Aloha Everyone......I was just driving down to my office and heard Christmas songs on the radio.....are the holidays really here already?!?!?!

I just arrived from New York - flew in on Thanksgiving day........it was such a breeze and I didn't encounter any of the travel nightmares that all the news people warned about!

Thanksgiving at Haliimaile General Store was a huge success! My team and I served over 400 turkey dinners to rave reviews. It was great to see our regular guests as well as some new faces. Fulton Tashombe played gorgeous light jazz throughout the evening - it was such a joy to see him entertain and take requests from the crowd.

Some of the highlights of my New York trip included producing a fantastic dinner at the James Beard House. The dinner was a sold out affair and it was the first time in my career that at the end of the evening I looked back at the event and decided that there wasn't one single thing that I would have changed! I'll post the menu that I served so that you can see how I represented Hawaii Regional Cuisine to this particular audience.

Cooking on the Today Show was another highlight. Al Roker is such a nice man.....I hope everyone tuned in to see my holiday menu! A funny thing happened on the way to the studio - as I was being driven to the station, I received a call from an old friend, Bob Sabin. He was one of the original cooks I had hired to work at Haliimaile General Store 20 years ago. It turns out that he was in New York celebrating his daughter's birthday and was right in front of the studio when I arrived - that was a special treat!

As you may know, I have had the opportunity to cook with Emeril Lagasse in the past. When I was invited to a taping of his Emeril Live show, I jumped at the chance to see my old friend. He came out on the stage with a hearty, "Hi Bev!" and continued to chat with me throughout the taping. That particular episode will be aired next year. Keep an eye out for the white bean, sausage and kale soup he prepared on that episode.....it was delicious!

There were many opportunities to enjoy GREAT meals while in New York. I spent an evening at Mario Batali's Otto restaurant. The food and service were absolutely divine!!! There was a Japanese restaurant, Megu, that I enjoyed immensely. The sashimi was the best I've eaten in recent memory! Accademia di Vino was another great culinary experience. I actually went back 3 times while in New York. Not only because they are a hop, skip and a jump from Bloomingdale's!!!! They served a rib eye steak that makes my mouth water to this day! I got the name of the beef purveyor......maybe I'll serve those steaks in one of my restaurants! Gordon Ramsay, the famed Scottish celebrity chef, has a new restaurant on West 54th - loved it! loved it! loved it!

Yes, the New York trip was a whirlwind, but the top experience in the last few weeks was a family dinner party that I celebrated at my upcountry home in honor of my husband, Joe, this past weekend. It was his birthday and we served a delightful meal of his favorites proving that the best food is served alongside a heaping portion of love and family.

Enjoy this holiday season everyone.....I'll check back in a while to keep you posted on the hectic rush around here!

With warmest aloha,
Bev