Josselin's Tapas Bar & Grill Restaurant Review
Kukuiula Village
2829 Ala Kalanikaumaka St. (Koloa Rd.) 
Send to Phone
Koloa, Kauai HI 96756
808-742-7117
Tweet
Josselin's Tapas Bar & Grill Restaurant is one of our 2012
Hot 10 Hawaii Restaurants|
Cuisine
Open
Dinner nightlyFeatures
- Kid-friendly
- Full bar
- Parking available
- Casual
* Click here for rating key
 Chef Jean-Marie Josselin, who brought Pacific Rim cuisine to Kauai with the now-defunct A Pacific Café, has ventured into a new geographic region and gustatory realm with this tapas restaurant. The sangría, ladled tableside, is delightfully refreshing, and comes in distinctive island flavors like lilikoi and lychee, in season. Local fish and produce, raw ingredients and the restaurant's kiawe-wood burning oven are showcased on the lengthy menu. Signature pork bellies are slow roasted until they become melt-in-your-mouth tender, and are topped with a spicy apple kimchi. Another hit from the oven is the roasted island moi, served with soba noodles and a toasted nori vinaigrette. Plump shu mai are well-filled with Kauai shrimp and pork and paired with a zippy eggplant vinaigrette. Other winners are the roasted artichoke accompanied by flaky profiteroles stuffed with tangy local goat cheese and the tempura ahi roll, which is taken to new heights with the addition of a wasabi ginger beurre blanc. Some dishes, like the Korean-style seared short ribs, are just average, while the local tomato salad with its cucumber sorbet and lemon jelly could best be described as odd. Still, the excitement created by the open kitchen and gregarious diners is sufficiently cheerful that you won't mind a few misses.
|
RESTAURANT AWARDS
We just published the 2012 edition of our annual restaurant issue, featuring the Top 40 Restaurants in the U.S. and much more. Check it out!
