So yesterday I returned from beautiful, 80 degree Maui. Not a bad way to spend seven days in December.

And while I was there I ate. A lot.

This was my first trip to Maui, and I was honestly impressed with the meals we had there. I ate everything from butter poached lobster to pork sandwiches from a roadside stands to the best shaved ice in North America (no kidding – check it out here).

I’ll do my best to recap the highlights.

Sansei

Really great sushi. Atmosphere is typical American sushi restaurant, but the sashimi and rolls were fresh and unique. The only roll we weren’t super crazy about what the dragon roll – the unagi pieces were underwhelming. Unfortunately, we ate at 6pm with all the elderly, but if you eat after 10pm the sushi is half-price and there is karaoke to be heard. Maybe next time!

Kimos

We stopped here for lunch after our surfing lessons in Lahaina. Fish tacos were solid, but the view was even better. They had a great patio overlooking the water with a decent view of Lanai.

Sunchips and Mike & Ikes

I’m not kidding – this was our dinner one night. We were just too tired from the surf & sun to head out. That being said, Sun Chips are my favorite chips (Salsa flavored) and Mike & Ikes are probably my top candy choice. I have to sneak them in to the AMC at Northpark as they have something against Mike & Ikes. They’re obviously biased in favor of Sour Patch Kids.

The Gazebo

So the significant other and I are huge breakfast eaters. In Dallas, we brunch on both Saturday and Sunday at Parigi or Kozy Kitchen. Sometimes we’ll throw Breadwinners into the mix.

So on our last day in Kaanapali, we decided to venture out for a big breakfast. And we definitely weren’t disappointed with the bigness of food at The Gazebo in Napilli. It’s a small, out of the way restaurant located poolside at the Napilli Shores Condos. We were a little hesitant when we first arrived. It’s small and shabby looking, but the line out the door assured us it was good. The line moved quickly, and we soon found ourselves inside a literal gazebo to eat our favorite meal of the day. The big winner of the meal was the banana macadamia nut pancakes with fresh whipped cream and maple syrup. I’m not even sure it counts as breakfast as the calorie count probably beats out any dessert.

Banana macadamia nut pancakes with fresh whipped cream

Duo

This was where we dined our first night at the Four Seasons in Maui. It’s your typical steak and seafood restaurant with a great view of Wailea Bay. There’s some dissension between the SO and myself about the caliber of food at DUO. His filet, awesome. My filet, absurdly salty. However, the sides were unique and delicious (blue-cheese creamed spinach and truffled mac and cheese), so I would return to DUO to eat the spinach alone.

Sushi from the Lobby Lounge at Four Seasons Wailea

Honestly, this was probably the best sushi we had during our trip. The pieces were large and fresh, and we devoured our sushi plate within minutes. Always a good sign. We dined on this sushi and drank champagne in the lobby bar before our dinner on the last night at Ferraros. Because obviously sushi is a great appetizer before Italian food…

Hamachi (yellowtail), ebi (raw shrimp), Magoro (tuna) and delicious Toro (tuna belly)

Ferraros

This was my favorite meal in Maui – and it was completely unexpected. Italian in Maui? seriously? But it was fabulous. We sat at a table at the edge of the restaurant overlooking Wailea Beach. We started with their bread served with garlic spread and babaganoush – what a treat. Garlicky and smooth. We ordered beef carpaccio and the caprese salad to start – both were outstanding. The mozzarella needed a tad bit of salt, but otherwise it was creamy and fresh – definitely not just chopped off of a frozen mozzarella ball

And our main courses were both superb. I had the butter-poached lobster served out of the shell on top of ricotta gnocchi. It’s one of those dishes you wish would last forever. Lobster was cooked to perfection and the gnocchi definitely held it’s own. My significant other ordered the braised veal pappardelle – another big winner. How can you go wrong with homemade pappardelle? You can’t. obviously.

Dessert fell a little flat. Tiramasu was okay, but not exactly memorable.

Oh, and our two bottles of wine were delicious.

Bread, wine and candlelight

Makena Grill

This was our final meal in Maui (well, except for the airport nachos that I’m not going to count for obvious reasons). I LOVED this meal, and the whole experience. We spent our morning at the big beach in Makena, and we were starving by noon. So we hopped in our sweet rented red Pontiac Vibe to head half a mile down the road to the Makena Grill – a roadside stand that serves fresh grilled meats, fish tacos, hot dogs and much more. I had the pork sandwich and Nathan had the fish taco – both hot off the grill. After lunch we indulged in a fire-roasted banana…it was amazing as it sounds. It’s basically a bananas foster still in the banana peel. It makes me wish I had a roadside grill in Maui so I could recreate the moment for myself every day.

Makena Grill view from road

The Makena Grill - Head and only Chef

Serious Signage at the Makena Grill

So that’s the end of my culinary adventure in Maui. Along with eating we also surfed, hiked on the volcano, took a side trip to Lanai and drank plenty of Mai Tais and Lava Flows – possibly my new favorite drink.

Aloha,

Sarah