehana St. between Waiola and Algaroba Sts. (941-1313). Mon.-Sat. 10am-9:30pm. Plate lunch: $6.50. Smoothies: $2.75-$3.75. Cash only.

Ahmed Ramadan and Ako Kifuji serve a lot of love along with their cheap, good food–the best of it Middle Eastern dishes based on recipes from Ramadan’s Egyptian family. Sauteed lamb with vegetables is a rich, red stew heady with cardomom and cinnamon.

Dat One Persian Restaurant

801 Alakea St. (791-1616). Mon.-Fri.. 10am-2pm. Plate lunch: $6.50, $7.50

A point-and-pick eatery that serves up traditional Persian fare rich with cinnamon, lime parsley, turmeric and dill.

Good & Healthy Cafe

212 Merchant St. (566-6365). Mon.-Fri. 10:30am-5pm, Sat. 10:30am-2pm, Sandwiches and salads $5.75-$6.50, plates $6.75-7.95. MC, V.

Don’t expect belly dancers or elaborate oriental rugs at this cafe; the simple, fresh fare be the centerpiece. The refreshing nature of Lebanese cuisine–heavy on the cool crisp salads, bite-sized hors d’oeuvres and kebabs–makes it suited for Hawai’i’s sunny climate. The hummus is smooth, pungent and satisfying.