Although I have been keeping up with my reviews over at Yelp, I realize I haven’t done a food post here in a while. Sorry about that.

Greek isn’t the type of cuisine one usually grows up with in a Japanese household, so I was kind of sheltered from it until college, when my co-workers dragged me to Olive Tree Cafe, near Kahala Mall. Since then, I have been hooked on the stuff.

Babaghanoush, Olive Tree Cafe.

The babaghanoush (a traditional eggplant appetizer served with pita bread) at Olive Tree is the best you can get in Hawai‘i, if not the best you can get anywhere. I’m not kidding. Of course, “best” is subjective when it comes to babaghanoush because everyone’s preference is different with regard to what goes in it, let alone texture and oil content, but Olive Tree’s recipe is fabulous. You definitely get the garlic – but without getting “the garlic,” if you know what I mean. Get at least two orders if you’re going to be sharing with anyone!

The entrees here are fabulous, too, from salads to souvlakis, so it’s hard to decide what to order. I’ve tried all three souvlakis – chicken, fish and lamb – and I can’t say a single bad thing about any of them, but the chicken is particularly yummy because of the tzatziki sauce they drizzle onto the meat. The lamb is good if you’re in the mood for something slightly (but not excessively) more gamey.

Lamb souvlaki, Olive Tree Cafe.

I don’t have any photos of any of them right now, but I cannot say enough about how good the salads are. Even though they’re not as photogenic as the other foods, the salads at Olive Tree will knock your socks off with their complexity of flavors and textures. So delicious and, of course, guilt free. (Heheheh . . . )

Unfortunately, the awesomeness of Olive Tree is the island’s worst kept secret, so the small parking lot and seat-yourself dining area fill up pretty fast on a nightly basis. All I can say is, thank God for takeout – and for the fact that, somehow, the food here is so good, nothing gets lost in translation between their place and yours. (You know what I mean.)

Can’t wait ’til my next excuse to go back!