"SIGHTS & BITES" CIRCLE ISLAND TOUR OF OAHU, HAWAII

 "SIGHTS & BITES" CIRCLE ISLAND TOUR OF OAHU, HAWAII

During our recent vacation in Hawaii, one of the experiences we most enjoyed was the "Sights & Bites" Circle Island tour of Oahu Island. The tour was conducted by Aloha Hawaii Tours and lasted from about 7 a.m. to about 4.00 p.m. Fortunately for us, that day happened to be bright and sunny and we could take in the wonderful scenes that Oahu, Hawaii has to offer. 

As the tour name suggests,  this tour was designed to expose us to some interesting sights and eats of Hawaii. There were about 20 of us in the coach that day. The first stop was the Amaelia Earhart/Diamond Head Lookout, which was very scenic and beautiful. It is named after the famous aviator Amaelia Earhart who was the first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean in 1932. She flew solo from Oahu to Oakland in mainland America fin 1934 and is supposed to have flown over the Diamond Head crater so this lookout is named after her. 

If that was the first of the sights, the first of the bites was the delicious Poi Glazed Donuts from the famous Kamehameha Bakery  In her blog post, Herb & Lace, Cindy gives us more details of the poi glazed donut! I must say they were really delicious. We had never seen such purple colored donuts before.

We then visited the Halona "Blowhole" Lookout and the Nuuaana Pali Lookout- both provided breath taking views, the memories of which we shall cherish for long!

At the Tropical Farms of Hawaii, we tasted different varieties of Macadamia Nuts. We came to know that originally Macadamia nuts came into Hawaii from Australia. We loved the Onion and Garlic variant of the Macadamia Nuts, something we had never tasted before.

Lunch had been pre-arranged for us at Fumi's Hahuku Shrimp Truck. We had sent in our orders in the morning itself and they were all ready for us when we reached there. The Spicy Garlic Shrimp we had chosen was truly lip-smacking. This was served with sticky rice and a side of corn and pineapple. 

 After lunch we had some fresh fruits at the Hahuku Fruit Stand. 

Our next stop after seeing a few more sights was the old town of Haleiwa where we halted to sample the world famous Matsumoto Shave Ice which I have already written about.

The tour ended with a visit to the famous Dole Pineapple Plantation at Wahiawa which started in 1950 and has been opened to the public since 1989. There are so many varieties of pineapples on view here. Another attraction is the Pineapple Express train which takes you at a leisurely pace all over the plantation. We did not have time on this tour to go in the train, but we had enjoyed the train ride in our last visit to Hawaii in 2019.

At the end of an eventful day, we were dropped back to our respective hotels

The tour was very enjoyable and gave a good mix of Sights & Bites as promised!

OUR DINING EXPERIENCE: BREAKFAST AT THE MOANA SURFRIDER

 OUR DINING EXPERIENCE: BREAKFAST AT THE MOANA SURFRIDER

In a recent post, I wrote about our dinner at The Beachhouse at the Westin Moana Surfrider in Waikiki Beach, in the island of Oahu in Hawaii. 

Today, I write about our breakfast at the same place. There is something special about the Verandah Breakfast at the Moana Surfrider! 

Sitting in the covered verandah has it own charm. As we eat, we enjoy the sight of the close by beach and the waves of the Pacific Ocean a little beyond. 

My husband opted for the Acai Berry Bowl made up of banana, strawberry, blueberry, toasted coconut, granola and honey. It was wholesome and delicious. 

I decided to have the Moana "Beautiful" Mango Pancakes made with fresh mangoes, lilikoi curd, seasonal berries, Angola granola, coconut haupia syrup, mango pearls, and coconut flakes. While in the past I have different types of pancakes, this was my first time having anything like this. It was most enjoyable! 

My son ordered the Benedicts: eggs with smoked salmon, spinach, avocado and tomatoes and breakfast potatoes. 

Of course, all through the meal you have a choice of juices, mocktails and coffee or tea. The food was sumptuous and was amazing as far as the taste was concerned.

The next time you are in Hawaii, I would suggest you don't miss out on a breakfast at The Verandah at the Westin Moana Surfrider. 

OUR DINING EXPERIENCE: BEACHHOUSE AT THE MOANA SURFRIDER, WAIKIKI, HAWAII

 OUR DINING EXPERIENCE: BEACHHOUSE AT THE MOANA SURFRIDER, WAIKIKI, HAWAII

The Moana Surfrider is a luxury resort of the Westin chain of hotels situated in Hawaii. This is on the ocean front at Waikiki. Established in 1901, it is called "The First Lady of Waikiki" with reverence for its age old traditions of hospitality and impeccable service. We had stayed here during our last visit to Hawaii in 2019. This time around, we didn't stay - but dined here on a few occasions.

