I know, I know, there are not many to choose from, in terms of really well-known chefs from Hawaii. Let’s see, off the top of my head, we got the big dogs like Roy Yamaguchi, Alan Wong, Sam Choy, Russell Siu, Chai Chaowasaree, Chef Mavro (George Mavrothalassitis), etc., and some of the lesser known, but equally impressive, like Hideaki “Santa” Miyoshi, Collin Nishida and Onjin Kim (anybody know what happened to her btw?).
In the comment area below, list your favorite Hawaii Chef(s) and why. Whether it be their cooking ability, ono-ness of their restaurant, their personality, or all of the above. I have a few for various reasons:
- Hideaki “Santa” Miyoshi: He’s the co-owner of Tokkuri-Tei, my all-time favorite restaurant, hands-down. He’s down to earth and has a hilarious sense of humor. Santa always makes me crack up without even saying a word.
- Chuck Furuya: Yeah, he’s not really a chef, but close enough. He runs Vino Italian Tapas & Wine Bar in Restaurant Row, and, oh by the way, is one of only two Master Sommeliers in the state of Hawaii. He’s genuine and friendly and has a knack for taking the intimidation out of wine. Back in college when I worked at KHET Hawaii Public Television, we filmed a segment with him for one of our shows. During setup, he yells to this little student grunt (me) across the room and says “Eh, I know you! I played ball with you in Hawaii Kai the other weekend! Remember me?” Stunned, I was like “Huh!?” Then I realized he was talking to me and was able to muster up this glorious response: “Me? Oh yeah!” We continued to shoot segments with him and he would always take the time to make conversation with all of us about anything and everything. Recently, I saw him with his son at Cafe Laufer and he still recognized me and shook my hand. What an awesome guy!
- Sam Choy: just seems really friendly and welcoming. Plus, he loves him some poke. My kinda guy!
- Roy Yamaguchi and Alan Wong: though insanely intimidating, these two guys seem warm hearted in person and continue to stay true to their roots, choosing to buy local whenever possible. My “claim to fame” for Roy Yamaguchi was that I gave him a ride to and from Roy’s Hawaii Kai – in my little Civic hatchback – before and after a shoot in our KHET studios (I lived in Hawaii Kai at the time and it was looked at as a better, more economical idea than sending a production van out to Hawaii Kai to pick him up). My “claim to fame” for Alan Wong was actually a few days ago when I interviewed him for Part II of my “Poke Paradise” series for AroundHawaii.com, set to be published on February 1st. 8) Here’s a little sneak peek for y’all! Let me know what you think!
An Interview with Alan Wong
Talk to me!
* Post your favorite Hawaii chefs below and why.
* Thoughts on the above interview?
* Excited about the new iPad?
* Excited about the Olympics?
Have a happy VH07V Friday and weekend y’all! See you on the flipside! 🙂
World Wide Ed 