So, I decided to add a new facet to my blog to include travel reviews. I love, love, love travelling and always find something fun and unique to do everywhere I go. So, I figured why not share this love and my experiences.
So, here goes.....the first review is for Duke's Beach House Restaurant on Maui. I wanted to find a yummy and fun place for New Year's Eve dinner. I'd read a bunch of reviews and combed through menus and thought Duke's sounded amazing. It's only been open for 2 years, but it's owner has several other restaurants that are highly rated as well. Then I happened to run into someone who'd been there recently and gave rave reviews. So, that was what pushed me over the edge. I always like getting a recommendation from someone I know. And a bonus was that I was able to make a reservation online using Open Table, so I didn't even have to call the restaurant.
So, after a long day in the sun snorkeling with sea turtles we headed over to the beach front restaurant that was only about 2 minutes from our beach front condo. I know, talk about paradise, right?
They had our reservation (yay Open Table) and we were seated right away. The restaurant was beautiful with lots of cool design touches that Eric, especially, appreciates. He noticed that our table was made out of one specific tree instead of a bunch of random pieces glued together. The sun had set so the dining area was lit with tiki torches and super soft lighting. The whole place is open-air, so the breezy is coming in off the ocean and you can hear the waves. This mixed with the live musicians playing made for a super relaxing and beautiful dinner.
We decided to start off with two appetizers. Our friend, Andy, who's originally from Hawaii had told Eric that he needed to try the Ahi Poke (raw Ahi) as he would love it. We'd been trying Ahi Poke and Lomi Lomi salmon at different places around the island, so, the Ahi Poke rolls were a natural choice. Calamari always seems to be good so we decided to go with that as our "backup" appetizer just in case the Ahi wasn't as great as we thought it would be. We didn't need a backup as they were both fabulous! Tender, delicious, wonderfully seasoned and beautifully presented.
Hawaii’s favorite pupu! Raw Ahi, Maui onions, seared in rice paper
Guava cocktail sauce, Meyer lemon remoulade
Next we had to try to make a decision about our main dishes. Just the night before we'd had fresh Mahi Mahi from our deep sea fishing adventure, so neither one of us really wanted fish. We both ended up wanting the same thing. I felt like we should try something separate, but our waiter informed us that we wouldn't regret it, that it would be amazing. So, we both decided on the pork shank. Now, this is something that's not normally on the menu and only served on the holidays. It's braised for 24 hours and served with a Kona coffee glaze, bacon brussel sprouts and mashed potatoes. It was ridiculously good. The meat literally fell off the bone. The only complaint was that there was so much food we really should have shared a main dish.
And, last but not least, you can't go to Duke's without having Hula Pie for dessert, at least according to our server and a ridiculous amount of reviewers on Trip Advisor. So, the Hula Pie it was (to share) for dessert.
This picture does not do it justice. It's ridiculously rich and creamy and chocolately and nutty goodness. We were both so full, but could not stop eating it.
This is what the sailors swam to shore for in Lahaina Oreo cookie crust, macadamia nut ice cream, hot fudge & whipped cream
Two very happy, but ridiculously full diners!
Happy New Year, Everyone!!!
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