Article by Jennifer Schmidt
HOKA x Paria Farzaneh Restore Chukka ($145)
Introduction
Luxuriously cushioned and comfortable - but fashionable enough to wear out and about? That is the promise of the HOKA lifestyle line, including the HOKA x Paria Farzaneh Restore Chukka. I’ve worn HOKA recovery slides, but this was my introduction to their lifestyle shoes, and I wasn’t entirely sure what to expect.
Pros:
High-stack and massively cushioned
Comfortable for long hours on your feet
Non-functional elastic laces for easy slip-on slip-off
Cons:
High stack height combined with generous width makes for a whole lot of shoe
May or may not be your style
Sample Weight: women’s 10.9 oz / 306 g US 8.5
First Impressions, Fit and Upper
At first glance, these shoes defy easy categorization. Max cushion high-stack trainers? Mohair-sporting trendy kicks? Once I put them on, it became clear that these were better suited to daily life than daily mileage. HOKA is already a brand of choice for many who spend long hours on their feet, and this partnership with the designer Paria Farzaneh may please those who want a little more pizzazz than a Clifton.
It’s harder to evaluate a lifestyle shoe objectively than it is to put a running shoe through its paces: so much comes down to the question of personal style. I may want sleek while you prefer slouchy, and neither of us is wrong. The Restore Chukka wasn’t a silhouette I’d gravitate towards personally, but it’s easy to picture it fitting right in with the similarly “large” sneakers popular at the moment.
Underfoot, the combination of ambitious stack height and generous width makes for a whole lot of shoe. On the plus side, all that foam sure is comfortable, and the wide base lends stability to keep the wearer from teetering.
The high-cut knit upper is designed to be barefoot-friendly, according to the catalog description, and didn’t cause any rubbing or chafing for me.
The deep ridges on the outsole seem like they would provide plenty of grip, though I didn’t test these on anything more than wet pavement.
Conclusions and Recommendations
The HOKA x Paria Farzaneh Restore Chukka is a shoe you might reach for as you head out the door for a day of sightseeing or festival-going or errands in cold weather: activities where your tired feet would welcome being cradled in the plush mohair upper and pillowy cushion, but athletic performance isn’t required.
For me, the shoe scores a 7.5/10 (-1.5 for fit, -1 for style as it’s not my cup of tea), but that score could be significantly higher for someone with a wider foot and different sense of style.
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Tester Profile
Jennifer Schmidt found trail running in her mid-20's and began dabbling on the roads a few years later. Trail 50k's and road marathons are nearest and dearest to her heart, but she loves chasing competitive and personal goals on any surface and over any distance. These days, you can find her primarily on the sweet California singletrack around Auburn and Truckee, usually averaging 70-95 mpw. Depending on the season, she also competes in the USATF road and XC circuits for Sacramento Running Association's racing team. She has a marathon PR of 2:41 and was recently selected as an alternate for the USA team for 50k world championships.
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