We had an excellent dinner at The Beachhouse which has a beautiful oceanfront location.  We chose the 3 course Tasting Menu made up of 1 appetizer, 1 Entree and 1 dessert. The description for the dishes given below are courtesy of the Menu of the Moana Surfrider.

Amongst the dishes we had were Seafood Chowder, made with netsuke bacon, potatoes and corn. This was, according to my husband, quite outstanding. It compared favorably with the chowder he had in Boston, Ma. which is so famous for its chowder. 

Table Side Hapa Poke : big eye ahi tuna, hamachi, maui onion, goo, green onion, sesame oil, alae salt, house tamari sauce, puffed forbidden rice. This appetizer was quite filling and tasty. Tuna lovers , in particular, would like this as we did. 

Lobster Risotto: creamy saffron risotto, butter poached lobster, and parmesan cheese and herbs. The different flavors were subtly incorporated in this awesome dish. 

Big Island Kampachi: Hong Kong sauce, choi sum, shiitake mushrooms, and shrimp fried rice. We thought this was the star of the evening. The Kampachi is a famous luscious-filled Hawaiian fish. The accompanying shrimp fried rice was also excellent. 

 Dessert ; Blueberry Mousse, a light blueberry mousse with Ube coconut glaze, lemon sable, lavender aerated sponge, lilikoi curd, chocolate cremeux, garnished with chocolate and fresh blueberries

Molten Chocolate Cake: decadent chocolate cake with chocolate sauce, green the oat crumble, kirsch cremeux, agar cherry gel, luxardo cherries, chocolate garnish

Kona Coffee Tiramisu: traditional layered tiramisu with Kona coffee, mascarpone cream, Kona coffee tuille, caramelized macadamia nuts, coffee angles sauce. 

As always, the food at the Beachhouse at the Moana Surfrider was superb. The service was prompt and courteous and we enjoyed a wonderful meal in a beautiful ambience. 

I must say the Moana Surfrider has to be one of my top favourite hotels. 

OUR DINING EXPERIENCE- DUKE'S, WAIKIKI,

OUR DINING EXPERIENCE- DUKE'S, WAIKIKI, 

We stayed at The Royal Hawaiian Resort in Waikiki during our recent trip to Hawaii. On the day we arrived we heard some rocking music float up to our 15 th floor balcony. A live band was playing at Duke's Waikiki close by so we decided to drop in there for dinner.

We made a reservation and waited for our turn, choosing to sit outdoors in their Barefoot Bar and enjoy the cool breeze coming in from the Pacific Ocean.  

Duke's is named after the legendary Duke Paoa Kahanamoku (1890-1968), perhaps the most famous son of Hawaii- a champion swimmer from Waikiki who introduced surfing to the rest of the world. 

" Pupus" are what appetizers or finger food are called in the Hawaiian language. We started off with Panko Crusted Calamari: which was deep fried squid made with guava cocktail sauce and meyer lemon remoulade. 

We then had the Duke's Nachos: which were served with black beans, jalapeños, pico de Gallo, guacamole, sour cream, and Colby Jack cheese. 

The next item on our table were the delicious Waikiki Hot Wings: spicy all natural chicken wings with the Duke's special sauce.

Last we had the Poke Tacos made with fresh raw ahi, maui onions, chilli flakes, avocado, and wasabi aioli.

Overall, we loved the food and the ambience. The service was rather leisurely but that's understandable as this is the kind of place where people enjoy a lengthy meal soaking in the atmosphere.

I close with a picture of the view we got as we had our leisurely and delicious meal at the Duke's Waikiki. 

 

OUR DINING EXPERIENCE: BAREFOOT BEACH CAFE, HONOLULU, HAWAII

 OUR DINING EXPERIENCE: BAREFOOT BEACH CAFE, HONOLULU, HAWAII

We discovered an excellent place for casual dining in Honolulu, during our recent trip to Hawaii. This was the Barefoot Beach Cafe an oceanfront restaurant located in the Queen's Surf Beach on the Diamond Head end of Waikiki.

This eating place really caught our fancy for the informal style, the easy going ambience, the yummy food, and to cap it all- a superb location from where to view the sun set on the Pacific Ocean.

We were extremely lucky that our plans came off well that day. We reached there well in time. This helped us get a vantage point to view the sunset. Be warned that you may have to wait for some time for service here - as often there is a fairly long queue to get a spot in this restaurant. This is open from 8.00 a.m to 9.00 p.m. with live music on in the evenings.

