MEMORIAL DAY BBQ

MEMORIAL DAY BBQ

DINNER AT HOME

Enjoyed an incredible spread of food on Memorial Day while entertaining an out of town guest.

Great food, friendship and wine.  These are some of our favorite foods with the Ribs, Steak and Crab being some of things I love most.  Always pull out my favorite Fish Plate for the Poke.   The plate was made for me by a good friend and its nice to remember him overtime we use it.  So blessed to enjoy this great day with family and friends.  My prayers are with all of those who have served and given their lives for this great country.

THE APPETIZER ROUND

PROSCUITTO WRAPPED MELON

ASSORTED CHEESE PLATTER

TOASTED SOUR DOUGH BREAD WITH RASPBERRY JELLY FOR TRUFFLE CHEESE

KIMCHI TAKO POKE AND HAWAIIAN STYLE POKE

FROM THE GRILL

CORN ON THE COBB

BBQ RIBS

ALASKAN KING CRAB LEGS

GRILLED FRESH HAWAIIAN PINEAPPLE

MAIN COURSE OF RIB EYE STEAK WITH ASPARAGUS AND HOLLANDAISE SAUCE

LA TOUR CAFE

LA TOUR CAFE
820 W. HIND DRIVE
HONOLULU, HI  96821
808-373-5174
HOURS:  Daily 10:00 AM - 9:00 PM
www.latourcafe.com
www.yelp.com/biz/la-tour-cafe-honolulu-8
www.facebook.com/pages/La-Tour-Cafe-Aina-Haina/1164521813562420

I was not a big fan of La Tour Cafe when they opened up their first location on Nimitz Highway.  Now that they have a new location closer to home I may visit them more often.  The new restaurant in located in Aina Haina were Foodland Farms is the anchor tenant.  We stopped in for lunch and waited in line at the counter.  With only one cashier it was kind of slow but the gal behind the counter was all smiles and really made people feel welcome.  I went for The Italian Sandwich ($10) which comes with a small salad and house made pickles.  The sandwich was very thin for an Italian Sandwich.  The Sesame Brioche bread was delicious.  Really could not taste the individual meats which included Salami, Sopressata, Mortadella and Prosciutto.  The only thing I could taste was the Arugula and Balsamic Dressing.  The Arugula was really overpowering all of the other flavors.  A little more meat and less or no Arugula would have been nice.  The side salad was good and we loved the house made pickles.  My Daughter enjoyed her Chicken Pesto Panini ($10) and also liked the side salad.  This is a nice little neighborhood spot where you can pick up a quick quality meal.

Click links below for previous posts on La Tour Cafe;

https://greateatshawaii.blogspot.com/2015/04/la-tour-cafe.html

https://greateatshawaii.blogspot.com/2011/06/la-tour-cafe.html

LA TOUR CAFE

LA TOUR CAFE AINA HAINA

ORDER AT THE COUNTER AND THEY WILL BRING YOUR ORDER TO THE TABLE

LA TOUR CAFE MENU BOARD

LA TOUR CAFE IS KNOWN FOR THEIR MACARONS

LA TOUR CAFE MENU 

PANINI, TARTINE AND FLATBREAD PIZZAS

BURGERS AND SANDWICHES

SIDES, EXTRAS AND DESSERTS

CHICKEN PESTO PANINI

CHICKEN PESTO PANINI

THE ITALIAN WITH SALAD AND HOUSE MADE PICKLES

THE ITALIAN HAS GREAT BREAD BUT IS OVERPOWERED BY ARUGULA

PA'INA CAFE

PA'INA CAFE

WARD WAREHOUSE

1050 ALA MOANA BLVD

HONOLULU, HI  96814

808-356-2829

HOURS:  Monday thru Saturday 10:00 AM - 9:00 PM

                 Sunday 10:00 AM - 6:00 PM

www.painacafe.com

www.yelp.com/biz/paina-cafe-honolulu

www.facebook.com/Paina-Cafe-138936765557/

After my first visit to Pa'ina Cafe several years ago I vowed never to return.  Hated the place and have managed to stay away for a long time.  When my Daughter begged me for a Poke Bowl and insisted that we go to Pa'ina Cafe I gave in and we went back to the place that gives me mayonnaise nightmares (see older blog post below).  I remember not liking the place because it seemed a bit dirty and when we entered this time I felt the same way.  As we stood in line my only thought was how fast could we get out of this place.  The place was hot and to me uncomfortable.  My girls ordered Small Poke Bowls ($7.25) and added Furikake (.50).  The Bowls come with White or Brown Rice.  They said the Poke did not taste fresh and was not a high quality.  Some of the fish was brown and both of them said they did not care for the flavor.  Said that Poke from Foodland was ten times better.  I went for the Italiano Sandwich ($7.95) which on my first visit was drenched in mayonnaise.  This time I specifically requested no mayo.  The sandwich was not bad and the the bread was light and fresh.  Not a bad sandwich this time.  I think it is safe to say that we will never return to Pa'ina Cafe.  I know I will not.

