Round and round she goes..............
Aloha Everyone!
Whew! I have been on a whirlwind of travel recently and wanted to share some of the journey with you....
The stint of travel started with a trip that Joe and I took to the mainland to check out what's new and happening in restaurant design around the country. We started in San Diego and saw some very nice restaurants and moved on to Las Vegas.
The highlight of our trip to Las Vegas was an evening with Ringo Starr. We saw the show with his All Starr Band and it was honestly the best rock & roll show I have seen in a very long time. The music ranged from the 60's & 70's with some contemporary music thrown in for good measure. If you are around my age you will LOVE THIS SHOW! Joe and I took some photos with Ringo and chatted about how the industry has changed as well as some of his current projects.
From Las Vegas we went on to Napa Valley and attended the V Foundation Charity event. What an overwhelmingly wonderful series of events we attended!!!!!! We had lunch with Joseph Phelps at his winery. He is such a sweet man. The wines were incredible and the food was perfection.
The next stop was with Dave Del Dotto at Del Dotto Vineyards. The family hand dug their caves in 1885 and have recently opened them to the public. The caves are lined with Italian marble and ancient tiles. The place is spectacular. You are seriously missing out on an authentic Napa experience if you are not spending time at Del Dotto Vineyards while in Napa. The chandelier in the tasting room made me catch my breath. And the kitchen....ALL STAINLESS STEEL - it is a kitchen any chef would give her eye teeth to have! We had a 6-course meal and the dinner was simply superb.
Nickel & Nickel was the next stop - the winery was founded in 1997, but looks like it was in Napa FOREVER. It is in the Oakville appellation of Napa and we had a spectacular meal with guest chef, Michael Chiarello, founder of NapaStyle and Chiarello Family Vineyard. I went into the kitchen tent for a moment and found Chef Michael making risotto on site for over 500 guests, so I picked up a spoon and started stirring! The talent that evening on stage was Frankie Valli! I spent hours on the dance floor singing every single word to each of one of his songs. Oh! What a Night...as they say! Joe spent time with Frankie during the evening as Joe had worked with him years ago. It was a great opportunity for Joe to check in with an old friend.
The weekend culminated with a fabulous barbecue at Chappellet Winery - Napa's second oldest winery since Prohibition. The food and music were amazing, but they have the most magnificent view in all of Napa!
Upon my return to the Islands, I participated in the annual Maui Calls event in benefit of the Maui Arts & Cultural Center. Everyone was there to support the arts and have great food and beverage. It was a treat to catch up with everyone.
I made some staff changes in the kitchen at Haliimaile General Store and the crew is now putting out even better than top notch food. With some small tweaks and adjustments, we are poised for another 20 years of exceeding the expectations of our guests and feeding people in a way that we can all continue to be proud!
I made a few trips to the Lanai City Grille at the Hotel Lanai and the 3 chefs there put out the most delicious food. They all work so hard for such a little place. I am very proud of all of them!
It was back on the road shortly thereafter for a press tour for Hawaiian Airlines. I spent time in San Diego, Phoenix and Sacramento doing some morning shows and cooking along the way. I made it a point to stare in the camera at each stop and tell people to come to Hawaii. Airfares are really coming down to the islands and there is no better time to visit!
While in California, I stopped in L.A. to see the grandkids and had to have dinner at Spago in Beverly Hills as usual. I ran into my old friend Wolfgang Puck and had another one of his spectacular meals.
After L.A., I flew into Honolulu to help Roy Yamaguchi celebrate his 20 years in business. I laughed all evening with Nobu, Ming Tsai, Celestino Drago and others. After the fete I hopped on the plane to Manila to continue work for Hawaiian Airlines.
I tell you, Manila is really growing on me. It's not just the low priced spa massages and fabulous hotels.....the city is great and the chefs I work with there to prepare my cuisine for the airline are fantastic. Manila is such a great gateway to places like Hong Kong and Thailand. I have discovered that it is easier for me to get to Bangkok through Manila rather than China or Japan. Everyone: take the flight from Honolulu to Manila and Asia is right at your feet to explore! On my next trip I plan to spend time in South East Asia just because it is so convenient from the Philippines.
Upon my return home, I had my good friends Guy Hagi & Kim Gennaula from KGMB9 News in for a visit. Their kids are so cute!
Other than the world travels, just like everyone else, I am trying to keep a positive attitude about the economy in these uncertain times. I implore everyone to go out and eat and support small businesses in your area. Small businesses employ most people in our country and we all need everyone to go out and keep things running! Buy local products, support local chefs, farmers and others trying to stay afloat!!!!!
In closing I want to send a very special HAPPY BIRTHDAY out to a wonderful couple who have supported me over the years in my endeavors. Betty & Dorvin Leis are supporters of many facets of our community and I am honored that they asked me to assist them in celebrating their joint 80th birthdays. Bless you both and my warmest wishes for many healthy and happy years of living life to the fullest!
With warmest aloha,
Bev
posted by Bev at
8:02 PM
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