On our last day on the Valley Isle, we did a random spot for lunch. Mostly because when we visited Maui years ago, there still was an abundance of Mom-n-Pop stores to grab a quick bite. Like Noda Market's packaged okazuya style foods or Ooka Market's "bento" packed on the same styrofoam used for their butchered meats. But most of these are long gone. I guess we could have gone to Tasty Crust which still stands or Sam Sato's lunch counter but we just did a random web search for dining options in Wailuku and Kahului. So we settled on Bistro Casanova in Kahului. And as usual, I started with a cocktail, the Campari Shakkerato with Campari, Stolichnaya vodka, seltzer and a lemon twist.
I heard our server asking the bartender where the Campari was kept. "it's under the "A"s". "Why"? "I don't know, that's where it's always been". I think I figured it out. It's because they don't stock Campari but rather Aperol (made by the same company) which isn't as bitter as Campari and a little sweeter. And my Shakkerato definitely wasn't as bitter as a Campari based drink and also a little sweet. Anyway, it wasn't a bad drink so I finished it. The Mrs opted to go non-alcoholic and sampled their house made ice tea which was very refreshing with the muddled mint.
Again, we started with a plate of Frites fried with fresh rosemary. Just as dark as Monkeypod Kitchen's but crispier with a nice occasional hit of rosemary.
The Mrs selected the Angel's Hair with spinach, toasted pine nuts, tomatoes and shrimp with white wine, garlic and capers which she enjoyed.
While I sampled the Ahi Tempura with slaw and wasabi beurre blanc. Very fresh ahi with a light flaky batter though neither the ahi nor beurre blanc seem to be salted at all. And because we normally don't really salt our home cooked food, what is usually bland for someone else is usually salty for me.
With a split of Lunetta Prosecco
I planned a last visit to Makawao town (and Komoda Bakery) so we passed on dessert. We did pick up our obligatory omiiyage of manju from Sam Sato's but what followed was a total food revelation to me. We normally pick up several mixed boxes of manju from Sam Sato and upon arrival back home, simply refrigerate the omiiyage and freeze our personal boxes. Therefore I have never sampled the warm manju. AT ALL. Until this trip. Since I sent the Mrs in to pick up the orders while I waited in my semi-legal street parking, the Mrs received her pre-placed orders but also picked up several to go. Which I sampled as we drove away. Warm and nice and flaky! Not as flaky as Homemade's buttery (almost greasy) crust but a pleasing light flakiness. I tell you what, next time I pick up our orders from Sam Sato, I'm getting a box for immediate gratification!
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