Maui Wowie, Part 1: Getting Beachy With It

I visit Oahu more than Maui because of the convenience factor of guaranteed direct flights from Anchorage to Honolulu and fairly frequent fare sales that are just low enough to prompt a splurge purchase. While I love Oahu and all it has to offer, I have a special place in my heart for Maui.

I have visited Maui regularly this past decade and appreciate it for its beauty, its laid back, beachy vibe, and for a different type of Hawaii tourism. Instead of busy Waikiki – with its sky-high hotels, packed beaches, high-end shops and sight-seeing helicopters buzzing overhead like bees – Maui slows things down. Visitors mostly stay in condo clusters, and a rental car is a must, so you can make your way at leisure between the island’s multiple charming, personable towns.

This is blog post 1 of 3 about things to do and see in beautiful Maui. Part 2 will look at Upcountry, and part 3 will offer some tips to make your trip more efficient and enjoyable.

People may stress about where to stay in Maui, but don’t. You generally won’t spend more than an hour getting anywhere, and with much of that drive alongside lovely coastline or old sugar fields, it’s picturesque enough to be enjoyable. The low speed limits help make driving stress-free. To get in the mood, skip satellite radio and find a local station that plays Hawaiian tunes.

Lahaina in West Maui is a showpiece of the island’s communities and teems with history and activity. Bustling Front Street dates to the 1820s, the town itself was once the royal capital, and today it claims about 11,000 residents. Enjoy a present stroll along the seawall, explore the banyan park, or pop into one of the many, many boutiques. This is a great spot for sunset beverages with so many restaurants and bars built overlooking the ocean.

In Lahaina, visit the restaurant Down the Hatch. It’s an order-at-the-counter, fast casual restaurant, down a few steps from street level in an open, leafy courtyard. They specialize in fresh fish dishes and will even cook your catch for you if you luck out on a fishing charter. In the same courtyard, there’s a place that does boozy shave ice for dessert. DTH has a nice big bar, a great happy hour, and a couple of TVs, one of which is usually tuned to the ubiquitous surfing channel. If their lava lava shrimp was the only thing on the menu, I would still go back. Often.

On the island’s southwest shore is Kihei, a town of about 16,000 people built along six miles of beautiful beaches. This is a fun town with a lot of energy. There’s a bustling epicenter of restaurants and nightlife, including a personal favorite, Threes Bar and Grill. There are several big beaches here and they are known by number – beach 1, beach 2, beach 3. All are good for snorkeling and swimming and have public restrooms, foot washes and outdoor showers, pay parking, and easy access to the sand. 

After a morning swim or snorkel, hit up Da Kitchen. This popular spot serves all kinds of traditional Hawaiian plate lunches and the best Loco Moco – a traditional Hawaiian dish consisting of rice with a hamburger patty, fried egg and brown gravy on top. If that sounds heavy, well, it is! There are huge portions at Da Kitchen so you can pretty much split any entrée and be content. Another Kihei spot you won’t want to miss is Coconuts Fish Cafe. It may not look like much from the exterior, but this place has a Zagat rating of 27, and practically famous fish tacos that boast a whopping 17 ingredients.

Every Maui trip should include snorkeling, and my family is loyal to a company called Pride of Maui. The high-energy crew guarantees a good time. Most trips include a swim at both Molakini Crater and a place called Turtle Town. That’s depending on waves and weather. After snorkeling, the crew grills up burgers and hot dogs for lunch with pasta salad and, better yet, they open up the bar! Maitais are flowing as the smooth-sailing catamaran makes its way back to the docks. You’ll be sad when this trip ends.

Next up: Maui Wowie, Part 2: Upcountry

No time like the present

One reason we’ve chosen Portugal for our honeymoon (!!) is advice from a dear friend: if you’ve ever wanted to go, go now, because Portugal is about to go off. It’s a balance, isn’t it? We want to go where the action is — but not too much action. We want to see the big things, but not if too many other people are there seeing them. We want that sweet spot of relevancy before the selling-out and over-doneness and total saturation seems to obliterate the specialness of discovery and experience.

