On The Menu: Big Island Eats and Shave Ice offers SoCal big taste of Hawaiian-style comfort food

ROLLING HILLS ESTATES, Calif. (KABC) — Aloha! Looking for a foodie’s paradise? Head over to Big Island Eats and Shave Ice in Rolling Hills Estates.

The restaurant has been serving up Hawaiian comfort food since the summer of 2020.

“My mom is from the Big Island and my dad is from Maui, and three generations from Hawaii,” said Owner Nani Sumi, who is paying homage to her Hawaiian-style upbringing with some classic menu items.

Recipes all come from her Ohana, a Hawaiian term meaning “family.”

Big Island Eats and Shave Ice is known for its big combination plates, such as rice, noodles, a macaroni and cabbage salad and your choice of protein to complete the meal.

The most popular combination is the guava chicken, marinated with a sweet and savory sauce, and the Kalua pork, which is lean but not lacking flavor.

The Spicy Lipslidah is a monster of a chicken sandwich that makes for a big, messy bite. Since Hawaiians are the biggest consumers of Spam, the menu wouldn’t be complete without the Hawaiian favorite, Spam Musubi.

It is a layer of rice and spam, wrapped in seaweed. A wealth of house made sauces can accompany the dish for dipping.

For dessert, check out the signature chocolate banana bread. The baked butter mochi and the brown butter chocolate chunk cookies are also hot items.

Then to cool down, dig into the classic shave ice or sip on the shave shake, topped with a scoop of ice cream.

Sumi said above all, she is so appreciative to her staff and customers.

“That’s kind of the most gratifying thing, when you have a customer just having eaten here and duck their head back and say, ‘Hey, you guys are doing such a great job, it was delicious.’ That’s so gratifying to know your family recipes, the hard work that you’re putting in, day in and day out, is being appreciated.”

Big Island Eats and Shave Ice is located at 550 Deep Valley Dr #147, Rolling Hills Estates, CA 90274 and is open for lunch and dinner, but is closed on Tuesdays. Click here for more information.

Thank you Tammy for the submission!