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Pina Verde Picante Margarita made with organic and local, cold pressed fruit and blended by Kauai Juice Co. Daniel Lane photo. Diners can now eat local in Hawaii at Verde restaurant, located in Kapaa. The popular New Mexican eatery has recently upgraded its menu with “clean” ingredients, such as produce that was grown on Kauai…

Kauai’s award-winning Koloa Rum Company announces its new Kauai Coffee Rum, the result of a licensing agreement between the Kauai distiller and Kauai Coffee Company. Kauai Coffee Rum blends locally grown and dark-roasted Kauai Coffee with Koloa White Rum and pure Hawaiian cane sugar. It has a rich flavor with bold notes of coffee and cocoa. The new offering expands Koloa Rum’s portfolio of rum and rum-related products and includes a striking new bottle and label design. It has been released in time for the 2015 Holiday Season. “Kauai Coffee Rum is a true Kauai-made product that exemplifies the remarkable diversity of agriculture on Kauai and the potential for innovation in creating exceptional value-added products,” said Koloa Rum Company President and CEO Bob Gunter. “Kauai Coffee Company, which operates the largest coffee plantation in the Islands, is at the leading edge…

The Hawaiian pumpkin is a mix of kobocha and European squash. Daniel Lane photo I planted Hawaiian squash in my garden and ended up with four beautifully smooth, pale orange pumpkins. The Hawaiian pumpkin is a mix of kobocha and European squash that resists Hawaiian wasp stings. I got my seeds from the bi-annual plant…

Kauai Island Kombucha sets up at the Namahana Farmers Market every Saturday. Daniel Lane photo On Saturdays, Kauai Island Kombucha sets up at the Namahana Farmers Market and serves tall glasses of hearty kombucha made with fruit juice and fresh turmeric. On a typical day, Narayan Dass and Bettina Kluensch offer healing devotional music during…

S’more and Honu sundaes. Daniel Lane photo I stumbled upon Skinny Mike’s Hawaiian Ice Cream shop after it quietly opened in Harbor Mall this May. The family-owned and operated business serves ice cream and sorbets made with local fruit as well as sundaes, milkshakes and coffee produced in Hawaii. I visit on a sultry day and…

Chocolate comes from cacao pods. Daniel Lane photo The first annual Kauai Coffee and Chocolate Festival will be held Friday Oct. 23 and Saturday Oct. 24 in Hanapepe. The event includes keiki activities, chocolate and coffee workshops as well as samples, food and craft vendors and access to a Chocolate Passport. “The Inaugural Kauai Chocolate and Coffee Festival is a celebration of…

Street Burger, a gourmet burger bar, opens on Kauai. Daniel Lane photo One day after Street Burger opened on Kauai, there was a line out the door and people had to wait for tables. I got to try a taste when owners Kristen and Aaron Leikam (a husband and wife team who formally owned Cakes…

Sam Choy at the 2015 Breadfruit festival in Poipu. Photo courtesy of the National Tropical Botanical Gardens. Sam Choy, Hawaii’s celebrity chef and ulu ambassador, will present a cooking demonstration on Saturday, September 19, at Times Supermarket in Kukui Grove Shopping Center. The event runs from noon to 2 p.m. and is a part of the…

  Mature breadfruit is hard and bright green. Daniel Lane photo. Breadfruit is considered a canoe crop, which was brought to the islands by original Polynesian voyagers who settled in Hawaii. The tree and its fruit were so valuable, saplings were tucked inside canoes that travelled thousands of miles. In the Pacific, breadfruit is a culturally significant crop that has starred in movies….

A handmade haku is a celebration of life. Daniel Lane photo When I think of aloha, I think of Elvrine Chow, owner of Heavenly Hakus. She glows with joy and her smile is always bright. It must be from working around beautiful flowers. Elvrine spends her days picking flowers in full bloom and weaving them…