Lea Salonga, who was Kim in "Miss Saigon" in London and on Broadway, enjoyed the Japanese-Latin fusion cuisine at Doraku Sushi a few nights back at the Royal Hawaiian Shopping Center.

Among those joining Salonga were Christine Yasunaga, an Iolani School teacher who was in the original Broadway ensemble of "The Lion King" and now produces the TV series "Groove Dance Hawai'i"; and Doraku Sushi owner Kevin Aoki, the son of Benihana founder Rocky Aoki. Yasunaga is the cousin of Salonga's husband, Robert Chien.

Salonga was chirping praises for the food — and will sing twice at the Blaisdell Concert Hall this weekend, at 8 p.m. Saturday and 2:30 p.m. Sunday.

— Wayne Harada, Advertiser entertainment writer

SWAYZE GETTING CANCER TREATMENT

LOS ANGELES — Patrick Swayze is being treated for pancreatic cancer but is continuing to work as usual, his representative said yesterday.

The "Dirty Dancing" actor has a limited level of the disease and appears to be responding well to treatment, according to a prognosis by his doctor that was included in the statement released yesterday. It also dismissed earlier reports that Swayze, 55, has a matter of weeks to live.

DOWNEY DOING SEND UP ON ACTING

LOS ANGELES — In "Tropic Thunder," one of three summer-release films featuring Robert Downey Jr., the actor appears as a black man.

Downey plays overly committed actor Kirk Lazarus, a white man cast as a black soldier, in a satire of professional acting. The movie, filmed on Kaua'i, also stars Jack Black and Ben Stiller, who co-wrote, directed and produced it.

"If it's done right, it could be the type of role you called Peter Sellers to do 35 years ago," Downey told Entertainment Weekly magazine. "If you don't do it right, we're going to hell."

'LOST' STAR RECALLS RACISM, ABUSE

Naveen Andrews, who plays one of the souls lost on an island on ABC's "Lost," tells TV Guide that for much of his life, he was himself a lost soul. Andrews, who's of Indian descent, faced racism as he grew up in Britain. "I preferred the racism from the working-class people — they let you know where it's at straightaway — rather than from the middle classes," he said.

His parents were academics, "but my dad had to get a job on the railway and my mum had to get a job in the post office." Andrews says his parents were violent and abusive.

The 39-year-old said he was inspired to quit drugs five years ago by Sex Pistols guitarist Steve Jones, a recovering addict. "I thought, 'He's sober. If he can do it, then maybe I have a chance.' "