Boots and Kimo's

For someone who lives in Honolulu like me, taking a trip all the way out to Kailua is a rare occasion. However, every single time I do, I have to make a stop at Boots and Kimo's, home of the famous macadamia nut sauce pancakes. Every time I’ve gone I end up waiting for about 15 minutes for a table, because there was always a line outside. However, Boots and Kimo’s recently moved right down the street from their old location to a larger restaurant. So those pesky lines- a thing of the past.

Boots and Kimo’s has a large menu of mostly breakfast foods, which are all very tasty. But if you’re going to make a trip all the way out to Kailua, you are insane if you don’t get the pancakes. The first time you take a bite out of a Boots and Kimo’s pancake, you can’t help but close your eyes and smile. The pancakes are deliciously light and fluffy, but the sauce- oh the sauce! When they serve it to you, the macadamia nut sauce is piled in a large dollop in the center and, ever so slowly, the thick yet fluffy sauce inches to the edges of the pancake and sometimes even off the plate. The best I can describe it is having the consistency of silky molasses whipped with air till it’s a rich and dense fluff. Mmmmm. I always get the tall stack of banana pancakes smothered in sauce (3 pieces for $7.99).

I’ve tried to reproduce the sauce at home, and it has actually come pretty close. So if you can’t make it to Kailua, give the recipe a try for yourself. . .but nothing compares to the real thing! Oh, and by the way, I wouldn’t recommend serving this every day, for it is definitely the path to obesity and diabetes. But once a month makes a wonderful treat!

Macadamia Nut Sauce
1 c. whole milk
2 T butter
1/3 c sugar or 3 T. honey
1 t. vanilla
2 T. flour
pinch salt

Mix and boil for 3 min, stirring continually. Let cool for 5 min. Pour over a stack of pancakes, top with chopped macadamia nuts, and serve.

Boots and Kimo’s

151 Hekili street suite 150
Kailua, HI 96734

(808) 263-7929