On Wednesday, March 21, 2018 at 10:33:50 AM UTC-10, Steve 'Weenie Wonder' Wertz wrote:
> https://www.washingtonpost.com/going...=.6dc10f10428f
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> Hawaiian poke has never been trendier. But the mainland is ruining it.
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> The Washington Post
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> By Maura Judkis / July 27, 2017
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> "It has never been easier to get poke, the marinated raw ahi tuna that is the unofficial food of Hawaii, on the mainland. Youll find the dish€” pronounced po-kay €” in Minnesota, Indiana and landlocked Colorado. Theres poke from Pittsburgh to Peoria, Ariz. You can buy poke kits in grocery stores, and you dont even have to leave your house for it in Chicago; ASAP Poke, a delivery-only restaurant, will bring it to you. New York has a slew of fast-casual fish places. And in the Washington area, theres Poké Papa, Poki District, Abunai and Honeyfish, all of which have opened in the past four months, joining Hula Girl Bar and Grill, Pokéworks and District Fishwife, which already served the dish.
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> Homesick Hawaiians must be thrilled, right?
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> €œI tried one, and I swore never to go again,€� said Sonny Acosta, 30, who moved to New York from HonoÂ*lulu two years ago. €œIts not really poke.€�
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> Its not just that poke tastes better when youre in Hawaii. Its that mainland restaurateurs, bandwagoning on what they see as the biggest trend of the year, have changed it into something altogether different €” something that people from Hawaii say doesnt respect their cultural heritage. It plays into an impassioned debate in the food world now about whether a dish prepared outside its original context is an homage or crosses the line into appropriation.
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> Shops in Washington are putting corn in it. Theyre topping it with kale €” kale! Theyre putting the fish on top of €œzoodles,€� or zucchini noodles, as customers order down a line, Chipotle-style. Theyre adding a sprinkle of cilantro, or even sweet strawberry sauce. And, adding insult to injury, some arent even spelling the word correctly.
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> The concept of poke, a word that means €œto slice€� in the Hawaiian language, has a long history, but the poke bowl, with rice and sauces, is a relatively modern invention.
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> €œThe term is Hawaiian, but the traditions behind it [have] far more of a Japanese influence,€� said Kealalokahi Losch, a professor of Hawaiian studies at Kapiolani Community College in HonoÂ*lulu.. €œIts part of the fabric of what we would refer to as local culture, which is a conglomeration of all the different cultures that are here.€�
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> Native Hawaiians would originally slice up smaller reef fish and serve them raw. But with the arrival of Japanese workers in the late 1800s, the predominant poke fish shifted to ahi tuna. Poke bowls with rice €” a cultural mash-up of Hawaiian flavors and Japanese donburi €” became popular in restaurants in Hawaii only in the past three decades, Losch said. Theyre often served with minimal toppings from a smaller range of flavors, to let the taste of the fish come through.
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> There are a few reasons poke has boomed on the mainland: Its raw and full of veggies, so its branded as healthful. And its relatively simple to open a shop.
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> €œFrom the business side, its so easy to make,€� said Martha Cheng, author of €œThe Poke Cookbook.€� €œYou dont need a full kitchen, you dont need an oven, you dont need a grease trap.€�
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> Its also colorful and inherently Instagrammable €” especially if you add lots of toppings, like the pink-and-green watermelon radish and neon orange masago, a type of fish egg, available at Poké Papa on H Street.
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> But its this €œmainland poke,€� as they call it in Hawaii, that looks different from what youd find in restaurants and grocery stores on the islands. In Washington, shops are offering more toppings than in a frozen yogurt bar, provoking those who serve a more traditional version of poke €” such as Abunai, whose owner, Akina Harada, has Native Hawaiian ancestors €” to call out the others: This spring, she posted a sign outside her downtown restaurant: €œFriends dont let friends eat FAKE poke.€�
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> €œIts becoming like Mister Yogato or Pinkberry. How many toppings can we smash into it?€� said Mikala Brennan, who grew up in Hawaii and opened Hula Girl Bar & Grill, which serves poke the way shes used to it back home €” simply with green onion, shoyu, sesame, ginger and chile pepper.
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> The option of pineapple might be the gravest offense to some locals in Hawaii. Its already a cultural irritation due to Hawaiian pizza €” invented in Canada.
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> €œIts absurd, because people feel like you can throw pineapple on anything and call it Hawaiian,€� said Blaine Saito, 35, who moved to the District from HonoÂ*lulu to work for the federal government.