Hilo’s historic “Home of the Loco Moco” will continue dishing up its signature local delicacy — as well as the rest of its plate-lunch-style menu.
According to Mari Kobayashi, Cafe 100’s owner, the iconic eatery’s landmark building at 969 Kilauea Ave. has been taken off the market.
The Tribune-Herald reported in May 2023 that the building was listed by Colliers, an international commercial real estate firm, for leasehold sale at just under $2.9 million. The lease included the 5,561-square-foot restaurant building on 0.57 acres of land and all equipment and cooking pots, pans and utensils included — essentially a turnkey operation for an experienced restaurant owner.
What the leasehold offer didn’t include was the Cafe 100 business or its name — a brand familiar to and synonymous with the Hilo community since 1946.
Kobayashi — the granddaughter of Richard and Evelyn Miyashiro, Cafe 100’s founders — said she de-listed the building in October. The reason she listed the property last year is that she and her preteen son have been dealing with ciguatera, a debilitating neurotoxin disease.
People contract ciguatera from eating tropical reef fish which have accumulated ciguatoxin, a naturally occurring toxin in microalgae eaten by the fish — or in the case of larger fish, eaten by smaller fish the larger fish ate. It’s not possible to detect the ciguatoxins in fish by sight, taste or smell. They also can’t be destroyed by freezing or cooking the affected fish.
The effects of ciguatera, Kobayashi said, limited the amount of energy she had to devote to a relentlessly labor-intensive business.
Asked Wednesday if she’s feeling better, Kobayashi said, “I wish. I wish.”
“I haven’t recovered,” she said. “My son’s still going part-time (to school). We’re better than last year, so that’s some good news.”
Kobayashi said “a lot of different factors” entered into her change of heart about putting Cafe 100 on hiatus while another restaurant utilized the prime piece of midtown Hilo real estate near Wailoa Pond.
“I’ve got a really good crew, and they’re what makes it possible,” she said. “That was a big part of the decision. The crew here are my family when you think about it.
“We got poisoned back in August 2022, and it seems so long. I am so thankful to my crew and God that we have made it through the many obstacles, and will make it through this.
“I dearly love each and every Cafe 100 crew member. They are awesome and are the ones who have kept both the restaurant and me going. It’s because of their commitment to our community that I go down every day to see them.”
News last year that Cafe 100 could be closing sparked a surge in diners hoping their next loco or plate lunch from the beloved heritage eatery wasn’t their last.
The restaurant’s business hours are shorter than they were prior to the pandemic, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., Monday through Friday. But it is clear from the number of cars in the parking lot and the diners in line to order that Cafe 100 remains a local institution.
Kobayashi said she and the Cafe 100 crew remain “honored to be a part of this outstanding, loving community.”
Email John Burnett at jburnett@hawaiitribune-herald.com.