Need a nice Maui restaurant recommendation

[D1gger]

My wife and I are going to spend about a week in Maui next month, and we will be there for her birthday.

I want to take her out to a nice (romantic) restaurant for her birthday and I could use some help with a recommendation since I haven't been to Maui since 1987.

We are staying at the Honua Kai Resort near Lahaina, but we will have a car, so the location isn't that important.

My wife loves Japanese, Italian and French food, but any other cuisines might work as well. The price is not a concern if the place merits it.

What say you the great ATOT hive mind?

 

[Crusty]

http://www.theplantationhouse.com/

Had Christmas dinner there and was quite happy

 

[AreaCode707]

We went to David Paul's and found it overrated. Frou frou food but quality didn't match the presentation. Would not go again.

 

[thegimp03]

I've been to Merriman's in Kapalua three times and it is excellent, but pricey. Find out what time sunset is, arrive at the restaurant about 30 minutes prior and have a drink/appetizer in the back right on the ocean with a perfect view, then go in for your dinner.

 

[JEDIYoda]

There is a very nice hole in the wall Italian Restaurant that is on a corner near the hotels......
They served the best Italian food I have ever ate.....it also has excellent outdoors dining!!

 

[jhansman]

Kimo's in Lahaina is pretty good. A bit formulaic, but tough to beat the ambiance.

 

[boomerang]

There is a very nice hole in the wall Italian Restaurant that is on a corner near the hotels......
They served the best Italian food I have ever ate.....it also has excellent outdoors dining!!

Scarole's Ristorante? Used to be you had to bring your own wine. Been a long time though...

Roys Kahana Bar and Grill is one of my favorites although I don't know if it would fall under the 'romantic' category. It's a top-notch place, but the lights aren't dimmed with booths or anything like that.

http://www.wellersweddings.com/pages/Hawaii_Maui_Restaurant_Guide.htm

 

[OCGuy]

Lahaina Grill for an up-scale night.

 

[Whoozyerdaddy]

My wife and I are going to spend about a week in Maui next month, and we will be there for her birthday.

I want to take her out to a nice (romantic) restaurant for her birthday and I could use some help with a recommendation since I haven't been to Maui since 1987.

We are staying at the Honua Kai Resort near Lahaina, but we will have a car, so the location isn't that important.

My wife loves Japanese, Italian and French food, but any other cuisines might work as well. The price is not a concern if the place merits it.

What say you the great ATOT hive mind?

*cough*

Where are you taking me? I live two blocks away from Honua Kai. Can I crash your pool? :biggrin:

Italian - Ferraro's or Capische in Wailea. I'd say Capische.
French - Chez Paul went out of business. That was the only French place worth a crap
Japanese - Sensei in Kapalua is good. Great sushi.

Steak - Duo in Wailea. Best steak on the island.
Drinks at Sunset - Merriman's, Dukes

General Dining - The Plantation, Spago, Merriman's if you're not too hungry, everything is good at Duo and they give you cotton candy at the end of your meal, Gannon's, Joe's, Cafe O'Lei. And Dukes, which is in Honua Kai, is pretty good too.

Best hole-in-the wall bar food... Diamonds in Kihei (Chicken wrap with onion chips is the BOMB!). Great place for lunch... Moose McGillycuddy's/Fred's in Kihei, Maui Brewing in Kahana.

Best beer selection... Maui Brewing or Monkeypod in Wailea. Monkeypod has the BEST beer selection on the island. The food is pretty good too. The service can be spotty.

Dinner cruises have surprisingly ok food. Not great but better than you'd expect. And most have unlimited booze...

I think that about covers it.

Ohhh... I forgot. Mama's Fish House. #1 place on Maui. Must go. Bring your platinum card.

 

[Whoozyerdaddy]

Scarole's Ristorante? Used to be you had to bring your own wine. Been a long time though...

Roys Kahana Bar and Grill is one of my favorites although I don't know if it would fall under the 'romantic' category. It's a top-notch place, but the lights aren't dimmed with booths or anything like that.

http://www.wellersweddings.com/pages/Hawaii_Maui_Restaurant_Guide.htm

Roy's in Kahana and Kihei are no more... Actually I think they pulled out of Hawaii altogether. They're not on maui anymore. RIP.

