Roy’s Restaurant (Roy’s) is a group of restaurants started in the late 1980s by chef Roy Yamaguchi. The cooking at these establishments features a fusion of California, French and Japanese cuisines accentuated by ingredients found in Hawaii, where the original Roy’s Restaurant opened.
At their peak, Roy’s had 20 restaurants in North America in addition to Hawaiian and international locations. At present, there are three independently-owned North American locations, one located in Bonita Springs, FL.
Having taken somewhat of an extended writing hiatus as of late, I have still been documenting some of my dining experiences locally, especially happy hours. Roy’s has always had a good happy (aloha) hour, and I had not been there in a very long time.
With the exception of major holidays, aloha hour in Bonita Springs is daily from 3:30 – 6PM and all night from 3:30PM to close on Thursdays at the bar.
My dining companion (DC) and I went on a Thursday evening, and the joint was jumpin’.
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| Bar area, Roy’s |
They have really increased the space in their bar area since my last visit, greatly increasing the likelihood of getting a table, especially in the off-season months. The Aloha Hour Menu offers discounts on alcoholic beverages and food.
DC ordered the first item from the aloha hour menu, the blistered shishito peppers.
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| Blistered shishito peppers |
I am generally not a fan of these, but my DC loves them. The peppers were different at Roy’s. To offset the bitter note grilled shishito peppers usually have, Roy’s adds sesame miso dressing, and a generous topping of Bonito Flakes. The dressing and topping add a good deal of Umami, making them very good and highly recommended.
Another excellent aloha hour item was the Szechuan spiced pork ribs.
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| Szechuan spiced pork ribs |
The ribs are marinated in a mixture of miso/hoisin/ginger/garlic/soy sauce/chili paste, simmered in chicken stock until they are fall off the bone tender then wood-smoked on the grill. This is one of the restaurant’s signature dishes, also highly recommended.
We also sampled the tempura-crusted ahi roll. It is probably made similar to this Recipe, and served with togarashi (chili pepper) miso butter sauce. The sauce here is a great condiment. I would have asked for extra while ordering if I knew.
The final aloha hour menu item sampled was the wagyu beef sliders.
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| Wagyu beef sliders |
Here, wagyu beef is topped with truffle shiitake mushrooms and onion accented with a togarashi aioli. Truffle fries accompany this menu item. Truffle fries are also a separate aloha hour item so these sliders are really two menu items in one. This was another great choice for happy hour.
The food at Roy’s has always been good and the menu items served during aloha hour are no exception. The total without tip for these four aloha hour orders was about $50, a great value.
Roy’s Bonita Springs is located in the Promenade at Bonita Bay which provides many opportunities for window shopping or just a pleasant stroll after aloha hour. This is one of the better happy hours in town and highly recommended.
It’s a wrap for another post on Forks.
Roy’s Restaurant Bonita Springs
26831 South Bay Dr.
Bonita Springs, FL 34134
(239) 498-7697
Aloha hour at the bar 3:30 to 6PM daily; Thursday 3:30PM to close (10 p.m)
All major credit cards accepted.
This article originally appeared here and was republished with permission.
