Say 'Aloha!' to Belfast's Freshest New Eating Experience & Try Something Different from the Kua 'Aina Lava Grill

Situationed on 2nd floor of Victoria Sq Belfast beside Nando's

I'll make you a wager: you'll have never tasted tuna any finer than the Lava Grilled tuna steaks on offer at Victoria Square's newest eaterie  Kua 'Aina. Belfast is usually the last place that restaurant chains open up in, but thanks to Kua 'Aina being owned by two homegrown Northern Irish folks, we are privileged to be only the third branch to open, with the other two being London based.

We went along for a meal and met Harry for a chat. He usually runs the Carnaby Street branch, and he also mans the Kua 'Aina festival van (more on that later).

Harry explained that Kua 'Aina is actually the only restaurant in the complex who cook completely from fresh. The Hawaiian menu is a fabulous breath of fresh air indeed. I had peeked at the menu online before our visit, and initially had pictured it as another burger bar, and whilst they do a great burger, that's only part of the picture.

The menu offers traditional burgers, fish, veggie and chicken & turkey options. Then you choose whether you want it served as a burger, or hot sandwich, or bunless with salad. There are also very tempting 'Super Salads' , and the tuna & avocado caught my eye immediately. Sometimes when you are trying to diet especially at this time of year pre-summer, the salad option on the menu can feel like the booby prize. Your lettuce arrives and you longingly stare at everyone else's meal and decide you'll just buy a sarong for over that bikini and get something tasty next time. BUT- look at that salad!

Its an enviable rainbow of fresh, crunchy goodies. The ginger and soy dressing with the tuna and greens is to die for. The tuna fillet tastes like no tuna I've had before. I've had tuna at restaurants before which literally tasted of nothing, but the Kua 'Aina fillet it meaty, smoky and delicious.

Tuna & Avocado Super Salad includes a whole avocado! Hooray! 

All the 'proteins' in the meals are cooked on the special lava grill. I asked Harry what this actually meant. He explained it's a Hawaiian way of low fat, healthy cooking, and it's what the George Foreman grill is based on.

Mahi Mahi fish sandwich. 

Huli Huli chicken burger

The other food we went for was a Mahi Mahi & Monterey Jack sandwich, Spicy Huli Huli Chicken as a burger and a kid's meal of chicken strips and sweetcorn. If I did have a negative point about Kua 'Aina, it would be the kids' choices I'm afraid. The options aren't plentiful and the meal like a bit anemic beside our colourful offerings. I would love to see more Hawaiian options too, as kids are just as open as us to trying new things. I did totally love the glass Smix's apple juice came in however (top pic in this post) I want one myself!

When Kua 'Aina asked us along, they said I simply had to try the milkshake, so we had one each. Coconut and strawberry, in cute pint bottles. They are just as good as they tipped us off to, and they source the ice cream from Morellis locally. You can even make it dirty with spirits, and check the Kua 'Aina website for their signature cocktails and 2 for 1 offers on those. 

Sweet potato fries (portion is bigger than it appears here!)

We also picked a couple of sides, although saying that, the main meals were plenty. We had sweet potato fries which rivalled the kings of the sweet potato next door (N**dos!), very crispy and delicious. The onion rings are comically large and made for sharing. 

Onion rings

Chilli fries side would do as a main course £5.50

I couldn't resist the chilli fries, but a word of warning. They are HUGE. The portion could be a meal for one in itself. Fries with mince and cheese and jalapeños. I couldn't manage even a 1/4 but kindly they wrapped it up for me to take home. Incidentally you can order Kua 'Aina for delivery thanks to the Deliveroo service arriving in Belfast. Also while I mention it, the Kua 'Aina staff, I think we dealt with three local staff during our visit, are all really upbeat and friendly, which makes me think they must be nice to work for as well as eat in.

We adults were too full for dessert, but Smix used his special, child's 'dessert stomach' to fit in this freshly made, thick and fluffy American style pancake with maple syrup (icecream optional) .

