The Brilliant Ox: Hawaii’s Modern Gastropub

What is a gastropub? These days, I’m not too sure. Early on, though, when a pub went from just serving beer to serving fanciful takes on traditional dishes, they were said to have morphed into a gastropub. Nowadays, the term gastropub is synonymous with establishments that serve high-end beer along with creatively thought out dishes. Whether they started out as just a pub…well, that’s no longer a requirement. Enter The Brilliant Ox, the latest gastropub to hit Oahu, in the old Pearl Ultra Lounge space in Ala Moana Center.

When I think gastropub I think of an old and grimy bar with good food and good beer. The Brilliant Ox is definitely not old and grimy. Instead, it’s rather modern and you can tell the designers that put the space together had Instagram in mind. When you step into The Brilliant Ox, every corner is the perfect backdrop for your foodie photos.

…and more importantly, they’ve got hipster horns on their walls.

The menu at The Brilliant Ox:

Hello, there, you scandalously splendid Scotch Eggs Katsu. This was easily my favorite part of our meal.

Daring palates will want to try the Chicken Liver Mousse with spicy pickled pineapple, chives and a serving of sesame lavash on the side.

The Roasted Bone Marrow with pickled mushrooms and shallots. This was the dish that I looked most forward to. I’m a sucker for bone marrow done right.