Page 3 - Dining Out - Sep 4, 2022

Restaurant Insider with Anne Lee
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Mina’s Fish House
at Four Seasons Resort Oahu at Ko Olina
92-1001 Olani St., Kapolei
808-679-0079
3-5 p.m. happy hour;
3-9 p.m. dinner (last seating at 9 p.m.)
1. Seared Yellowfin & Foie Gras ($66) 2. Ginger & Scallion-Broiled Monchong
(market price)
3. Kona Kampachi Crudo ($28)
but its something we are working on to bring back. I’ll share a fun expe- rience that we had with a journalist out fishing in Makaha. We were on a sandy patch and about 180 feet of water and luckily were able to catch nabeta (peacock razor wrasse). This fish is unique. You only have to remove the inside; don’t have to scale anything. Fry it whole and the scales turn into chips and the bonesgetcrispy,soyoucaneatthe whole fish. The beautiful part of this experience was that we were able to catch fish and bring it back to the restaurant.The other part of the experience was to have a gyotaku artist take a print of the fish and re-create the fish that he caught.We sent the finished gyotaku print to his home — we were able to provide more than eating the fish he caught for dinner, an actual memory of his experience of that fishing trip.
AL: Can you explain your inter- pretation of a fish sommelier? RH: Someone that can help you choose the type of fish you want to eat; what type of texture, firm or soft; flavor profiles. My main goal is to help guests choose the fish that they want to eat, enjoy it and enhance their overall dining experience.
SM: Adding on to what Ryan said, making sure the local fisherman’s story is heard, as all our fish is caught from local fishermen. It’s very hard to get quality fish to your table. Sometimes these fishermen are in the water for up to 10 hours and come back with only one fish, and they still have to pay for their cost of living, etc. Both Ryan and I are avid fisherman. We know the water, where the fish are and caught; we are very passionate about our craft.
AL: What is the most-asked ques- tion you get, and can you walk me through a typical day?
RH: What type of fish is this? We
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have an extensive list of seafood items. Some of our guests are not fa- miliar with the Hawaiian names, so I describe the fish and what it may taste similar to. Ono I would com- pare to swordfish, which is more commonly known. Ono in Hawaii is much leaner and has a tendency to beabitonthedrierside.Tome,this would be more texture-based than taste. Sometimes we do work with chef on the fish and suggest dif- ferent preparation that would work best with that particular variety. SM: From your hostess to server, when they speak about our menu,
they explain that we have in-house fish sommeliers to assist if you have questions. That usually piques their curiosity. I’ll talk about the fish of the day, ask them what types of fish interest them, what textures they like, etc. Oftentimes, I will get the comment: “I do want fish, but not too fishy,” which makes a lot of sense. This is where I would recommend a milder fish, such as snapper or mahi mahi.
AL: What items did you select for us to showcase?
RH & SM: Two of our featured en-
trées are Ginger & Scallion-Broiled Monchong (market price) that comes with garlic fried rice, Chi- nese black beans and broccolini, and Seared Yellowfin & Foie Gras ($66) that’s served with a chive potato cake, spinach and a pinot noir reduction.
From our raw bar, we have Kona Kampachi Crudo ($28). This really showcases the beauty of the fish itself, and is served with avocado, golden satsuma and fennel.
Three of our fun cocktails in- clude: If Can, Can ($19) with your choice of spirit, orange curacao, lime pineapple and orgeat; Puu- loa’s Keeper ($18) with matcha-in- fused vodka, coconut, thai basil pandan and lime; and Electric Beach ($17) with gin, lemon, lilikoi, housemade orgeat and falernum. All are served over crushed ice.
AL: Before the pandemic, there was an opportunity to take guests on an actual fishing experience. Can you tell me more about this? RH & SM: It’s on pause right now
AT THE KAHALA
RESERVATIONS
OpenTable 808.739.8811 KahalaResort.com
PERFECT MORNINGS
Breakfast Buffet
6:30-10:30 a.m. Daily, $55* adult, $24* child (6-12)
*Does not include tax & gratuity
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