Posted on: Thursday, January 27, 2005

SHOW BIZ
Island chef suits up for Super Bowl taste fest

By Wayne Harada
Advertiser Entertainment Writer

SUPER GRINDS: The New England Patriots aren't the only ones headed for the Super Bowl for the third time. So is D.K. Kodama, Hawai'i chef and owner of Sansei, Vino, d.k. Steak House and Hiroshi Eurasion Tapas. He's bound for Jacksonville on Feb. 5 to represent the Islands at A Taste of the NFL, which will assemble celebrity chefs from all the NFL cities at a night-before-the-game gala. Though we don't have an NFL team, we do host the Pro Bowl. Since its inception 12 years ago, the Taste event has raised nearly $5.5 million for hunger-related charities. Agencies in each NFL city — and Honolulu, too — receive a portion of the proceeds.

So what's Kodama preparing for the Super feast? Fresh corn polenta with king crab legs and wild mushroom ragout. He's in good company: Among other chefs aboard: Allen Susser, Susan Spicer, Stephen Lewandowski (Tribeca Grill), Shin Tsujimura (Nobu) and Dennis Leary (Rubicon).

ON THE TUBE: Restaurateur Randy Schoch, who owns the Ruth's Chris Steak House franchises in Hawai'i (and formerly was a partner with Tom Selleck and Larry Manetti in The Black Orchid), was quite excited about last week's episode of Fox's "The O.C." The show devoted at least three minutes to characters ordering takeout from Schoch's most recent concept, Thaifoon, which has locations in Orange County and Scottsdale (where the Schoch family now lives). His smile was wide when he heard how great the "lettuce wraps, pad Thai and gallons of soups" were when phone orders were placed. ...

And Sudden Rush got another rush on Duane "Dog" Chapman's "Dog the Bounty Hunter" on A&E last Monday, when the local group's "Angel" and "Hi'ilawe" tracks were heard. ...

Art imitates life when "American Idol" star Clay Aiken appears on NBC's "Scrubs" in mid-February. He is heading for Hawai'i to perform a few songs at "Hawai'i Voices for Change," a fund-raiser for the Bubel/Aiken Foundation, which he co-founded in 2003 with Diane Bubel, a parent and disability activist. The event is Feb. 25 at the Sheraton Waikiki hotel. On "Scrubs," Aiken appears as a singer in a talent show. You betcha, he wins. ...

WHEE, THE PEOPLE: The Makaha Sons depart today for Los Angeles, where their two shows on Saturday at Whittier College are sold out. So a third performance has been added for 2 p.m. Sunday — in case you're in the area and want to attend — according to member John Koko. The Sons are also heading for San Francisco, Houston, Alaska, Colorado Springs, San Antonio and San Diego in the weeks ahead, with numerous Japan hops in February, March, May, July, August, September, October and December. Stay informed at www.makahasons.com. ...

David Koerner, former St. Francis Hospital chef and recent recipient of a kidney transplant from his wife, Debbie, is wrapping up his master's degree in elementary education from the University of Phoenix because the couple is moving this week to North Carolina. Debbie's sister Lisa Josephsohn, the publicist, hosted a quiet aloha dinner last weekend at Ruth's Chris Steak House. ...

Don't be surprised if Broadway icon Carol Channing does a few hula moves in her Friday and Saturday shows at the Hawai'i Theatre. She's having a ball here; picked up some hula moves from Amy Hanaiali'i Gilliom and Jeff Apaka at Sunday brunch at the Moana hotel. And she visited Hula's Bar & Lei Stand, at the invitation of owner Jack Law, sharing quips with the audience. ...

Pianist Kit Samson is back from President Bush's inaugural festivities, where he performed at a ball. Happy to be in sunny climes, and happier that he got out of the East Coast blizzard. "It was sooooo cold," he murmured. "I think my stock went up with this gig." ...

RANDOM NOTES: Janine Diehl, a 16-year-old Hawaii Baptist Academy student and daughter of veteran musician Frank Diehl, is Hawai'i's representative to the National Young Leaders Conference in Washington, D.C., this week, one of 400 participants. A singer-pianist, Janine performs with a school group, Soldiers of Light, and is a guard on the varsity basketball team and soccer manager. Clearly, influence has rubbed off: Dad was formerly musical director/arranger for Don Ho and Jim Nabors and also worked with the Local Divas. Frank, pastor of the Tree of Life Christian Fellowship at Fisherman's Wharf, has been one of Janine's voice teachers; the other is Jesse Gamiao, former member of The Krush. ...

Musician Daniel Del Negro is remaining here, though wife Keahi Conjugacion is relocating to The Big Apple. ...

Helen Huang gives a piano recital at 4 p.m. Sunday at Orvis Auditorium, at the University of Hawai'i-Manoa. Tickets are $18 and $9. ...

And that's Show Biz. ...

Show Biz is published Tuesdays and Thursdays. Reach Wayne Harada at wharada@honoluluadvertiser.com, 525-8067 or fax 525-8055.