The first thing that caught my eye was the attractive manner in which they plated and served the Pineapple Smoothie. This was called the Whole North Shore Pineapple Smoothie. We had this delicious drink to accompany our Ahi Poke Bowl, as we especially enjoy the tuna fish of Hawaii. The Ahi Poke Bowl had fresh raw ahi tuna on steamed rice with furikake Hawaiian-style sesame oil, sweet onion, green onion, lime seaweed and Mac nut. I came to know that furikake is a Japanese seasoning. 

We enjoyed our delicious meal as we listened to the live music and saw the performers.

How can I sign off without talking about the never to be forgotten sunset we saw from there?  The last rays of the setting sun change the colours of the skies and reflect on the waves of the Pacific Ocean as they lap up against the shore in front of the Barefoot Beach Cafe. 

In my view, based on this recent experience I would give an Excellent Rating for the Barefoot Beach Cafe. 

Strongly recommended. 

SHAVE ICE AT MATSUMOTO'S, HALEIWA, HAWAII

 SHAVE ICE AT MATSUMOTO'S, HALEIWA, HAWAII

We loved our trip to Hawaii where we spent a week recently. This was our second trip having been there for the first time ever in 2019. 

Today, I am sharing our experience visiting the famous Matsumoto Shave Ice in the little town of Haleiwa in Hawaii. This is on the main island of Honolulu. It claims with justifiable pride that it has been serving the Northern Shores since 1951.

But first, what is Hawaiian Shaved Ice? It is the best known form of shaved ice desserts and is descended from the Japanese Kakigori, says this article in Eater.com. In fact, it is similar in some respects to our Indian Gola.  

When we hit the counter, notices tell you the 3 easy steps to place your order :- 1) Choose your size 2) Choose your extras - and 3) Choose your flavors . 

We correctly estimated that the "Small" size- pictures above and below - was adequate for each of us.

For the extras, we chose condensed milk, while other options were Vanilla Ice Cream, Ice Cream and Beans etc etc.

From the 30 + flavors on offer, you can choose any three or opt for the Matsumoto combinations. We selected Strawberry, Mango, and Pineapple as our choice.

After all the running around, visiting so many beautiful places to see in the hot sun of Hawaii, this shave ice comes as a super cooler, which is very yummy too. 

So when you are next in Hawaii, do make it a point to visit Matsumoto's at Haleiwa. It is well worth the time and effort! 

OUR TRIP TO THE UNITED STATES - Post 1

OUR TRIP TO THE UNITED STATES- POST 1

Followers of this blog would have noticed that there hasn't been any post in quite some time. The last was, in fact, on January 14, 2019. This is because my husband and I are visiting our son, in San Francisco in the United States where we will be till the end of February.  I hope to post once in a while mainly to give readers some idea of the fun food we tasted during our travels.

Let me start with some interesting trivia. We left Namma Bengaluru early morning of January 17, 2019. Our first flight took us to Paris, France in some 10 hours. Then followed another 11 flight to San Fransisco. Funnily enough, due to the complexities of the International Date Line, after all these hours of travel we arrived in San Francisco on January 17!

This is our second visit to the US. We had traveled extensively here when we came in 2011 but I didn't have a blog then! We visited the country from Coast to Coast covering Boston, New York, West Virginia, Delaware, Rochester NY, Florida, Texas, and California, amongst other places in 65 days. We enjoyed different types of cuisine but since I never captured those details then, I would like to do so now. To share what we experienced - through my blog.

We had an enjoyable visit for a few days to Hawaii where we stayed at the Westin's Moana Surfrider in Honolulu. We were welcomed with the traditional leis (garlands) of orchids.

The views of the Waikiki Beach and beyond were very beautiful. Indeed, Hawaii which we had heard so much about, is such a lovely place.

The Duke's Waikiki, a restaurant in Honolulu, Oahu, Hawaii was a fun place. Absolutely jam packed with tourists and holiday makers when we got there in time for brunch. It was considerable noisy, full of life, and the aromas of the food, especially the sea food wafted in the air.

We grabbed the famous Ahi Poke, made with local ahi, shoyu style, shaved jalepeno, furikake cracker and chili aliloli, and a dish of Salmon.

This was teamed with Fish & Chips, battered, fried crisp and served with tartar sauce. This dish was delicious too. The portions were more than generous and we enjoyed the meal.

As time permits, we hope to add more posts focussing on the new foods we ate and the cuisines we experienced during our trip. Until next time, Aloha, as they say in Hawaii!