These two restaurants are situated on either side of Maui’s picturesque Napili Bay.
The Gazebo is renowned for its breakfast menu, which is why there’s often a queue of starving people longer than a football field waiting outside between 8-12:30pm. If this is the case when you arrive, head across the bay to the
Sea House Restaurant in the Napili Kai resort. Their service is a little slower but the food is acceptable and the views of the ocean, neighbouring
Moloka’i and
Lanai are just as spectacular.
If you like Japanese food, you’ll love this place.
Sansei has won so many awards they barely have enough wall space to display them all. The prices are reasonable ($25-$30 per head) and their cocktail list is extensive.
A contemporary menu, extensive wine list, and great views of the sun as it sets behind Moloka’i make for a five-star dining experience. Decadent Maui at its best.
What’s Shakin’ — Hilo, Big Island
This ‘Mom and Pop shop’ is famous for its shakes, made from local fruit and produce. Locals traverse the Big Island to come to this place. For tourists, a stop in is best timed after a visit to the nearby
Hawaiian Botanical Gardens. Get the garden burger with a side of salad and bliss out to the endless view of the North Pacific Ocean.
With its plastic blue chairs and faux wooden panelled walls, this restaurant is reminiscent of a rundown highway diner from the 60s. Despite its dowdy décor the place is always packed, thanks to its spectacular and bargain-priced food. While you could try their catch of the day or the New York steak, the
Manago Hotel Restaurant is famous across the Big Island for its pork chops.
Chinatown, O’ahu
Locals love to chow down in Chinatown, Honolulu. Top local haunts are
Bar 35,
Du Vin and
Mei Sum Dim Sum. Partygoers will also love the
Chinatown Get Down, a local bar/club-hopping party that takes over the entire district from time to time.
What
Da Kitchen lacks in decadence it makes up for with an abundance of local Hawaiian dishes on its menu. Frequented mostly by locals, this is a great place to sample some of Hawaii’s local dishes (see below) without needing to visit a commercial
luau
First Fridays
Chinatown in Honolulu (
O’ahu), and
Wailuku (Maui), celebrate the first Friday of each month with a local get together that is aptly titled ‘
First Fridays’. Streets are closed off to traffic and restaurants, shops, museums and art galleries remain open until late at night. It makes for a great family-friendly space where you can stroll around, dine on local food, and soak up the evening atmosphere.
Farmer’s Markets
Found on every island, local farmer’s markets are a fantastic way to sample fresh island produce. Guavas, Papayas, Maui Gold pineapples, lilikoi (passionfruit), Hawaiian corn (very, very sweet!), purple mangosteen (high in antioxidants, medicinal, sweet) and tart, lady-finger-sized Apple Bananas… the list of what you can try is limited only by the size of your stomach.
A word on local food
There are plenty of local treats you really have to try while you’re in Hawaii. Here are four of my faves:
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Malasadas: are local donuts. Soft and fluffy they practically melt in your mouth.
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Kona Coffee: Coffee is grown on almost all of the Hawaiian islands, but Kona coffee (from the Kailua-Kona region, Big Island) remains at the top of many coffee-lovers’ lists as Hawaii’s finest roast. Happily it’s served up almost everywhere. Make the most of it while you’re here.
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The Loco Moco: Poor university students created the Loco Moco in a moment of desperation from the few remaining ingredients they had in their cupboard. Today the dish, which consists of a fried egg atop a meat patty, balanced on a bed of rice, is a local staple.
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Spam: Hawaii is mad for Spam. The state is said to consume up to seven million cans of the stuff — more than any of the other states in America! Instead of ogling towering displays of Spam in local supermarkets, make the leap and try a Spam Musubi, some Spam sushi, or any of the other Spam ‘delicacies’ that you’re bound to come across during your island adventures.
Dry Mein not Saimin, Maui
At some point in history Maui turned
Saimin — a noodle soup popular across the islands — into ‘Dry Mein’. On that day, a Maui delicacy was born. Theatrics aside, you won’t find Dry Mein on any of the other islands, so hunt it down while you’re in Maui. Most restaurants and lunch wagons sell it.
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