Garrett Marrero and wife Melanie have carved out a distinctly Hawaiian brewery, with all production on Maui and home-grown ingredients like coconut, pineapple and breadfruit factoring into beers. The couple’s flagship production facility resides in a Kihei industrial park, complete with 30 taps, picnic tables, and a garden out front. They also have a beachfront Ka’anapali brewpub. Beer flights, featuring four 4-ounce pours, are great for variety’s sake.

Elisa and Eddie Garcia run Oki’s Seafood Corner inside the Kahului Foodland. The counter opened in 2000 and features a large poke, sashimi and fresh seafood selection. Poke Box is a great place to start, with up to two seafood picks and either white or brown rice, preferably showered with furikake. I enjoyed sesame scallops and firm pink papio (jack) cubes tossed with onions.

Crowds form early for pastries from David Escobar and wife Linda. Their King David cinnamon roll is downright biblical, warm and supple, with an ideal cream cheese glaze ratio. They also serve baked goods with fun island flavors and pizza at night.

Sam Sato and wife Gladys ran a store that sold staples and sweets that relocated more than once, adding elements along the way. Now daughter Lynne Toma and husband Charles run Sam Sato’s restaurant, which has been in its current location since 1993. The space in an industrial area houses wood booths, powder blue tables, and a pastry case by the register, which includes flaky manju filled with lima bean or azuki bean. They source thick noodles from nearby Iwamoto Natto Factory, which fuel famed dry noodles, which come with a side of soup, along with saimin and wonton noodle soup. Banana pancakes are also magical, with winning caramelization and a bowl of molten butter to drizzle on top.

The Napili Kai Beach Resort’s signature restaurant of course overlooks the sand and Pacific Ocean. The open air dining room contains kitschy pineapple chairs and a stone wall with living elements. Chef Craig Erickson presides over three meals daily, and we recommend two key time periods: breakfast and happy hour.

This Lahaina pancake specialist, which also has locations in Portland and Singapore, sports white and orange color scheme, cartoon paintings on the walls of pancakes and mix-ins, and tabletop griddles in booths for DIY prep. If you prefer full-service, sit at a speckled black bar. To make DIY Pancakes, choose a batter (buttermilk, chocolate, seasonal, gluten-free, whole grain), pick some fixins (sweet or savory) and add toppings like coconut peanut butter, lavender honey, or lemon curd. Prescribed combos include Savory Cakes, buttermilk Pancakes, crumbled bacon, jalapeño, cheddar cheese, avocado and Mornay sauce. You’ll also find specials from From the Kitchen, possibly lemon poppy seed pancakes with lemon curd and poppy seed whipped cream.

Drive past an industrial district and dead end at a barren hillside to reach Star Noodle. The contemporary Asian concept has a long communal table, rattan-backed chairs, and boxy lanterns that belie the staid surroundings. House-made noodles and seafood are predominant. Some dishes, you won’t find anywhere else. For instance, Lahaina fried soup stars smoky wok-fried rice cake rectangles. Pohole salad is also wonderful, combining Hana fiddlehead ferns, sweet Maui onion, ebi, and kombu. Roasted mushrooms and pan-seared ahi belly might not be unique, but local Hawaiian ingredients are excellent. The restaurant also has house-made sauces and sodas, in keeping with their ethos.

Ululani’s Hawaiian Shave Ice owners Ululani Yamashiro, husband David, and business partner Brad Edgerton also run this colorful Kihei bakery. Sugar Beach Bake Shop has a big baked good selection, but when in Hawaii, it normally makes sense to start with malasadas (Portuguese influenced donuts). My vivid ube filled malasada was supple and flavorful. Maybe next time they’ll still have lilikoi.

Thomas and Eva Kafsack, originally from Germany, began clearing 42 acres in central Maui in 1999 and now have a delicious haven devoted to goat byproducts. No, the goats don’t surf, but the farm does have plenty of charm, including decorative surfboards and sails, a dining room that resides under a corrugated tin roof, and a kitschy gift shop with goat figurines, goat’s milk soap and more. Still, goat cheese remains the draw, whether it’s cream cheese-like Udderly Delicious, a drained chevre called Maui Secret, or a Fruit Quark with yogurt-like consistency.

Homegrown Hawaiian culinary star Sheldon Simeon competed at a high level on two “Top Chef” seasons and has partnered on several Maui restaurants. I enjoyed his cooking at Leoda’s, Migrant, and Star Noodle on past trips. He and wife Janice took over local central Maui favorite Tiffany’s in 2022. They updated the menu to feature “Hawaii Classics.” I particularly enjoyed Tiffany’s pan-Asian comfort foods like silky hamachi sashimi plated in ponzu finadene and crispy fried chicken leg quarters sprinkled with sinigang dust.

Sheldon and Janice Simeon also run a fast casual window with limited seating near Kahului Airport. Crowds have gathered since 2016 for their Hawaiian comfort foods. I enjoyed their garlic shrimp with cabbage banchan, a panko crusted kajiki (marlin) sando, and creative mochiko chicken dressed with su-miso gochujang aioli and signature “mochi crunch dime bag mix.”

David Yamashiro, wife Ululani and business partner Brad Edgerton run three shave ice stands on Maui and expanded their frozen business to other Hawaiian islands, California, and Texas. Their premium take on an island classic features local fruit purees, pure cane syrup and natural colors. The couple also utilizes brilliant engineering, punching holes in the airy ice mound to allow for maximum puree penetration. Dozens of flavors include creamy coconut and punchy pickled mango. Pe’Ahi combines three island essentials: mango, lilikoi and coconut. Party in the Mouth unites passion fruit, calamansi and tamarind.