Kai Market’s cuisine showcases a fusion of cuisines from the original plantation workers that immigrated here between the 1880s and 1930s.  The spread includes a mix of Hawaiian, Chinese, Japanese, Portuguese, Okinawan, Korean, Puerto Rican and Filipino foods.  This restaurant is inspired by the “food fair” that these cultures took part in over 100 years ago.

Executive chef Darren Demaya’s goal for Kai Market is to serve these different cuisines in a “farm to table” ideal.  Half of what is served is locally raised.  Kahuku prawns, Punalu’u breads, local fresh catch fish of the day, and Waimanalo greens are just some of the locally grown and raised items on this extensive menu that changes daily depending on availability.

Behind the buffet line are two “living walls” of fresh herbs that are not only a beautiful display of modern art, but are also used by Kai Market.

I was recently tipped off about this new restaurant from a friend and decided to check it out for myself during the dinner service.  When most people think of buffet dining they picture large vats of mediocre food.  I can tell you that Kai Market is not your average buffet.  I was pleasantly surprised by all the delicious gourmet food.

My boyfriend and I started off at the appetizer and salads areas where we were overwhelmed by the fresh sashimi, crab and Molokai red potato salad, tomato medley, fresh breads, and the Ni’ihau island chowder (just to name a few).  The Ni’ihau chowder was my ultimate favorite, which is made with local seafood and simmered over kiawe wood.

Next we were on to the main dishes.  Some of the highlights were the Kahuku shrimp scampi with Kai Market fresh herbs, clams with black bean sauce, alae salt crusted roasted prime rib accompanied by island fried rice, creamy red mashed potatoes, fresh vegetable medley and much much more.

After we thought we couldn’t eat anymore, it was time for dessert.  The dessert table was extensive and the highlights were the warm bread pudding with Wild Turkey brandy sauce and individual Satura Cakes that were to die for.

I was extremely impressed by Kai Market.  It is rare to find a buffet where the dishes are as tasty and fresh as made to order items.  Kai Market is a delightful over indulgence and because of the fresh produce, local ingredients, and an eye for perfection this extensive spread was no less than high quality.  I will definitely be returning to Kai Market in the future, maybe to try the breakfast service and will be armed with an empty stomach.

Kai Market is open for breakfast daily from 6 am to 11 am and open for dinner daily from 5:30 pm to 9:00 pm.  For breakfast adults are $26 and for dinner adults are $49.  “Big” children ages 13-16 are 50% off adult pricing and children 12 and under are FREE.  Local residents should inquire about kamaaina discounts.

The Sheraton Waikiki is located at 2255 Kalakaua Avenue.  For more information or reservations call 808-922-4422 or 866-716-8109.  To check out details online and their daily menu visit: http://www.sheraton-waikiki.com/kaimarket.html.

There is word in the AP that secret service is looking for houses near where the Obama family stayed last year although no word has been given by the White House, or local authority. The location is a small quiet street on Kailua Beach just down the road from the Kaneohe Marine Base where Barack and Michelle Obama worked out daily.

Last time the president was here, he wasn’t the president, so we can expect even more buzz, secret service, and chaos as the Nobel Prize winning Obama will possibly make his return.

We will keep you posted as soon as the announcement is made. You can check our President Obama section for more information as it happens.

Round 1 of the Pipeline masters starts today at 8:00 AM HST on the north shore of Oahu in 10 – 15 foot surf. 2 people per heat, for 30 minutes, at Pipe. Now that’s what I call, “worth the price of admission.” You can watch all the action live from your computer or WFI on your iPhone over at the Pipe Masters Live section.

Or you can just check back here. I’m sure we’ll have updates on all your Triple Crown of Surfing action!

Azure Restaurant, located in the Royal Hawaiian is their newest fine dining restaurant, which specializes in island seafood.  A little over a year ago the iconic Royal Hawaii received a $85 million renovation and redesign.  Part of this project included the creation of Azure.

Jon Matsubara is Azure’s head chef and behind a menu where fish and the freshest fruits de mer are featured.  Local fish like ahi, opah, onaga, uku, or moi are selected each morning at daybreak from the Hawaii fish auction.  Food here is a mixture of French and Hawaiian regional cuisines prepared with fresh and local ingredients.

I had the oppurtunity to dine at Azure recently with some friends.  The renovation and redesign of this space into Azure was breathtaking.  The decor was modern European with an island feel.  The restaurant was sophisticated with a hint of relaxation found in their comfy stylish pillows accompanying each seat.  The outdoor area beachfront was the place of envy where customers can rent private canopies and enjoy their food and cocktails in a more relaxed setting while still among style and luxury.

