et al.

et al. is located in the Kahala Market by Foodland, on Waialae Ave in Honolulu, Hawaii.

I celebrated a birthday earlier this year and was craving brunch. et al., which is Latin for "and others," had been on my list to try for the past 1-2 years. Not a bad time to check one off the growing bucket list.

We entered through what we thought was the front door - and quickly learned that it was likely the back exit. The actual front of et al. is through Foodland itself, as the greeter and the reservations area is on that side.

The menu is multi-regional, with some local twists on classics. Full bar available, and that area alone was impressive. Tons of different liquors and very grandiose.

I started my brunch with bottomless drip coffee from Kona Coffee Purveyors ($5). Solid as I'd expect.

The Braised Short Rib Loco Moco ($23) starts with a bed of garlic rice, a generous piece of braised short rib, short rib gravy, sunny side up egg, and crispy onion garnish. Wonderful gravy and garlic rice, plus a lovely runny yolk, to complement the tender short rib. The meat itself could have used a bit more salt, a common mistake because thick pieces of meat need a lot of seasoning.

The 3 Egg Omelet ($18) contained shimeji mushrooms, spinach, and Boursin cheese inside three eggs and served with 'ulu rosti, a hashbrown-like side made with Hawaiian breadfruit. Breadfruit itself is starchy, so it made a lot of sense. Ketchup on the side for the rosti and omelet.

A great omelet here, and for me, it really didn't need a lot of cheese because I thought it took away a tad from the wonderful mushrooms. I've never had 'ulu rosti before but it works here. Wonderful crispy exterior and a softer interior. If no one told me, I would have thought I was eating regular hashbrowns.

Last was the Mexican Street Avo Toast ($13): Toast topped with avocado, chili lime crema, Cotija cheese, cilantro, pickled red onion, and baby corn. The baby corn added a good sweetness and texture, while the lime and pickled onion helped cut through all the richness of the avocado and cheese.

After seeing some older pictures on Yelp, I was concerned if portion size would be an issue, but that turned out to be a false alarm. All proper portion sizes on my experience.

And because the servers got wind that we went there for my birthday, a generous free dessert arrived. Bread pudding with some lilikoi-mango sorbet. I blew out the candle before taking the picture, but it was a lovely gesture on their part.

Everything was delicious, with top-quality service. It was sorta busy for Saturday brunch but not overflowing with people. It lined up with the University of Hawaii's first home football game of the season, so that could have had something to do with it.

et al. is a great brunch spot on Oahu, and I look forward to a return visit sometime. 8/10