Pau Hana Friday for April 25

The recipe for Jason Takemura’s Garlic Salt and Pepper Shrimp is in From Kau Kau to Cuisine. Photo Credit: Rae Huo

Tasting Kauai

Happy Aloha Friday! We had an exceptional week and hope you did too. In our “Tastes of Kauai” column in today’s The Garden Island newspaper, you can learn about the new cookbook From Kau Kau to Cuisine and Island Cookbook Then and Now. In the article, author and food historian Arnold Hiura shares his concern for the future of food. This Sunday, our “On the Farm” column shares some exciting news from Kauai Kunana Dairy as well as a recipe from Hukilau Lanai.

Tortilla Republic Grill

Tortilla Republic recently announced the appointment of its new executive chef Mia Gaines-Alt, a former contestant on Season 2 of Bravo’s “Top Chef”. Gaines-Alt will oversee both Tortilla Republic Grill Kauai and TR Taqueria and Margarita Bar.  Mia is a long-standing resident of the Hawaiian Islands, having resided there for ten years. Before joining the team, she cooked at Kualapuu Cookhouse on the island of Molokai. Blending her passion for home-cooked food with the restaurant’s modern Mexican flavors has provided a an exciting challenge for Mia, who says, “finding the perfect balance between ‘home’ and the refinement of the menu is where I find my daily inspiration, and living and working on this island paradise only further drives my creativity in the kitchen.”
New design improvements enable guests to enter via the second level entrance, which is enhanced by spacious al fresco lanais. Modern Mexican cuisine includes Avocado Leaf-Rubbed Seared Ahi Tuna, Mole De Poblano, and Ancho Chili Rubbed Catch of the Day. The bar and lounge offer a festive yet relaxed atmosphere to enjoy signature Purist or Hydration margaritas, the Tortilla Tai or the Hibiscus Hukilau.
Additional seating has been added downstairs, at TR Taqueria and Margarita Bar. The casual eatery serves classic dishes as well as gluten-free, vegetarian and lighter options for health-minded diners.  Offering breakfast, lunch, and dinner, dish selections include Crispy Fried Chicken Torta with Chipotle Aioli and Cilantro Crema; Pescado Tacos, a grilled local catch of the day with guajillo rub, tropical salsa, escabeche, and chipotle aioli; Tequila Battered Shrimp Tacos with Tropical Salsa and Escabeche Vegetables; and Ensalada Sabrosa with romaine lettuce, roasted corn, tomatoes, black beans, jack cheese, jicama, cilantro, red onion, avocado, and honey jalapeno vinaigrette. Signature cocktails include Cucumber Lavender Margarita with Housemade Lavender Syrup and Muddled Cucumber. Guests may also choose from a selection of beers including Town Brown Ale and Longboard along with a Hitachino White Ale.

Josselin’s Tapas Bar & Grill

During the week of May 6 through May 11, Josselin’s Tapas Bar & Grill will be showing appreciation to teachers by giving them 50 percent off food purchases. Reservations can be made any day that week from 5:30 to 7 p.m. “We will also be doing drawings for prizes for some lucky teachers,” says Andrew Ha, General Manager and Partner. Prizes include a 2 night stay at the Grand Hyatt, 2 night stay at Koloa Landing Resort and Spa, a Tommy Bahama Silk Shirt for men, Tommy Bahama women’s dress, and more. All you have to do is show your Department of Education I.D. to receive the 50 percent off. For more information or reservations, call 808-742-7117.

Olana Organic Farm

Tim O’Connor, owner of Olana Farm says they’ve got a new crop of sweet onions! “It looks to be a good year for our wonderful, onions—bountiful, large, sweet bulbs,” he says.
“We are currently selling large fresh bulbs, bunched with green tops (the bulbs and tops can both be used) and ‘bulbettes’ smaller red and yellow sweet onions with nice green tops. Dried bulb onions will be available in 2-3 weeks and should last through May. They are available at our two weekly farmers markets: 4:30 p.m. on Thursday at Kilauea Community Center and 9 a.m. on Saturday at Namahana Farmers market, next to Kauai Mini Golf in Kilauea.
For more information, visit the Olana Farm website, or check them out Facebook.
Here is the list of available items grown by Olana Organic Farm:
Vegetables

• Sweet onion bulbs and bulbettes
• Ginger root, yellow and white
• Turmeric root (olena)
• Kale: curly, dinosaur, red Russian or mixed
• Swiss chard
• Pak choi,
• Bok choy
• Lettuce
• Arugula
• Mustard greens: green, red, frilly or mixed
• Carrots
• Beets
• Turnips: white or red
• Green onion
• Fennel
• Celery
• Collards
• Spinach
• Squash

Herbs

• Cilantro
• Sweet basil
• Thai basil
• Lemon basil
• Parsley, Italian flat or curly leaf
• Chives
• Rosemary
• Thyme
• Marjoram
• Oregano
• Kaffir lime leaf
• Stevi

Coming soon:
Lychee!