For our meal we ordered several appetizers such as the  Baby Back Ribs with a Kona coffee bbq sauce ($18),  the Grilled Coriander Prawns ($19), and the Azure Sashimi with Hawaiian yellowtail ahi ($21).  Accompanying the starters we ordered salads one in particular was the Hirabara Farms’ Baby Romaine Caesar Salad ($14), which was served with a heirloom tomato that was the size of a softball.  For my entree I ordered the Kona Shellfish Bowl with lobster, prawns, clams, scallops, abalone mushrooms, and konyaku noodles in a kaffir lime and chile broth ($47).  For dessert I ordered the Warm Cookie Pie a trio of warm cookies with Hawaiian chocolate ice cream ($9).  Our table also ordered a bottle of Cakebread Chardonnay.

Kona Shellfish Bowl

Based on the food alone I was disappointed with the meal.  I was disappointed not because the food was bad but because the food was not exceptional.  Being the Royal Hawaiian and paying these high prices, I was expected to be “wow-ed” and was “okayed” by the food itself.  The starters were all tasty, but nothing left me wanting more.  The Azure Sashimi was so small that I only got about half a bite.  My Kona Shelfish Bowl was filled with a large portion of well cooked seafood, but it lacked taste and flavor.  The best part about this dish was the toasted bread spear that accompanied the plate.  My dessert was also in the same good not great ballpark.  I felt the service at Azure helped redeem the restaurant’s mediocre food.  Our servers were polite and professional and aimed to please our party.

I would return to Azure for the atmosphere and to enjoy a cocktail or glass of wine at the bar, or even to lounge in the canopy area beachside.  For a celebratory dinner with excellent food I would rather go to Mariposa at Ala Moana, Hoku’s at The Kahala Hotel and Resort, or Orchids in The Halekulani Hotel.

Azure is open daily from 5:30 pm to 9:00 pm and the dress code is smart casual.  The address of the Royal Hawaiian is 2259 Kalakaua Avenue Honolulu, HI  96815.  For more information or reservations please call (808) 923-7311.  To see photos and view the restaurant’s menu visit: http://www.royal-hawaiian.com/resort_dining_azure.

With three locations to choose from (the original one being in the McCully Shopping Center), Phuket Thai holds the lock and key to Thai-island cuisine.  I’ve dined only at the restaurant near Ward (on Kamake’e Street), but it remains my Thai restaurant of choice because the atmosphere is so comfortable and classy and the food is always tasty and satisfying.

My favorite dishes have to be the “phuket stuffed chicken wings” (how they deboned the wings and stuffed it with veggies I still don’t know), the curries (“panang” is my personal favorite), and the “thai apple banana.”  YUM!  I’ve been to Phuket Thai at least three times this past year and I always leave full and happy.

For more information on the menu and Phuket Thai locations on Oahu, check out its sophisticated website, complete with photographs and restaurant history.

Sould de Cuba Cafe was founded by brothers Jesus and Robert Puerto, along with Yoon Kim. Jesus and Robert had the shared dream of owning a restaurant, enrolled in a 2-year restaurant management course over a decade ago. In the summer of 2004, they happened to meet Yoon, a hotel and restaurant menagement graduate who had grown up in his own family’s restaurant business. The three collaborated on the Soul de Cuba concept, and the first restaurant opened its doors in New Haven, Connecticut in January 2005, followed soon after by this one in Honolulu in July 2006.

The food at Soul de Cuba is both hearty and delectable. Having traveled to Cuba and eaten many Cuban dishes myself, I have to say that this food is authentic and truly delightful. I forgot that I had ordered the same dish while in Havana last spring, but when I ordered the “Fricase de Pollo” (marinated chicken sauteed with onions and Spanish olives), I was not only taken aback by the same flavors and aromas, but blown away by the authenticity of the dish. While Cuban cuisine is not particularly distinguishable from other Caribbean or Latin American dishes, there is something very tasty and addictive about the food from this special nation.

I would highly recommend any dish — or even cocktail — from Soul de Cuba. My experience there was so rewarding. I look forward to my next taste of Cuba, as I crave every and any reminder of Castro country.

The food, beginning with the sashimi of sable and shiso, was delicious.  As entrees, we tried the grilled Moi and the Seared Ahi with Scallops; both were beautifully presented and delectably toothsome.  With dinner, we enjoyed a light but intensely flavorful bottle of Conundrum, a California white that adeptly blends varietals such as Chardonnay, Sémillon, Sauvignon Blanc, Viognier and Muscat.  The Mango Shortcake is the perfect dessert choice – refreshing, tropical and sweet but not cloyingly so.   Dinner for two (with wine), shared appetizer and shared dessert cost approximately $225.

The service, at this price point, should be respectable if not impeccable. It was not.  The hostess was rude and the wait staff confused as to who was responsible for our table.  After being seated and waiting 20 minutes for a server, I reluctantly rose, located the nearest attendant and then requested a waiter.  Once our server appeared, our meal proceeded without incident.

Getting seated and then promptly forgotten by the wait staff is never a good start to dinner.  However, if one must be forgotten temporarily, if one must wait and wait, then do it here… at the edge of a lush island, beneath innumerable stars, buffeted by floral breezes.  An idle 20 minutes could hardly be better spent.

