One of my dearest friends – known to y’all on my blog simply as StB – recently got married in Maui, Hawaii. There was no way I was going to miss this for the world, so I took myself on a week long trip… read along as I share everything I ate on this incredible vacation!
One of the things I do when I vacation – especially when I’ve done little to NO research about a place beforehand – is ask locals where they like to eat. The best locals to ask include taxi/shuttle drivers because they know where everything is, and they’ve gone all over their respective parts of the world and they know. Sometimes they don’t care about food, but more often than not, the ones I’ve talked to always have suggestions for places to go. And unlike the concierge at your hotel, they tend to have no vested interest in sending you to the nearest tourist trap (only once have I ever had a concierge who really took me seriously when I said “no, I LOVE food, I don’t care HOW FAR it is, I want the real local experience” – the others tell me these places are great but usually they’re only OK).
So on my first full day in Maui – which also turned out to be the only day I’d spend alone there – I made a point to walk over to Kihei, the town over from Wailea (where I stayed), after my shuttle driver gave me an actual list of places to hit that were ‘close enough, but not that close’ to my resort. And honestly, everything was along the same road… so it was easy to find. My eye, then, was on Alexander’s Fish & Chips because I love fish & chips. Passionately. The 3 mile walk along the beach to Kihei whetted my appetite, too, so I was ready to eat!
Okay, not that much. I opted for the small portion, which was one piece of fish – ahi or ono (they were out of mahi mahi; I was informed there’s been a shortage lately) – with fries and cole slaw. I chose ahi because I forgot what ahi meant (tuna), and it was simply described as a red fish with a bold flavor; I was a little tired of white fish. Or something.
For kicks, I added on a side of mango relish… which was tiny, bland, and overly creamy. I would not recommend this at all. I really didn’t like it and it was a huge waste of money – like $2 for that tiny cup! Odd because everything else was super cheap.
The cole slaw was okay, nothing special, a bit over mayo’d – but in Hawaii, they love their mayo.
As for the fish – freshly and perfectly fried, with a meaty, dense and yet juicy interior… with just the lightest coat of batter.
I was really impressed by the fish – how perfectly it was fried, crisp on the outside, juicy, and delicious. Based on color, taste, texture, and all, the batter appeared to be a simple egg wash with parsley, and I need to try that at home sooner than later. So simple and so good. Love. I really wanted to return a few days later, but time constraints being what they were, I didn’t get a chance.
Yvo says: I sat outside at the ‘bar’ area and looked out over the ocean while I ate and enjoyed the sun, the breeze off the water, everything. For my first meal in Hawaii, I couldn’t have asked for anything more… fantastically fresh fish fried perfectly, inexpensive, delicious, and just awesome… love. Oh, the fries were fine – just a side carb really, but that worked perfectly fine for me. Good tartar sauce too though I only used it for the fries.
recommended
T.C. says
Mahi mahi shortage? NOOOOOOOO. Time to horde it all up for fish tacos craze.
Aimee Self says
I want fried fish!!!!
Feisty Foodie says
Me toooooo~!
taryn says
holy crap i am so excited about this series lol…
i <3 hawaii…i spent 10 days (on oahu) in 2003 and i'm dying to go back to the other islands – especially since they're much less toursity than oahu!
Feisty Foodie says
Ooh! I didn’t explain the scheduling of the posts, but it’s 2:15pm on Mon/Wed/Fri for the next 2.5 weeks 🙂 – new Hawaii posts. Unfortunately, a lot of the meals I had were pretty touristy – nature of being social with the other wedding guests and staying in/on/near the resort where we all stayed! Still a fabulous time, can’t wait to go back!!!
TT says
less fried fish, more poke
Feisty Foodie says
Patience is rewarded.
Jennifer says
There is this candy my Mother-in-law got over in Hawaii that I know you will lvoe, sadly I forgot who makes it… I just know that they come with promiscious names like, Dingle Berries (Chocolate covered strawberries or cherries) and Salty Balls. The Salty balls were my fave (ugh at how that sounded), they were chocolate covered macadamia nuts rolled in finely crushed salt. Soooo amazing.
I googled it and the name of the Candy place is Donkey Balls. Go figure.
http://www.alohahawaiianstore.com/
Feisty Foodie says
Salty balls sound amazing!!! I’m already back but I will definitely keep my eye out for that next time 🙂
Hungry says
The seafood must be so fresh there!
Feisty Foodie says
It really is… wait till the raw fish posts come 🙂
Confused & Sad says
We travel to Maui every year and make Alexanders one of our spots to eat at at least twice while we are there but my girlfriend just came back Dec 6th 2011 and has said it is closed. Have you heard anything like that? When were you there?
Feisty Foodie says
Oh no! I was there the second week of December. Business was good and it didn’t seem like they had any problems. Maybe they’re on vacation? Does the website say anything? 🙁