This is a late post as we sampled this lunch last month at Fete, our first visit since Chef Robynne Maii won the James Beard award for Best Chef of the Northwest & Pacific. We've always liked visits to Fete and though they don't have an extensive menu, we've never had a bad meal (and we've sampled at least 80% of the menu) plus they have great cocktails and one of the best wine lists on the island. And I feel their Korean Bavette is one of the top three beef dishes on the island...
We started with one of my faves, the Steak Tartare ($17) featuring both Kua Aina beef and Mahiki veal with the usual Bearnaise aioli (just as good as a raw egg yolk), crispy shallots and the anchovy-butter on Fete toast...
Ms S's fave is their Fete Spreads ($10), a trio of caponata (italy's version of ratatouille), ricotta and macnut tapenade (the last visit featured the walnut tapenade so I assume Chef Maii is featuring more local ingredients).
And we both gotta have our frites ($6)...
With a Fete 75 ($13) which is their version of a French 75 but with Prosecco and elderflower liqueur for me...
And a Noho Pimms ($12), a usual Pimm's Cup but also with calamansi syrup added to the mix...
Ms S selected the Kualoa Pork Ragu ($26) featuring whey-braised pork as well as kale with a tomato compote on rigatoni topped with house-made ricotta...
While I selected JP's Risotto ($27) with Alii mushrooms, blistered chives and peas topped with an onsen egg (there, I still got my runny egg yolk) and I opted for the crispy proscuitto supplement ($3) - this will give the Korean Bavette (which I ordered the past 2 visits) a run for its money...
This was sampled with both a 2020 Giulia Negri Pian Delle Mole Nebbiolo ($17) (the winery was featured on Stanley Tucci's Searching for Italy's Piedmont episode so I "had" to sample it) as well as a 2019 Domaine Rostaing Le Vassal Syrah ($15) since Rostaing is a vigneron icon...
Ms S actually had room for dessert (we actually boxed most of the Fete Spreads and some of the Steak Tartare and frites) so she sampled the Dorie Greenspan's Chocolate Cake ($13) featuring a Manoa bittersweet chocolate mousse on an airy cake base served with vanilla ice cream... I normally don't indulge in dessert but this dessert wasn't too sweet and simply melted on the palate... so yes, we'll be back. Since the closing of Vino Italian Wine Bar and Tapas last summer, we've frequented Fete a lot more... for good reason...
Comments