Posted on: Friday, May 18, 2007
THE NIGHT STUFF
After the sun goes down, Panya Bistro heats up
By Derek Paiva
Advertiser Entertainment Writer
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Panya Bistro's pan-seared gyoza.
Photos by JOAQUIN SIOPACK | The Honolulu Advertiser
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Crispy Thai spring rolls.
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I'd never met an apple martini I liked until discovering Panya Bistro's signature concoction of fresh green apple juice and premium vodka on a Night Stuff fresh-cocktail tour of Honolulu last summer.
Panya's evening happy hour is an ideal place to try one.
PANYA BISTRO LATE NIGHT HAPPY HOUR
Where: Ala Moana Center, second floor, mauka side.
When: 9 p.m.-closing, nightly.
Phone/Web site: 946-6388, www.panyabakery.com
Got parking? Yes. Free.
The appeal: Panya Bistro's signature fresh-juice martinis and cocktails and a selection of discounted pupu at a — despite the name — not-so-late-night pre-clubbing happy hour.
Aren't there two happy hours at Panya? Yes. Panya also hosts a 4 to 6 p.m. happy hour nightly with the same offerings. The Night Stuff, however, prefers the 9 p.m. happy hour for its slightly clubbier post-sunset vibe and less familial crowd.
Go for fresh juice cocktails: Made with fresh apple, lychee and other fruit juices pressed in-house all day, they're Panya's specialty. Our favorite? Panya's green apple martini ($6), combining the natural flavor of fresh-squeezed Granny Smith juice, smooth premium Finlandia vodka and nothing else. It's shaken over ice, strained and served light-green opaque and frothy.
More Night Stuff-endorsed fresh cocktails: A lychee martini matching the sweet flavor of fresh lychee juice with Finlandia ($6); and the purple passion martini ($7) — Finlandia cranberry vodka, Chambord and fresh green apple juice.
Seasonal cocktails: Check in regularly. Managing director and juice lover Alice Yeung constantly experiments with seasonal fruit as they become available.
No juice, but the coffee's fresh: Panya's espresso martini ($7) blends the bitter deep roast flavor of a shot of espresso with smooth Stoli vanilla vodka and creme de cacao for a truly great spiked iced coffee. A float of a half-dozen whole coffee beans over its frothy goodness guarantees you'll be wide-eyed for clubbing.
Special-priced happy hour eats and cocktails: Features a selection of fresh juice cocktail favorites for a buck or so less. More discounted: a collection of Panya pupu including a couple of my favorites — generously topped smoked salmon crostini and plump, savory shrimp- and minced pork-stuffed gyoza — for $5 an order.
Other favorite eats: A saltysavory dressing of lime juice and fish sauce played fabulously with fresh mint, Chinese parsley, red onion, cherry tomatoes and crunchy microgreens on Panya's crazy tasty Thai-style rib-eye steak salad ($15.95). Topped by slices of tender marbled grilled rib-eye, it's both fresh tasting and carnivore-pleasing at the same time.
The crowd: On the Thursday evening we stopped by, a near-full-house of mostly twenty-something pau- hana/pau- mall hours dressy folk. Friday nights are busiest, with more club kids passing time with cocktails and eats before heading off into the night.
Interiors: Dim the clusters of elegantly descending mod-funky light fixtures just so and Panya — with its mirrored walls, backlit bar of blue martini glasses and bottles, wall curtain of metallic silver discs and eclectic clubby soundtrack — almost resembles a cool lounge in a metro-boutique hotel.
Don't drink? Order a glass of Granny Smith (or any other fresh-squeezed) juice served over ice. Just as refreshing, but healthier.
Reach Derek Paiva at dpaiva@honoluluadvertiser.com.
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