AMA AMA - DISNEY AULANI RESORT

AMA AMA 

AULANI DISNEY RESORT

KO'OLINA, HAWAII

Take a stroll through the new Aulani Disney Resort
in Ko'Olina Hawaii.  Dinner at the Ama Ama restaurant

Click links below for more posts on Ama Ama;

http://greateatshawaii.blogspot.com/2012/04/ama-ama-restaurant-disneys-aulani.html
http://greateatshawaii.blogspot.com/2011/09/ama-ama-aulani-disney-resort-koolina.html

AMA AMA - DISNEY AULANI RESORT

AMA AMA

AULANI DISNEY RESORT

KO'OLINA HAWAII 

We were blessed to be treated to dinner at the new Disney Resort in Ko'Olina.  Aulani is a huge resort that dominates the once calm skyline of the lagoons at Ko'Olina.  The place sticks out like a sore thumb and will forever change the face and fabric of West Oahu.  Ama Ama is the fine dining restaurant within the resort.  It is situated in a perfect location overlooking the lagoon.  Our table was perfect and so was the service.  Our waiter was Isaac from Molokai.  Isaac was the perfect gentlemen.  He was knowledgable about the menu and always was there to take care of us in a professional and relaxed manner.  To start our meal, we were served a complimentary spoon filled with a fresh lobster and seafood.  This was good.  Could have eaten a dozen of those spoons.  The complimentary bread is served with sweet butter and two kinds of sea salt.  You put the salt on the butter and then on the bread.  Wow...this was really good.  We split the Hirabara Farm Greens with Papaya Seed Vinaigrette ($12).  The salad is served in a large bowl.  Isaac was nice enough to split our portion into two bowls.  The salad was crisp and fresh.  The dressing was light and just tangy enough to satisfy.  For my entree, I ordered the Grilled Lobster served with some sort of pancake and Korean vegetables ($63).  This dish was a mess.  It tasted worse than it looked.  Probably one of the worst lobster dishes I have had in my life.  While the lobster was a bit undercooked and cold, the surrounding things on the plate should be outlawed.  The lobster was set on top of some kind of mush patty.  The thing had no taste and was uneatable.  There was a pool of sauce with Korean cucumber and other tart vegetables.  Look at the picture below.  Would you pay $63 for this dish?  What a huge disappointment.  My friend enjoyed the Whole Salt-Crusted Island Sustainable Catch with Limu and Tomato and Maui Onion Vinaigrette.  Don't know how much this cost, but I guarantee it was expensive.  The presentation was beautiful.  The fish was brought to the table and un-crusted by a waiter.  Our friends also ordered the Fresh Hawaiian Sustainable Catch at Market Price.  Why they have to put "sustainable" in all of the descriptions is beyond me.  You catch a fish and you eat the fish.  What does this sustain?  My wife had the Paniolo Rack of Lamb ($53).  Served with a pineapple, mango and Poha Berry Chutney.  This was delicious dish.  For dessert most had a scoop of sorbet.  I ordered a scoop of chocolate ice cream but they only had vanilla with chocolate sauce.  This is one expensive restaurant that  I probably will not go back to again.  Sorry Mickey Mouse.  

Click links below for more on Ama Ama;

http://greateatshawaii.blogspot.com/2011/09/ama-ama-aulani-disney-resort-koolina_19.html

http://greateatshawaii.blogspot.com/2012/04/ama-ama-restaurant-disneys-aulani.html

AMA AMA

BEAUTIFUL VIEW OF LAGOON FROM PATIO TABLE

SUNSET VIEWS WERE FANTASTIC

Here is info provided by the Aulani web site:

 MENU
The gourmet chefs use fresh local ingredients and island flavors to create distinctive Hawaiian dishes that juxtapose the traditional with the contemporary—for breakfast, lunch and dinner.  While the menu rotates to highlight seasonal ingredients, the dinner menu focuses on sustainable seafood, steak, duck and pasta. For lunch, enjoy hot and cold sandwiches, soup, salads and pasta. Hawaiian-inspired breakfast specialties feature omelets, waffles, pancakes, grains and freshly-made bakery items. Delicious vegetarian options are available for breakfast, lunch and dinner. All desserts are house-made daily!
Something special to drink? Treat yourself to a classic island cocktail updated with a unique twist or a glass of fine wine!

ATMOSPHERE
The restaurant features an open-aired seating section with amazing views of the Pacific Ocean. Gather your loved ones, dine on amazing food, enjoy a tropical sunset and watch as rolling waves crash against the shore.