Portugal is inherently fascinating: safe, gorgeous, a year-long lovely climate, the breathtaking Atlantic Coast, a fascinating cultural history, and don’t forget the wine! So we’re going now, as it’s climbing in popularity, but before it’s too crazy. Our trip is scheduled for May and we’re working with the travel planners at Living Big Travel to finesse the details. We can’t wait!

Bowing down to Bowman’s in Hope, AK

The pond at Bowman’s, bordered by charming cabins.

I’ve driven by Bowman’s Bear Creek Lodge more times than I can count, and finally was recently able to visit the property and experience its charm for myself. Friends who are marrying this summer rented out the entire resort, composed of shared bathrooms and showers, a large fire pit, tiny wooden bridges crossing burbling ropes of creek, a large pond dotted with paddle boats and canoes, and numerous cozy log cabins with bucolic interiors detailed by quilt throws and rustic furniture.

The restaurant at Bowman’s.

At its heart is a small restaurant with a small dining room and outdoor patio seating that overlooks the pond. The owners do one five-course dinner service a night at 7 p.m., open to the public by reservation, for a set price.

Delicious salad at Bowman’s.

Each dinner began with a cheese course showcasing the house-made pepper jelly, followed by a salad course and either a soup or pasta, then a choice of entree, and finally a desert. The first few courses were simple but absolutely delicious. The pesto pasta with smoked salmon and the seared romaine salad (above, pictured) were most memorable, and the baked brie in the pepper jelly was scrape-the-plate worthy. Entrees were inventive and pleasing; night one offered a choice between cod and pork, while the second night featured prawns or duck (below).

The duck entree with lentils and chard.

Dinner service was languid, yet without dead time or delays. The food was absolutely wonderful. Beer and wine is available for purchase, too. I’ll definitely make it a point to go to Bowman’s in the future. It’s a surprising and exciting culinary break from camp stove food and roadhouse fare.

Find the divine dives and save $$

The key to survival in a place like Waikiki is to find the deals. Why pay $26 for a burger when you can get a killer sausage at Hula Dog for $8? Our fav dive for a drink is a tucked away tiki bar on Saratoga called Arnold’s. Free popcorn, $3 hot dogs and an eight-hour happy hour, there’s a lot to love about this little nook of a bar. Someone told me the old building once stabled the royal family’s horses. Now it houses happy locals and seasoned tourists drawn to casual Arnold’s beachy vibes, strong drinks and laid-back bartenders. Mahalo, Arnold’s! I recommend you try the Mai Tai, the margarita on the rocks, or a cool Pacifico with a lime. Cheers!

Paris = wine + cheese + more wine

Croque Madame in Paris. How do you say “yum yum” in French?

France is all about food — rich, decadent. delicious food, usually involving a velveteen sauce, a creamy cheese, and a big, bold glass of wine. The best place to consume said delicacies is at one of the dozens of sidewalk cafes that fill Paris lanes, with their pretty chairs turned toward the streets to optimize people watching, sheltered by striped canopies. The similarity of the menus can be befuddling — each will sport various croque sandwiches with combinations of egg, cheese and meat, and variations of omelets, French onion soup, sweet crepes, and more. The food is so simple and so lovely, it’s hard to go wrong. The meal pictured here was particularly memorable — a goblet of red, a simple side salad, thick-cut salty fries, and a thick piece of bread with gooey cheese and a runny egg. Bonjour!

Seafood with a scenic view at Salty’s

Kicking off a dinner at Portland classic Salty’s with seafood apps.

It’s Portland Dining Month, where dozens of restaurants offer three-course meals for $33. It’s brilliant, fun, and usually delicious! The Oregonian offered its own version of 27 that are totally worth the money and not-to-miss, and while the list proved tantalizing, it omitted one local favorite: Salty’s.

I stopped by last week with my mom, and after the flight from Alaska, felt instantly relaxed by the calming view of the Columbia River, the slow dying light, and the ducks bobbing among the piers.