So we had a lovely visit and most certainly shall be back. Sadly if you aren't in London or Belfast, it may be some time before you get a Kua 'Aina of your own. Why not petition them on their Facebook Page for a restaurant in your area?

As I mentioned earlier, they have a food truck that visits festivals. Not sure if this is last year's or this season coming's food truck calendar, but keep an eye out this summer!

I wonder what the secret is? 

Yogland Is a Self Serve Parlour of Pure Joy

I begin a fortnight cycle of my weight loss program again tomorrow, so Michael and I rushed off to review  Yogland on Belfast's Lisburn Road this afternoon. It's a cool little Sunday afternoon treat stop that has something for everyone.

Frozen yoghurt has always been the lower fat cousin of sinful, sugar-laced icecream, but Yogland goes one further with their own blend of high protein, zero sugar recipes, some of which are gluten free.

The flavour options are immense. We tried watermelon, cookies & cream, red velvet cake batter and peanut butter, all tasted beautiful. I'm not keen on plain frozen yoghurt, but there is a classic greek flavour if you want to keep it original.

How Yogland works is simple. You pick a tub, dispense the flavours you desire in the quantity you wish. They encourage trying more than one flavour and we both were able to fit three flavours in their small tub each.

Next comes the fun part. Now if you are having frozen yoghurt as part of a clean eating, fat free diet, you can still top your tub with coconut, fruit & jelly bubbles. If you're a seven year old boy, or a total sweet tooth like myself, then the world is your oyster where toppings are concerned. You can take as much as you want, you're just limited by how much you can balance on top of your yoghurt! 

There are cereals, granola, broken Oreos & Reece's Pieces, Haribo, Love Hearts, Dolly Mixtures, Skittles, Cadbury Buttons, Smarties, just a kid's dream really. 

I tried the little fruit bubbles, which burst in your mouth. I'm wondering is that what's in bubble tea? Whatever they are, they are my new favourite thing.

Cookies & Cream and Red Velvet frozen yoghurt with bubbles, white buttons and coconut topping

Cookies and cream frozen yoghurt with bubbles, Oreos, peanut butter cups, white buttons and Smarties

As the whole process is self serve, they don't charge per tub size, but rather by weight. So they'll weigh your finished tub and charge you depending on that. 

Watermelon frozen yoghurt, popcorn, Cocopop and Haribo toppings

There are window seats downstairs, so if you have a pram in tow you can sit there. Upstairs is more spacious, with lots of bright decor and board games! While we were there a group of student age friends were enjoying their frozen yoghurts and having a Jenga tournament. 

So we loved Yogland, the variety of options means there is something for all the family. I reckon we will drive up every so often to treat ourselves. Given the health aspect, I will definitely be choosing Yogland over any icecream cafes if we are up in that area. I just wish we had one in Bangor for after school treats. 

Discover Vegan Cuts in 2014. Cruelty-free Beauty Box or Vegan Snack Box in Monthly Subscription Form.

Over the next fortnight or so I'll be introducing you to some unusual, lesser known box subscription services. Treat yourself for January and sign up for a monthly delivery.

First up is Vegan Cuts, the animal friendly site with two box services on offer.

December's Vegan Beauty Box came with eye shadow, lip salve, and my favourite part a set of seasonal gold, silver and glittered nail polishes. The box ships from the States, but costs only $15 a month to any worldwide address, which is a super price for a service which can introduce you to cruelty free brands you may otherwise never hear of.

If a beauty box isn't your thing, and perhaps you'd like to start 2014 with some healthier snacks, why not try the Vegan Cuts Snackbox? Again it's $15 worldwide for the monthly box, less than that if you're in the US.

I love trying new snacks, so I was intrigued to try the crisps made from beans, which were black. They are delicious. The product I'm going to have to hunt down a supply of though, is the coconut milk chews, seasoned with sea salt. Outstanding!

Any questions? Find Vegan Cuts on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. Sign up before mid-January and you should receive your first box, or both boxes, around 20th January.