Poke for the People is one shop in Haleʻiwa impacted by slower traffic as a result of back-to-back Kona low storms last month, said Chris Chang, its owner.
The eatery, which serves up poke and sushi bowls, and salads, cut its hours by 50% on Monday, March 30. It reduced its normal 10-hour day, which is usually 9 a.m. to 7 p.m., to five hours. Now, the eatery is open from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. daily.
“We did a 50% reduction, just to target our main lunch hour,” he said. “Really, it's about trying to keep staff on the schedule because everyone has bills to pay.”
As people filed in for lunch, Chang remarked it was the most customers he had seen in a while.
In the immediate days after the floods, the business gave out free breakfast bentos and musubi, as well as poke bowls, roast pork with gravy, chicken katsu and other meals to families impacted by the devastation and volunteers helping to rebuild.
Chang hopes hotel staff can share that the North Shore, except for Waialua, is open. Chang used to be a teacher and noted that spring break for Los Angeles Unified School District, the second largest in the nation, is this week.
“Most of the local plus tourist economies / businesses really rely on these breaks,” he said. “Because spring break is the time you can kind of catch up from those slow periods.”
Poke for the People is located across from Storto’s Deli & Sandwich Shoppe and Nalu Health Bar & Café in Haleʻiwa. (Kady Pascual) 
Poke for the People recently decreased its hours due to slower sales. The sign on the front door announced the changes, effective Monday, March 30. (Katie Helland) 
Poke bowls, like these ones, are a large part of the menu at Poke for the People. (Kady Pascual) 
Potholes increased across Oʻahu after the back-to-back Kona low storms. (Aloha State Daily Staff)
Brown water advisories have led to less tourists going to the beach, although cleanups are helping, he said. Those advisories have also impacted surf schools and led to cancelations of shark boat tours. As of Tuesday, March 31, a high bacteria count advisory was in place at Haleʻiwa Beach Park, which is less than a mile away from the poke shop. They were also in place at other spots across Oʻahu. A little more than a week ago, the entire island was under a brown water advisory.
“Just getting the word out there: still don't go to Waialua,” he said. “There's cleanup efforts happening there. But the rest of the North Shore or anywhere else on the island — it's open. I am just speculating, but there's a lot of people in town ... I think they are kind of staying in Waikīkī. They are not venturing out.”
Chang hopes people will head to the North Shore and support local businesses.
“Everyone's doing what they can, but everyone is still hurting,” he said. “Just supporting local. It's easy to say, hard to do sometimes, because local is not always cheap. I get it. We do what we can to keep our prices down and affordable.”
For Mainland tourists deciding whether to visit, Chang says come.
“Sun's out, beaches are getting clean,” he said. “Still come. Minor adjustments, but still a great place to visit.”
Follow Poke for the People for updates via Instagram.
For the latest news of Hawai‘i, sign up here for our free Daily Edition newsletter.
Katie Helland can be reached at katie@alohastatedaily.com.
