Page 3 - Dining Out - Sep 5 2021

Restaurant Insider with Anne Lee
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20 ingredients, including fine herbs, seasoned aioli, balsamic reduction, onions and capers. One of the new items is the Goat Cheesecake ($10) topped with a beet-strawberry-basil jam — not super sweet, yet full flavored.
The new Pork Chop ($34) is like a decon- structed lau lau, the base is stewed luau atop coconut milk and a lemon tomato lomi salad, with tomato vinaigrette. Smoked Ahi Toast ($14) is a new starter.
The Mahina Family Feast ($37 per person, plus market price fish) offers a choice of a whole fried fish (whatever is in season) and five sides.
AL: What was the inspiration behind these new signature cocktails?
CT: I wanted to build off the foundation of these drinks and modernize it to reflect the vibe of The Surfjack. Each is $16 during din- ner service only. In addition to the Viva La Vida and Tia Mia, I wanted to have the Singa- pore Sling on the menu.This is a mid-century classic and we added local Kupu Spirits gin.
The Hanalei Moon is our version of a planter’s punch. This is infused with island spices, a bit of cachaça to give a hint of grassiness, and also features Bruno Mars’
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AL: What does Mahina & Sun’s bring to Ha- waii’s food scene?
EL: A little bit of what Hawaii should be. We want to be that local neighborhood restaurant, where you can have a great meal, conversation and drinks.
CT: We treat this environment like it’s our house, so each guest who walks in the door, we are welcoming into our home.
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BEACHFRONT BREAKFAST
AT THE KAHALA
The Plumeria Beach House is the perfect location for a casual morning meeting or a peaceful brunch by the beach. Start your day off right with a spectacular sunrise, beautiful ocean view and scrumptious breakfast fare in a breezy open-air setting.
PLUMERIA BEACH HOUSE BREAKFAST
6:30-11 a.m. Daily | Complimentary Parking
Mahina & Sun’s
at The Surfjack Hotel & Swim Club 412 Lewers St., Waikiki 808-924-5810 mahinaandsuns.com surfjack.com
Call or visit website for updated hours
1. Singapore Sling, Kahiko (Puu Waiu), Escape, Hanalei Moon, Tia Mia and Viva La Vida ($16 each) 2. Ahi Palaha ($30)
3. Smoked Ahi Toast ($14)
4. Ahi Tartare ($15)
5. Pork Chop ($34)
SelvaRey coconut rum.
The Escape is our version of the vacation
cocktail, like a pina colada or painkiller. The Kahiko (Puu Waiu) is a Polynesian word for old-fashioned, we wanted to put a little bit of Hawaii into an old-fashioned
cocktail, with a coconut water ice cube.
AL: What are the future plans for the restaurant?
EL: What Christian and I are excited about is how to pair food with wine, cocktails and beer. This is inspiration for me to create a dish that he can pair well with a beverage, and vice versa. This will lead to collaborative offerings, perhaps meal pairings in the future.
We still want to be locally sourced and driv- en, which is challenging during the winter, early spring.This will determine the changes in the menu. We will be creating special holi- day menus for people to enjoy.
AL: Anything else you’d like to share?
CT: The Surfjack offers Mahina Lounge: Live! Local music performed by Hawaii’s finest en- tertainers 6:30-9 p.m. Sundays-Wednesdays and 6:30-9:30 p.m. Thursdays-Saturdays.
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AT THE KAHALA
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739.8811 KahalaResort.com
RESERVE NOW
LIMITED SEATING
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