Dinner from Lahaina Luna Cafe in Lahaina, Maui, HI

We picked up some food at a local food stand next to Ululani's, which I read had some delicious, non-healthy foods.  We were honestly kind of disappointed.  The fries were good but the chicken was just ehh and def nothing I would go out of my way to get.  Some with the tacos.  I'm not entirely sure what the big fuss on yelp is about.  Maybe because it's affordable and on Front Street?  But I'm sure there's better bar-style food around Lahaina.

Garlic Fries - string cut fries, garlic aioli, sprinkled with furikake.  Best thing we ate but lots of places do fries like this in Maui

Teri Fried Chicken Bites - fried chicken with Thai chili glaze.  It was okay.  Kind of like a chili general Tsos.  Glad we got the app size instead of entree

Taco Combo.  Left with mahi mahi and right with korean beef.  Good but not super memorable

Dessert at Maui Sugar Shop Bakery in Lahaina, Maui, HI

After going to Kohola Brewery, we stopped by this bakery for some dessert.  I am entirely sure if what we got was gluten-free.  If so, might explain why I was not in love with it haha.  Very sweet so I'm glad we got mini cupcakes, not regular sized ones.

Chocolate with Peanut Butter and pretzel mini cupcake, Coconut Haupia mini cupcake, and some kind of profiterole.  Cupcakes were super sweet.  The inside of the coconut had liquid-y haupia

Lunch from Foodland in Lahaina, Maui, HI

We were told we should eat poke everyday, and we pretty much did that. Got some more from the Foodland near our hotel and this time were smart and got seaweed, rice and taro chips.  This poke experience was even better!

all the amazing poke

(L to R) sesame tako, king crab garlic, previously frozen ahi, (second row)  ahi poke, hawaiian style tako poke, fresh ahi with fried garlic 

Salmon, sunrise ahi, spicy tuna, and seaweed plus white rice

Sunrise tuna was awesome.  Had bits of avocado and sesame seeds in spicy sauce

Delicious salmon shoyu.  Big chunks of salmon

Seaweed salad

Spicy ahi.  Realized we didn't need to get half pounds each time so got 1/3 lb each I think

Breakfast at 808 Grindz in Lahaina, Maui, HI

Yelp also told me to go to 808 Grindz for breakfast and I am so glad we went on the earlier side of the trip.  No joke had the best pancakes of our lives.  I may have said that in the past (I think based on Honolulu pancakes) but these were hands down life changing pancakes.  If you go to one place in Maui, I have no question that it should be at 808 Grindz.  The macnut nilla sauce is out of this world.  Many pancake options but I went with maple bacon macnut to have a bit of savory and it was the best decision.  Also discovered how much we love Portuguese sausage.  I'm getting sad now writing this that I don't have pancakes in my face.

Dan got a special of the day - Banana Slammer which was shortstack of banana macnut pancakes, topped of course with macnilla sauce ($1.50 extra.  DO IT. I wish they sold the sauce in bottles)

Dan's banana slammer came with kahlua pork patties and two fried eggs

I got a side of Portuguese sausage.  So much flavor and not too fatty. A great compliment to my pancakes though honestly not even necessary as there were big pieces of bacon in my pancakes

Maple bacon macnut pancakes with macnilla sauce.  HEAVEN.  100 stars.  GO HERE PUH LEASE you will thank me later

Dinner at Bamboo Grille in Wailuku, Maui, HI

Joe and Nancy took us to a local spot in Wailuku that had delicious home-y foods with gigantic portions.  Like we had leftovers that we were eating for multiple following breakfasts and still didn't get through it all!  The breaded beef teriyaki was what brought us back and my god, it was insanely good.  Less good heated up of course, as you don't get the crispy fried skin.  But the flavors were amazing and so different than you've probably ever had.  Everything else was amazing too, but both couples got our own sets of breaded teri beef.

