As we start the Year of the Water Rabbit and also the 3rd
year since COVID became a household word, how has the world of food and wine
adapted to changes brought on by a global pandemic then subsequent supply chain
issues and inflation and recession worries?
Even with businesses re-opening without any mask, vaccination
or distancing restrictions, it seems that many in the restaurant industry
finally decided on alternate employment. One of our favorite neighborhood
take-out establishments, Dean’s Drive Inn closed in June after almost 16 years
in business. They first weathered a flood in March 2021 with classmates
arranging a fundraiser to cover the additional costs of clean-up then as they
finally reopened their dining room, had to revert to just take-out due to a
lack of staff. The final straw was the increase in food and supply costs.
In Kaimuki, Chef Russell Siu shuttered 3660 on the Rise
after 30 years primarily due to staffing issues and currently only hosts
special events in his back, banquet rooms. He said staffing issues were the
driving force behind the change as he often would only have 1 or 2 servers and
2 or 3 cooks so he would be working 7 days a week. Converting just to special
events means he now knows his exact staffing needs.
And these challenges aren’t limited to the 50th.
I listened to a Zoom session arranged by Master Sommelier Chuck Furuya
highlighting the Champagne house of H. Billiot. Fourth generation owner,
Laetitia Billiot stated that due to issues obtaining clear Champagne bottles
this year, that they won’t be producing any Rose Champagne. One of the
participants asked if he brought his own bottles to the Domaine, if she could
fill those bottles with Rose Champagne.
Dine Out… When
Possible
When the pandemic first reached our shores and
restaurants and bars were first forced to shutdown then slowly were allowed to
re-open as long as distancing guidelines and sanitizing guidelines were
followed, we supported restaurants by purchasing quite a bit of take-out.
However, with inflation increasing the price of most food items, the
implementation of county guidelines regarding environmentally friendly take-out
containers and supply chain issues, I think it may be better to dine in when
possible. Of course the caveat is when possible as everyone is affected by
inflation including your household budget and for me personally, I will have
been retired for almost a year as you read this and my income has been reduced
a little over 80% so needless to say, the Tatsumoto’s don’t visit restaurants
nearly as frequent as a year ago.
But we still do have our favorites when the occasion
calls for dining out such as Fete in Chinatown. Chef Robynne Mai’i won a well-deserved
James Beard award last year and the restaurant focuses on supporting local
produce farmers, meat, poultry and seafood purveyors as well as local specialty
products. It also doesn’t hurt that their Korean Bavette steak is one of the
top three meat dishes I’ve ever sampled in the 50th especially with
the ginger-scallion fried rice, Asian pear slaw and sunny side egg. Or that
JP’s Risotto with local Ali’I mushrooms and garlic chives topped with crispy
prosciutto and the onsen runny egg almost makes me forget about fried
rice…
We also try to include Merriman’s in our dining rotation as Chef Peter Merriman’s was one of the few restaurants to install UV sterilization lights in their air conditioning ducts once restaurants were allowed to reopen after the initial shutdown. Okay, my arm might be twisted to sample their Parmesan Truffle Fries or the Fish & Shrimp & Chips though we’ll always leave room for the Waialua Chocolate Purse to end the meal. They also recently brought back Happy Hour which we used to enjoy prior to COVID – once restaurants fully reopened, the Happy Hour was limited just to tacos but they now offer the full Happy Hour menu including $2 off cocktails, beer and wine (which stretches your inflated dollar)…
And closer to home, we continue to dine-in and take-out
from Pah Ke’s Chinese Restaurant. Barry and Raymond Siu along with their
spouses originally ran the restaurant but Raymond and his wife retired several
years ago but we’ve continued to patronize Pah Ke’s, first just with take-out
during the pandemic as they had staffing issues and were closed for dine-in but
now also drop in for dinner. Throughout the pandemic, whenever Ms. S had to
work the weekend, she would always treat her technician to lunch with Pah Ke’s
take-out. One technician liked the food so much that he now makes the drive
from Mililani to visit Pah Ke’s. We usually always order the Shrimp Fried Rice,
Beef with Sweet and Sour Cabbage and the Singapore Mai Fun though the Boneless
Minute Chicken with Cake Noodle and the Chicken and Abalone with Black Mushroom
Casserole also somehow finds a way onto our table.
Also Support Your
Local Farmer
In the midst of the pandemic, while I was still gainfully
employed, I regularly purchased local produce through Farm Link Hawaii, a
company that procures produce and groceries from local farmers and delivers
directly to your front door several times per week. The only downside to
purchasing local products is the cost is higher (as everything is compared to
mainland prices) though the upside is food security for the 50th –
the more local we purchase, the less we have to depend on shipping food into
the state. However, since retirement, I usually only purchase gift cards from
Farm Link for family birthdays and holidays as well as Chef Bob McGee’s
charcuterie produced from local pork.
These days, I’m more likely to peruse local produce from
the supermarket or multiple farmer’s markets throughout the island. Safeway
Kaneohe makes it easy as they have a separate section for locally grown produce
– you have to look for the locally grown products scattered throughout the
produce area at Foodland and Times.
What About the
Wining Part?
The 50th only has one local winery on the
slopes of Haleakala in Ulupalakua; Maui Wine. And yes, I still purchase their
Lokelani Sparkling Rose to sip alone or to use in cocktails as well as their
Maui Blanc pineapple wine for use in cocktails. However, most of our wine
purchases are at the R. Fields shop at the Kailua Foodland which has an excellent
selection of well-priced wines that pair with food. We also occasionally stop
at Fujioka Wine Times at the Market City Shopping Center and Tamura’s Fine Wine
and Liquor in the Aikahi Park Shopping Center. Another great source to procure
wine is through Master Sommelier Chuck Furuya’s Wine Posse on his website,
chuckfuruyauncorked.com. For $135 to $145, he features four different wines
(the December offering highlighted 4 sparkling wines for the holidays). The
cost includes tax and delivery to most addresses on Oahu ($33.75 to $36.25 per
bottle) and so far, we haven’t been disappointed with any bottle in his Wine
Posse bag.
Though there’s only one winery in Hawaii, there are many
other options for adult beverages in the 50th. There are many
locally distilled gin, vodka and whiskey that you can find at your neighborhood
supermarket. There’s also Islander Sake Brewery brewed on the Big Island
(it started in Kakaako but operations recently moved to the Big Island) as well
as shochu produced from local purple sweet potatoes created by the
Hawaiian Shochu Company in Haleiwa – because the shochu is made
from just a husband-and-wife team, it’s only available directly from the
distillery in Haleiwa.
So there are many ways to support the local food and wine
(liquor) scene in the 50th until the consequences of COVID have
passed…
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