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Total Number of Articles - 138
  • Shave Ice Hawaii Style

    mother and daughter enjoy shave ice in hawaiiShave ice as we know it is believed to have been invented in Yokohana,  Japan, in 1869. (Yes, 1869.) By the 1920s, shave ice was a fixture in stores throughout Japan. It only made sense, then, that as Japanese moved to Hawai'i and opened stores, they sold shave ice, as well. The frozen concoction isn't isolated to Japan and Hawaii, as many of you may know. It's found around the world. What makes Hawai'i's particularly nice, we think, is its super-fine, fluffy texture and tasty tropical flavors. Read More
  • Should You Plan an Itinerary for your Hawaii Vacation?

    I have a question for you: When you go on vacation, do you make an itinerary?  Let it be known that I am an inveterate list-maker. Thinking about what I need to do tomorrow? I make a list. In my office ready to start my day? I make a list. Going grocery shopping? If I don’t have a list in hand when I leave the house, I sit in the car and make one before I walk in the store.  Why? Because I hate it when I forget something.

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  • Have a Great Cup of Kona Coffee

    Greenwell Farms welcome sign in Kona, Big Island, HawaiiWatch a video of Greenwell Coffee Farms on the Big Island.
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  • So, What Makes a Good Cup of Kona Coffee?

    Ripe Kona coffee cherries in a basketOutside the verandah of the Keauhou Beach Resort, turtles lounged in tidepools. An eel chased a small fish. The sun outraced fog for attention. In the open-air cupping room, ceiling fans powered by trade winds spun haphazardly. If you’re going to cup coffee, it doesn’t get much better than the annual Kona Coffee Cupping Competition, held every November.
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  • My Cuppa Tea Is, Well, Tea

    So, I already confessed that I am not a coffe lover.  My second confession is I snuck away from the Kona Coffee Festival to visit with Eva Lee.  Why?  Because Eva grows tea, and I do like tea.  Very much so.  Eva serves up a beautiful tea tasting in the ohia lehua and giant hapu’u fern forest in which she lives in Volcano, Hawaii.
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  • When in Kona, Drink (Coffee) Like a Fish

    Kona coffee cupping competition judge takes a good sniffI am sitting on the lanai of the Keauhou Beach Resort on Big Island.  On one side of me, turtles lounge in tide pools and the Pacific Ocean sweeps beyond the horizon.  On the other side, five very serious people wearing aprons slurp, swoosh and spit.  Loudly.  It’s like a contest for who can make the most noise.  You might think I am watching–and listening to–children, but these are adults.  They’re carrying on this way, because they are judges for the annual Kona Coffee Cupping Competition. Read More
  • Big Island's Best Farmers' Markets

    The Big Island is home to more farmers' markets than most cities, each offering a different range of goods, but all providing at the very least a good place to pick up fresh produce, jarred goods such as jams and salsa, as well as homemade local Hawaiian treats. Not surprisingly, locally grown mango, papaya, pineapple, passion fruit, coconut, and guava are available in abundance at great prices, but you can also find delicious avocados, organic peppers, fantastic goat cheese, and, of course, coffee.

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  • Big Island's Top Beaches

    Kaunaoa Beach (also known as Mauna Kea Beach) is a beautiful palm-lined golden crescent.

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  • Sam Choy's Kai Lanai

    Perched on the bluff above Keauhou Shopping Center, the newly opened Sam Choy's Kai Lanai is already a Kona classic. Celebrity-chef Sam Choy has transformed an old Wendy's into a beautiful open-air restaurant complete with an awesome bar, The Short Bait, designed to look like a charter-fishing boat. Granite-topped tables offer sweeping ocean views from every seat in the house. Open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, the venue presents reasonably priced entrées, highlighted by the macadamia-nut-crusted chicken, Oriental lamb chops, or Sam's trio of fish served with shiitake-mushroom cream sauce. The ahi salad (served in a deep-fried flour tortilla bowl) is a great deal for $14. Keiki (children's) menus accommodate families. Parking is at a premium, so you might have to park in the shopping center below. The restaurant can be noisy. Arrive at 5 pm to nab the best patio seating. www.samchoy.com.

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  • Kaaloa's Super Js Authentic Hawaiian Food

    It figures that the best laulau (meat wrapped in taro leaves and ti) in West Hawaii can be found at a roadside hole-in-the-wall rather than at an expensive resort luau. In fact, this humble family-run eatery was featured on the Food Network's "The Best Thing I Ever Ate." Plate lunches to go include tender chicken or pork laulau, steamed for up to 10 hours. The kalua pig and cabbage is delicious, and the lomilomi salmon features vine-ripened tomatoes. Proprietors John and Janice Kaaloa also grind their own poi. No credit cards.

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