Beef Stew - slowly cooked beef brisket with carrots, celery, onion and potato sauce.  Super home-y and one of the more popular items.  Tasted a lot like Filipino stew to me

Breaded beef teriyaki.  This does not convey how large it was  Like two 10 egg omelets in size.  We got through maybe half of it and the remaining leftovers I ate at least three times and had to throw some out

Katsu Moco - chicken katsu served over a bed of steamed rice, served with brown gravy with two eggs

Inside of the katsu moco.  Seriously loco.  Also Dan got fried rice instead of fried so it was even more insane

Dinner at Star Noodle in Lahaina, Maui, HI

Apparently Maui is NOT known for ramen, which was tragic because that was one of the food things we were most looking forward to.  The best ramen is apparently at Star Noodle.  Usually it's packed and you have to get a reservation or risk waiting a long time.  Fortunately it was pouring out so we only waited about twenty minutes.  The ramen itself was okay, not that memorable compared to the ramen we had in Oahu, or also just places in NYC.  But the other dishes were excellent - garlic noodles and Filipino "bacon and eggs."  Those are def worth coming for.

Filipino "Bacon and Eggs" - crispy pork, poached eggs, tomato and onion.   An easier way for people to sink into sisig.  Pork was great, not too fatty with great sear

Steamed Pork Buns - duroc pressed pork, hoisin, shiitake, and cucumber.  Delicious but pretty large so was getting full

Mixed up bacon and eggs

Garlic Noodles (small version LOL) - fresh and fried garlic, dashi, and green onion.  Simple and delicious.  Nice semi crispy noodles with so much garlic and butter flavor

Hapa Ramen - rich pork broth, roasted pork, soft boiled egg, choi sum, kamaboko, bamboo shoots, mayu and aka miso.  Broth was good but didn't have that oil that the other ramen had.  There was a ton of pork though, more than I've ever seen in ramen and it was delicious!  Had consistency of thick cuts of pernil.  Amazing

Dessert from Ululani's Hawaiian Shave Ice in Lahaina, Maui, HI

Shaved ice is so popular all over Hawaii, but apparently the place to go is Ululani's.  There are a few locations in Maui.  We went to one that was within walking distance of our hotel and it was perfect on this super hot day.  You can add ice cream on the bottom, which we both did.  Dan also got a snow cap on the top, which is condensed milk.  Insane.

Dan's shaved ice.  He got calamansi and some other flavor.  Bottom had macadamia (ie. macnut) ice cream.  Top had sno cap

Mine had macnut ice cream on the bottom.  Flavors were calamansi, coconut, and almond. All delicious.  If I had to pick a fav, probably calamansi, which didn't necessarily go with the other flavors but on its own was bomb

These were the smallest sizes you could get by the way

Lunch from Foodland in Kihei, Maui, HI

We stopped by the supermarket Foodland in Kihei on the way to our hotel for some poke.  Seriously was a dream seeing so many varieties and so cheap!  Some are frozen fresh and some are fresh but all delicious.  You can eat so cheaply on supermarket food and it is delicious!  Totally unlike food here.

Beautiful display case of poke

Poke-mania

Spam musubi, Hawaiian style tako (octopus) and Shoyu Ahi Tuna

Close up of the octopus.  So tender and the whole thing was like $5 for half a pound.  INSANE

Hawaiian style ahi. Ate this the next morning and still f-ing good

Mistakenly got chicken katsu musubi thinking it was deep fried spam.  It was so delicious though I think better than spam would've been.  Also close up of the ahi.  We later on the trip upped our poke game by getting make-your-own white rice and taro chips.  This time we just ate straight with forks

Breakfast/Dessert from Home Maid Bakery in Wailuku, Maui, HI

I had of course done my research before coming to Maui and discovered that Home Maid Bakery (NOT Home Maid Cafe, which is unaffiliated) has the best malasadas in Maui.  This proved to be true, as we stopped there no less than 3 times on our 9 day trip.  Unlike Leonard's, they only have plain or custard filled, no other exciting flavors.  But still so good, especially when you get them piping hot fresh.  The custard ones didn't really reheat well the next day, but the plain ones were still excellent the next morning.  If you are in Maui you must stop here!  They also had some other delicious pastries we tried, and some awesome looking savory bento boxes that I didn't try because too many places to eat.

Glazed croissant and our first spam musubi of the trip.  The glazed croissant was like a simple ass cronut.  Just sugar glaze on a croissant.  Spam musubi was also solid 

Custard filled malasada. In heaven

A dozen malasadas.  A bit too much for two people?  Also photo taken after we each had one already haha

Custard pie which I ate the next day.  Good but didn't have coconut so less flavorful.  Go for the malasadas!

