History
Garlic shrimp came out of the North Shore aquaculture boom in the 1990s. Kahuku's shrimp ponds (still operating today) gave nearby trucks the ingredient. Giovanni's Shrimp Truck started selling shrimp scampi from a mobile truck in 1993 and parked a permanent location in Kahuku in 1995. Romy's Kahuku Prawns runs its own pond next door to the lunch wagon. Jenny's Shrimp took over the Macky's spot in 2018 with the same butter-garlic recipe. The format: 12 shrimp, garlic butter, two scoops rice.
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Common allergens: Shellfish, Dairy, Wheat
Make it at home
Ingredients
- 500g large head-on shrimp, shells split lengthwise but shells left on
- 1 whole head of garlic (about 12 cloves), finely minced
- 100g unsalted butter
- 30ml olive oil
- 30g all-purpose flour
- Sea salt, black pepper
- 1 tablespoon Hawaiian paprika or cayenne (light heat)
- 1 lemon, halved
- Cooked short-grain rice, two scoops per plate
Method
- Pat the shrimp dry. Toss with the flour, paprika, salt and pepper until lightly coated.
- Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high. Add the shrimp in a single layer; cook 90 seconds on one side and 60 seconds on the other. Remove to a warm plate.
- Lower the heat to medium. Add the butter to the same pan. When it foams, add the minced garlic. Cook 90 seconds, stirring constantly, until the garlic just starts to colour.
- Return the shrimp and all juices to the pan. Toss to coat in the garlic butter. Squeeze in the juice from half a lemon, cook 30 more seconds.
- Serve over two scoops of hot rice with the remaining lemon on the side. Pour any pan butter over the top.
Tip from the editors. Eat the shrimp shells; the canonical North Shore plate is shell-on for the crisp texture and the flavour. The garlic should be caramelized to the edge of burnt, not raw.
Where to eat north shore garlic shrimp
North Shore garlic shrimp in Honolulu
Giovanni's Shrimp Truck ★ 4.7
Giovanni's Shrimp Truck in Kahuku on Oahu's North Shore, an hour from Honolulu, has slung butter-garlic shrimp scampi since 1993 and parked.
TryGarlic butter shrimp scampi over rice
TipTwelve shrimp over two scoops rice with caramelized garlic; queue 30 to 45 minutes. Bring cash for shorter lines.
Romy's Kahuku Prawns ★ 4.1
Romy's Kahuku Prawns on the North Shore an hour from Honolulu farms its own shrimp and prawns on the property and serves them butterfly-cut from the lunch.
TrySweet shrimp and prawns from the farm next door
TipOrder the spicy prawn plate over rice; the sweet shrimp size up larger than the truck competitors down the road.
Jenny's Shrimp ★ 4.6
Jenny's Shrimp on Kamehameha Highway in Haleiwa, an hour from Honolulu, is the lunch wagon the former Macky's head chef opened after Macky's closed in 2018.
TryGarlic butter shrimp plate
TipOrder the spicy garlic if you want heat; the coconut shrimp is a sleeper.
More cities are in research. Want north shore garlic shrimp covered somewhere specific? Tell us where you want to eat.