thumb|Mixed plate lunch served at the Rainbow Drive-In in [[Honolulu]]
The plate lunch () is a Hawaiian meal, roughly analogous to the Southern U.S. meat-and-three or Japanese bento box. The combination of Polynesian, North American and East Asian cuisine arose naturally in Hawaii, and has spread beyond it.
Standard plate lunches consist of one or two scoops of white rice, macaroni salad (in an American style), and an entrée (usually in a Japanese style such as chicken katsu or teriyaki). A plate lunch with more than one entrée is often called a "mixed plate".
Origins
Although the exact origin of the Hawaiian plate lunch is disputed, Later on, macaroni salad was added to the plates, as it seemed to bridge national tastes and also mixed well with gravy-covered slabs of meat. L&L founder Eddie Flores rebranded it "L&L Hawaiian Barbecue", explaining that "When we went to the mainland, the name 'Hawaiian' is a draw, because everyone just fantasized, everyone wants to come to Hawaii."