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Spirit
of Aloha | Articles
| Adventures in Dining | September/October
2004
Adventures
in Dining
By: SOPHIA V. SCHWEITZER
Fresh
from the Farm
“It doesn’t have to be tofu
and carrot sticks,” said my editor, when he sent me
on a quest for restaurants that serve healthy food. We both
realized that, here in Hawai‘i where the climate allows
for an abundance of produce year-round, true nourishment comes
from meals that have been skillfully prepared with ingredients
fresh from the farm and grown in sustainable ways. Naturally,
I was drawn to the upcountry town of Waimea, amid the Big
Island’s fertile foothills of Kohala and Mauna Kea,
known for their organic farms and sprawling ranches where
cattle roam free.
PHOTO: BRETT UPRICHARD
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For lunch it had to be Maha’s Cafe, open since 1995,
where eating is like being at home with Mom. Maha—her
full name is Harriet-Ann Namahaokalani Schutte—and her
son Patrick run their family-style operation in Spencer House,
Waimea’s oldest frame house, built in 1852. Maha cooks
in a tiny, 42-square-foot kitchen just off the entrance; Patrick
serves the dozen or so tables intimately scattered over two
rooms. The two epitomize the wonderful, warm generosity that
is so truly Hawaiian—nourishing in and of itself. “We
are so small we can customize,” Patrick says.
’Nuf said: my partner and I were hungry. I could not
resist the daily Hukilau Special—fresh broiled mahimahi
topped with a sweet avocado, papaya and chili relish, with
organic salad greens tossed with Maha’s honey-curry
dressing. The mahi, flaky, moist, soft as butter, lay nestled
in a bed of spinach sautéed in olive oil and garlic,
tossed with balsamic vinegar. Each bite, to coin an old cliché,
melted in my mouth. The fresh liliko‘i juice seemed
to celebrate the sweet-sour elements of the food. My partner
chose Maha’s Waipi‘o Ways, which serves traditional
Hawaiian sliced, steamed Waipi‘o taro root and sweet
potato with its organic greens and broiled yellow-fin tuna.
A delicate gingered vinaigrette warmed the flavors with wisps
of spice. For dessert, we split Maha’s bread pudding
with guava-ginger sauce. Okay, okay, what is healthy about
that? Sheer comfort.
For dinner, we drove to Merriman’s Restaurant. After
all, chef-owner Peter Merriman is somewhat responsible for
Hawai‘i’s surge in locally grown, sustainable
produce. In the early 1990s, with a group of colleagues, he
spearheaded Hawai‘i Regional Cuisine—now a famous
name on the epicurean world map, because the chef’s
revolutionary commitment to local farmers and flavors caught
on. Today, diversified agriculture is integral to the Islands.
While Merriman divides his time between Waimea, Waikoloa and
Maui, his eponymous establishment, open since 1989, is in
safe hands with executive chef Sandy Barr.
We started our evening with Wainaku corn, macadamia nut and
shrimp cakes, served with a black bean relish and cilantro
sour cream. A vegetarian paté made with Hämäkua
goat cheese found its flavor enhanced with dried cranberries,
lemon zest, fresh basil and sweet, milk-poached garlic. What
do you drink with such delicate, sweet-savory, tangy flavors?
A California chardonnay—2001 Chalone, estate-bottled—unassuming
in its aromatic fullness, with hints of, dare I suggest, sunflower
pollen, proved an excellent companion.
In passing, our waiter said that the Lokelani tomatoes were
especially sweet that night. Minutes later, the juicy fruit,
dotted with capers, awakened our palates. Its full flavors,
augmented by a few drops of extra virgin olive oil, proudly
withstood the creamy gorgonzola cheese served on the side.
Such pleasures made it difficult to select an entrée.
I had planned to choose the vegetable stir fry in a Chinese
black bean sauce, but our waiter—God bless him—reminded
me that I could do that at home. Thus, it became the catch
of the day, onaga, a red snapper, wok-seared, served on a
bed of local bok choy and snow pea shoots, with Maui onions,
tropical hicama and a sweet-sour, tamarind-honey sauce. The
fresh mango chutney spooned over the fish exploded with the
gentle tartness of native ohelo berries. My partner opted
for one of Merriman’s signature dishes, the Kahuä
lamb, grass-fed, raised on the green slopes of the Kohala
Mountains, about 12 miles away. A roasted tomato and saffron
jus, a fresh apricot, toasted walnut and watercress relish
brought the texture and flavors of his meal into perfect balance.
We asked our waiter to select the wine. With a quizzical smile,
he poured an intensely dark red. “Taste,” he ordered.
It held a hint of acid in the back, yet it breathed a deep
earthiness, with the sincerity of a European farm. Soft beauty.
“Dolcetto,” we were told. “An Italian grape
grown in Mendocino by a small winery. Enotria, vintage 2000.”
We asked our waiter to select the wine. With a quizzical smile,
he poured an intensely dark red. “Taste,” he ordered.
It held a hint of acid in the back, yet it breathed a deep
earthiness, with the sincerity of a European farm. Soft beauty.
“Dolcetto,” we were told. “An Italian grape
grown in Mendocino by a small winery. Enotria, vintage 2000.”
Maha?s Caf?, Spencer House at Waimea Center,
Highway 19, Waimea. (808) 885-0693. Breakfast Thursday through
Monday 8 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. Lunch Thursday through Monday
10:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Major credit cards.
Merriman?s Restaurant, 65-1227 Opelo Road,
on Highway 19, Waimea. (808) 885-6822. Lunch Monday through
Friday from 11:30 a.m., dinner daily from 5:30 p.m. Major
credit cards. Reservations recommended. www.merrimanshawaii.com
Adventures
in Dining Archives
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