Hearts in Hawai'i
Our Trip To Maui (2016)--Day 4
5/17/2016
Lahaina Tasting Tour
The morning began as I would like to see every morning start--with coffee on the lanai, watching the first light of the new day splashing on the distant Lanai coast. Perfect!
We took a walk on the beach fairly early this morning; I brought my heart monitor on the trip and burned off 490 calories in 57 minutes. This is a much quicker calorie burn than I was used to seeing from just walking, and then I realized I hadn't taken my heart medications for two days. Need to get back on top of that!
After walking, I quickly showered and we walked to the Pioneer Inn. The first activity of our trip was booked for this morning, a walking & tasting tour of Lahaina set up through Expedia. As it turned out, we were one of only two couples on this tour. The other couple, Al and Carol, were very nice and hail from Wailea. They moved to Maui some years ago after they retired. We chatted for a short time while waiting for our tour guide to show up. Eventually she (Cindy) showed and we started out. They normally use headsets on this tour so the tour guide can be heard by everyone, but being there were only the four of us, headsets were obviously not needed. Cindy was close enough for us to hear her narration.
The tour began with a Macadamia Nut pancake at the Pioneer Inn, along with a glass of POG (Passion Fruit-Orange-Guava) juice. Alex the bird was up to his usual antics, screeching for food from his cage. Cindy passed around pictures while explaining bits and pieces of Lahaina's past history. Some of this I already knew but much of it I did not.
A short walk away was Banyan Treats and some cookie tasting--nearby at the Lahaina Library was an example of dry land taro growing. Sir Wilifred's Coffee was our next destination, where we enjoyed samples of various coffees. And then on to Ono Gelato, described by many as the best Gelato on the island. Not having the opportunity to sample other gelatos on Maui, I can't deny or concur with this. Across the street on Lahainaluna Road we located Cafe Cafe where zucchini bread awaited. Next door to Cafe Cafe was Mr. Sub Deli where excellent wrap sandwiches were provided to us. Being somewhat full by now, we asked them to package them up so we could bring them back to our hotel room.
Ulalani's Shave Ice was our next much anticipated stop. I had read reviews on Trip Advisor on how this is Maui's best shave ice--without having much to compare it to, it was delicious! After this tasty stop, we strolled over to Take Home Maui on Dickenson Street and Maui Gold Pineapples, and then completed our tour at Penne Pasta Cafe for fresh ciabatta bread.
Overall, this was a nice way to acquaint oneself with some eateries in the Front Street area of Lahaina, and Cindy was an excellent host. While this isn't a tour we would repeat, we recommend this to others, especially those who haven't yet been in Lahaina.
Back at the hotel, I drove Patty over to Island Fitness for her daily workout. I stayed in the room due to feeling a bit fried from the previous day's sun. She returned by 2:00 and we napped before heading out for dinner at Pita Paradise in Wailea.
Pita Paradise
Traffic southbound on the highway was extremely heavy and it took quite some time to arrive in Wailea. Pita Paradise is in the same strip mall as Monkeypod Kitchen and Fabiani's Wailea (where we will be dining later on our trip). I never expect much from strip mall restaurants in the ambience department, but was very surprised at how nice Pita Paradise looked on the inside. We were seated at a nice booth, and the inside lighting is somewhat muted. Just the way I like it!
I started with a Virgin Lava Flow, my favorite Hawaiian beverage, and we shared some bruschetta, an amazing appetizer!
For the main course, Patty got the Garden Salad, and I decided on the Chicken Parmesan after some discussion with the server on her personal preferences. The owners of Pita Paradise are Greek and Italian so this dish comes with a little Greek twist to it (pita bread on the side). Very well prepared and tasty. The total bill was $58 pre-tip and worth every penny. The next time we dine here, we need to arrive later--we didn't know that by arriving before 5:00, we were ordering off the lunch menu which is slightly different than their dinner menu.
Wonderful Bruschetta!
My Lasagna
The drive back to Lahaina was nice, as nearly always. We hit the hot tub and struck up a conversation with a couple from South St. Paul, sharing where to go on Maui and what to do. They already knew much of what we told them, having driven to Hana earlier in the day.
Another great day on Maui!
Previous: 5/16/2016--Our Trip To Maui (2016)--Day 3
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