There’s a Hawaiian burger specialty shop called “KUA’AINA” on the 2nd floor of LaLaport Koshien.
The shop originally started in Hawaii, and apparently now has as many as 30 locations in Japan.
In Hyogo Prefecture, the only one is at LaLaport Koshien in Nishinomiya.
By the way, “KUA’AINA” apparently means “country person.”
So what exactly is a Hawaiian burger like?
I went to find out.
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Exterior of “KUA’AINA”
This is LaLaport Koshien.
There are stairs outside too, so you can go directly up to the 2nd floor.
As you walk along the 2nd floor of LaLaport, you’ll see a hamburger sign.
Here’s what the shop looks like from the outside.
There’s a counter at the entrance, and the style is to place your order and pay first, then go inside and wait.
So, I headed to the counter.
Takeout is also available.
Thick-Cut Mozzarella Bacon Burger Set
Here’s the menu, and everything looks pretty filling.
When it comes to cheese on hamburgers, cheddar is usually the standard, but they had a rather unusual mozzarella cheese burger here.
Since I was there, I ordered the Thick-Cut Mozzarella Bacon Burger Set (1,383 yen).
Then they asked me, “Please choose your buns”…
It seems you can customize quite a few things besides the buns.
Maybe this is Hawaiian style.
The “Kaiser roll” has more of a crisp texture, while the “brioche” is apparently soft and fluffy.
This time, I chose the fluffy brioche to go with the mozzarella cheese.
The set comes with a hamburger, fries, and a drink, and the drink options are pretty extensive too.
I went with iced coffee this time.
It seems they cook after receiving the order, and I was given a number tag.
I took this to my seat.
Then I waited for the hamburger to be ready.
After waiting about 5 minutes, the hamburger was brought over.
This is another unusual style.
The hamburger comes separated into top and bottom halves.
You can see at a glance what’s inside: buns, patty, lettuce, tomato, onion, plus mozzarella cheese and bacon as toppings.
You put it together yourself.
Will I manage to do it well…?
Success!
Somehow, I managed to assemble it nicely.
I ate it wrapped in the burger paper.
The sauce flavor isn’t very strong.
It feels like the beef patty itself is well seasoned.
Also, unlike cheddar cheese, mozzarella doesn’t have a very strong flavor, but it’s quite rich and creamy.
It goes well with the saltiness of the bacon.
The onion, lettuce, and tomato did a great job complementing the strongly seasoned patty.
The buns were very fluffy. Now I want to try the crisp ones too.
At first I thought it might be too filling, but it was well balanced and easy to eat, so I ended up finishing it pretty quickly.
Inside “KUA’AINA”
The shop is spacious and has plenty of seating.
Hawaiian music was playing as the BGM the whole time.
There are also photos displayed, including one of the first shop in Hawaii.
The place has a nice, distinctive atmosphere, so it seems many customers use it as a café in the evening too.
“KUA’AINA” Store Information
★Hours 11:00～23:00(LO 22:15)
★Closed None (follows facility closure days)
★Smoking/Non-smoking Completely non-smoking
★Phone number 0798-61-5123
★Address 西宮市甲子園八番町1-100 2F 店舗番号02462
★Seats 88 seats
★Related link
Tabelog
(*Prices, menu items, business hours, etc. are from the time of coverage. Please contact the shop directly for the latest information.)
★Website
https://www.kua-aina.com/
