Loco Moco

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Fish loco moco at Kimuraya Restaurant, Kahala Mall, Honolulu

The Loco Moco is a dish unique to Hawaiian cuisine. There are many variations, but the essential loco moco consists of white rice topped with a hamburger patty, a fried egg, and brown gravy. Variations may include bacon, ham, Spam, kalua pork, Portuguese sausage, teriyaki beef, teriyaki chicken, mahi-mahi, shrimp, oyster and other meats.

Its roots are disputed. James Kelly writes that the dish was created by the Inouye family, who owned the Lincoln Grill in Hilo, Hawaii in 1949. In keeping with the standards of Japanese Cuisine, they used rice as a staple starch and finished it off with the hamburger and gravy to create a dish that did not require the preparation time of bento. The egg was added shortly thereafter. The name derives from the nickname of one of the teenagers who frequented the restaurant. A story which is widely known in and around the town of Hilo is that this dish was created by Japanese-American cooks in the 100th battalion who were raised in Hilo. The simple and cheap meal gained popularity among soldiers and upon returning to Hawaii, a few of those cooks began small dine-in/take-out establishments such as Cafe 100 and Lincoln Grill. Today Cafe 100, created by a member of and named after the 100th battalion, is known as the home of the Loco Moco offering more than 20 unique varieties of the immensely popular dish. It is a widespread and popular dish in Hawaii and a favourite of local fast food restaurants, but is almost completely unknown elsewhere, except for in Japan where it is very popular.

Loco Moco is also the name of an American restaurant chain featuring Hawaiian rice bowl dishes.