A Kakaʻako sushi burrito counter is leading a double life after dark. Since late July, Up Roll Café at 665 Halekauwila St. has been transforming into Pub Maniwa Kakuuchi once the sun goes down, pouring an extensive sake selection alongside izakaya-style small plates built for sharing.
The concept, currently in its soft opening phase, is built around reviving kakuuchi, a casual Japanese drinking tradition that lets people enjoy sake and simple snacks right inside a neighborhood liquor store rather than sitting down for a formal meal, according to Aloha State Daily. The custom traces back to the Meiji era in Kitakyushu City, Fukuoka Prefecture, where factory laborers and steel mill workers began drinking sake directly at liquor store counters after their shifts, according to Sake World. It's a distinctly stripped-down format, too: unlike Japan's more familiar tachinomi standing bars, which often come with full restaurant service and modern design, true kakuuchi refers specifically to drinking inside a licensed retail alcohol shop, pairing store-purchased bottles with minimal, simple bites, as explained by Osakaa.
What's on the Menu at the Soft Opening
The pub is currently open Thursdays through Saturdays from 5 to 10 p.m., with happy hour running from 4 to 6 p.m., per the same account. A Sake Discovery Set featuring three sake tastings paired with a small bite normally runs $15, though it's discounted to $10 during the soft opening period.
The food menu leans into raw and cooked dishes meant for the table. A Chef's Sashimi Selection at market price includes maguro, ika, and sweet shrimp, while the Pressed ʻAhi Carpaccio, drizzled with lemon and olive oil, runs $15. The Truffle Dashi Omelet, a Japanese rolled omelet topped with truffle sauce, costs $17. Other popular dishes include an Oyster Confit with toasted baguette for $15, a Creamy Shrimp Gratin made with a creamy rice-and-cheese mixture with baked shrimp for $13, and a Kauaʻi Shrimp Bake with snow crab priced at $17. For now, reservations and inquiries run through the pub's Instagram account, @maniwa_sakepub, with a grand opening planned for December, according to the article.
A Café by Day, Reviving a Century of Honolulu Sake History
By day, the address remains Up Roll Café, known around Honolulu as a fast-casual spot specializing in build-your-own sushi burritos, poke bowls, and roll salads, according to Ro's Recz. That dual identity fits neatly into a broader pattern across Honolulu's dining scene, where shared daytime-to-nighttime venue arrangements and hidden counter concepts have become increasingly common as restaurateurs look to stretch operating hours and manage high urban real estate costs, according to Aloha State Daily.
The pub's arrival also taps into Honolulu's long, layered relationship with sake. The city was home to the Honolulu Sake Brewery, founded in 1908 by Tajiro Sumida to serve Japanese plantation workers, which became the first successful commercial sake brewery in the United States and produced local brands like Takara Masamune before ceasing operations, according to World Sake Imports. Local commercial sake production didn't return to the islands until March 2020, when Islander Sake Brewery opened in Kakaʻako under brewmaster Chiaki Takahashi and Tama Hirose, ending a 33-year gap in Hawaii sake brewing, per Hawaii Business Magazine. Retail education followed too: Hawaii's first store dedicated exclusively to sake, The Sake Shop, opened on South King Street in January 2010 under founders Malcolm and Nadine Leong, according to Sake Street.
Kakaʻako's Evolution Sets the Stage
The neighborhood hosting Pub Maniwa Kakuuchi has changed dramatically over the past several years. Once an industrial warehouse zone historically known as Kaʻākaukukui for its salt ponds, Kakaʻako has become one of Honolulu's central food and culture hubs, driven by multi-block urban master plans led by Kamehameha Schools and Ward Village, according to HAWAIʻI Magazine. Pedestrian-friendly streetscapes now line the district with craft breweries and eateries, making it fertile ground for a concept as specific as a kakuuchi pub.
The pub's momentum also arrives ahead of a notable date on the sake calendar. World Sake Day is observed internationally every October 1, a date established in 1978 by the Japan Sake and Shochu Makers Association to mark the traditional start of the fall rice harvest and new brewing season, a milestone Hoodline has previously noted tends to bring fresh seasonal releases across pubs and bottle shops. It's also arriving on the heels of a major cultural recognition for the craft: in December 2024, UNESCO officially inscribed traditional Japanese sake brewing knowledge using koji mold onto its Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity, spotlighting the centuries-old fermentation techniques overseen by master brewers known as toji.
