Neighbor Isle dining delights | The Honolulu Advertiser

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Neighbor Isle dining delights | The Honolulu Advertiser | Hawaii's Newspaper

Posted on: Friday, August 25, 2006

Neighbor Isle dining delights

By Wanda A. Adams
Advertiser Food Editor

Mala, on Lahaina's Front Street, features small plates and more substantial dishes in a casual on-the-water setting.

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The Pineapple Grill in Kapalua features a bar with a water view and, for the time being, chef Joey Macadangdang's menu, although new chef Ryan Luckey is taking over.

On a couple of recent Maui jaunts, I tried not to waste a single meal — meaning visiting as many interesting spots as I could. Here's what I found, at places new and old, on the Valley Isle.

Blu. The latest addition to the Tri-Star Restaurants chain (Aaron's, Sarento's, Nick's Fishmarket Maui) is perched dramatically over the water in a period building on Lahaina's chaotic Front Street. Renovated in turn-of-the-20th-century style, Blu's first- and second-floor decks extend into the blue even farther than the neighboring Lahaina Yacht Club, offering views from almost every seat.

The menu, by corporate chef George Gomes with Blu chef Maka Kwon, reaches out, too, bypassing the predictable East-West mix and creating a style they call Mediterranean Rim. There's naan bread made in a tandoor oven (OK, Mediterranean with a touch of subcontinental), fried shrimp with a silky, salty anchovy dip, souvlaki skewers and — oh, for joy — a signature s'mores dessert. Arguably the most interesting member of the Tri-Star 'ohana. 839 Front St.; (808) 661-9591.

Tastings Wine Bar & Grill.The featureless shopping mall building and office-style glass door give a false impression of what lies within: a small, chic, chef-run restaurant specializing in small(ish) plates and well-matched wines. The food was intriguing, international and excellent: oysters with tobiko, or flying-fish roe (as many as you like at $2 apiece); lettuce-leaf bundles of prawns with shaved vegetables, mint and fennel and a drizzle of Southeast Asian sauce; a retro mac and cheese served in a tiny copper pot, with a mini pork sandwich; a great version of the ubiquitous roasted beet and goat-cheese salad.

Our waiter, Tom, knew service, combining a friendly welcome with professionalism and promptness. Unfortunately, I noted in a Web search that the place is up for sale; hope you get there before things change. Appetizers, salads, entrees: $8 to $30, with most dishes under $15. Kalama Mall, 1913 South Kihei Road, Kalama Village, suites F & G, Kihei; (808) 879-8711.

Mala. I don't ever want to go to Maui without stopping at Mark and Judy Ellman's latest project, a bright, airy sliver of a waterfront restaurant at the Mala Wharf end of Lahaina.

They call it "An Ocean Tavern" and, like so many other places, the focus is on smaller plates and tapas-style eating, although there are some heartier entrees (a whole moi, hoisin-glazed baby back ribs, an amazing "adult mac and cheese" made with rigatoni and mozzarella, pecorino and Maytag blue cheeses). I always have to have the starter of hummus, raita, olives, babaganoush, fried chickpeas and feta with pita bread and lavosh and the wonderful, crisp Naia Verdejo wine from Spain. Friendly, casual food prepared with care. $9 to $28, with most dishes under $15. 1307 Front St.; (808) 667-9394.

Buzz's Wharf. Buzz's, overlooking the boat dock at Ma'alaea Harbor, is one of the oldest continually operating restaurants on Maui; I remember having a party there in my 20s, a long time ago now. It's known for grilled steaks and seafood and popular with Mauians for festive gatherings. The busy restaurant offers a view of the boatyard and the curving shore of Maui.

The spotlight is on protein, and servings are big and richly dressed. Salads are uninspired, and vegetables the night I visited were underdone carrots and zucchini. But the chicken piccata's sauce was so buttery and so generously laced with capers and tomatoes that I had trouble remembering to stop when I was full. My husband, having polished off a whole lobster with drawn butter, finished it for me. Tahitian prawns are a specialty. $25 to $40. Ma'alaea Harbor; (808) 244-5426.

Pineapple Grill. This attractive restaurant at The Bay Golf Course in Kapalua was completely renovated a year ago and has just changed chefs, although Joey Macadangdang's menu will remain largely in place for a while as the new chef, Ryan Luckey, takes over. Try the crispy duck spring rolls with achara relish and banana-chili sauce, the soy grilled hamachi collar or the upscale loco moco with veal sauce. The bar is a great place to hang out with a beautiful view of the golf course and the best cosmo I've ever had (fresh-squeezed orange juice makes the difference). Pineapple Grill serves a continental breakfast, lunch, an afternoon bar menu and dinner nightly. $7 to 14, lunch; $8 to $32, dinner. 200 Kapalua Drive; (808) 669-9600.

AND ON THE BIG ISLAND

A rushed overnight hop to the Big Island left me time for just one meal out, and I chose Kai at the Sheraton Keauhou Resort & Spa. Much-lauded chef Ben Takahashi has just left to return to a post at the Mauna Lani Bay Hotel & Bungalows, but his menu remains in place for the time being under former executive sous chef, William "Bill" Heubel, a California Culinary Academy graduate who has worked in hotels throughout the West and at Lana'i's Manele Bay. My light supper of beet and Big Island goat- cheese salad and an appetizer portion of meltingly tender Mongolian barbecued spareribs with Asian slaw and peanut sauce was delightful. The restaurant — which serves a breakfast buffet every morning and then is transformed into a sedate dinner house each evening — is spacious and hushed with a view out to the bay. $7 to $35. 78-128 Ehukai St., Kailua, Kona; (808) 930-4900.

Reach Wanda A. Adams at wadams@honoluluadvertiser.com.

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