This summer because circumstances we couldn’t fly off island and decided to have a staycation. We did drive up and spent Tuesday night in Waimea (can recommend Waimea Country Lodge as a modest, inexpensive place to stay). We also drove over to Hilo Friday for lunch and a little exploring.
Honestly though our focus has really been on food. There are so many good food places here!
We started by doing some home cooking. Viv always takes care of us with good food but I kicked in with a mushroom and beef dish. Mushrooms from a local source, big and muscular, and some Big Island raised ground beef with fresh tomatoes, garlic, and herbs.
Monday we hit up Caffe Florian in Captain Cook for breakfast, I had a tasty breakfast panini featuring eggs, ham, spinach, and Gouda on thin garlic bread, Viv had a breakfast sandwich, and we split a chocolate banana muffin.
Tuesday started with a visit to Hapuna Beach, justifiably considered one of the best beaches anywhere. Then onto Waimea. We’d hoped to lunch at Moa Kitchen but it was way full so we had Chinese at Jade Palace. Nice but nothing special. Left room for very enjoyable dessert from Sandwich Isle Bread Company, a strawberry shortcake for Viv and a chocolate obsession for moi.
Dinner though was ono! “Ono” is a Hawaiian term for delicious and what we had at Pueo’s Osteria was outstanding, most certainly ono. Started with the crudo special, Ahi in a sweet garlic sauce. Then Viv had the Hamakua Mushroom Pizza, with a white garlic sauce. I went for the Melanzana alla Parmigiana. Huge portions that we enjoyed over the next couple of days. If only they opened for lunch we would eat there a lot. Too much!
Wednesday breakfast was Hawaiian Style Cafe, sadly the loco moko didn’t meet expectations. Friendly staff though. After checkout we hit the midweek farmers market at Parker Ranch. Decent selections, we got some Blood Orange Rose Petal Cabernet Sauvignon jam from our favorite supplier Akaka Falls Farm plus some fresh shortbread cookies for later. Highly recommend the Akaka Falls Farm jams, preserves, and honey, and definitely the chocolate butters if you want a treat shipped from the Big Island!
Thursday we went back to Captain Cook for Randy’s Huli Chicken. This is a hugely popular roadside BBQ stand,. So popular they can manage only being open Thursday and Friday lunchtime, and now every other Wednesday.
Friday, as mentioned, we drove the 90 miles over the saddle road to Hilo. Picked up a fresh Challah and chocolate chip cookies from Papa’a Palaoa Bakery to bring home. Snuck a couple of the cookies on the (loooong) ride home, very nice.
Lunch was at Pineapples Island Fresh Cuisine, most certainly ono! We shared a (non-alcoholic) Big Island Punch, smooth and fruity. Viv had the swordfish fish and chips while I had the Local Plate featuring BBQ Kailua pork and teriyaki Kalbi beef.
Before heading home we stopped at the Prince Kuhio Plaza. This is possibly the only indoor mall on the whole island. For sure the only one we’ve been inside in the nearly two years we’ve lived here. Apparently not something I miss 🤣🤣
Saturday was simple. Breakfast was French toast which Viv made from that challah, topped with some of that sweet jam. So good we had the same again Sunday. Both accompanied by fresh orange juice squeezed from oranges grown in our yard.
One last meal out on Monday, breakfast at Holuakoa Coffee Shack. Tasty! We both had the breakfast burrito with Portuguese sausage and split a lovely chocolate topped donut (from, I suspect, Paradise Hawaiian Bakery). One thing to be careful about is parking, always tricky up there.
All in all definitely an Eatcation, eh? But a lot of walking and a few gym visits mixed in and worth all the calories. Next year we’re hoping to get off island for our vacation but certainly to a place with lots of good eats!
Side note: Loco Moko
One of my hobbies since we moved here is to try every restaurant’s loco moko. Loko moko is a Hawaiian dish, for those unaware, with rice, hamburger patty (or frequently two patties), brown gravy, and topped with two eggs. Lots of places let you change the meat to spam, Portuguese sausage, and so on.
This is apparently harder to make well than you’d expect. Far too many restaurants fail for one of these reasons:
- burger(s) cooked to death
- no onions in the gravy
- no mushrooms in the gravy
- onions but not cooked until soft
BillSaysThis 