It’s no coincidence or accident that Zippy’s, the beloved 57-year-old restaurant chain with 22 locations on Oahu, Maui, and the Big Island, opened its first restaurant outside of Hawaii in Las Vegas, which is often called the “ninth island” for its popularity with island visitors and transplants. When it opened on October 10 at 10:10 a.m. (a long five years after the initial announcement) on Rainbow Blvd. just south of the Beltway, the pent-upness was so strong that management had to issue a set of rules for impatient patrons. We waited a month for the hoopla to die down to see what all the excitement is about; a few parking spaces were available in the main lot, indicating that things have quieted down since opening.
We can certainly see why islander tourists and transplants flock to Zippy’s — the aloha vibe, Hawaiian comfort food, and familiarity with the brand, named after the zip code, which had been recently introduced when the chain was launched in 1966. The 24/7 restaurant is known for its Hawaiian chili (the signature dish), fried chicken, oxtail soup, saimin, loco moco (white rice topped with hamburger, fried egg, and brown gravy), mahi sandwiches, and Zip Pac bentos (boxed lunch).
Frankly, we weren’t expecting much. We like the food in Hawaii, for its melting pot of Polynesian, Asian, and European origins and its focus on fresh local ingredients such as coconut, pineapple, seafood, and slow-cooked whole pig (kalua). But it doesn’t seem to transfer beyond the islands. And it didn’t at Zippy’s, at least for us.
We were disappointed to start by the unavailability of the loco moco and mahi sandwiches. We tried the signature chili, basically chili without any signature that we could find and the large bowl ($9) was more white rice than spicy beans. The $14.75 bento was, again, a lot of rice; the fried chicken was crispy and moist and the teriyaki beef was decent, but we’re not big fans of Spam and the hoki (breaded fish) was tasteless.
Zippy’s is also known for its “napples,” apple turnovers (the “n” is for the Zippy-brand Napoleon bakery, $3.99), and malasadas, plain round donuts rolled in sugar ($1.40). They were the perfect bland desserts for the nothing-special lunches.
Granted, Zippy’s says the menu has been purposely limited in order to iron out the kinks of the first location on the mainland, so we’ll watch to see if and when it changes for the better. Also, we can’t argue with the food-delivery system. A greeter outside the front door directs you to the correct line (right to eat in, left to take out; there’s also an eight-seat counter for quick dine-in). Both options are very fast and efficient.
For take-out, you order and pay at the cashier, then repair to the waiting area where a readerboard tracks the progress of your order. When it’s ready, the server checks your ID (good idea) and hands you your bag o’ food.
Our bill for the bento, chili, and baked goods came to $30.23, including tax. Definitely reasonable for the amount of food and another explanation why Zippy’s is so popular.
Expensive disappointing food. Spent more time waiting to order and get food than it took to eat it. Agree that many dishes are tasteless. For the $$$ paid, we got a very expensive disappointment. Seems when Hawaii is involved, the dollar signs add up and the result is “never again.” Agree that paying $15 for 2 slices of Spam is insanity.