Apart from fortress-like durability, Bruce wanted the home to be warm and inviting. He and Myong love to entertain, and here there are plenty of options. The living room’s sliding glass walls open to a 2,000-square-foot, wraparound, covered lānai that captures stunning views of land and sea. Downstairs, a cavernous family room shares the first floor with a cedar sauna and granite-walled steam room. Even the trellised cedar structure that supports the home’s 210 solar panels does double duty, sheltering an open-air entertainment area with plenty of seating. The space is flanked by a Lāna‘i-shaped saltwater pool, spa, and waterfall features that can be controlled remotely (along with the home’s lighting, security, and indoor-outdoor stereo systems).
Throughout the residence, there are telltale signs that a fisherman lives here—from the nets neatly hung in the garage, to the sailboat rigging used for cable railing on the stairs and lānai. You’ll find restaurateur-inspired touches, too: Both the kitchen and built-in outdoor grill have commercial exhaust hoods and fans; downstairs, a behemoth ice machine churns out 300 pounds of ice every hour and can hold a whopping 5,000 (ideal for storing a lot of fish and filling cocktail glasses); and there’s a fully stocked and impeccably organized walk-in pantry.
Bruce and Myong agree the kitchen is the heart of the home. “That’s where we spend most of our time,” she says. “I love to cook,” Bruce adds. And what’s usually on the menu? Yes, you guessed it: freshly caught fish.
Less than a mile away, in Mānele Harbor, is Bruce’s floating pride and joy, a 1955 sampan he’s lovingly restored three times. When they clock out and slip away to Lāna‘i to escape city life, Bruce and Myong divide their time between the boat and the house. And when they’re there, Bruce says, “We have the best of both worlds.”
RESOURCES
Elan Smart System
(security, lighting, stereo systems)
ElanHomeSystems.com
Available through:
Home Systems by Design
Hawaii, LLC
1057 Koko Kai Pl., Honolulu
808-954-1850
HSBD.com
Ryan Levis Architect, Inc.
(architect for trellis structure and pool area)
808-268-8475
RyanLevisArch.com
Top Shape Masonry, LLC
(pool and spa contractor)
TopShapeMasonry.com
808-859-0761