 

[gsellis]

Whoozyerdaddy's list. I add Kula Lodge for the mountain view (officially proposed there) and Mama's Fishhouse (we did our private 10th anniversary dinner there). Mama's is good, but expensive. Did not eat at Longhii's this time and it is $$$ too.

Now the real trick is if you do the Lahaina Luau. You want to be at Angel's table. She is the friend you did not know you had yet.

For daily grinds, make sure you make it to Maui Tacos at least once. I have been addicted for more than 10 years.

Oh, and don't do Cheeseburger in Paradise. It will be a serious letdown.

Whoozyer... talked to some Five Guys folks, there are slots for the franchise on Maui. Not sure when they will be done. It may be a few years.

edit - and my wife liked Moose McGillycuddy's enough to buy the tee shirt.

 

[Whoozyerdaddy]

Oh, and don't do Cheeseburger in Paradise. It will be a serious letdown.

It's not that bad. The one is Wailea is pretty good actually. I like the one on Front Street for the view. BUT... best burger on Maui: Fat Boy's in the Kukui Mall in Kihei. No contest.

Whoozyer... talked to some Five Guys folks, there are slots for the franchise on Maui. Not sure when they will be done. It may be a few years.

I guess we'll finally find out what all the fuss is about.

 

[Fingolfin269]

I'm so ready to go back to Lahaina. If you have the chance go have breakfast at the Sunrise Cafe.

 

[thegimp03]

*cough*

Where are you taking me? I live two blocks away from Honua Kai. Can I crash your pool? :biggrin:

Italian - Ferraro's or Capische in Wailea. I'd say Capische.
French - Chez Paul went out of business. That was the only French place worth a crap
Japanese - Sensei in Kapalua is good. Great sushi.

Steak - Duo in Wailea. Best steak on the island.
Drinks at Sunset - Merriman's, Dukes

General Dining - The Plantation, Spago, Merriman's if you're not too hungry, everything is good at Duo and they give you cotton candy at the end of your meal, Gannon's, Joe's, Cafe O'Lei. And Dukes, which is in Honua Kai, is pretty good too.

Best hole-in-the wall bar food... Diamonds in Kihei (Chicken wrap with onion chips is the BOMB!). Great place for lunch... Moose McGillycuddy's/Fred's in Kihei, Maui Brewing in Kahana.

Best beer selection... Maui Brewing or Monkeypod in Wailea. Monkeypod has the BEST beer selection on the island. The food is pretty good too. The service can be spotty.

Dinner cruises have surprisingly ok food. Not great but better than you'd expect. And most have unlimited booze...

I think that about covers it.

Ohhh... I forgot. Mama's Fish House. #1 place on Maui. Must go. Bring your platinum card.

Ferraro's is BOMB. I've been there for lunch twice and they've always treated my wife and I really well and the food is great. Not to mention their pineapple frozen mai tai's...

But to the OP - driving back and forth to Wailea just for dinner when you've had a couple glasses of wine / other drinks is kinda far. Pacific O in Lahaina is a great meal as well. It's right next to the Lahaina Luau so you hear the music and see the fire dancers - but it's also right on the beach so the sunset is beautiful.

 

[Crusty]

Roy's in Kahana and Kihei are no more... Actually I think they pulled out of Hawaii altogether. They're not on maui anymore. RIP.

You serious? As of when!? I've eaten at Roy's every time I've been to Maui

 

[RbSX]

My wife and I are going to spend about a week in Maui next month, and we will be there for her birthday.

I want to take her out to a nice (romantic) restaurant for her birthday and I could use some help with a recommendation since I haven't been to Maui since 1987.

We are staying at the Honua Kai Resort near Lahaina, but we will have a car, so the location isn't that important.

My wife loves Japanese, Italian and French food, but any other cuisines might work as well. The price is not a concern if the place merits it.

What say you the great ATOT hive mind?

