Herald Publications - El Segundo, Hawthorne, Lawndale & Inglewood Community Newspapers Since 1911 - (310) 322-1830 - Vol. 2, No. 20 - May 14, 2020
Inside
This Issue
Certified & Licensed
Professionals.......................7
Classifieds............................2
Entertainment......................2
Food.......................................7
Hawthorne............................3
Lawndale..............................4
Inglewood.............................5
Legals....................................6
Pets........................................8
Weekend
Forecast
Friday
Sunny
73˚/62˚
Saturday
Partly
Cloudy
74˚/62˚
Sunday
Partly
Cloudy
73˚/63˚
Lawndale Tribune
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Featuring the Weekly Newspapers of Hawthorne, Inglewood and Lawndale
Dodgers and ARCO Join Forces
to Give Back to LAUSD Staff
To show their appreciation for Los Angeles Unified School District employees, the Dodgers and Los Angeles Dodgers Foundation teamed up with ARCO to hand out gift cards to staff working at the
grab-and-go centers throughout the city. Photo Los Angeles Dodgers.
Ali’i Fish Co. Brings Authentic
Poke to LA’s Mainland
Story and Photos by Chase Maser
Despite numerous businesses around El
Segundo closing shop due to recent developments,
Ali’i Fish Co.—located at 409 E.
Grand Ave—keeps its doors open with a
positive mindset.
Co-owners, Shane Yoshimoto, Justin Yamanouchi
and Baron Miho have positivity
and high spirits in their blood.
Growing up on the island of Oahu, Yashimoto
shares that commercial fishing and
the fishing industry has always been a part
of his life.
“We’ve all grown up with fishing and
seafood in our in lives and our diets,”
says Yoshimoto. “We came out here to
show LA—and California—what we’re all
about. Over the years, we noticed this huge
poke trend starting around the country, but
it’s not authentic to what it actually means
to Hawaii.”
Poke, which is a diced raw fish served
over rice, is a traditional main course in
Hawaiian culture. Using various ingredients,
such as soy sauce, sesame oil, garlic,
onions and sea salt (among many others),
poke can take on many kinds of flavors that
blend well with yellowfin tuna, ahi tuna and
salmon. However, Yoshimoto explains how
Americanized poke is miles away from the
genuine experience.
“It’s just not even close to the real thing.
I’ve seen everything from blueberries to
mangoes being used—just all kinds of stuff
that represents inferior quality and the entire
dish is compromised. Especially when poke
places use frozen fish or packaged fish—the
customer doesn’t know what they’re actually
ordering and it gives Hawaiian culture a bad
name in the end. And I get it, a business has
to make money, but you know, it’s personal
to us and we want to show the people here
what it really is.”
Understanding the full scope of what
goes into providing authentic poke at Ali’i
Fish Co. means a lot than more than ordering
a simple meal. Altogether, there’s a series
of vital relationships that help maintain the
entire process. Think of it as a seafood supply
chain: local fishermen in Hawaii bring
and serve only the best selections to their
customers in El Segundo.
“Everybody works so hard in our industry,”
says Yoshimoto, “and we want to honor them
by providing the best service we can to the
community. And with how things are going
right now around the world, keeping that
promise is important.”
After launching Ali’i Fish Co. in October
of 2018, the restaurant enjoyed a solid year of
steady growth and building a positive reputation.
But unfortunately, 2020 has proven to
their haul to an auction, then wholesalers
and the whole-suppliers handpick their
fish and get them ready for shipment around
the world. For Yoshimoto and his team,
they fly in fresh fish every day into LAX See Ali’i Fish Co., page 4
be a trying time for the startup.
“For us, the momentum started to shift
when professional sports seasons shut down,”
Yoshimoto sighs.
Co-owners, Shane Yoshimoto and Justin Yamanouchi next to servers David Hernandez and Melanie Chicon at Ali’i Fish Co.