Aloha Sauced has been open in downtown Honolulu — it’s located on South Pauahi Street — for about two months, but the business’s hot sauce has been around for nearly three years. You can actually spot the business’s Hawaiian Hot T’s sauces on season 28 of popular talk show “Hot Ones,” according to Tamaris “T” Surdock, business owner of both Hawaiian Hot T’s and Aloha Sauced.
“We started out as a hot sauce company because there’s not a lot of spicy options on island,” he says. “We wanted more Island-style flavors; we use passionfruit, we use guava. We just got voted Hawaiʻi’s favorite hot sauce company, and our No. 1 sauce — a pineapple sweet chili teriyaki — just won best new product of the year last year.
“A lot of people wanted to try our sauces; we got to the point where we were like, ‘We should start making food for people to put it on,” he adds.
Surdock recalls reaching out to “Hot Ones” about two years ago, but it was during a hot sauce festival in New York last year when Hawaiian Hot T's indirectly connected with them.
“We ended up meeting some people from the hot sauce supplier for ‘Hot Ones,’” he says. “We ended up dropping off some samples at their store after. They liked our POG sauce — POG is traditionally passionfruit, orange and guava, but ours is passionfruit, orange and ghost pepper. They were like, ‘This is so fruity, but we want it spicier.’
“We made a spicier version and sent it to them,” he adds. “They were like, ‘This is really good; we want it for Season 28. The season just dropped.”
Aloha Sauced is open for both dine-in and takeout. Its menu consists of chicken wings, build-your-own bowls, and gourmet hot dogs called monster dogs. There are 20-plus different sauces to choose from; flavors range from more traditional options like blue cheese and garlic aioli, to Sop Brah (avocado, cilantro lime, soursop) and Killa Kurry (truffle, coconut and chipotle curry).
Majah Flavah — a combo of pineapple, sweet chili, teriyaki and toasted sesame — is the most popular flavor, according to Surdock.
“It’s so good; it’s like you can replace your shoyu, teriyaki and Sriracha all with one sauce,” he says. “It’s good on edamame, in stir-fries and poke.”
Surdock says the biz decided to focus on chicken wings to make it easier for people to try the various sauces.
“There are so many different sauces — we have 10 that we bottle, but we have 25 total for the restaurant,” he says. “We sell out of chicken wings pretty quickly.”
Customers can choose from five- ($12), 10- ($19) or 20-piece chicken wings ($32). The business offers one sauce per five wings, and customers can choose from traditional, boneless or gluten-free cauliflower wings.
“The 10-piece is pretty popular and people can get two flavors,” Surdock says. “Majah Flavah is our most popular, but basil pesto parm is a really good mild option.”
The biz even offers a Volcano wing hot sauce challenge — which, so far, no one has been able to conquer. Participants must be 18 years or older and sign a waiver before trying the challenge, which is to eat 12 chicken wings in in five minutes without using any dipping sauces, napkins or drinks, according to Surdock. He says the challenger will also have to endure a five-minute afterburn before using napkins, ranch sauce or drinks.
“It’s our hottest hot sauce,” he says. “We add in some extra peppers so it’s really hot. Whoever beats it will go on the Wall of Fame, will get their money back, get a free five-piece (chicken wings) and get a free shirt. But no one’s beat it.”
The build-your-own bowls features a base — brown rice, white rice, mixed greens, fries (additional $2) or fried rice (additional $2) — with your choice of protein (chicken, ground beef or kalua pork) and toppings (five are included). Toppings range from black beans and roasted garlic to sour cream, cheese, roasted salsa and corn.
“Everyone wants a Chipotle here; we can do something similar, where you can build your own bowls — you pick your base, protein and veggies, and you can put any of our sauces on top,” Surdock says.
One of the most popular combos is a base of mixed greens with 12-hour slow-cooked kalua pork, topped with salsa, sour cream, guacamole, lettuce, black beans, corn and onions.
If you prefer gourmet hot dogs, opt for the monster dog ($14), bird dog ($14) or chopped cheese ($15).
“We didn’t want to do burgers; everyone does burgers,” Surdock says. “We took a burger and reimagined it. I think our bird dog is a hidden gem. Most people don’t know what a bird dog is, but it’s chicken tenders in a hot dog bun. It’s like a fried chicken sandwich, but you eat it like a hot dog instead of a burger.”
The monster dog includes two toppings, two sauces and one side. Instead of a traditional hot dog bun, it features Texas toast folded in half. The Southwest-style fajitas monster dog is currently a featured special that includes an all-beef hot dog with cheese, sour cream, guacamole, onions and salsa.
The business is open daily from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., but opens early on Sundays for football games, according to Surdock.
“That’s the one day we open for breakfast,” he says. “We have a breakfast bowl, and it’s BYOB. People can come in with their own drinks, as long as they order food from us.”
Besides Aloha Sauced, you can find Hawaiian Hot T’s sauces at Aloha Stadium on Wednesdays, Saturdays and Sundays; and at Down to Earth at Pearlridge Center.
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CONTACT
Aloha Sauced
73 S. Pauahi St., Honolulu
808-333-2935
Alohasauced.com
Instagram: @alohasauced
Open daily, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. (open Sunday mornings for football)
Kelli Shiroma Braiotta can be reached at kelli@alohastatedaily.com.
