Over the past few years, several American-style pancake joints — Eggs n' Things and Cafe Kaila, for example — have washed up on Tokyo's shores. Now, the tide is going the other direction.

Well, sort of: Australian chef Bill Granger first brought his laid-back brand of home cooking (and his famous ricotta hotcakes) to Japan in 2008, with the opening of bills Shichirigahama (2F Weekend House Alley, 1-1-1 Shichirigahama, Kamakura; 467-39-2244; www.bills-jp.net) on the Shonan coast. He hit it so big — Granger is credited with setting off the current pancake mania — that he now has four restaurants in and around the capital. And last month, he opened bills Sydney (280 Beach walk, Honolulu, Hawaii; +1-808-922-1500; www.billshawaii.com), his first Stateside outpost, in Hawaii.

Two years in the making, the Waikiki restaurant — what Granger, still boyish at 44, calls "a tropical beach house" — features an airy wood-paneled lounge with big windows upstairs and a casual diner on the ground floor. It's his first foray into resort dining but, true to his brand, he's aiming for a "barefoot off the beach" vibe. The location couldn't seem more apt: Not only is Honolulu a favorite destination for Japanese tourists, it's increasingly popular with Australians, thanks to the strong Aussie dollar.