3 Nights in Maui

Allow me to introduce myself, names Brennan and I’m hungry.

What’s on my menu? LIFE, and with all the fixings!

I currently live on the island of Kauai a small land mass apart of the Hawaiian islands. However I want to start by telling you a little something about Maui. This place is awesome so take a friend.

My lady and I went for three nights this February and no it did not rain on us the whole time. However, February is a rainy season for the islands. You’ve been warned!  Anyways, let’s get to the food. It all starts with Front Street.

Front St. is the one-stop shop for all your island needs and night life entertainment in Lahaina, a very popular western area of the island where most big name resorts are at. There are a few local joints and a good mix of chain-style restaurants.

As for the chains… Cheeseburger In Paradise, You can keep it in your kitchen Mr. Buffet!

There is something just flat-out wrong about a burger joint that won’t allow the customer to order his meat medium-rare. Unacceptable and for this your view of the ocean does not save you, it’s an Island. The Hard Rock Cafe on the other hand did it all better, service was unreal, food was good enough, view rocked it and the music just about had us dancing.

When you let your workers wear their hair what ever color they want and have the tattoos and piercing they for some reason desire to have, the real person comes out and its shows they really want to be there and you get a great atmosphere. Seeing how a great atmosphere is something we all want, check out the Hard Rock Cafe on Front St.

Once you have gotten off the beaten path of the tourist, turn your Mustang north to the town of Paia. This little hippie wonderland is where the amazing food is being eaten up by the locals who eat “right”. It’s also frequented by the few famous ones who spend many nights at Charley’s restaurant and saloon. Stop in for nightly live music and you just might run into Woody Harrelson or maybe even Willie Nelson, its his favorite watering hole while on Maui. We did cruise by but the smell coming from the Flatbread Company had our noses full speed ahead.

Before we get into the entrée of this trip, the Aloha Mix Plate in Lahaina is worth a mention for lunch and good cheap drinks.

Anyway, this place (Flatbread Company) blew me away. Farm fresh everything right down to the sugar used to make the simple syrup for my pomegranate ginger mojito. I couldn’t stop with just one, I had three. Our pizza was topped with hormone-free maple fennel sausage, bacon, I have a love for bacon,  Maui local spinach, marinated portobello mushrooms, whole garlic cloves, fire-roasted red peppers, pesto and the list goes on. Yes we dipped all that goodness in the house made ranch dressing that they say they only make a few times a year. We felt lucky and as the guy next to us at the bar said, “we were”! 

We even ordered a second flatbread pizza to take with us. They have a chalk board on the wall that list every ingredient and where it comes from. Of course the Flatbread Company supports all Maui local organic farmers and they buy only the best raised meat. That means even the pepperoni is nitrate-free. How about that, finally pepperoni you can eat guilt-free. The center piece of this heaven is the pizza oven it self. This thing is not what you see at Pizza Hut. It was hand-made of stone and old world clay so the wood burns in the middle and your pizza cooks on the hot stones around the fire. Truly a gift to anyone who has ever wanted more from their neighborhood pizza joint. Go to Paia, seek out the Flatbread Company and renew your spirit. Flatbread Company has been around the mainland since 1998 so take a look at their website and maybe you’ll find one near you.

Enjoy and Aloha.