Senia is Hawai‘i’s most exhilarating new restaurant, setting a new standard in fine dining.

Nine-month-old Senia is possibly the most closely followed restaurant opening in Honolulu’s history. National media tracked its journey for over a year, with magazines sending editors to Hawai‘i just to experience the culinary creations of chefs Chris Kajioka and Anthony Rush. Their signature dish, an unexpected delight, isn’t a take on local staples like lomi salmon or loco moco, but the simple Caraflex cabbage, elevated to something extraordinary.

Kajioka and Rush first scorch the cabbage leaves to enhance their sweetness, then top them with dill, Parmesan, and a shio kombu dressing (a Japanese kelp preparation). A final dusting of moringa powder—a vibrant superfood—adds flair, with the dish resting beside Green Goddess dressing and buttermilk dots thickened with agar. The result is a masterful blend of tangy, herbal, creamy, and crunchy, with each bite offering a different experience.

The intricate preparation of this dish highlights the incredible skills of chefs Kajioka and Rush. Before opening Senia, both chefs spent their careers perfecting tasting menus filled with rare and luxurious ingredients, having met while working in the kitchens of Thomas Keller’s Per Se.

Currently, they are navigating a complex venture with Senia, which offers both a casual a la carte menu and a lavish tasting menu in the same space. The restaurant strives to cater to both tourists and locals, blending culinary techniques from the mainland and Europe while celebrating Hawai‘i’s diverse food traditions and the fine dining culture of Honolulu that has evolved since the 1990s. Balancing these ambitions in a 50-seat venue is quite a challenge.

Senia stands out as a landmark restaurant for its contemporary, trendsetting menu and the impressive backgrounds of its founders. Kajioka, a Honolulu native, graduated from the Culinary Institute of America and honed his skills at prestigious establishments such as Masa’s and Parallel 37 in San Francisco, and The Willows Inn in Washington. He met Rush, who was then a sous-chef at Per Se, while working there in 2007.

Prior to launching Senia, Kajioka was at the helm of an ambitious project in Honolulu called Vintage Cave. This 32-seat restaurant, developed by Japanese investor Takeshi Sekiguchi, was designed as a fine-dining paradise, costing $20 million to build with custom bricks, $500 ceramic plates, and a collection of Picassos. Kajioka served $295 tasting menus for a year before departing in 2014 to pursue new ventures.

Rush was also preparing to open his own restaurant around the same time Kajioka left Vintage Cave. After returning to England from Per Se, Rush worked at renowned British restaurants like Fera at Claridge’s and Heston Blumenthal’s The Fat Duck. Having previously visited Hawai‘i with his wife, Katherine Nomura, who also has a distinguished front-of-house background including Blue Hill at Stone Barns, the couple moved to Honolulu in 2015. They joined forces with Kajioka, setting up shop in a historic, 1,900-square-foot space in Chinatown dating back to the late 1800s.

For those passionate about food and eager to grasp the essence of Honolulu’s current dining scene, a reservation at Senia is essential. However, if you’re a visitor seeking an introduction to local Hawaiian cuisine, Senia might be a challenging first choice, akin to diving into Solange’s *A Seat at the Table* without first experiencing Marvin Gaye’s *What’s Going On*. It’s best to explore other local Mytouries to familiarize yourself with Hawaiian flavors before making your way to Senia.

Dive into authentic Hawaiian cuisine with dishes like kālua pig, poi, the rich squid lū‘au stew, and fried butterfish collar at beloved local spots like Helena’s Hawaiian Food. Visit Ahi Assassins or a similar market for incredibly fresh poke by the pound, or enjoy a classic plate lunch of gravy-soaked meats, rice, and macaroni salad at Rainbow Drive-In or Zippy’s. These local favorites paint a vivid picture of Honolulu’s culinary heritage, shaped by waves of immigrant influences over the 19th and 20th centuries. Once you’re familiar with the texture of steamed taro leaves and the earthy qualities of poi, you’ll be ready to appreciate Senia’s offerings.