Verde Healthy Thursday Burrito Bowl. Daniel Lane photo.

Verde Healthy Thursday

Join Verde in April for Healthy Thursday. This month, it’s a tasty and filling Burrito Bowl. It’s less than 380 calories and made with Makaweli Meat Company’s grass-fed beef, lime rice with Moloaa cilantro, local avocados and cherry tomatoes. Tasting Kauai, Verde and Kauai Athletic Club are working together to promote healthy lifestyle choices. Answer a health related question posted every Thursday on Tasting Kauai’s Facebook page and you could win a $20 gift certificate to Verde.

RumFire

Sheraton Kauai Resort’s “You Dine, We Donate” program continues its mission to raise funds for local charities by naming Kauai Independent Food Bank as its beneficiary in April. All net food and beverage proceeds at RumFire Poipu Beach’s Table #53 will be donated to the The Kauai Independent Food Bank for the month-long fundraiser.

Sustainable Kauai Meetups

This month, Sustainable Kauai’s Meetups include:

Kilauea Monthly Garden Share

Tuesday, May 13, 5 p.m.
Malama Kauai Food Forest
5545 Kahiliholo Road
Kilauea, HI

Wailua Monthly Garden Share

Tuesday, May 20, 5 p.m.
Lydgate Beach Park
4470 Nalu Road
Wailua, HI

Surfrider Beach Clean up at Ahukini Landing

Wednesday, April 30, 4 p.m.
Ahukini Rd
Lihue, HI
EVENTS:   
Thursday, May 1

Kauai Beer Company

Kauai Beer Company is celebrating their first Uno de Mayo Cerveza Fiesta. They are introducing their a signature cocktail, the Ono Margarita. The recipe is as follows:
Espolon Blanco
Cointreau
Fresh Lime
Local Honey
Peychaud’s Bitters
Lihue Lager (KBC’s signature beer)
KBC will have two Mexican food trucks, Chalupa’s and Julio’s Beach Burrito. In addition, Sandy of the Right Slice will be there with fiesta themed pot pies and some dessert pies that fit right into the holiday spirit. They will be selling their first commemorative Uno de Mayo 2014 T-shirt. The new awning is open every Thursday evening for those who enjoy sitting out on Rice St. Truck Stop Thursday has become a bona fide happening, bringing downtown Lihue to life every week.

Lunch is served in the private dining room of Kilohana Plantation. Marta Lane photo

• Sake soaked Kauai Shrimp with Kailani mixed greens, Maui tropical pineapple, and sweet sesame ginger aioli

Entrée

• Grass-fed Makaweli Meat Company beef tenderloin topped with port wine and a confit of Kauai’s Kaneshiro Farms pork belly and Island fresh Wasabi Crusted Opah with a lilikoi white wine vinaigrette, caramelized Ewa onion, jasmine rice, and a medley of farm fresh vegetables

Dessert

• Rustic Wi and Molokai Uala Gallete

Proceeds from this tour benefit the Hawaii Food Bank – Kauai Branch, help to restore native plants and preserve and perpetuate Hawaiian culture through education. To make reservations, visit A Taste of  Kilohana. To see previous tours, check out our Facebook photo album. For a complete list of tour dates, check out our Kauai Culinary Tours Calendar.

Kauai Kunana Dairy goat cheese with olive oil and fresh herbs. Daniel Lane photo.

Goat Keeping Workshop

Kauai Agricultural Research Center, Wailua, 9 a.m. to noon, $5
A workshop from Kauai Kunana Dairy and the University of Hawaii Cooperative Extension Service Kauai County Livestock & Range Program. Info and Skills for the Beginner and Veteran. Goats provide meat, milk, weed management, manure, fiber, and companionship making them an excellent addition to any farm. Participants will learn about:

• Animal nutrition
• Grazing management
• Parasites
• Basic health care
• Breeding and more

Pre-registration is required on a first come first serve basis. Call Matt Stevenson (CTAHR Kauai County) at 808-274-3472 to register. Leave message with name and contact info if no answer.
The University of Hawaii is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action institution. If you require disability accommodations to participate in this program, please contact the Extension Office at 274-3472 one week before the event.
Friday, May 9

Dave Power pours from a mason jar with charred cedarwood, apples and Campari. Daniel Lane photo