NAME
The restaurant is named after the ʻamaʻama—a tasty local mullet fish immortalized in popular Hawaiian songs. Our signature dining restaurant celebrates not only the fish, but also the fishing settlements along the leeward coast dating back to the 12th century.

MENU  (CLICK TO ENLARGE)

HOUSE APPETIZER WITH LOBSTER

HIRABARA FARMS GREENS WITH PAPAYA SEED VINAIGRETTE

BREAD, BUTTER AND TWO KINDS OF HAWAIIAN SEA SALT

ONE OF THE WORST LOBSTER DISHES OF MY LIFE

UN-SALTING THE FRESH FISH AT THE TABLE

LIMU, TOMATO AND MAUI ONION VINAIGRETTE

SALT-CRUSTED "SUSTAINABLE" CATCH

PANIOLO RACK OF LAMB

VIDEO OF DISNEY'S AULANI RESORT

CALIFORNIA PIZZA KITCHEN

CALIFORNIA PIZZA KITCHEN

KAHALA MALL

My girls would choose to eat at CPK everyday if they had a choice.  Seems they always want to eat here.  I don't blame them as the pizza, salad and entrees are really good.  Why I ordered tacos at a pizza joint is beyond me.  Just wanted to try something new on the menu.  I ordered the Steak Tacos ($12.60).  The waiter brought out the Fish Tacos by mistake so he said to keep the Fish Tacos for free.  After a few minutes, the Steak Tacos arrived.  I was glad that we got to try the Fish Tacos because I liked them better than the Steak.  These tacos are over $6 each.  A little too rich for me.  Don't think I would order them again.  The Lettuce Wraps with Chicken ($9.75) was a hit with the wife and the Kids Mac n' Cheese with Edamame ($6) made the little one happy.  I left this visit wishing I would have ordered a pizza.

CALIFORNIA PIZZA KITCHEN

LOCATED INSIDE KAHALA MALL

MY GIRLS LOVE THIS BREAD

LETTUCE WRAPS

FREE FISH TACOS

KIDS MAC N' CHEESE 

STEAK TACOS

UNIVERSITY OF HAWAII WAHINE VS PEPPERDINE WAVES

UNIVERSITY OF HAWAII RAINBOW WAHINE
VS PEPPERDINE WAVES
WOMANS COLLEGE VOLLEYBALL
STAN SHERIFF CENTER, HAWAII

Sit back and see for yourself why there is nothing in 

America like University of Hawaii Wahine Volleyball.

10,300 fans attended this game vs Pepperdine.  

Hawaii won and scenes for Hawaii Five-0 episode were filmed

during and after the game.  GO BOWS!

HAWAII VS PEPPERDINE WOMANS VOLLEYBALL AND HAWAII FIVE-O

HAWAII VS PEPPERDINE

WOMANS VOLLEYBALL

STAN SHERIFF CENTER

UNIVERSITY OF HAWAII

We knew that the crowd would be large for the University of Hawaii Rainbow Wahine vs the Pepperdine Waves.  This woman's volleyball game was especially different because they were filming scenes for an upcoming episode of Hawaii Five-0 in the stands and on the court.  The line to enter the Stan Sheriff Center extended from the box office all the way into the parking structure.  Only in Hawaii would fans quietly line up without any direction or supervision.  I don't even think the Stan Sheriff staff understood what was going on outside.  If they did know, they should have opened the doors a little early rather than waiting until 6:00 pm on the dot.  When the doors opened, it was very calm with nobody rushing the entrance.  This was an amazing show of class by the Hawaii fans.  Once you entered the Center, there was a line to enter the gift shop that was a mile long.  This huge line was for a simple white t-shirt that said you were an extra on Hawaii Five-O.  The shirt was free with every $15 purchase at the gift shop.  People lined up for over an hour and then paid top dollar for University of Hawaii merchandise to get the t-shirt.  With hundreds of people waiting in line, the gift shop only had one cash register operating.  They had a staff of three people and only one could ring up purchases.  This was insane.  Stupid me waited in the line, purchased some items and got the Hawaii Five-0 shirts for family and friends.  Luckily the line at the beer stand was not too long so I enjoyed some refreshment after the gift shop ordeal.  Once seated in the stands it was magical to see over 10,000 fans rocking and rolling while watching Wahine Volleyball.  There is nothing like this in America when it comes to college volleyball.  A true gem to experience in person.  Wahine Volleyball is more than a volleyball game.  It is an experience and joy to watch the fans dance, sing and cheer.  Hawaii beat Pepperdine on this night and after the game they made a few set changes on the court and filmed scenes for Hawaii Five-0.