The Canoe House ~ Mauna Lani Bay Hotel and Bungalows
68-1400 Mauna Lani Drive
Kohala Coast, HI 96743-9726
Phone: (808) 885-6622

At 7 and 9 my boys have a small collection of weapons. We even have a drawer labeled “guns” under the “electronics” drawer in their closet. The also have swords, sling shots and rocket launchers. These two are proficient at killing aliens on their X-box and are comfortable watching their father put salmon out of their misery when fly fishing in Alaska. So I thought it was time to take them hunting.

While staying in one of the Parker Ranch cabins on the side of Mauna Kea we took the boys on a turkey hunt. They chattered away excitedly while searching for turkeys through the binoculars. I worried that this might be too much reality for them but I also wanted them to understand that meat does not begin in a cellophane wrapped packet. The boys kept spotting flocks in the distance but they were either too far away or the wind was blowing our scent toward them. After an hour one of the men spotted a pig. They switched rifles and off they went to shoot the pig while the boys and I stayed quietly behind. We watched as one hunter steadied his rifle on a tree branch to look through the scope and the other ran quietly up behind the pig. We couldn’t see it but we heard the shot. The boys looked at me for affirmation that the pig was indeed killed and waited apprehensively as the men returned to the truck.

We drove up closer to where the pig lay and the men carried it over to us.  After gutting it and putting it in the back of the truck we set off back to the cabin.  My 7 year old asked why does blood make your stomach feel funny? And my 9 year old said he was going to tell his class about this experience. However, before we made it back to the cabin we spotted a flock of turkeys on the top of a little hill with the wind blowing away from them. Again we stopped so one of our hunters could go after them and sure enough, we heard a shot.  Minutes later he came trudging over the hill carrying 3 turkeys. We were impressed that one shot aimed high enough hit all three in their heads.

The boys handled it calmly and only asked a few questions about the experience. That afternoon we cooked some of the pig heart in olive oil and spices over the open fire and both boys tasted it inquisitively. My 9 year old is prone to nightmares and shies away from any movies or television that might appear frightening. I was pleased that he handled this experience as we intended.

On the ride home from school Monday, my littlest said “mom today I lied in my journal about what I did this weekend.  I said I went to the park to play tether ball.” I told him he had a really exciting weekend and asked why he lied. His exact words were “Well it would go like this ~ we went hunting on the side of Mauna Kea Mountain.  We had guns. We shot and killed a pig.  He bled a lot.  We put him in the truck. Then on the way back to the cabin we shot 3 turkeys in the head. We put them in the truck. At the cabin we cooked the pigs heart.” I told him that was what hunting is and that his teacher would understand.  He looked at me like I was clueless and patiently explained “guns, shooting, blood, killing ~ mom, we are not allowed to write or talk about that at school.”  I have since discovered that this is true. The mere mention of guns and killing is grounds for expulsion even in elementary school. I do not want him to test that rule and so I sanctioned his lie but cautioned him to make sure he mentions that he is writing a story instead of a true account next time.

In the end the children do not want to go hunting again soon. They still eat meat but now know where it comes from and they feel very grown up to have been allowed on such an adult outing.

This wasn’t my first time at Hoku’s, but was my first time at Sunday brunch here.  Hoku’s is one of my favorite restaurants on the island.  Hoku’s does a mix of Hawaiian, Asian, and European cuisines that is ranked top among other fine dining restaurants on the island.  This place is known for 5 star service, where every table has 2 wait persons that service you simultaneously.  Besides the excellent food and service, the views of the ocean from your dining table and the cool ambiance makes this place even more special.

Being Hoku’s I expected only the best for their Sunday brunch and that’s what I received.  The elegant buffet spread is laid out in the front of the restaurant near the open air kitchen.  There were too many items to mention all of them, but the highlights were sushi and sashimi platters, fresh salads, made to order omelets, crab legs and lobster tails, oven roasted New Zealand rack of lamb, Hoku’s eggs benedict (their specialty, made with smoked salmon atop a homemade biscuit), different breakfast items, and an entire table of desserts from bread pudding to mango tapioca.

All the food was fabulous and I had a hard time deciding on what to eat because everything looked so good.  The miso butterfish was excellent and worth mentioning and also their made to order croissants served toasted with butter, jelly, and a strudel topping.  There was something for every palette with a special emphasis on Japanese food, which cater to their Japanese clientele.  After my meal and four plates of food and desserts later I could hardly move from my seat.  I finished off the meal with a warm cup of Kona coffee and was ready to go home for my mid-day siesta (nap).  It was a bittersweet sense of satisfaction.

Brunch is a little pricey and will run you $58 per adult and children ages 5-12 are $29 each.  This includes one complementary drink such as a mimosa, smoothie, or other beverage they offer.  Any extra drinks will be an additional charge.  I highly recommend their Sunday brunch for any special occasion or just a personal indulgence.  Based on the food quality, top notch service, and beach-side setting I felt it is worth every penny.  For reservations and more information call Hoku’s at 808-739-8760.