Click link below to view my 2012 post on Pa'ina Cafe;

http://greateatshawaii.blogspot.com/2012/05/paina-cafe.html

PA'INA CAFE

PA'INA CAFE AT WARD WAREHOUSE

ORDER AND RECEIVE FOOD AT THE COUNTER

WASABI MASAGO AHI POKE BOWL WITH FURIKAKE

AHI POKE BOWL WITH FURIKAKE

ITALIAN SANDWICH

BREAD WAS FRESH AND THE TASTE WAS NOT BAD

LANGOUSTINES PASTA

LANGOUSTINES PASTA

DINNER AT HOME

When I saw a large bag of frozen Langoustines at Costco we grabbed them and then had to figure out how to incorporate them into a dish.  Went with a pasta dish made with Pancetta, Garlic, Red Onion and a White Wine, Olive Oil and Garlic Sauce.  Tasted great!

LANGOUSTINES PASTA

THE PLANTATION HOUSE RESTAURANT - KAPALUA, MAUI (DINNER)

THE PLANTATION HOUSE

PLANTATION GOLF COURSE

2000 PLANTATION CLUB DRIVE

LAHAINA, HI 96761

808-669-6299

HOURS:  8:00 AM - 10:00 PM

www.theplantationhouse.com

www.yelp.com/biz/the-plantation-house-restaurant-lahaina

www.facebook.com/ThePlantationHouseRestaurant

I love The Plantation House Restaurant in Kapalua.  The views and relaxed open air atmosphere suits my shorts and golf shirt style.  Too bad on this visit the Chef's Tasting Menu ($105 w/Wine) did not suit my style or taste.  Where do I begin....from the Amuse Bouche to the Summer Fruit and Herb there was not much here that I liked however I did love the Fresh Bread with Honey Salted Butter.  This may have been the best course on the menu.  The Asparagus Vichyssoise was a puddle of Asparagus mush with a Curry Cake.  You cannot call this a Crab Cake when all you can taste is the Curry.  Why would you ruin the flavor of Crab with a bunch of Curry.  If I wanted a Curry Cake I would have ordered a Curry Cake and not the Crab Cake.  The Surfing Goat Cheese Dumpling was a mess on the plate.  Really could not tell what it was but I really liked the flavor.  When the waiter grated Truffles over the Dumplings I was so happy.  Even more happy with the flavors.  The Grilled New York Strip was three small pieces of steak that was not seasoned and tasted bland.  I ate only about one and a half pieces of the steak.  What really made this a bad meal for me was the dessert.  Lemongrass Basil Sorbet with Grape Soup.  Need I say more?  It was uneatable for me.

Did like the wine pairing as it numbed me from the pain of some of these courses.  Also liked the staff and service.

THE PLANTATION HOUSE RESTAURANT

INCREDIBLE VIEW OF HOLE #1 AND KAPALUA

OPEN DINING ROOM

THE PLANTATION HOUSE RESTAURANT DINNER MENU

TASTING MENU WITH WINE PAIRINGS

STARTERS

SALADS AND SOUPS

ENTREE'S AND SIDES

NAPILI POMELO GELEE AMUSE BOUCHE

FRESH BREAD WITH HONEY MUSTARD AND HAWAIIAN SEA SALT IS FANTASTIC

KONA KAMPACHI CEVICHE

ASPARAGUS VICHYSSOISE WITH CURRY CRAB CAKE

SURFING GOAT CHEESE DUMPLING WITH TRUFFLES - THIS WAS REALLY GOOD!

GRILLED NEW YORK STRIP

SUMMER FRUIT AND HERB - GRAPE BERRY SOUP AND LEMONGRASS BASIL SORBET
YUCK...YUCK....AND MORE YUCK........THIS IS NOT A DESSERT

THE PLANTATION HOUSE RESTAURANT - KAPALUA, MAUI (LUNCH)

THE PLANTATION HOUSE

PLANTATION GOLF COURSE

2000 PLANTATION CLUB DRIVE

LAHAINA, HI 96761

808-669-6299

HOURS:  8:00 AM - 10:00 PM

www.theplantationhouse.com

www.yelp.com/biz/the-plantation-house-restaurant-lahaina

www.facebook.com/ThePlantationHouseRestaurant

When you finish a morning round of golf on the Plantation Course at Kapalua the main restaurant is closed until 5:00 so you can enjoy a beverage and light meal in the bar overlooking the 18th hole.  The views of golfers coming down 18 is amazing and its fun to watch people hit shots to the 18th green.  Service was good here but when it gets busy the single bartender/server can get a bit backed up.  We tried the Beef Queso and after a few bites sent it back.  So soupy and tasteless.  Had to be the worst Queso ever on this blog.  How you can mess up melted cheese with ground beef is amazing to me.  The Tempura California Roll was better than I thought.  My first thought was why would they deep fry sushi but after tasting it I found it to be very tasty.  I loved the Plantation Burger ($18).  The waiter asked if I would like Salad or Fries and I said Salad.  When he offered a Caesar Salad in place of the bitter greens I was very happy and went for the Caesar which was good.  Burger was great but c'mon....eighteen bucks?  

THE PLANTATION HOUSE RESTAURANT

THE PLANTATION HOUSE RESTAURANT BAR OVERLOOKS THE 18TH HOLE
AT THE KAPALUA PLANTATION COURSE

TEMPURA CALIFORNIA ROLL IS GOOD

QUESO DIP WITH BEEF IS TASTELESS AND VERY SOUPY

THE $18 CHEESEBURGER WITH SALAD

THIS IS A REALLY GOOD BURGER BUT I COULD BUY AROUND SIX IN N' OUT BURGERS
FOR THE SAME PRICE.