31 replies to this topic

[LPShanet]

Interested in finding the best (top rated) restaurants in Maui. Am interested in the best places to eat in terms of fine dining, as well as really good local and low key places. Am staying on the West side of the Island (Kaanapali) but willing to travel for food. Thanks!

[miulang]

Interested in finding the best (top rated) restaurants in Maui.  Am interested in the best places to eat in terms of fine dining, as well as really good local and low key places.  Am staying on the West side of the Island (Kaanapali) but willing to travel for food.  Thanks!

Mam's Fish House in Kuau (outside Paia) is always great (great ocean views, too). Be sure to have the Black Pearl dessert.
You can't go wrong at Roy's either (there's a Roy's Kahana Bar and Roy's Niccolina on the West Side and a Roy's in Kihei).
If you like sushi, go to either the Sanmi Sushi Restaurants at Kapalua or in Kihei.
Upcountry in Haliimaile is the Haliimaile General Store.
On the South end of Maui (Wailea), the Humuhumunukunukuapuaa Restaurant is very popular. It's in the Grand Wailea Resort (you'll probably spot some Hollywood celebs dining there, too).

Cheap and low key...Da Kitchen in Kihei. Plentiful local style food. Mostly take out (although they have seating). Good to take their plate lunches to the beach.

The ubiquitous L&L Drive-Inns have plate lunches also. They're all over the place (in Lahaina, there's one in the Lahaina Cannery Mall). In that same food court is Ba Le which makes great banh mi sandwiches.

Miulang

Edited by miulang, 14 December 2006 - 04:38 PM.

[kieran]

Strongly second the recommendation for the Haliimaile General Store -- on our recent trip to the Big Island and Maui, it was definitely one of our most memorable meals. Don't know if you're visiting anyone from Maui, but they had a 2 for 1 discount for people who live in Hawaii on Monday nights while we were there a month ago -- in exchange for bringing some canned food for their food drive. Not sure if that is a regular thing or if it was for Thanksgiving.

We also really enjoyed lunch at Aloha Mixed Plate in Lahaina. Ignore the touristy name; the food is really good.

We were staying with friends who live in Kihei, but unfortunately we didn't find any food in Kihei itself too exceptional.

Have fun!

[JumblyJu]

Check out the Honolulu Advertiser's Best Restaurant Guide. Look under Neighbor Island dining for restaurants on Maui.

My personal "must do" while on Maui is eat guri-guri from Tasaka Guri-Guri in Maui Mall. It's a creamy sherbert that's not hard like regular sherbert. It's soft and so 'ono!

[justinb914]

Mama's Fish House (mentioned above), David Pauls in Lahaina and Sansei in Kihei were my favorites. There is a Sansei in Kapalua (close to Kanapali), but I didn't go. Sansei has a late night menu (10pm and later) where everything is at 50%.

[rumball]

i enjoyed a few meals at roys in kihei and on the west side and i'o around lahaina was very good (it's in a tiny 'mall' with a few galleries and sev. restaurants; old luau is there too) . since you are at kaanapali - check out japanese rest in marriot (don't remember the name, it's on the 2nd fl - nice sunset view), a lot of people like it.

[arni psito]

As heretical as it may be, I have to dissent on Mama's Fish House. While it is a very pretty spot, and the quality of the fish is very good, I found the cooking unimaginative, unimpressive, and overpriced. As a nice place to sit for a meal, I think it works; but as a food destination/recommendation, I don't think it does.

[Raoul Duke]

If your condo has a BBQ on the grounds, I might suggest picking up some Azeka ribs for the grill. Ono grinds.

[JumblyJu]

If your condo has a BBQ on the grounds, I might suggest picking up some Azeka ribs for the grill.  Ono grinds.

Azeka's closed last year. Read about it here.

[coastie]

Sensei !!!!!! memorable and good
Longhis decent Italian in a fun atmsohere food is solid, service is good. Reccomend Lahainna location. Mamas fish house is always good.
Get plate lunch - Lao lao ( sp.) or mahi mahi plate ,kahlua pork at the L & L one in waliea and in cannery mall. ( this is local, cheap and good) Isn't there a Nick's fish market in Waliea Had a great meal at Nick's. Food was good. Service was amazing. Sushi at the prince is good too.
Stella blues has great breakfast.
But my favorite.......buy some ahi poki at the star market and a six pack and watch the sunset. I like the spicy but they are all good. Sensei is a worthy dining experience and is on your side of the island. It is small expect to wait - it is worth it

[reid]

Not sure if you're still in Maui, and I don't really know why no one ever mentions this place, but I like Gerard's. Located in Lahaina, there are sleeping quarters upstairs.

[MauiMan]

If your condo has a BBQ on the grounds, I might suggest picking up some Azeka ribs for the grill.  Ono grinds.

Azeka's closed last year. Read about it here.

Sadly it did...and I miss it so....but for things similar and the best beef teriyaki on Maui, you gotta go and try Takamiya's in the Happy Valley section of Wailuku. It is Market Street almost at the end before the road curves up into the mountains. DA BEST! Don't forget the Ahi Poke...its a great snack while you are bbq ing up those short ribs or beef teriyaki.

Aloha

[FabulousFoodBabe]

Just returned from ten days there and whenI get my act together, will post more. Briefly ..

YES to Da Kitchen, General Store. I'd add David Paul's to it as well, and the bar at the Four Seasons.