Additionally, exploring the high-end “Pacific Rim” cuisine that came before Senia is worthwhile. Chefs like Roy Yamaguchi, Alan Wong, and George Mavrothalassitis were pioneers in blending East and West flavors, creating iconic dishes such as ahi tuna sculptures and wasabi mashed potatoes. Although this fusion trend became somewhat clichéd by the late 1990s, these chefs established crucial ties with Hawaiian farms, promoting the cultivation of specialty produce and sparking a renewed interest in ingredients like fresh hearts of palm and taro.

However, my recent visits to Honolulu’s Pacific Rim establishments were marred by inconsistent execution and overly complex flavor profiles. One particularly memorable misstep was a salad at Alan Wong’s featuring an excessive mix of lobster, poke pâté, foie gras, and braised duck — a clash of ingredients that didn’t quite work.

For an exquisite taste of modern local cuisine that gracefully blends tradition with contemporary flair, visit the restaurants of O‘ahu-born chef Ed Kenney. His first venture, Town, debuted in 2005 in the charming Kaimukī neighborhood, showcasing a menu that highlights local and organic ingredients with a fusion of Italian, Hawaiian, and modern American influences. Enjoy dishes like ahi tartare on a risotto cake with balsamic, gnocchi paired with sunchokes, capers, and lemon, or swordfish and breadfruit drenched in chermoula.

While Town is a beloved spot among Honolulu’s food enthusiasts, Kenney’s second establishment, Mud Hen Water, captures my heart. This restaurant is, to me, the pinnacle of blending local traditions with innovative approaches. Sample the rich, velvety pa‘i‘ai (pounded, pure taro served as cakes), baked banana (a creative twist on the classic stuffed potato, enriched with bacon, coconut, and curry butter), and opah cooked slowly in coals.

It might seem like a lot of groundwork before diving into Honolulu’s trendiest spot, but my multiple visits have shown that Senia is best appreciated with a well-rounded understanding of its culinary context, especially for those visiting from out of town.

The most obvious choice for the Senia team might have been to create an ambitious chef’s counter. However, Kajioka, Rush, and Nomura recognized that a restaurant solely focused on extravagant tasting menus might struggle with steady patronage. Instead, they envisioned Senia as a neighborhood gem, splitting it into two distinct sections: a lively a la carte dining area and a dramatic chef’s counter that directly overlooks the kitchen.

The team opted not to focus specifically on Hawaiian cuisine but rather on “Modern American” fare. The a la carte menu reflects the global eclecticism typical of modern American dining: small plates featuring beets, smoked salmon, bone marrow, or raw fish, a selection of pastas, and large sharing platters with pork belly or a sizable steak. While this blend is familiar in many major American cities, it offers a refreshing twist for Honolulu. However, certain dishes, like the shrimp ravioli with sweet corn, might seem uninspired to some.

Senia’s menu features some standout Hawaiian-inspired snacks, such as poke served on rice crackers tinted with squid ink, and kālua-style pork croquettes with cabbage, accompanied by a twist on the local chili pepper water. Fresh hearts of palm from the Big Island add a satisfying crunch to hamachi tataki. Sweet rolls, light and fluffy, offer a playful contrast to the rich flavors of bone marrow custard and beef cheek marmalade. These offerings align with trends seen in top mainland restaurants like Trois Mec in Los Angeles and Au Cheval in Chicago.

The kitchen at Senia excels with its large-format dishes designed to serve three or four, embodying a modern fusion style reminiscent of David Chang’s approach. One night’s special was a $70 boneless confit half-duck, enhanced with pickled cherries and a honey sauce spiced with berbere, an Ethiopian seasoning. The richness of the dish was striking, but the complex interplay of garlic, ginger, and fenugreek kept me intrigued. Another highlight was a $65 platter of glossy pork belly, presented on a beautiful monkeypod wood board, accompanied by pickles, harissa, lettuce leaves, and green pancakes for DIY wraps.

Senia’s menu does include some clear nods to Hawaiian cuisine if you look closely, but it doesn’t overtly showcase its Hawaiian roots. For visitors, this might be puzzling, while for locals, it adds to the restaurant’s charm. Senia’s appeal lies in its refreshing focus on cutting-edge urban American dining, a rarity in a city where many high-end spots cater predominantly to tourists. The occasional inconsistencies in the menu seem like growing pains, as the tasting menu, in particular, demonstrates that the chefs are highly skilled and knowledgeable.

