2023 Aipono Restaurant Award Winners

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Maui No Ka Oi Presents

The 2023 Aipono Restaurant

Award Winners

 

 

Restaurant of the Year
Gold: Huihui
Silver (tie): Monkeypod Kitchen, Lahaina Grill
Honorable Mention
Ko, Mama’s Fish House

Best New Restaurant
Gold: Duckine
Silver: Lima Cocina + Cantina
Honorable Mention
Marlow, Tiffany’s, Oao Sushi Bar & Grill

Best Oceanfront Dining
Gold: Māla Ocean Tavern
Silver: Sea House Restaurant
Honorable Mention
Seascape Restaurant, Star Noodle, Honu Oceanside, Pacifico on the Beach, Kimo’s

Most “Maui-est”
Gold: Huihui
Silver: Mama’s Fish House
Honorable Mention
Kō, Māla Ocean Tavern, Monkeypod Kitchen

Best Service
Gold: Lahaina Grill
Silver: Ko
Honorable Mention
Māla Ocean Tavern, Mama’s Fish House, Monkeypod Kitchen, Kaana Kitchen, Huihui

Best Chef’s Table
Gold: Kaana Kitchen
Silver: Fond
Honorable Mention
Mala Ocean Tavern, Monkeypod Kitchen, Lahaina Grill, Huihui

Best Local Flavor
Gold: Tiffany’s
Silver: Star Noodle
Honorable Mention
Ko, Monkeypod Kitchen, Down the Hatch, Huihui

Most Romantic Setting
Gold: Mama’s Fish House
Silver: Merriman’s Kapalua
Honorable Mention
Cafe O’Lei, Japengo, The Restaurant at Hotel Wailea, Lahaina Grill

Best Healthy Fare
Gold (tie): Choice Health Bar, Moku Roots
Silver: Fork & Salad
Honorable Mention
AA Roots, Earth Aloha Eats, It’s Cherry

Most Innovative Menu
Gold: Ko
Silver (tie): Lineage, Duckine
Honorable Mention
Kaana Kitchen, Moku Roots, SixtyTwo MarcKet

Best Breakfast
Gold: Papaaina at Pioneer Inn
Silver: SixtyTwo MarcKet
Honorable Mention
Mala Ocean Tavern, Gazebo Restaurant, Kaana Kitchen, Kihei Caffe, Down the Hatch

Best Business Lunch
Gold: SixtyTwo MarcKet
Silver: Marco’s Grill & Deli
Honorable Mention
Cafe O’Lei, Lima Cocina + Cantina, Star Noodle

Best Pizza
Gold: Maui Pizza Truck
Silver (tie): Marlow, Sale Pepe
Honorable Mention
Flatbread Company, Pizza Paradiso, Lahaina Pizza Company, Prison St. Pizza

Best Happy Hour
Gold: Monkeypod Kitchen
Silver: Down the Hatch
Honorable Mention
Esters Fair Prospect, Māla Ocean Tavern, Sea House Restaurant

Best Pacific Rim Cuisine
Gold: Ko
Silver: Japengo
Honorable Mention
Māla Ocean Tavern, Huihui, Pacific’o on the Beach

Best Hawaii Regional Cuisine
Gold: Ko
Silver: Monkeypod Kitchen
Honorable Mention
Kaana Kitchen, Lineage, Tiffany’s

Best Luau
Gold: Old Lahaina Luau
Silver (tie): The Feast at Mōkapu at Andaz Maui at Wailea Resort,
Maui Nui Luau at Black Rock at Sheraton Maui Resort & Spa
Honorable Mention
Drums of the Pacific at Hyatt Regency Maui, Feast at Lele

Best Gourmet Grab & Go
Gold: Island Gourmet Markets
Silver: Leoda’s Kitchen and Pie Shop
Honorable Mention
Choice Health Bar, Tin Roof Maui

Best Asian Cuisine
Gold: Star Noodle
Silver: Duckine
Honorable Mention
Isana, Japengo, Lineage, Nuka

Best Southeast Asian Cuisine
Gold: Nutcharee’s Authentic Thai Food
Silver: Thai Mee Up
Honorable Mention
A Saigon Cafe, My Thai, Duckine, Star Noodle, Thai Chef

Best Mediterranean/Middle Eastern Cuisine
Gold: Pita Paradise
Silver: Pizza Paradiso Mediterranean Grill
Honorable Mention
Cafe des Amis, Mediterranean Grill

Best Mexican Cuisine
Gold: Amigo’s
Silver: Roasted Chiles
Honorable Mention
Acevedo’s Hawaicano Cafe, Las Islitas, Las Piñatas of Maui, Tight Tacos

Best Italian Cuisine
Gold: Sale Pepe
Silver: Taverna
Honorable Mention
Bistro Casanova, Fabiani’s, Marco’s Grill & Deli, Matteo’s Osteria,

Best Burger
Gold: Cool Cat Cafe
Silver: Havens
Honorable Mention
Mala Ocean Tavern, Monkeypod Kitchen, Teddy’s Bigger Burgers, Swagyu Hawaii

Best Shave Ice
Gold: Ululani’s Hawaiian Shave Ice
Silver: Breakwall Shave Ice Co.
Honorable Mention
Bling Bing, Tobi’s Poke & Shave Ice, Waikomo Shave Ice

