THE NIGHT STUFF
Laid-back grooves at the Break worth long trek
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| Breakers Restaurant in Hale'iwa offered an uninhibited, unpretentious atmosphere one Thursday night. Kalama Valley resident Shelley O'Brien, left, joined Hale'iwa resident Julia Gustine in taking advantage of that comfort on the dance floor.
Photos by Rebecca Breyer • The Honolulu Advertiser |
By Derek Paiva
Advertiser Entertainment Writer
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| Hiriata Hart, left, and Linh Cao preferred to kick back with a few drinks. |
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| Disc jockey Christian "45" Ross managed to work in a few sonic surprises for the crowd on the dance floor. |
And my only hope while later cruising past acres of Central O'ahu pineapple gorgeously lit by the bright glow of a full moon was that those 33 miles wouldn't end with a party as dead as the two freshly Michelin-ed mongooses we also motored by on our way to the North Shore.
I had some reason for worry. One, it was on a weeknight. Two, it was in the country. And three ... 33 miles!
Our first surprise was a full parking lot outside Breakers Restaurant and still more cars jockeying to get in. My partner in Night Stuff instantly perked up as we strolled toward Breakers accompanied by the bass thump of some old-school Dr. Dre and Snoop.
"I think I'm gonna like this," she said. It was indeed looking positive.
Multi-ethnic and multi-generational, the Break's gathered were a comfortably co-existing amalgam of North Shore surf and Honolulu club cultures almost mirroring that of promoter Matty Liu's town-bound Chemistry Lounge weekly. The difference? Think Chemistry's mix of the elegantly dressed down (Split, Roxy & Quiksilver duds never looked so good) and dressed up in a cozier, laid-back setting.
With Breakers, Liu has found the perfect location for a casual weeknight party in the country. The restaurant's surf-themed interior — lots of wood, bamboo, stone and thatching accentuated by surf art, boards and board racks — was old-shoe comfortable rather than new-age tacky. We were especially fond of the raised, parquet dining nook that served as the Break's snug and active makeshift dance floor.
Crazy unhinged, unpretentious and uninhibited, the Break's dance floor crowd was the stuff of great house parties. Groups, couples and soloists seemed gratified to grind, grope, b-boy or throw down some truly wack moves without care.
Neither unnecessarily showy nor cruelly self-indulgent, longtime Chemistry resident DJs 45 and Mr. I.N.C. read the crowd well, gave it everything it wanted and still managed to fill their set with a sprinkling of sonic surprises.
"It's too bad they don't do this on the weekend," said my partner in Night Stuff as I finally nudged her off the dance floor and out the door.
The Break was worth seeing through till last call, but she wasn't the one driving back to town.
Got a night spot, night event or club event we should check out? Reach Derek Paiva at dpaiva@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8005.
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What: The Break
Where: Breakers Restaurant, Hale'iwa Market Place, 637-9898.
When: 10 p.m.-2 a.m. Thursdays.
Our arrival/departure: 10:45 p.m. /12:30 a.m.
Cover: $5.
Younger than 21 OK? No.
Age of crowd: 20s-40s.
What to wear: Anything goes. We saw patrons in designer wear (dressy and casual) and T-shirt/shorts/sandal combos. Yes, your baseball or skull cap is welcome here. Wear whatever makes you comfortable and you'll be fine.
Peak crowd while there: 200
Queue?: No.
The soundtrack: Current and old-school Top 40 R&B and hip-hop. "Keep Their Heads Ringin'" (Dr. Dre), "Never Leave You (Uh-ooh, Uh-Oooh)" (Lumidee); "No Diggity" (Blackstreet), "Get Busy" (Sean Paul), "P.I.M.P." (50 Cent), "Oh Boy" (Cam'ron); "Crazy In Love" (Beyoncé feat. Jay-Z); "Beware of the Boys (Jay-Z Remix)" (Panjabi MC feat. Jay-Z).
Drive time from Honolulu to Hale'iwa on a Thursday night, 10 p.m.: 35 minutes.
Chemistry Lounge: 10 p.m.-2 a.m. Tuesdays, Auntie Pasto's, Kapahulu. Moves to Meritage at Restaurant Row starting Oct. 7.
Winter waves and Triple Crown season: Expect the Break to become the must-attend Hale'iwa after-hours party once holiday waves, surfers and surf junkies descend full-force on the North Shore in November.
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Night notes ...
Honolulu's first Electronic Music Expo kicks off five days and nights of networking, discussions, panels and guesting DJs and musicians Tuesday:
- First off, Wave Waikiki's Pussycat Lounge hosts EME's 2003 Lift Off Extravaganza with headlining DJs Vinroc and Apollo from Triple Threat, and San Francisco-based DJs IZ and M3. 10 p.m. Tuesday.
- TooGruvz Records takes over the Wave for The Living Legends with PSC, CMA, G&E, Scarub and others at 10 p.m. Wednesday.
- Also on Wednesday, Viva Recordings, Uniting Souls and Agave Records present A Night of House at Nick's Ultra Lounge (that's Nick's Fishmarket's new after-hours name) with Jon Lemmon, Ramiro, Marc George, Ethos, Reid and Eugene, from 10 p.m.
- Good Family Recordings' Thursday night party at the Wave features Jonene, Dee, Mike Frugaletti and Scottie Soul, from 10 p.m. More EME events at Studio 1, Galaxy and Nick's on Sept. 26 and 27.
