In 1976 Johnson Kam and Eddie Flores, Jr., both budding entrepreneurs, purchased the L&L Drive-Inn® on Liliha Street in Honolulu, Hawaii. Times were tough during the early years but Kam and Flores persevered with their work ethic and optimism.
To understand the L&L Hawaiian Barbecue® concept, one must look back to the history of the food that L&L has branded as Hawaiian Barbecue(SM) – the Hawaiian plate lunch. The traditional Hawaiian plate lunch consists of two servings of rice, a serving of macaroni salad, and features a generous serving of a hot entrée (a smaller “mini” version of the traditional plate lunch consists of one serving of rice, a serving of macaroni salad, and a small serving of a hot entrée). L&L Hawaiian Barbecue’s® unique meal composition and signature brand of Asian and American fusion cuisine has helped it to stand out from the others that offer Hawaiian style cuisine. The L&L Hawaiian Barbecue® concept has spread like wild fire. Today there are close to 200 L&L restaurants in Hawaii, New Zealand, Japan, Malaysia, Phillipines, and Indonesia.
L&L’s strong Hawaii roots provides the company the clout in being able to give customers an authentic Hawaiian taste and an authentic experience. And at the pace of growth of the franchise and the level of attention the company continues to receive, L&L has become the biggest thing to come out of Hawaii since surfing!