A Culinary Romp Through Paradise

Various locations in Kapaa, 9:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., $140
Tasting Kauai’s Culinary Tour offers an intimate glimpse into the Garden Island’s culinary scene. We start with a farm tour and sample exotic fruit grown on Kauai. At the Kauai Marriott Resort, we join executive chef Guy Higa for an outdoor cooking demonstration and gourmet, four-course lunch made with Kauai grown ingredients. This tour ends at The Feral Pig where, Dave Power, co owner and bartender, will make a la minute cocktails. This is a special treat as Dave has been written up as one of Hawaii’s best bartenders and he excels at making drinks customized to individual tastes.
To make reservations, visit A Culinary Romp Through Paradise. To check out previous tours, visit our Facebook photo album. Chef Higa donates proceeds from his portion of the tour to the Salvation Army Soup Kitchen and Tasting Kauai donates proceeds to the Kauai Branch of the Hawaii Food Bank. For a complete list of tour dates, check out our Kauai Culinary Tours Calendar.
 
 
ONGOING:

Grow Culture’s Collin Darrell and chef Barb Ka’auwai at the Kapaa farmers market. Marta Lane photo

Farmers Market Tour

Wednesdays, 3 to 4 p.m., $30
Meet local farmers, learn how to select perfect produce as well as when it’s in season and how to cook with it during Tasting Kauai’s one-hour farmers market class. Farmers markets are an affordable way to immerse yourself in local culture and the best place to buy produce that’s so fresh, it was harvested that morning. But buying at the farmers market doesn’t always insure that it was grown on Kauai. It happens all over the world. In Hawaii, customers want mangos year-round. In Colorado, they want tomatoes in May. To make that sale, vendors buy imported mangoes or tomatoes and sell them as their own. Becoming familiar with growing  seasons insures your dollars are spent on local produce.
There’s a whole world of delicious produce that many people never try. Let’s face it, some of it looks like it came from another planet. Once unfamiliar produce is demystified and cooking tips are shared, it may become a regular at dinner table. Many factors can make exotic produce expensive and the last thing you want to do is buy a pineapple that isn’t at peak perfection. This class will also teach you how to tell when produce is ripe as well as how to store it for best results. To make reservations, visit our Farmers Market Tour page.

Hanapepe Friday Night Festival and Art Walk

Hanapepe Town, 6 to 9 p.m.
Every Friday evening, Old Town Hanapepe bustles with people. A dozen art galleries stay open late and local crafters sell their wares. There’s also stilt walkers, classics cars, live music and entertainment. The Right Slice sells fresh-baked pie by the slice or whole.  Midnight Bear Breads makes pizza fresh from a wood-burning oven. Aloha Spice Company serves samples of their Hawaiian sea salt and spice blends on grilled chicken. These spices quickly add fantastic flavor without a lot of calories and make wonderful gifts of aloha.
Haole Girl Island Sweets sells a variety of hand-made butter croissants, including grilled chicken and portobello mushroom seasoned with Aloha Spice Company blends. Other croissants are filled with local fruit, nuts, honey or vegetables. Samples are given just outside the parking lot, in front of the darling Aloha Spice Company building. Call 808-335-6469 for more information.

Kapaa Art Walk in Old Town Kapaa. Daniel Lane photo

Kapaa Art Walk

Old Town Kapaa, 5 to 9 p.m.
On the first Saturday of the month hundreds of people party in Old Town Kapaa. The street is filled with the sounds of laughter and music, smells of delicious local food, and the work of Kauai artists. In front of the Dragon Building, Anni Caporuscio (owner of Small Town Coffee and Blue House Booksellers) sings to a three-piece band which includes a guitar player, drummer and washboard player. Art Cafe Hemingway and Java Kai open a new exhibit and serve food late. The Buttery hosts jewelers and other Kauai Made jewelry is available throughout.
A designated parking area is located at 4451 Lehua St., on a 3-acre spot next to Restore Kauai and Specialty Lumber. Cost to park in the lot is $3.

Kauai Culinary Market at Kukuiula Shopping Village in Poipu. Daniel Lane photo

Art Walk at Kukuiula

The Shops at Kukuiula, 6 to 9 p.m., free
An evening of fine art, fine dining and live music under the stars at The Shops at Kukuiula the second Saturday of each month.
Dining options include Merriman’s Fish House, Josselin’s Tapas Bar & Grill, Tortilla Republic, Dolphin Sushi, Living Foods and Lappert’s Hawaii. Plus, enjoy jazz outdoors by Hank Curtis and Steve Dubey and Latin rhythms by Manuel Mendes and Cary Valentine.
 

Kilauea Art Walk

Stone Building, 5 to 8 p.m.
Join more than 20 artisans on the last Saturday of the month at the Stone Building in Kilauea Town. There’s live music, original art, hand-made apparel, jewelry, photography, custom slippers, painted glass bottles, ice cream and unique creations. Face painting henna tattoos. Stop by Kilauea Fish Market for dinner.

Photos for this blog post were contributed by Daniel Lane of Pono Photo.