While the menu was full of mouth-watering seafood options, I opted for the Dining Monthly special: a first course of arancini filled with creamy risotto and shrimp (pictured above left), a main course of a shrimp and scallop seafood lasagna with a rich tomato pomodoro sauces and a touch of cream; and for desert, a decadent pot de creme.

For a close-to-airport, classic Portland spot, with killer views and personal service, look no further than stalwart Salty’s. This place is especially known for its brunch, a past “Best Brunch in Portland” winner on CitySearch.com, so swing by on weekends for a real experience.

The evening view from Salty’s.

Getting lucky

Lucky Wishbone is old-school good.

Anchorage’s Lucky Wishbone has served up old-fashioned goodness since it opened in the mid-1950s. While it’s famous for its fried chicken, I love the simple cheeseburgers; with American cheese, beefy patties, and pickle chips, these are old-school fabulous. A half-size side of shoestring fries completes this simple comfort meal. And you can’t beat the prices. Two people can have entrees and sides for under $20.

While there’s a drive-thru for the rushed, you miss the whole experience if you skip the dining room, filled with booths, old photographs, and other nostalgic memorabilia, a true step back into Anchorage’s past.

Pete’s Sushi Spot hits the spot, spot on!

Shaved raw scallop with jalepeno at Pete’s is a sweet and spicy treat.

I’m a sushi novice, still, always, despite my semi-adventurous attempts to wade into the wondrous world of sashimi, hamachi, and all things raw and tasty. My friend Josh is always up for sushi — an indulgent night that interweaves waves of incoming rolls with sake and Sapporo is his ideal celebratory environment. So on his birthday recently we hit up Anchorage’s Pete’s Sushi Spot on Minnesota Drive.

Pete’s made the news a few years back when it burned down. The resulting phoenix is a cozy joint in an unassuming midtown strip club, largely composed of booth seating with private rooms around the perimeter and bar stools at the counter where one can watch the chefs at work.

We had a great dinner, from the starter seaweed salads and miso soup and edamame, then progressing upward through various specials and menu favorites. The aged wagu beef was succulent and juicy, practically dissolving in our mouths. On special, the Homer Roll was a favorite, with its halibut and avocado filling. The raw scallop crudo with shaved jalepenos was another winner. The service was on point, too — a major reason a place like Pete’s can reopen and stay open in a town peppered with sushi joints. Pete’s personable service and spot-on dishes keep dishing up happy experiences here in Anchorage.

Gangnum Style rolls at Pete’s. Wait for it– the heat creeps up and then attacks!

Portland’s Genie’s packs a brunch punch!

The huevos rancheros are a popular choice on Genie’s brunch menu.

 

Portlanders take brunch seriously. Willing to wait for an hour or more for some of the city’s hottest hotcakes and beautiful biscuits, Oregonians’ devotion to the late-morning meal is evident not just by their patience, but by the sheer volume of options in this Northwest foodie city. Narrowing it down can be tough, as can weighing new players against old standards. Anyone who has lived or currently resides there has an opinion about which restaurants rank among the town’s best. A consistent favorite of mine is Genies Cafe.

Genie’s is a staple in Southeast Portland, at the corner of 11th and Glisan. The neighborhood has seen slight gentrification in recent years; for instance, the next door secondhand store of my youth is now sliced into hip boutiques. Genie’s presents itself like a local stalwart — a bit grunge, completely unpretentious, with unhurried hipster waiters dolling out substantive pours of copy and culinary guidance.

The food approach here is very Portland: eggs are local, cage free; meats are raised locally too; same with the produce; sausages and cured meats are made in-house. Many items can be vegan-ized when requested.

Open 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. seven days a week, brunch is served all day and the generous menu includes omelets, scrambles, benedicts, pancakes, and specialty dishes like hash, potato cakes, and my favorite, the huevos rancheros, which features house-made ranchero and roasted pasilla atop seasoned black beans, jack cheese, and corn tortilla. Add the house-made chorizo for a kick.

Genies is located at 1101 S.E. Division Street, Portland, Oregon. 503-445-9777.