Maui is dependent upon the tourist dollar, and tourism is way down after the recent fire. The Governor of Maui is asking all of us to return to Maui, now. So, to help spur some first-person support for the Valley Isle, we checked out some new options to encourage you to go (soon).
Sushi Happy Hour
Many of you may be familiar with the Sunday and Monday food happy hour at Sansai in Kihei (and briefly in Seattle). Now there is a new option for a sushi-filled
happy hour every day at Oao (pronounced “wow,” named after the founder and executive chef) 34 Wailea Gateway Place, Wailea, 808.318.1602, https://www.oaowailea.com/. Like many recent restaurants in Seattle, Oao started as a food truck and grew into a restaurant earlier this year. They have a daily happy hour with discounts on both food and beverages; check with them when you make your reservation as the end time for happy hour seems to vary. We got the happy hour pricing until 5:45. And we took advantage of it for everything we ordered except a reasonably priced white wine.
We liked everything we ordered, from the Shishito Peppers (blistered, naturally), to the tempura, and, of course, the sushi and the rolls. And we ordered seconds of what we really liked: the Hamachi Carpaccio, the Big Eye Tuna Kisami, the California Roll (even though it did contain surimi, not crab), the Hamachi Nigiri and the Kanpachi Nigiri. There was a lot of food (it was happy hour after all) and even our diner who avoids raw fish found the rock shrimp tempura and the vegetable tempura quite satisfying — there were some exotic vegetables included. There are also vegan items on the menu, but we did not sample any of those.
The happy hour includes drinks and we sampled their Haupia Mai Tai which came topped with lilikoi foam. It was good enough to order a second and a bargain compared to what one would be charged at the resorts a few blocks down the hill. Oao is open for lunch and dinner and their menu includes an interesting meat and seafood selection of entrees, but we were there for the happy hour and did not sample the entrées. We were at Oao when there were few tourists on the island and the restaurant was full by soon after 5 p.m. Reservations are recommended.
Pizza Upcountry
Although it can be a bit of a trek from South Maui (40 minutes from Kihei, longer from Wailea and Makena) we found Marlow, 30 Kupaoa Street, Pukalani, 808.868.3366, https://www.restaurantmarlow.com/about, worth the effort. Marlow features Neapolitan sourdough pizza, but there are many other items to try on their menu. Marlow is a farm-to-table restaurant featuring locally-sourced whenever possible. But first, be forewarned, everything, including the salads, comes in a quantity big enough to share and suitable for eating family style.
We started with the chopped salad with the genoa salami added, the roasted Kauai prawns, the heirloom tomato and mozzarella salad, the roasted octopus and the gnocchi entrée, served as a starter. The salads were great (and in generous portions, even when sharing) as were the prawns. Opinions split on the gnocchi, but that appears to be related to pre-existing individual bias — those of us who like gnocchi would order it again. The octopus was well seasoned, but a bit on the chewy side, which is normal for how it was prepared.
The pizzas are divided into red pies and white pies, and we only had room left to choose one. We went with the braised pork on a red base with arrabbiata 
sauce base, mozzarella and lilikoi butter and that is definitely one to try. They included the option of ordering it crispy, for those who are fans of New Haven style pizza (including a few of our guests). It was a medium thickness crust with sufficient herbs and spices in the sauce to both stand up to and complement the pork topping. We would order it again, although we would plan to try a few others first.
We indulged and had dessert at Marlow. We tried the special olive oil cake with olive oil ice gelato and a more traditional locally made strawberry gelato. The olive oil combo was interesting and perfect if you do not want your dessert very sweet. The strawberry gelato was preferred by the more traditional dessert lovers.
Marlow was fun and we enjoyed all of the food. It is worth the detour if you will be anywhere near upcountry. But get there early as Marlow does not accept reservations.
The Best View for Lunch
We have long been a fan of the spectacular view from the restaurant at the Emerald Golf Course in Wailea, starting when it was Seawatch, through when it was Gannon’s, and now as Gather, 100 Wailea Gold Club Drive, Wailea, 808.698.0555, https://gatherinmaui.com/. We stopped for lunch and fully appreciated the view that includes Molokini.
The ownership has changed but the menu is similar to the prior restaurant incarnations at this location, including the onion rings (we did not try them this trip), although they have added a plate lunch and an ahi poke bowl option. We had the grilled fish sandwich and the blackened fish tacos (the catch of the day was mahi mahi). The fish in the sandwich was fresh but on the small serving side with only four ounces; it was accompanied by green papaya, ginger remoulade and red onion and served on a brioche bun — quite tasty. The fish in the tacos was more generous in quantity, but tasted a bit less fresh, but it might be expected that yesterday’s fish would be used for heavy seasoning. The tacos we accompanied by an Asian slaw and a house made chip mix. Both the sandwich and the tacos tasted good, but we would probably avoid the tacos next time. We made it a more decadent lunch with the Gather Mai Tai, which comes in a tall tiki glass topped with honey-lilikoi foam and in which we could taste the Pernod rinse for extra complexity. Gather has a happy hour, also, which we plan to try next time.
The owners of Gather on Maui also purchased the Hali’imaile General Store from Bev Gannon to add to their growing Gather Restaurant Group, https://gathergroupllc.com/. Unfortunately, as this is written, Hali’imaile General Store, long a popular farm to table restaurant, is temporarily closed, possibly because of fire-related water issues upcountry.
Maui is open for business. Airfare and car rentals are at bargain rates this fall. Take advantage and support their local restaurants. And, if West Maui is open when you get there, visit Joey’s Kitchen in Whalers Village and Napili Plaza, https://joeyskitchenhimaui.com/. The owner’s home burned but Joey’s fed all comers during and after the fire and earned a front page write up in the Washington Post https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2023/08/26/maui-restaurant-joeys-kitchen-lahaina-fire/. Go to Maui and dine out.
Dining Out is brought to you by Christopher Howard, now retired from law firm life, but still dining out, together with friends and family who help chose and sample the restaurants. Send comments and suggestions to him at chh@f2t.com or 206.669.5956.
