Maui: Food!

Hello, spam musubi. I'm going to eat you!

One of our favorite things in Hawaii is the food. It's so simple - white rice, fish, pork products, noodles - but there's something about island food that just makes it taste so good. Being on vacation probably has something to do with it, because there's no other time one would care to consume such large quantities of processed luncheon meats. Obviously, we ate very well on our trip. Mommy and Daddy's favorites were the plate lunches: a meat item, a scoop of rice, and a scoop of mac salad, while I could have eaten saimin and pineapple everyday. Luckily we had a kitchen so in addition to being able to get our own basics, we also got to heat up leftovers for some meals.

We ended up eating at a lot of the same places as last year, since we already knew they were good (in fact, our whole vacation seems very similar to last year's - we like consistency). Since people are always asking for recommendations on where to eat in Maui, here is a review of most of the places we visited.

Da Kitchen: Okay, we actually didn't eat here this time, but it has to be mentioned (see last year's post for a review and pictures). Mommy was drooling for their deep fried spam musubi and couldn't wait to get off the plane and come here for lunch. Little did we know that they are closed on Sundays! Booo. It's near the airport, so she planned another attempt to eat here after we dropped Daddy off to go to Houston. Another huge disappointment.

*Gasp* Closed for remodeling!

Mommy was very very sad that we didn't get to eat here this time. If you're ever in Maui and visit Da Kitchen, you must try their deep fried spam musubi! Mommy will be jealous.

Zippy's: A popular Hawaiian chain. Since Da Kitchen was closed, this was our first taste of local food after we landed. There's a fast food counter as well as a sit-down dining room, which is like Hawaii's equivalent of Denny's. We had some fried chicken as well as their famous chili and rice. Junky, but satisfying.

The Fish Market Maui: We've come here multiple times over our last two trips to Maui. It's a great place for takeout for lunch or dinner. They have the best tuna poke - but you have to get it early. Our first night in Maui, Daddy tried to get some for dinner, but it was already long sold out. Their fish tacos are good, as well as their fresh fish plate lunches, and fish sandwiches. They have stuff for non-fish eaters (like me) too. I had a quesadilla, and enjoyed their homemade potato chips.

Yummy crab cake with mac salad and rice. Forgot to take a pic of the fish tacos.

Nagasako Okazu-Ya Deli: Small Japanese takeout serving breakfast and plate lunches. They open really early and their breakfast combos are only $3.95! That is a bargain in Hawaii. Their spam musubis apparently sell out by 10am, and people on Yelp claim they are the best on the island. Mommy thinks they're just okay though - the rice to spam ratio is a little too much and she liked the spam musubi from the supermarkets better.

I ate bacon and eggs practically everyday for breakfast...my favorite!

Aloha Mixed Plate: Great local Hawaiian food in a relaxed atmosphere with an ocean view. We always end up coming here more than once during our vacation. This time we came once for breakfast and once for dinner.

Breakfast: Kalua pig hash and eggs; Loco moco (yes, for breakfast!)

Crispy bacon!

Dinner: Mixed plate with kalua pork and lau lau; Saimin (the broth was so tasty, just like a good bowl of Hong Kong wonton mein); Chinese chicken salad; "Slurp!"

There's a small beach behind the restaurant, and we finished dinner just in time to take some post-sunset pictures.

Mama's Fish House: Our experience was already shared here but in a nutshell, Mommy and Daddy love Mama's Fish House because of how well their fish is prepared. It's always freshly caught (the fisherman's names are listed on the menu) and cooked perfectly, with delicious accompaniments. It's not cheap and the location is a bit out of the way, but worth coming at least once for a special meal.

Ululani's Hawaiian Shave Ice: Always a must when you go to Hawaii. There are many places that serve shave ice, but Ululani's is the most famous. We can see why. The ice is superfine and fluffy, the syrups are made from real fruit, and it's extra delicious with a scoop of macadamia ice cream on the bottom and a "snow cap" of condensed milk on top! 

Ono Kau Kau: Hawaiian-Chinese hole in the wall by our resort (across the street from Fish Market Maui). It was okay. Mommy liked her lau lau plate, but the saimin was a little bland. We also tried a katsu pork musubi, but it didn't taste like it even had a brush of sauce on it. This place was just good for the convenience.

Star Noodle: Modern restaurant serving Asian Fusion. As the name implies, their main focus is noodles. They serve all kinds, including ramen, udon, saimin, pad thai, chow fun, etc. There's a long wait to get a table though. We had to call ahead to put our names on the list, and even after we arrived it was another twenty minute wait. It turns out we liked the shared plates more than the noodle dishes. The filipino bacon and egg dish was huge portion, and was even better when Mommy used the leftovers to make fried rice one night. This place is probably worth going for takeout, since waiting for a table while you're on vacation is annoying.

Karaage chicken; Filipino bacon and egg (crispy pork belly with poached egg); Seared ahi belly; "Unravel yourself" black bean chow fun

Forgot to take a pic of the ramen before digging into it so here is me eating it.

Shark Pit Maui: This was a food truck that was parked right at the Sugar Cane Train station. There were lots of good reviews on Yelp, so we checked it out for lunch one day. Having consumed several lava flows by the pool beforehand, Daddy wasn't too hungry, so he and Mommy shared the Korean kalbi steak tacos. The meat was nice and tender with a spicy kick to it. I really liked the fresh local corn, lightly grilled and then brushed with butter and furikake. If we had another chance, we would go a second time and try their burgers or fish tacos.

Local Food: Another local Hawaiian food joint. This is literally a takeout window in a parking lot with two tables in front. Service is slow, but it's just two ladies working there and making the food to order. Mommy liked her lau lau, but really liked Daddy's loco moco. It came with fried rice and had the best gravy!

McDonald's: Yes, we went to McDonald's while in Maui. We wanted to grab a quick breakfast before heading to Napili beach, and it was on the way. Besides, only at a Hawaii McDonald's can you get spam, eggs, and rice for breakfast, and haupia pie for a dollar (it's like their apple pie, but with coconut filling)!

Duke's Beach House: Since this restaurant was located at our resort, it was super convenient and we ended up coming here several times. You can order lunches from here poolside (mmm kalua pork nachos) along with drinks and cocktails. There's a huge outdoor patio with someone always playing live music, which made for some great sunset dinners. I loved the five-cheese mac n' cheese off of the dining room menu (not to be confused with the Kraft mac n' cheese off of the kids' menu).

Mai tai!

Sunset views from the patio

Leoda's Kitchen and Pie Shop: Our last breakfast stop before heading to the airport. We wished we visited this place earlier in the week, so we could try all their fresh pies too. Mommy and Daddy both agreed that they had by far the best eggs benedict they've ever eaten here. It was such a surprise. We also had to try the coconut french toast, although none of us are really sweet-breakfast kinda people. It was exactly what we expected - super sweet. They also offer savory pot pies which we're sure would have been delicious for reheating for dinner in our condo. We'll have to keep this in mind for next time.

Phew, now I'm hungry. I can't believe Mommy took so many pictures of food. We can't wait to go back!