Walk up to the Every Day Kine Grindz from Hawaii food cart on 760 Chambers St. and you are greeted by a warm welcoming of “hellos” from the owners as their chubby cheeked baby waddles in his walker around tables. You hear the sound of reggae beats flowing out from iHome speakers. Your stomach growls at the sight of Loco Moco, a dish that consists of beef patties topped with eggs drenched in thick, brown gravy. While waiting for your food, “uncle” and “aunty” come outside to seat you at your table. They then “talk story” (chat), while inviting you to be a part of their family.
All throughout college, the cart’s owner Kawika Asam struggled being away from Hawaii, the place he calls home. As a freshman at the University of Oregon, he had tried to cure his homesickness through satisfying his stomach with Eugene’s version of Hawaiian food but later discovered that it “never came close to the original.”
After graduating with a degree in Sociology and Business, Asam decided to bring island cooking to the Emerald City. Asam believes that other Hawaiian food venues in Eugene “Americanize” its menu.
“They try to replicate Hawaiian food by pouring teriyaki sauce on their dishes,” said Asam with a laugh. “That’s not what we do at home.”
Asam pays tribute to his parents for teaching him how to cook Hawaiian grindz (food) while growing up in the islands.
“Moving to Eugene was a tough decision,” said Esther while sitting Kawika’s nine-month-old son on her hip. “But family overrides everything. We left home to help our son and be closer to our grandson.”Esther, his mother, had been working in the Hawaiian Airlines industry for over 20 years while doing food catering on the side. She left her job at Aloha Air Cargo after Asam asked his parents to come to Eugene to support his food cart business.
Since the cart’s opening, the family business has had a variety of customers.
Asam’s girlfriend, Hazel Balilea, said they’re in the process of networking more within the campus community as well as the greater Eugene community to increase their customer base.
“Since we’re far away from campus, we do our best to build relationships,” Balilea said. “We’ve been interacting with community members in-person and on social media to keep them interested.”
In the future, Asam would like to own a mobile food truck so he could cater more to the university community.
“A lot of students tell us ‘we wish you were on campus so we can eat your food throughout the week,” he said.
Every Day Kine Grindz from Hawaii is open from Tuesday to Saturday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. and on Sunday from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. All plates are served island-style with two scoops of rice, a scoop of potato mac salad and a piece of chocolate mochi (Rice cake) for dessert. Each plate costs about $6-$10.
Asam no longer feels as homesick now that he has opened the cart.
“The cart provides a feeling of home, not only for me, but for my customers that have a connection to Hawaii,” Asam said. “I feel like we help customers with homesickness.”