Dining Scene
Restaurants don't get much better than this

By Matthew Gray
Advertiser Restaurant Critic

Ramfis Benigno, captain at Azul restaurant at the JW Marriott Ihilani Resort & Spa at Ko Olina, is a major part of the equation that brings a new level of fine dining to Hawai'i. Jeff Widener • The Honolulu Advertiser Azul JW Marriott Ihilani Resort & Spa at Ko Olina 92-1001 'Olani St., Kapolei www.ihilani.com Dinner: 6-9 p.m. daily 679-0079 Great

At Azul, the incredible — and still little-known — restaurant at the Marriott resort at Ko Olina, Ramfis Benigno is the captain who made our two visits here the new standard in dining for Hawai'i. Before reading any further, grab the phone and make reservations. Now.

Some people may be resistant to making the drive to Ko Olina, but shouldn't be. Here, a 40-minute trip brings you to the rugged west coast of O'ahu. The glimmering seashore, in cahoots with the sky, aches to give you a gorgeous sunset — and, perhaps, one of the most memorable dining experiences you'll ever have.

So impressed were we on our first visit, I asked to have the very talented chef Dion Danao customize the menu for our second. (Note: Dishes without a price next to them are part of a prix-fixe menu; $55 or $75 per person.) Azul is tucked away downstairs, the signature restaurant at the resort, and already has been highly recommended by several organizations including Zagat, AAA and Wine Spectator. Now's my turn.

This quiet, classy and comfortably elegant restaurant features a lounge with sofas when you first walk in, leading to a wood-burning oven area, and then on to the main dining room. There's a sense of belonging here. Round shapes abound. Lighting is soft. You may dine inside or out on the terrace.And, if you ask nicely, they'll set you up with a table on the grass near the waterfall.

Before your meal service actually begins, you are brought an amuse bouche course. On our first visit it was a round garlic toast topped with herbed cream cheese, shrimp and a touch of tobiko (flying fish) roe. The second night's offering was a cream of potato, leek and celery-root soup, with a sauteed lobster cake submerged within. I enjoyed a glass of Taittenger champagne ($13) with this. Miss A had a splash of cassis in hers, otherwise known as a kir royale.

Next, the consommé of oxtail ($8) was magnificent.A large truffle ravioli in the bowl was filled with tender morsels of meat and wild mushrooms. The consommé itself was rich, perfumed, musky, with equal parts essence of marrow and magic.

The open-faced seafood ravioli ($14.50) had shiitake, baby yellow squash, scallops, shrimp, fish and basil leaves, all tasting as though they had been snatched mere moments before from the ocean and the garden. It was matched with garlic cream sauce, enriched with truffle butter for maximum depth. The pasta was flavored with sun-dried tomato. With this course we had a glass of Duckhorn 1999 sauvignon blanc ($8.50), a bright and well-balanced wine with a long, rich, lingering finish.

The shrimp and scallop duet on our second night was a beautiful plate.Herbed fettuccine was coiled up between a fanned-out shiitake mushroom and the star of the show, a roasted shrimp and plump scallop in a red-brown lobster and ancho chile butter sauce. Wow.

The foie gras ($16.50) was the best I have ever tasted. It had the most delicate crunch along the edges.That gave way to a love-me-tenderness that only foie gras fans can know. The sauce was a pomegranate and balsamic vinegar reduction, complex and playful at the same time. All this deliciousness was constructed way up high, atop a potato pancake flavored with Maui onion, with an oven-dried slice of pineapple slipped inside for good measure.The plate was finished with red leaf lettuce, orange sections, and crispy shreds of ginger and won-ton wrapper.

Assisting Ramfis, the captain, was waiter Alex Lumives, who is among the best. Both are knowledgeable, alert and nurturing. Qualities like that make a huge difference. Once you're treated like this, you'll be spoiled forever. It takes you as a patron to the next level of food appreciation.It takes them, as restaurant professionals, to the pinnacle of their craft.

Our meal kept getting better and better. A petite filet mignon, cooked to perfection, shared the plate with tender-sweet Maine lobster meat, some tail and a claw, separated by a bed of truffled mashed potatoes. A peppercorn-butter sauce and a Dijon mustard-garlic sauce were outstanding accompaniments.We had a glass of Stone Street 1997 Alexander Valley merlot ($10) with this course.

Dessert time meant soufflés ($10); one with chocolate sauce, the other with a creamy Grand Marnier sauce. They were beautiful, puffy, light and steaming hot, straight from the oven, Served by Ramfis, split and sauced by Alex.

This evening was coming to a sweet close, and we had a glass of Kendall Jackson 1997 late harvest chardonnay ($7.50) after the soufflés.

Under the tutelage of charming manager Andrew Hope, Azul already is at the top of its game.

Is there room for improvement? Yes, but very little.

What helps make Azul so fantastic are the amazing people here.

I am literally running out of adjectives.

Food and service this good will make you cry.

Reach Matthew Gray at ChefMatthew@LoveLife.com