Wine and lychee? Why not? For the next week or two, while supplies last, The Wine Stop, 1809 S. King, is selling fresh lychees grown on the Hamakua Coast by family members of Liane Fu, one of the shop's owners. Fu rightly points out that, for many of us, peeling a fresh lychee brings back small-kid times, when many of us had fruit trees in our yards (alas, not so common now).

The tree-ripened lychees are $6 a pound. Fu can probably also suggest a wine that complements lychees. Information: 946-3707.

IMPORTED LIMPETS

THERE'S A 'NEW' 'OPIHI ON THE BLOCK

Everyone knows that 'opihi — that lu'au favorite limpet, slurped up raw — is becoming more and more scarce and expensive. But on Kaua'i, Noelani Josselin and Patrick Murphy Jr., have been attempting to fill the void for some time by importing yellow-foot limpets (Patella vulgata) from Ireland under their Island Opihi Co. label. They are preserved in sea salt and flash-frozen within a short time of being picked, shelled, cleaned and packaged in vacuum-sealed bags.

You can find the tasty gastropods at Tropic Fish & Vegetable and Diamond Head Seafood on O'ahu and Leo Rapozo's on Kaua'i. Information: (808) 634-2007.