From Wednesday to Sunday, Kajioka and Rush present a $185-per-person tasting menu at the 12-seat chef’s counter. The multi-course experience starts with dishes like citrus-cured kampachi with compressed cucumber on a rice cracker, and progresses to luxurious items such as terrine foie gras, truffles over Maui-raised venison tartare on brioche, caviar with hearts of palm, and sophisticated creations like fish Wellington.

Rush, the more flamboyant of the two chefs, turned heads with his Wellington preparation. He paraded along the counter to showcase his creation: opah fillets butterflied and layered with chard leaves and delicate ham slices, then rolled into a roulade and encased in saffron-gilded dough. The dough was stamped with pineapple-like symbols, nodding to both the restaurant’s name and the Greek concept of ‘xenia,’ which means hospitality and friendship toward guests.

While the Wellington baked, a more restrained version of the a la carte charred cabbage course was served, followed by a standout pasta dish: casunziei, beet-filled ravioli from Northeastern Italy that dyed the dough a vivid fuchsia. They were bathed in brown butter and poppy seed, with a topping of crisped quinoa, pickled amaranth, and tarragon, blending traditional and inventive elements. This dish was a delightful surprise.

The Wellington was a masterful display of technique. Each slice of the roulade, shaped like a small hut, revealed the intricate spiral of fish, with chard and ham edges creating soft, painterly streaks. The bouillabaisse butter sauce intensified the flavors hauntingly. It was undeniably the highlight of a week of eating in Hawai‘i.

Dessert followed, showcasing Dinogo Young Gun Mimi Mendoza’s approach to Kajioka and Rush’s dual menus. In the main dining area, a peach crostata with cardamom offered comforting simplicity. Her tasting menu items highlighted her refined skills, starting with a sophisticated creamsicle-inspired dish: tangerine and yogurt parfait with liliko‘i-lime curd, carrot powder, and an almond crumble for texture.

Mendoza's pièce de résistance arrived in a unique seven-sided box crafted by local artisan Nick Hunsinger. We were guided to open the septagon from its side, revealing seven compartments each holding a delectable treat: lychee-rose pate de fruit, a strawberry-pistachio bonbon, and a textbook-perfect crisp-custardy canelé among them. Rush later shared that the design inspiration for this box came while observing Thomas Heatherwick's folding bridge over the Grand Union canal in London from his flat. The thin line between craftsmanship and artistry, whether in cooking or woodworking, is evident.

The finale of the tasting menu was truly exceptional, highlighting the contrast with my previous experiences. While the a la carte options had some impressive moments (that cabbage was incredible) and a few less stellar ones, typical of a neighborhood restaurant, the tasting menu was consistently dazzling.

The contrast is deliberate: the main dining room is designed to be relaxed, friendly, and family-oriented, whereas the tasting menu is an ultra-refined experience meant for special occasions. Although I wished the food in the dining room had been more consistent, Senia’s significance to Honolulu is clear. With Kajioka and Rush bringing international acclaim, their awareness of contemporary trends elevates the city’s dining scene.

The tasting menu stands alongside the finest I've experienced in the U.S. Mastering a neighborhood restaurant demands a different skill set. Despite a visiting food critic's mixed reviews, Senia's impact on its culinary scene remains strong. Similar to Husk in Charleston, Zahav in Philadelphia, and Momofuku Noodle Bar in New York, Senia is transforming the dining landscape of its city.

Senia: 75 North King Street, Honolulu, HI, (808) 200-5412, restaurantsenia.com. Dinner (a la carte) Monday-Saturday, 5:30-9:30 p.m. Dinner tasting menu, one seating Wednesday-Saturday at 6:30 p.m. Lunch Tuesday-Friday 11 a.m.-2 p.m.

Bill Addison serves as Dinogo’s on-the-go critic and restaurant editor. All photos are by Bill Addison unless stated otherwise.

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