Loco moco
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Loco moco
A loco moco plate lunch, with soba noodles (left) and macaroni
salad (right)
Course Main course
Place of origin United States
Region or state Hawaiian cuisine
Associated national cuisine United States
Serving temperature Hot
Main ingredients White rice, topped with
a hamburger patty, a fried egg, and
brown gravy
Cookbook: Loco moco
Media: Loco moco
Hamburger loco moco at Aqua Cafe, Honolulu
Fish loco moco
Loco moco is a dish featured in contemporary Hawaiian cuisine. There are many
variations, but the traditional loco moco consists of white rice, topped with a hamburger,
a fried egg, and brown gravy. Variations may include bacon, ham, Spam, tofu, kalua
pork, Portuguese sausage, teriyaki beef, teriyaki chicken, mahi-mahi, shrimp, oysters,
and other meats.
Contents
1History and origin
2Popularity
3See also
4References
5Further reading
History and origin[edit]
The dish was reportedly created at the Lincoln Grill restaurants in Hilo, Hawaii, in 1949
by its proprietors, Richard Inouye and his wife, Nancy, at the request of teenagers from
the Lincoln Wreckers Sports club seeking something that differed from a sandwich, was
inexpensive, and yet could be quickly prepared and served. They asked Nancy to put
some rice in a bowl, a hamburger patty over the rice, and then top it with brown gravy.
The egg came later. The teenagers named the dish Loco Moco after one of their
members, George Okimoto, whose nickname was "Crazy". George Takahashi, who was
studying Spanish at Hilo High School, suggested using Loco, which is Spanish for
crazy. They tacked on "moco" which "rhymed with loco and sounded good". [1][2][3] To
Spanish-speakers, however, the name can sound very odd, given that they hear it as
"crazy snot" (moco is Spanish for "mucus").[4]
Popularity[edit]
This dish was featured on the "Taste of Hawai'i" episode of Girl Meets Hawai'i, a Travel
Channel show hosted by Samantha Brown. The episode features the dish being served
at the popular restaurant, Hawaiian Style Cafe, in Waimea together with the plate lunch,
another Hawaiian specialty dish.
The loco moco was also featured on a Honolulu-based episode of the Travel Channel
show Man v. Food (this episode aired in the show's second season). The host, Adam
Richman, tried the dish at the Hukilau Café, located in nearby Laie. Richman also tried
an off-the-menu loco moco at a San Francisco eatery called Namu Gaji on his 2014
show, Man Finds Food. In 2018, on a different episode of the revived Man v. Food, host
Casey Webb tried a loaded version of the loco moco at Da Kitchen in Maui.
See also[edit]
Hawaii portal
Food portal
Silog
Garbage Plate
List of Hawaiian dishes
List of regional dishes of the United States
Nasi ambeng
Okonomiyaki