Breakfast at Polli's one day, post-bike ride, was fun: "Come In Or We'll Both Starve." Words to live by.

More words to live by, at Kihei Caffe: "Sleep. Grind. Beach."

[ejw50]

Spago is in the Four Seasons in Wailea, I loved it it the 2x I went.

Gerard's in Lahaina is mentioned in both Frommer's and Fodor's as one of the best.


I thought Humuhumunukunukuapuaa was a little overrated. OK food, small portions, expensive. But their fishtank is beautiful.


Second the mention for Nick's Fishmarket. Excellent service, very good food.

[oneidaone]

Aloha ejw50! Sounds like you had a good trip. Can you tell us about your dinner(s)
at Spago? I too love it!

I enjoyed Nick's as well, I was amazed at how many people were serving our table
I kind of lost track. Their flaming desserts are fun.

[coastie]

Good local eats ribs and chicken - REALLY ggod BBQ pork sandwich at Mamas in Kapalua. Family run place in a strip mall.

[ejw50]

Aloha ejw50! Sounds like you had a good trip. Can you tell us about your dinner(s)
at Spago? I too love it!

I enjoyed Nick's as well, I was amazed at how many people were serving our table
I kind of lost track. Their flaming desserts are fun.

It was a year ago; I wish I remembered the details. One one night I had the steak and another the lamb. My wife had fish both times. We both thought it was the best meals we had in Maui.

We bought "Wolfgang Puck Makes it Easy" autographed, and a bunch of things in our meal were in the book. This includes the Pineapple upsidedown cake, the potato purees, and a few of the marinades (inculding soy-mint one).

[PollyG]

Izakaya Matsu in Kihei (ocean-side of Azeka strip mall) is a neighborhood Japanese drink/small dish place that is an outstanding value for its high quality. We've eaten here twice during our vacation and will do so again. The menu has a wide range of cooking styles and is about 30% raw vs. 70% cooked. We've gone for a lot of small plates-tonight's bill shows 10 dishes for the 3 of us (includes our 8 year-old)at about $70 post-tax. That is less than we pay at our neighborhood Japanese place in the DC area.

Everything has been good to excellent and the waitstaff are friendly and attentive.

[gfweb]

Duo and Spago at the Four Seasons are reliably good, but not cheap. Sarento in Kihei has a good Italian menu and wine list. Nick's Fish Market in the Fairmont is a bit over-rated...just OK in my book.

[oneidaone]

Duo and Spago at the Four Seasons are reliably good, but not cheap.  Sarento in Kihei has a good Italian menu and wine list.  Nick's Fish Market in the Fairmont is a bit over-rated...just OK in my book.

I agree with the Spago thought, I have a reservation there for early March. I also have a lunch reservation for Hailiimaile General Store which is more than worth the drive from wherever you might be staying. I think the name is Kincha in the Grand Wailea (if not it's similar) that is a really nice Japanese restaurant, I've eaten there a few times and like it very much. One time I was really sick (bummeroo on vacation but the staff babied me and took such good care of me it was outstanding!

Joe's is also good (in the tennis center at Wailea) another Bev Gannon restaurant. They serve martini's over glasses filled with ice nice presentation. I'm going to try Mala in the Marriott as well during the trip over.

For Spago I would just say "let the chef cook for me" and see what he does whatever it will be beautiful, flavorful and completely inspiring.

[gfweb]

You are right about Kincha in Grand Wailea. Not open every night, though. It is a traditional Japanese restaurant, catering to the many Japanese visitors. There isn't a hint of the flashy Las Vegas sushi style here. Just good traditional Japanese food in an elegant but spare setting.

[gfweb]

Just dined at Spago in Wailea Four Seasons.

Uggh. Boy has it changed. Profoundly inattentive waiter, 40 minutes before bread and water reaches the table, sloooowwwwwww service. Pours communion-sized doses of unchilled pinot grigio and disappears with the bottle!

Food was OK, but the whole experience was a disaster.

Edited by gfweb, 26 January 2009 - 01:22 AM.

[oneidaone]

That's too bad. Besides telling all of us about this disaster what did management
at the restaurant say when you told them? I'm always interested in that aspect
of an unsatisfactory experience.

I'm going anyway.

[gfweb]

I wasnt paying, so I kept my mouth shut. Would I have asked to talk to management if I had been paying? In general I feel like "what's the point?" the management is why the service sucks.

When the host complained about the slow service he got an entirely unsatisfactory answer from the waiter about computer problems.

Others in our group had similar bad experiences on other days.

Go at your own risk.

[oneidaone]

Whatever I KNOW I will have a great time.

Edited by oneidaone, 28 January 2009 - 11:10 AM.

[gfweb]

will not

[LizzyWizzy]

In Hawaii for a week at the end of the month staying in maui

any suggestions for a couple of lunches, dinners, both local and international cuisine?

[coastie]

For a local plate lunch/ BBQ try Mamas in Napili. I love their BBQ pork Sandwich and mac salad. Love Sensei for sushi.

[et alors]

Any recent advice? I'm staying in kihei for a week, and I keep heating that's where the restaurants are... But any good? I can also cook so advice on farmers markets etc welcome.

[gfweb]

Duo at the Four Seasons is great. Spago, in my experience, is very unreliable there. Sarento's in Wailea is good too.