A plain-language guide to what we sell, how we grade it, and the best way to enjoy each one at home. When in doubt, choose by how you want to eat it, raw, seared, or cooked through, and you will land on something good.
How we grade ahi
Grade is about quality, not size. On the auction floor, every tuna is judged on color, oil, clarity, and texture, and only a handful each morning ever reach the top. We buy at the only fresh tuna auction in the United States and grade for you exactly the way we grade for the restaurants we supply, including Michelin-starred kitchens, so you are never guessing. These are the grades you will see on our ahi, from the rare, almost-too-good-to-eat top tier down to an everyday sashimi grade that still outclasses nearly anything at the market.
UltraMuseum quality, the finest tuna on the auction floor and the rarest grade we buy. Deep, glistening red, marbled like fine beef, so beautiful it feels almost a shame to slice. The oil melts the instant it meets your tongue. This is the best of the best, almost too good to eat. Serve it as sashimi, plainly, and let it speak for itself.
PremiumA whisper below Ultra and still extraordinary. Cherry red and velvety, rich with oil and that full, luxurious finish the best sushi counters chase. Stunning raw, sublime barely seared. Few people ever taste tuna this fine.
Bright RedThe classic Hawaii bigeye at its brightest, translucent ruby with clean, even marbling. Our most versatile top grade, just as at home as sashimi, poke, or a quick sear. This is restaurant quality in the truest sense, the fish the islands' best kitchens build their menus on.
RedBalanced, generous, and beautifully flexible, with the signature gummy-bear give Hawaii loves. Made for poke and sashimi, and it takes a grill or a sear without missing a beat. Everyday luxury, and a clear cut above almost anything else you will find.
Select RedOur entry grade, and still a long step beyond the tuna most people have ever tasted. A touch more moisture lets it sear to a ruby blush and grill beautifully, while staying clean enough to enjoy raw. The floor of our range is most kitchens' ceiling.
Sashimi grade means a fish we consider ideal to serve raw, kept cold from the auction floor to your door. Grading like this applies mainly to tuna. For everything else, we select by freshness, oil, and condition, and label every product with its cut and source.
Lean or rich?
Fish run from lean and clean to lavishly rich. If you are choosing for the first time, this is the fastest way to find your kind of fish.
Many of these cross over. A good piece of ahi or opah is wonderful both raw and seared.
How done do you want it?
The same fish can run from raw to fully cooked. Here is what each looks like, and which of ours suit it.
Sashimi, rawCold and uncooked, the purest way to enjoy sashimi-grade fish. Ahi, hamachi, kanpachi, king salmon, walu, opah, and the snappers.
Seared rareA hard, fast sear with a cool ruby center. Ahi, tombo, opah, walu, and swordfish take it beautifully.
MediumWarm and just-set in the middle, still moist. Salmon, swordfish, ono, mahi mahi, and opah. Around 125 to 130°F.
Cooked throughOpaque and flaking cleanly, the choice everyone can enjoy. Opakapaka, onaga, hapu'upu'u, monchong, coral cod, barramundi, and izumi dai. 145°F.
The USDA recommends cooking fish to 145°F. Serving it raw or seared rare is a personal choice, and one best made with sashimi-grade fish kept properly cold.
Cuts, explained
A few words you will see on our products, and what they mean for your kitchen.
Sashimi cut
Cleanly trimmed and graded for raw service, ready to slice into even sashimi or nigiri.
Natural cut
Trimmed to the fish's natural shape, skin on, ready for the knife or the heat.
Loin
A whole muscle section you slice or portion yourself. Our most flexible cut.
Steak
A cross-cut portion of even thickness, made for the grill or the pan.
Fillet
The side of the fish, skin on or off, to cook whole or portion at home.
Toro
The prized, fatty belly of the tuna, the richest cut of the fish.
Poke cube
Bite-size cubes, trimmed and ready to dress and serve.
A guide to the catch
Flavor, texture, and how to cook it. Other names are shown in italics.
In Hawaiian, ono means delicious. Lean, mild, and firm with a clean white flake that takes marinades well. Grills and sears clean, and it is lovely raw.
Best for grill, sear, raw
Mahi Mahi
Wild · Hawaii Sweet, mild, and firm, the easy crowd-pleaser. Grill it, saute it, blacken it, or fold it into tacos.
