A week ago, we gave anxious HawaiiMagazine.com readers the premiere date of a filmed-in-Hawaii episode of Food Network’s popular Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives.

The network brass happily gave us the date and time of the first airing: April 5 at 10 p.m. EST. But when we asked for some follow-up about the Hawaii episode, they were silent.

We were as curious as our readers for more intel. Maybe too curious. Maybe too annoyingly curious.

For example, we wanted to know …

• Which of the many Hawaii restaurants visited by spiky-haired host Guy Fieri and his film crew last October made the episode’s final cut?

• Which restaurants were ultimately left on the editing room floor, since DD&D’s episodes are just a half-hour, and Fieri ate a whole lot while he was here?

• What criteria did the restaurants have to meet to even get Fieri in the door?

• And finally, what did Fieri title the Hawaii episode?

As it turns out, a phone call to the good folks at the Oahu Visitors Bureau was all we needed.

The Oahu eateries that made the final cut of the episode, "Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives Goes Hawaiian" are:

• Family-owned Hawaiian food haven Highway Inn

• Fresh Hawaii seafood restaurant Nico’s at Pier 38, neighboring the Honolulu Fish Auction (pictured, right)

• Gourmet wiener stand Hank’s Haute Dogs

• And, oddly enough, the decidedly non-diner, non-drive-in, non-dive oceanside feast at Germaine’s Luau.

The Oahu eateries that didn’t make the April 5 Hawaii episode won’t be wasted. Look for each to get TV time as stand-alone segments in these future episodes of DD&D:

• Fresh seafood/poke/plate lunch favorite Poke Stop (May 3, 10 p.m. EST)

• Downtown Honolulu Irish pub Murphy’s Bar & Grill (May 17, 10 p.m. EST)

• President Obama’s favorite plate lunch place Rainbow Drive-In (June 28, 10 p.m. EST).

Getting Fieri and the DD&D crew to even consider a Hawaii episode of the show wasn’t easy. The Oahu Visitors Bureau put in a fanatical amount of research, logistical planning and legwork just to get the show’s producers interested in filming here.




Check out these related HawaiiMagazine.com posts:
Hawaii episode of Food Network's Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives to air April 5
Food Network’s Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives in Hawaii. Here’s where Guy Fieri dug in.
Maui stars in penultimate episode of "The Bachelorette," July 13