Best Noodles
Gold: Star Noodle
Silver: Thai Mee Up
Honorable Mention
Lineage, Sam Sato’s, Nutcharee’s Authentic Thai Food, Tin Roof Maui, Duckine

Best Fish and Seafood
Gold: Mama’s Fish House
Silver: Lahaina Grill
Honorable Mention
Kaana Kitchen, Paia Fish Market, Honu Oceanside, Huihui

Best Steak
Gold: Ruth’s Chris Steak House
Silver: Duo Steak & Seafood
Honorable Mention
Fuego Argentinian Steakhouse, Monkeypod Kitchen, Son’z Steakhouse, Lahaina Grill

Best Sushi
Gold: Miso Phat Sushi
Silver: Japengo
Honorable Mention
Isana, Nuka, Sansei, Oao Sushi Bar & Grill

Best Lobby Lounge
Gold (tie): Alaloa Lounge at The Ritz-Carlton Maui, Kapalua;
Lobby Lounge at Four Seasons Resort Maui
Silver: Botero Lounge at Grand Wailea Maui
Honorable Mention
Lehua Lounge at Andaz Maui at Wailea Resort,  The Birdcage at Hotel Wailea, The Sandbar at Sheraton Maui Resort & Spa

Best Bar
Gold: Monkeypod Kitchen
Silver: Down the Hatch
Honorable Mention
Esters Fair Prospect, Lima Cocina + Cantina, The Pint & Cork

Best Handcrafted Cocktails
Gold: Monkeypod Kitchen
Silver: Esters Fair Prospect
Honorable Mention
Lineage, Māla Ocean Tavern, Duckine

Best Wine List
Gold: Lahaina Grill
Silver: Kaana Kitchen
Honorable Mention
Kō, Māla Ocean Tavern, Merriman’s Kapalua, Monkeypod Kitchen, The Restaurant at Hotel Wailea

Best Late-Night Dining
Gold: Down the Hatch
Silver: Mala Ocean Tavern
Honorable Mention
Umalu, Tiffany’s, The Pint & Cork

Best Plate Lunch
Gold: Kalei’s Lunchbox
Silver: Tin Roof Maui
Honorable Mention
Da Kitchen, Tobi’s Poke & Shave Ice, Nagasako General Store

Best Coffee Shop
Gold: Akamai Coffee Co.
Silver: Espresso Mafia
Honorable Mention
Bad Ass Coffee, Kraken Coffee Maui, Maui Coffee Roasters, Napili Coffee Store, Wailuku Coffee Company

Best Food Truck
Gold: Thai Mee Up
Silver: Maui Fresh Streatery
Honorable Mention
Maui Pizza Truck, Sun’s Out Buns Out, It’s Cherry

Best Restaurant Poke
Gold: Down the Hatch
Silver: Tobi’s Poke & Shave Ice
Honorable Mention
Star Noodle, Huihui

Best Dessert
Gold: Leoda’s Kitchen and Pie Shop
Silver:
Honorable Mention
Monkeypod Kitchen, Lahaina Grill

Best Farm-to-Table Cuisine
Gold: Pacific’o on the Beach
Silver: Moku Roots
Honorable Mention
Kaana Kitchen, SixtyTwo MarcKet

 

Excellence in Sustainability Award

A Healthy Approach

Fork & Salad sources local ingredients that are good for the body and the environment

by Lauren Warring

 

Photo by Fork & Salad

Fork & Salad co-owners Jaron Blosser, Cody Christopher and Travis Morrin received the Excellence in Sustainability Award for their farm-to-table, sustainable cuisine.

 

Chef-inspired farm-to-table restaurant Fork & Salad makes local, healthy food accessible and affordable — all while doing it sustainably.

Fork & Salad founders Jaron Blosser, Cody Christopher and Travis Morrin opened Fork & Salad in 2016 as a fast casual, farm-to-table restaurant that uses locally sourced Maui ingredients. The menu features chef-inspired salads, grain bowls, sandwiches, wraps, soups and kombucha.

Fork & Salad partners with over 20 local farmers and suppliers across the state to find fresh produce for their chef-inspired dishes. The Waihe‘e Valley Plantation in Wailuku provides the macadamia nuts for the pesto spread on sandwich favorites like the Ancho Chile-Seasoned Steak. Dish staples like beets, papaya and corn — often treated raw because they are so sweet on their own — come from Kumu Farms in Waikapū. Salad greens are harvested from Waipoli Hydroponic Greens in Kula while the on-tap kombucha is from Pauwela Beverage Co. in Ha‘ikū-Pauwela. Most of these farms practice full-circle or organic farming, using sustainability practices of their own to recycle water, reuse byproducts and limit waste.

Waste and byproduct are key considerations in Fork & Salad’s daily operations, with the use of compostable utensils and agave straws. Food scraps are donated to feed animals at the Maui Animal Farm in Lāhainā.

These everyday practices, local partnerships and business values define Fork & Salad as a leader in sustainability.

During the 2023 ‘Aipono Awards Reception in April, Fork & Salad received the ‘Aipono Excellence in Sustainability Award for their commitment to keep the business green, salads and all.