It’s Never 2 late 2…. Go in search of another King! This one’s the King of Rock n Roll (that’s right…. Elvis baby!) Everyone that knows me, knows I’m a HUGE Elvis fan. Hawaii happens to love him enough to have a store dedicated to him as well. This week’s Oahu Jar pull took us to the Rock Island Café (or affectionately know as-The Elvis Store!) Like The International Marketplace, The King’s Village Shopping Center was demolished in 2021. The Elvis store resided there for decades. It was a great place to visit, but times are a changin’….so they had to relocate. They moved into the Kalakauan on Kalakaua Ave- between Ena Rd and Ala Moana Blvd. They are now steps away from the world-famous Waikiki Beach.
We parked at the Ala Moana Mall and walked along the Ala Wai to reach this place. It was a lovely journey and the first time I had ever walked this part of Waikiki.
Once we arrived, I was a little shocked at how much smaller the store is and how they incorporated the café within the store. It felt a little odd walking around people eating at tables to view the merchandise the store was selling. They aren't a museum, so many guests come in and think they are only a place to view great memorabilia, quite the opposite, you can buy it! Everything has a price, and the décor is always changing. As pieces are bought and sold new items are put on display. Overall, it did not disappoint too much as I found some nice magnets and ideas for future gifts. I guess I just miss the old place.
After we were done shopping, we walked back to Ala Moana on a different route and decided to have lunch at Assagios. They have great food, and the service was excellent. I’d recommend this restaurant to anyone heading to the mall. After lunch we realized the time had gotten away from us and we quickly found our car and made haste to get on the freeway before traffic hell ensued. We made it just in time! It was a great trip into town, and we had fun.
I had the opportunity to visit Graceland (a bucket list item) in 2021 and that is another story for another blog. I’ll eventually get to that one day. We look forward to our next Oahu Jar pull… we have some exciting things coming up! Stay Tuned…..