The Honolulu Festival Friendship Gala

Fun time at the 24th Annual Honolulu Festival Gala. Food tasting was great with dishes from a variety of restaurants including EAT, Chai's, Halekulani, Eating House, and Strip Steak. Tickets also include one beverage of choice. Visitors and entertainers from Japan were sharing the stage with Hawaiian entertainers, and all were really having a great time. I really enjoyed both the traditional and soothing Japanese music and the contemporary high energy dance groups.

Where else can you find Japanese cheerleaders, the mayor of Nagaoka, the UH marching band and Guy Hagi?Only in the Hawaii Convention Center during the Honolulu Friendship Festival! This was a great night full of fun and delicious food.... With the ticket, we got our drink and food coupons. My favorites by far were the sushi, from Yatai Sushi, and the chocolate dessert from MW. Other restaurants included Morimotos, Ruth's Chris and Roy's. You also got one complimentary drink ticket!The stage was busy all night. My favorite performances were the ukulele super kids and Raiatea. There were lots of visitors from Japan; performing and speaking!It's great to have an event like the Honolulu festival to promote friendship between countries in the pacific.

Great cultural festival in the beautiful convention center! A friend's friend had a booth in here so we decided to check it out. There were performances of dance and music going on the entire time we were there on various stages in and out of the main hall. I loved the display of arts and crafts from quilts to jewelry, to clothing, and beyond. So many talented artists under one roof! This is surely an annual event that should not be missed!

Yelp 365 Challenge 2015 #61/365This my first time attending the Friendship Gala, and it was a pretty fun. The tickets were $90 and they came with six tickets: four for food, one for dessert and one for a beverage. This event also offered live entertainment from Japan and from here in Hawaii as well. The first ticket we used was the Ruth's Chris ticket, offering a seared tenderloin steak with mashed potatoes and a salad. (The plates at all the stations were all mass-made so it wasn't the greatest thing ever, but I didn't expect it when I saw that... the food was still good though!) I then stopped by the Morimoto tent to try their Fish Pizza, which was a couple slivers of raw fish (I think Ahi) on a chip, with some garnishes on top. It was pretty good, and since Rachel doesn't eat fish, we went back later towards the end to use her ticket and they gave us three of them! Score!After that, we went to grab our drinks, and the bartender guessed that I was 29... I'm only 24... -__- I don't know what kind of beer they had but that's what I got. They also offered red or white whine, and a bunch of other non-alcoholic drinks like sodas, juices, and water. I was looking forward to the Roy's tent, because they were serving duck. I haven't had duck in a while, but it was really good. They had a piece of duck with duck confit as well. We found another ticket for Roy's on one of the tables so I got another plate of the duck hahaha. The Yatai Sushi booth had a long line, because they were the only ones who were actually preparing the sushi as the customer got to the front of the line. They had three separate booths with sushi-makers going at it. I also feel like Yatai Sushi gave you the most bang for your buck, because you would get three pieces of nigiri sushi, and a hand roll. AND because Rachel doesn't eat sushi either, I got 2x the amount!! :P This station was probably my favorite, even though we had to wait the longest. MW Restaurant was in charge of the dessert, and it was, dare I say, divine. In a short phrase this was: A chocolate explosion. The Friendship Gala has it listed as a "Fudgesicle, dehydrated chocolate, molten truffle, chocolate mousse, crispy chocolate" and the molten truffle was really the best part about this dessert. It was amazing. All in all, although we got there a little late, we were still able to enjoy all of the festivities and eat all of the food that they offered, and it was a great time. Hopefully we get the chance to go again next year!

What an interesting fun night at the convention center. Probably great fun with a large group. Lots of culture, great music, good entertainment, easy parking...and great food. Cant go wrong tasting samples from the top chefs from Oahu. Can not beat Chais food no matter what the event. Entertainment from traditional japanese to j-pop mixed with local flair including tahitian dancers. The event was well organized and had lots of volunteers. Would definately attend again.