While poke shops have popped up all around the DC area in recent years, Hawaiian comfort food isn’t as well represented. Now, the team behind TaKorean has launched Kau Kau, a takeout-only plate lunch (and dinner) ghost kitchen cooking up kalua pork, loco moco, and other homey classics.
TaKorean founder Mike Lenard actually moved to Hawaii a few years ago. His wife, who was born and raised in Hawaii, was helping take over her family’s helicopter business in Maui as her father retired. And so Lenard started running his Korean-inspired taco grill mostly from afar, though he still comes back to the DC area about eight times a year. The move also inspired him to bring a taste of his new home back to his old one.
Kau Kau—the Hawaiian Pidgin word meaning food, meal, or to eat—serves plates with bulgogi, kalua pork, chicken teriyaki, grilled mahi mahi, hoisin-caramelized tofu, and more. Another classic: loco moco, a hamburger steak with brown gravy and fried egg. All plates come with creamy mac salad, two scoops of white rice, and iceberg lettuce salad. Extra sides include Spam musubi, Korean-style cucumber salad, or a lomi tomato salad made with diced tomatoes, ginger, and scallion.
Kau Kau offers delivery on DoorDash, Uber Eats, and Grubhub—or pickup from TaKorean in Navy Yard (1212 Fourth St., SE), where the food is prepared. Meals range from $16.50 to $18.50, with catering options coming soon. A portion of the sales will go to Lahaina Strong, helping the Maui community rebuild after devastating fires last year.
TaKorean launched in 2010 as a food truck and had five locations at its peak. Today, it operates the storefront in Navy Yard as well as a kiosk inside Union Market. “Everyone knows restaurant margins are thinner and thinner,” Lenard says. “So being able to add something extra potentially allows us to have a better shot of continuing.”
Jessica Sidman covers the people and trends behind D.C.’s food and drink scene. Before joining Washingtonian in July 2016, she was Food Editor and Young & Hungry columnist at Washington City Paper. She is a Colorado native and University of Pennsylvania grad.