Full dozen before we separated the plain ones from the custard filled

Dinner from Mana Foods in Pa'ia, Haiku, HI

After our long trip to Hana, we stopped by Mana Foods, a health food store similar to Whole Foods but smaller and cheaper.  Since it was late there wasn't too much left in the buffet, but enough for us to get some quick, healthy-ish food on the cheap.

I think I got some blackened ono, turkey stuffed zucchini, and gorgonzola walnut ravioli.  Not really things that make sense together but I ate it haha

Lunch at Troy's Plate Lunch in Hana, Maui, HI

Along our trip to Hana, we stopped for lunch at a food truck called Troy's Plate Lunch for our first traditional Hawaiian plate lunch.  None of us were starving so each couple got a combo.  All the food was delicious and so inexpensive!  The owners were also super nice and Nancy and Joe spent awhile talking to them about their fav Maui spots.  This was the beginning of our inexpensive, insanely delicious food vacay.

Dan and I got chicken katsu and pork bbq.  With sides of rice and mac salad of course.  Here I discovered that if I ignore the mayo, I can actually LOVE mac salad

Joe and Nancy got teri beef, pork bbq, and coconut shrimp.  That beef was delish!

Breakfast on Baked on Maui in Haiku, Maui, HI

Nancy, Joe, Dan and I stopped at Baked on Maui for some fuel before our road trip to Hana.  Delicious bakery with huge baked goods.  The savory food was great too, though I think everyone loved their pastries more.

Apple turnover and lemon coconut tart.  Sooo buttery and flaky and not too sweet

Both Joe and Dan ordered salmon benedicts

My Popeye's Omelet with crispy bacon, oven roasted tomato, spinach and cheddar.  I've never seen egg prepared that way - it was almost like an egg crepe.  Fries/home fries were unique too. Would've loved if they were fried more to be crisper

Nancy got Amy's Ranchero - baked corn tortillas, black beans, salsa, two eggs over easy, cheddar and chipotle sauce. Served with salt and pepper fries  Dish had some great flavor and was nice and savory to go with the sweetness of the baked goods

Dinner from Pa'ia Fish Market in Pa'ia, Maui, HI

Our first meal in Maui was at Pa'ia Fish Market, a delicious seafood centered casual place in the Pa'ia neighborhood, which can be described as kind of hippy-ish.  We took the food to go and ate it at a nearby beach after sunset, which is why the lighting and pics aren't so great.  Food was delicious and we ended up eating at the Lahaina location later in our trip as well.

Mahi mahi Taco platter - corn tortillas with cheese, lettuce, tomato and salsa plus rice

Dan got a Mahi burger, which came with coleslaw, lettuce, tomato, cheese and tartar sauce.  He said it was great

Lunch at Four Peaks Brewery in Phoenix, AZ

Dan and I had lunch at our layover in Phoenix, AZ at a brewery.  Had some of their home-made brew, which was delicious though completely unnecessary in between two six-hour flights.  We weren't super hungry but wanted a little something since no food served on the flight.  Food was passable for an airport. The leftover pretzel was great later on the second flight.

Fish and chips and giant soft pretzels.  Fish portion was small but the highlight was the pretzel

Dinner at Porta Pizza in Jersey City, NJ

Our final meal before our trip to Hawaii was dinner at Porta.  Didn't think we'd get great pizza in Maui or excessive cheese (turned out both were true) so it was a great choice.  The food come out scarily quick and was excellent as usual.  While I love Razza, Porta has much more space and I love all of their shrimp pizzas.

(L) Old Blue - Old Forester bourbon, lemon juice, vanilla syrup, and fresh blueberries (R) White Door - Skyy Texas grapefruit, peach liquer, white wine, orange juice, topped with prosecco.  Dan got the Old Blue and enjoyed it a lot.  My White Door was so delicious and tasted like Adult Hi-C.

Single serving of Garlic and Oil pasta.  Simple plate of spaghetti, EVOO, garlic and chile flakes.  Super tasty but a very small portion.  Fortunately with the pizza and other app, we had the perfect amount of food.  Also only $7

Shrimp Boats pizza - san marzano tomatoes, shrimp, garlic, chile flakes and EVOO.  My fav of their warmer weather pizzas.  Hopefully when it gets cold they bring back the shrimp scampi

Arancini with peas, cotto ham and parmigiano reggiano.  Delicious but came out last

The inside.  Nice and soft inside with great crispy exterior.  So flavorful and filling.  I think there were only supposed to be two in an order but we got three, maybe because it came out late :)