Bowl of Sunshine: Poké Shops Bring Hawaiian Fare to Janesville

Reyes said poke is often compared to sushi or called a deconstructed sushi in a bowl. But she said there are a lot of differences between the two dishes.

Kenny Zhu, owner of Happy Bubble Tea, 1603 Milton Ave., in Janesville, said poke is a lot like sushi but it has different ingredients, although raw fish, rice and seaweed are in both.

Reyes said poke is a healthy source of fish protein and is often served with vegetables and other healthy toppings.

“How you build your bowl will dictate how healthy your choices are,” she said. “No matter what your diet—keto, vegetarian, vegan, low calorie etc,—we have something for you and you can’t beat the freshness.”

Brittany Willger, the manager of 808Poké, said poke is easy to make. You start with cubed fish, pat it dry, add salt and then add whatever sauce you prefer, like an aioli or soy sauce, and let it marinade.

808PokéReyes and her husband, Rob Reyes, are the owner of 808Poké as well as 808Cheesecake, also at 119 W. Milwaukee St. She is from Janesville and he is from Hawaii. They split time between the two states.

“We have planned to bring a poke shop to Janesville for a few years now. With the revitalization of downtown Janesville, we felt it would be the perfect place to introduce a new cultural cuisine,” she said. “It has been overwhelmingly received and from what everyone says way overdue.”

Willger said the Reyes used to have events at 808Cheesecake once in awhile where they would sell poke. Those were so well received that they decided to open a place where they could sell poke year round.

“People would come in and ask ‘when are you doing the next one’,” she said. “We already had a built-in customer base from the cheesecake shop.”

Willger said the Reyes pride themselves on the quality of their ingredients, especially their fish, and on offering authentic Hawaiian cuisine

“The company the fish comes from is actually based in Hawaii,” she said. “The Hilo Fish company is actually on the island (Hilo) that Lori and Rob (live) on. It’s pretty cool to actually get something from that area.”

Willger said 808Poke’s best seller is the spicy ahi. The restaurant also offers both create-your-own signature bowls and options with a specific recipe.

Among the signature bowls, “our most popular one is our tsunami bowl. It’s half fish; you get your choice of three different fish, half our seafood salad and then it’s got cucumbers and crispy onions,” she said. “So it’s a little bit of everything.”

Willger said 808Poké also has a holiday platter this season, which is a mix of different fish.

“We are going to have a few more specials as we get closer to Christmas,” she said. And “we have our daily specials that we post on Facebook,” she added.

808Poké is open Monday through Friday from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., Saturday from 11 a.m to 5 p.m. and closed on Sunday. More information is at www.808cheesecake.com/ or on the restaurant’s Facebook page.

Why try it? Willger said people can be unsure about trying poke because it is raw fish but said if you’re feeling adventurous, give it a try.

“You don’t get a whole lot of Hawaiian food in this area, we are in the Midwest, so it is definitely different. Even if you aren’t looking to expand your palate, it’s super good for you,” she said.

Especially with the new year coming up and a lot of people making resolutions, “it’s a good time to try it, she continued. “Most of it is keto, we have gluten free and vegetarian options so we try to have something for everybody.”

Willger suggests new customers try samples before they order.

“It’s definitely going to be a little different than a burger and fries. Even if you are not super into the idea, it still tastes good.”

She said the restaurant has other options for people who decide poke isn’t for them—like chicken salad or tofu.

Happy Bubble Tea Kenny Zhu is the owner of Happy Bubble Tea, a bubble tea shop that also sells Hawaiian poke.

Zhu said he wanted to have a place where anyone could come in and get what they wanted.

“People are more used to seeing bubble tea. I thought about having both of them together, so that if someone came in and didn’t like raw fish or never tried it they could still get something,” he said.

Zhu said that he got the idea to combine the two based on similar shops in Madison that sold bubble tea and were also selling poke. He hadn’t seen any places like that in Janesville.

He said one of Happy Bubble Tea’s best sellers is a spicy tuna bowl. The restaurant also offers other bowls if the customers want something less spicy.

“We have avocado bowls if people are vegetarian and we have cooked shrimp and cooked chicken for people to have if they don’t like raw fish,” Zhu said.

He said the bowls are pretty healthy, especially the avocado bowl.

Zhu encourages people to try poke. He said it’s healthy and they shouldn’t be afraid of eating raw fish. He does offer samples to those who are new to poke and understands that some simply won’t like it.

“Raw fish is not for everybody,” he said “That’s why I offer bubble tea,” he said.

Zhu said Happy Bubble Tea hasn’t been open for long. He would like to offer more specials for students and a happy hour but said he isn’t ready for that yet.

Happy Bubble Tea is open daily from 11 a.m to 2:30 p.m. and 4:30-8:30 p.m. Information and menu items are at happybubble teawi.com and on the shop’s Facebook page.

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