Zip Pac AWA R D - W I N N I N G B E N T O Years on Menu
45
Year debuted on menu
1971
Weight in Pounds
1.5
The most popular plate item on the restaurant’s menu is the Zip Pac. The award-winning bento favorite was introduced to the public in 1971. Fourteen years later, Zippy’s began offering the Surf Pac, which is similar to the Zip Pac but without fish. “The only thing that’s changed about our Zip Pac is the fish,” explains Kim. “We used to have mahi, but we changed it to the hoki. Also, when the Zip Pac first came out we did not allow any substitutions. Now we do.” The Zip Pac includes teri beef, Spam, fish and a piece of their famous fried chicken on a bed of white or brown rice sprinkled with furikake.
The Zip Pac has won the Honolulu Star-Advertiser’s “Best Bento Award” for six straight years.
M O R E M E N U FAV O R I T ES Another popular dish that was first offered at the Saimin Lānai is the oxtail soup. At one point, Zippy’s management considered taking the item off the menu because of the rising cost of oxtails. The customers, however, ultimately had the final say. “We would ask, ‘You would pay $15 for this?’ and their response was, ‘Oh, yeah!’” recalls Kim. “We were surprised. Even as the prices went up, our customers continued to order it. So, we kept it on our menu.”
Zippy’s famous fried chicken wasn’t originally even fried. “When I worked at the Kaimuki store in the 1970s, the chicken was broasted,” says Kim. “But as we grew and opened more locations, we started looking for a method that was safer for our employees. To alleviate potential accidents, we changed it to fried chicken. “We always like to say that the secret to our recipe is that we make sure the breading is set into the chicken before we cook it.”
MYLES MURAKAMI
M A R C U S M A R I O TA
President of Atlas Construction
Football Player
“I use Zippy’s for my breakfast meetings and pick up dinner on my way home—of course, including a pastry for my wife!”
“My favorite is the Portuguese sausage, fried rice, eggs over easy and strawberry shake.”
Locals across the state will tell you: Zippy’s has Hawai‘i’s best tasting macaroni salad. The “secret” is our special macaroni salad mix, which is produced at our central kitchen.”
PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA
DUANE KURISU
R O Y YA M A G U C H I
Entrepreneur
Chef and Restaurateur
President of the U.S.A.
“My favorites are the Hawaiian stew and Zip Pac! When I was young, it was almost always ‘Meet me at Zippy’s!’”
Zippy’s Pick: Fried Chicken
Zippy’s Pick: Zip Min
ZIPPY’S 50TH ANNIVERSARY
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