Get a Taste of Hawaii From the Flippin Birdz Food Truck

Nicholas Lee, owner of the Flippin Birdz food truck, is originally from Honolulu and grew up enjoying the beaches, water and laid-back lifestyle of the Hawaiian islands. As a teenager, he quickly discovered that if he wanted money to spend, he needed a job. "My family is in the restaurant business in Hawaii, so my first job was washing dishes," he says. "I was like fifteen, just trying to make money and pay for car insurance and stuff."

But along the way, he also developed culinary skills. After moving to Scottsdale, Arizona, he worked various jobs before deciding to venture out on his own. "I opened up a concept in Scottsdale in 2015. It went horribly," he admits. "It was a really difficult time because I wanted to do something else. So when I finally got the money together, I wanted to do a food truck. But the laws in Arizona are not that great for starting a food truck. I knew Denver was a good place to start, so I came out here."

He arrived in Colorado about three years ago and began developing his mobile food business. "I knew that there were already a lot of concepts doing stuff like tacos and burgers and other things. I had eaten at a few Hawaiian places here and I knew it needed something more. I felt like some of my ideas and creativity with food would fit well in this city, so I just decided to just try it," he recalls.

"Finding a truck was a pain in the ass and took about a year," Lee adds. "As for the name, you know how back in the day people used to say, 'You don't want to be flipping burgers your whole life.' Well, I have a college degree, and I realized that I'm flipping chicken. So it's Flippin Birdz."
Lee launched his food truck in February 2022 and credits his success to showcasing the uniqueness of Hawaiian cuisine. "In Hawaii, we have a lot of Asian influence. We're talking Japanese, Korean, Vietnamese, Laotian and Filipino. ... All these cultures culminate into what Hawaiian food is today," he says. "You might see a plate with Filipino pork adobo and Korean kalbi with Japanese katsu, like a combo plate. I don't think you'd see that anywhere else in the United States. Hawaiian food reflects different parts of the East, and that's what makes it so interesting."

The Flippin Birdz menu includes many Hawaiian staples, including one of Lee's favorite childhood comfort foods, Loco Moco. "It's rice, hamburger patty, egg, savory gravy, green onions and some sesame seeds on top. Take one bite of that and it'll put you out. It's amazing," he says.

His current favorite dish on the menu is the kalbi short ribs. "It begins with a tamari-based marinade with teriyaki and ginger," he explains. "Then we add sesame oil, rice wine vinegar, mirin and a few other things. After it marinates for a while, we chargrill it — burn it a little bit — and put it over rice. Amazing."
Flippin Birdz also offers dishes such as fried chicken katsu and gochujang spicy chicken, showcasing the Japanese and Korean influences within Hawaiian cuisine. While these dishes are typically served over rice, you can opt to try them over fries or as a sandwich. And no Hawaiian-style meal is complete without a side of Spam musubi — fried teriyaki Spam and rice wrapped in seaweed.

As Lee prepares for the busy summer food truck season, he is excited for the opportunity to make new connections and introduce more people to Hawaiian food. "I love meeting people and talking to people about stories they have from Hawaii and the connections of being so far away from somewhere and having someone feel so close to that place. ... A lot of people from here go to Hawaii or have family there, and it's really interesting to hear how Hawaii influences people in Denver," he says.

For more information on Flippin Birdz, including its schedule, visit flippinbirdz.com or follow it on Instagram @flippin.birdz.