Best Places To Eat Poke In Hawaii

It’s not unreasonable to describe the current state of poke in the US as a “craze.” Poke places are popping up every day all across the country. The dish's popularity speaks for itself, but what isn’t spoken about enough is where it all started from.

Hawaii is the birthplace of poke. Rachel Laudan, a food historian and the author of The Food of Paradise, states modern poke was initially born in Hawaii in the 1970s. Its connection to the islands’ rich Japanese cultural heritage is clear enough; it is essentially sashimi, presented differently.

For those unfamiliar, the crudest description of this dish would be a “sashimi salad,” but it could also be a “sashimi rice bowl.” Many colors and flavors can get creatively mixed in to excite your palate and often be remarkably nutritious for something so delicious. Pineapple or mango, fresh ahi, and savory sauce all in the same bite? You won’t believe how fantastic it is; seriously. There’s a reason this stuff is so explosively popular. Hawaii is the homeland of poke and the best place on Earth to get it.