Dining Hawaiian Style
172 TAMPA BAY MAGAZINE
CUAISRITNE
The Honu
By Margaret Word Burnside and Aaron R. Fodiman
Photography by Noraa
The Kilauea at The Honu is made of spinach, black rice, char siu pork,
red pepper, black sesame seeds and a carrot lava flow.
You can order spicy if you like.
| JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2017
T his is a lei’d back café
(a little Hawaiian
humor) located in
a vintage house
behind Dunedin City Hall. This charming
and colorful spot has dining areas both
inside and out and features the unique
flavors and tastes of our 50th state. Honu is
Hawaiian for “turtle,” if you didn’t know.
It was the first thing we asked.
To begin, they offer pupus appetizers
including a poke of ahi tuna, edamame
with chili oil and kosher sea salt, sautéed
Spam (called Musubi), veggie nachos
and chips with guacamole or salsa, and
a salsa trio.
In addition to the soup of the day, the
Coconut Lime Soup with lemongrass is a
must have. There are five salads on beds
of greens: one with bacon, chicken and
pineapple, another with goat cheese and
beet, a Caprese Plate with mozzarella
and tomato, the Charlie Salad with feta,
salsa and spicy pepper, and The Lei’d
Back with cucumber, seasonal fruit,
shrimp and goat cheese. Their dressings
are homemade, unique and tasty. These
include ginger, pineapple, cilantro lime,
The Kilauea has spinach,
black rice, char siu pork,
red pepper and carrot
lava flow, while the Fire
Dancing Sticks are skewers of chicken
and shrimp with pineapple and a bed
of quinoa. Make sure to try The Stack of
slow-cooked pork and the chef’s daily
special.
Most of the dishes here can be made
as vegetarian or vegan. Just let them
know, as everything is made to order
and they aim to please. Special requests
are their specialty. Also, don’t miss their
homemade ice cream.
The Honu is closed on Mondays and is
open from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Tuesday,
Wednesday and Sunday and from 11
a.m. to 9 p.m. on Thursday, Friday and
Saturday. They cater, have a food truck
and offer home delivery via a golf cart. 9
EDITOR’S NOTE: The Honu is in Dunedin
at 516 Grant Street, behind City Hall,
(727) 333-7777.
a fruit balsamic and honey orange
vinaigrette.
Next are breakfast tacos, a quinoa bowl
to which you can add shrimp or mahi
mahi, and two tacos that you can have
however you like them. For sandwiches,
they offer an egg on an English muffin
with bacon and your choice of cheese,
a Paniolo Cowboy Steak Burger on a
brioche bun, a “NeNe” turkey burger and
a White Bean, Sage and Kalamata Olive
Burger. There is also chicken breast on a
Hawaiian roll and a quesadilla of your
choice. The sandwiches come with your
choice of the slaw of the day, potato
mac salad, steak fries, sweet potato fries,
veggie of the day, or a side salad.
The Island Favorites’ section begins
with a marinated steak. In addition, there
is a 6-ounce Fish Plate of mahi mahi and
a Loco Moco, which combines spinach,
tomato, rice, a turkey burger and a
poached egg with a garlic cream sauce.