I was recently invited to check out some new menu items at Islands. After seeing some of the options including poke and miso glazed salmon bowl, I went to go check it out.
Poke
This diced raw tuna appetizer is something I constantly see as a passed hors d’oeuvre at parties and weddings but not something on a restaurant menu, which is a shame because Mr. K and I both love it. So I was really excited to see it on the menu at Islands and thought it was a pretty good rendition. The tuna is marinated in soy sauce and sesame oil. It’s served with freshly made wonton skin-like chips as opposed to the regular Islands chips. It’s a new dish on their appetizer menu and something we’d get again.
Hawaiian Sliders
I hadn’t been too impressed with the beachside sliders that they introduced previously. I opted for turkey instead of beef and that made a huge difference. The turkey patty was moist, with ground turkey loosely packed and a little bit of a spicy kick. The buns were warm and toasted and I loved the addition of the grilled pineapples. This is one of the appetizers currently only offered during their Beach Break Tuesdays, which is from 4pm until closing at the bar on Tuesdays ($5.95).
Miso Glazed Salmon
This is one of their new healthier entrees. I love how pretty the glazed salmon looks. The bowl also contains brown rice and stir fried vegetables. I really enjoy brown rice and the salmon was flaky and moist. The glaze was more sweet than miso but I still liked it overall.
Ginger Shandy
We also tried one of their shandy drinks also being offered during Beach Break Tuesdays (4pm to close at the bar). Only $2.50! It’s made of Ginger beer, Islands Golden Ale, lemonade & wildberry. I love the color and it was a nice sweet drink.
Kona Pie
We ended the night with the kona pie which is my favorite of the desserts here. Mocha ice cream, cookie crust, fudge syrup, what’s not to love?
We had a good time here and enjoyed the new menu items. On some of our past visits for new menu items we’ve liked some and not others, but this time we enjoyed all the new items and will be visiting again to order them again.
Please note, as indicated above, we were invited to try out the new menu items so our meal was complimentary. I was not paid for writing the review and my opinions are my own.
Islands Restaurant
3351 Nobel Drive
La Jolla, CA 92037
Multiple locations
https://www.islandsrestaurants.com/
Ahi tuna now at Islands?! I wish that was on their HH menu. They changed their HH awhile back and I haven’t really been back since (no more free chips/salsa and less items offered). I think their Kona Pie is one of the best around.
I know, I was surprised they offer the poke and I really liked it. Yeah it is too bad it’s not on the HH menu. It looks like there are more options on the tuesday HH menu that aren’t on the other days.