There are famous old Hawaiian songs based on the abundance of what comes out of the ocean. But seeing it get press outside the islands is conflicting because of how personal food is for Hawaiians. The poke trend puts Hawaiian cuisine in the spotlight, and that’s a positive thing. But that gets lost in translation, just like poke. Unlike elsewhere, where people identify themselves geographically (like New Yorkers or Californians), here in Hawaii we identify ourselves ethnically: Japanese. I’m not a native Hawaiian-I’m a second-generation Japanese. It’s the same idea when people call me Hawaiian. We spend a lifetime trying to dispel stereotypes and undo miscommunicated history. My initial response was, “the fuck!,” and then after the emotional reaction subsided, I said “the fuck!” Why am I so fired up? As a chef born and raised in Hawaii, I know there’s enough of us who work so hard to do the right thing, to represent our culture. Hawaiians have gone our entire lives explaining to visitors that it’s called poke (“ poh-kay”), not “ pohk.” That was part of the process-teaching and explaining what it is. You don’t just change a word to sell it better.

It would be like if I didn’t know how to pronounce your last name and said, screw it, and changed it around. The headlines confirmed my fears: Poke, the traditional Hawaiian dish made of fish cut into small pieces, was spelled poké, with a diacritical on the e. That may seem like a minor modification, but as someone born and raised in Hawaii, its implications resonated. But even before that, there were already red flags: “Did you hear poke is trending?”

I was riled up, and so were my Hawaiian friends. I read a big article about Wisefish, the fast-casual poke concept in NYC, a couple weeks ago.

Noguchi was born and raised in Manoa Valley in Honolulu. Mark “Gooch” Noguchi ( is chef-owner of Hawaii’s Pili Group, which explores the connection between community, education, and food.

Long beach poki