LINE TO ENTER ARENA STRETCHED ALL THE
WAY INTO PARKING STRUCTURE

LINE TO ENTER GIFT STORE WAS VERY LONG

GIFT STORE LINE GOES ON AND ON

10,300 FANS AT A WOMANS VOLLEYBALL GAME - WOW!!!

THIS IS THE SHIRT THAT PEOPLE STOOD IN LINE FOR

COPPER THEFT GONE WRONG - DREW GOES ON KHON 2 NEWS

Made the evening news with this segment about

a copper theft gone wrong.

SPAGHETTI BOLOGNESE

SPAGHETTI BOLOGNESE

DINNER AT HOME

My lovely bride cooked up some really good spaghetti with meat sauce.  Pasta was perfectly al dente and the meat and sauce were packed with flavor.  This is a simple dish that the entire family enjoys.

HAWAIIAN AIRLINES COACH SERVICE

HAWAIIAN AIRLINES

COACH SERVICE

Hawaiian Airlines is one of my favorite airlines.  The planes have a very high on time record and the service is usually pretty darn good.  Hawaiian still provides a meal in Coach Class.  It is a box with a small sandwich that is 90% bread and a muffin.  You can buy a few items on the plane for around $10.  They offer Cheeseburgers, Salads and a Sushi Plate. I was surprised when we ordered a small bottle of Red Wine and were dinged $16 for the thing.  What a far cry from Hawaiian First Class service where you can dine on three course meals and enjoy unlimited beverages including wine and champagne. Coach seating is very tight on all airlines.  Hawaiian allows you to upgrade to a bulkhead or exit row for $25 more each way when available.  I always try to check in online 24 hours ahead and purchase this option.

EXIT ROW SEAT IN COACH FOR $25 EXTRA

COACH MEAL - OH.....HOW TIMES HAVE CHANGED

LA MARIANA SAILING CLUB

LA MARIANA SAILING CLUB

HONOLULU, HAWAII 

 I had not been back to La Mariana since the Tsunami hit Japan.  The aftermath of the tidal wave caused heavy damage to the harbor fronting the restaurant here in Hawaii.  Luckily the La Mariana only received severe water damage but was able to reopen.  Lunch on this visit was not good.  Probably because we just ordered the wrong stuff.  We started with Chicken Wings that were pretty bland and had no heat.  Had to dip them in Ranch Dressing to give them some flavor.  The Reuben Sandwich did not taste right.  Something about the Corned Beef flavor.  I only finished a few bites and then packaged it up for someone at the office.  My friend ordered a huge pile of Nachos that I tasted too.  They were not bad.  La Mariana is a Hawaii is the last of Hawaii's old Tiki Bars and should be enjoyed while we still have it.

 

LA MARIANA REUBEN SANDWICH

 

LA MARIANA SAILING CLUB 

ENTRANCE TRANSFORMS YOU BACK IT TIME

HAWAII'S LAST TIKI BAR

CHICKEN WINGS

NACHOS

COLVILLE, WASHINGTON

COLVILLE, WASHINGTON

From the Columbia River to Lake Loon, Colville and its surroundings is beautiful in the summer and fall.  Beware the winters however, I was told they can be brutally cold with months of snow.  We were blessed to visit during 90 degree September days.  My sincere thanks to all the people in Colville who made our trip enjoyable.

QDOBA MEXICAN GRILL - SEATTLE AIRPORT

QDOBA MEXICAN GRILL

SEATTLE AIRPORT 

The Seattle Airport has a pretty good food court.  We went to Qdoba for a Breakfast Burrito.  For around $7 you get a 10" tortilla filled with your choice of ingredients.  I went for eggs, potato, chorizo, lettuce, tomato, cheese and salsa.  This was a very good burrito and perfect way to start the day.

QDOBA MEXICAN GRILL IN THE SEATTLE AIRPORT

QUICK AND EFFICIENT ORDERING - PICK YOUR TOPPINGS TOO!

BREAKFAST WITH VIEW OF RUNWAY AND PLANES

BREAKFAST BURRITO

EGGS, POTATO, CHORIZO, TOMATO, LETTUCE AND CHEESE