Kula Lodge on the side of Haleakala, it has a rustic vibe but the view is amazing. I took exgirlfriend there for Christmas last year, had a 50th birthday party there, and another Christmas dinner there.

Or take her to the hotel in Hana (note, this cannot be a day trip, it is a long drive so if you want to do it in style, spend the night, it is beautiful)

The restaurant has a great patio there at the Hotel:

It's super secluded, super beautiful, and a really great place to get away to for the night.

Honestly though, if you want good food, get as far away from the tourist trap of Lahaina as possible.

 

[Aharami]

Others (whozyerdaddy) will have much better recommendations. I've only been to Maui once and dined at Kimo's once. Really enjoyed it there - the food, the view, the service...everything! Just to give you an idea, we had this view

while dining in this setting!!

 

[Aharami]

man, i wanna go back to Hawaii now. Something about that place makes it so special! I've been to many of the Caribbean islands, but Hawaii beats them all by a mile

 

[mztykal]

There's really no place special on Maui that I can think of. I like Mama's fish house. Most of the time we do outdoorsy things and lounge around. LOL!

Cafe O'Lei (kihei only) is awesome and cheap! Also Cane and Taro in Lahaina is pretty good too.

 

[thegimp03]

You serious? As of when!? I've eaten at Roy's every time I've been to Maui

AFAIK, Roy's Kahana Bar & Grill still has its location in Lahaina. I was in Maui last May and we drove by it.

 

[Whoozyerdaddy]

AFAIK, Roy's Kahana Bar & Grill still has its location in Lahaina. I was in Maui last May and we drove by it.

Pretty sure they both shut down last summer. I know the Kihei location Shut down last summer. They're opening a Ruby Tuesday there. I'm headed out for a workout in about 45 min. Roy's was around the corner from my gym. I'll double check and report back. FWIW the Roy's website doesn't list any locations in Hawaii.

 

[brainhulk]

Mama's fish house

 

[BoomerD]

http://www.theplantationhouse.com/

Had Christmas dinner there and was quite happy

Very nice place. We went there for Sunday brunch the last time we were on Maui. Also in Kapalua is the Pineapple Grill...another nice restaurant.

On the other side of the island is Mama's Fish House. IMO, the best on the island.

http://www.mamasfishhouse.com/

I had also heard that Roy's had closed. Too bad. They were nice.

If you want to do the luau scene...Old Lahaina Luau is the best on the islands...hands down. Expensive...but worth it.

 

[Whoozyerdaddy]

Confirmed... Roy's is gone.

 

[D1gger]

*cough*

Where are you taking me? I live two blocks away from Honua Kai. Can I crash your pool? :biggrin:

Italian - Ferraro's or Capische in Wailea. I'd say Capische.
French - Chez Paul went out of business. That was the only French place worth a crap
Japanese - Sensei in Kapalua is good. Great sushi.

Steak - Duo in Wailea. Best steak on the island.
Drinks at Sunset - Merriman's, Dukes

General Dining - The Plantation, Spago, Merriman's if you're not too hungry, everything is good at Duo and they give you cotton candy at the end of your meal, Gannon's, Joe's, Cafe O'Lei. And Dukes, which is in Honua Kai, is pretty good too.

Best hole-in-the wall bar food... Diamonds in Kihei (Chicken wrap with onion chips is the BOMB!). Great place for lunch... Moose McGillycuddy's/Fred's in Kihei, Maui Brewing in Kahana.

Best beer selection... Maui Brewing or Monkeypod in Wailea. Monkeypod has the BEST beer selection on the island. The food is pretty good too. The service can be spotty.

Dinner cruises have surprisingly ok food. Not great but better than you'd expect. And most have unlimited booze...

I think that about covers it.

Ohhh... I forgot. Mama's Fish House. #1 place on Maui. Must go. Bring your platinum card.

Thanks Whoozyerdaddy, I was hoping you would pop into this thread. Looks like I've got lots of good suggestions here.

Weird about Roy's. The web site says it is still there.

http://royshawaii.com/kahana.html

and I know I saw it in Waikiki when we were there in February.

... oh and I have read about your exploits with the tourist ladies that visit Maui, so I don't think I can trust you around my wife.