Going off menu at Forty Carrots

Nadine Kam photos
Maui Nui Venison tartare with quail egg, pickled wasabi and chicharron was one of the off-menu dishes presented by chef Jon Matsubara at Bloomingdale's Forty Carrots May 5.

Foodies are always on the prowl for what's new, but to think every diner is thrilled by change is a mistake. There are many more people who seek the tried and true, people I don't understand, who can eat teriyaki beef (or whatever their favorite food is) every day.

Trying to satisfy both kinds of diners is a balancing act for chefs, creatives who for the most part must commit to a menu—whether for three months to decades—but who otherwise get to play and wow us through daily specials and special occasion menus.

Over at Bloomingdale's third-floor Forty Carrots restaurant, chef Jon Matsubara bridges the gap between the two kinds of diners by introducing specials that riff on classic, familiar local fare. He can also go off-menu to create unique dinner menus for organizations or individuals who want to book the space for evening events or special occasions.

One such recent menu was highlighted by a local, literal and luxurious take on the French beef stew, pot-au-feu, or "pot on fire."

In it, the chopped watercress, salt meat and chili pepper water of a Hawaiian diner was upgraded. The greens and beef were layered with a generous helping of foie gras, followed by a pour of chili pepper bouillon. Served with rice.

And we all had second helpings of crispy chicharrons that accompanied the opening dish of Maui Nui Venison tartare.
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Forty Carrots is on the third floor of Bloomingdale's Ala Moana Center. For special menu inquiries, email jon.matsubara@bloomingdales.com.

A juicy Hokkaido scallop was paired with Kona abalone in Italian black truffle sauce. Hidden on the other side of the dish was an elegant slice of pork "shumai" freed of its wrapper.

A generous piece of foie gras was layered over three slices of salt beef and presented with chopped watercress for a local-style pot-au-feu. Below, the pour of chili pepper bouillon.

Dessert of vanilla bean sticky rice topped with toasted almonds and spearmint, served with ruby grapefruit and lemon-ginger syrup.

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Nadine Kam is Style Editor and staff restaurant critic at the Honolulu Star-Advertiser; her food coverage is in print in Wednesday's Crave section. Contact her via email at nkam@staradvertiser.com and follow her on Twitter, Instagram and Rebel Mouse.

Hawaii's Jedi chef brotherhood reunited

Nadine Kam photos
The Alan Wong Jedi brotherhood, with one sister, reunited.

BY NADINE KAM

“Star Wars” imagery is everywhere this season in anticipation of this week’s release of the latest tale in the film saga, “Star Wars: The Force Awakens.”

Even so, when I spotted the Jedi T-shirts and life-size Storm Trooper balloon outside the tents at the MW and Friends “Reunited” event that took place Dec. 14 under a tent in the restaurant’s parking lot, I was a little confused about the meaning of the thing.

At least I wasn’t the only one clueless about the insider’s joke. Everyone else was asking the same questions: “What’s with the Jedi T-shirts?” “What’s with the Star Wars theme?”

OK, first things first. As well as being praise-worthy in their own right, chefs Alan Wong, Roy Yamaguchi and George Mavrothalassitis have been responsible for providing the real world training ground for most of Hawaii’s next generation of top-tier chefs. This particular reunion brought together chefs who formerly worked together at Alan Wong’s Restaurant and the Pineapple Room.

Jedi chef Steven Ariel, now with the W Seattle Hotel, was among the alumni of Alan Wong's family of restaurants who came together for a reunion event Dec. 14 at MW Restaurant.

In addition to MW host/owners Wade Ueoka and Michelle Karr-Ueoka, in house were:

Sonny Acosta: Now at Abunai Food; Washington, D.C.
Steven Ariel: W Seattle Hotel
Brandon Hamada: Home Bar & Grill
Lance Kosaka: Top of Waikiki and Sky Waikiki
Jon Matsubara: Bloomingdale’s Restaurant Kaola
Gary Matsumoto: Hawai’i Convention Center
Jonathan Mizukami: Chef Mavro
Jared Murakawa: MW Restaurant
Neil Nakasone: Home Bar & Grill
Marc Urquidi: Roy’s Restaurant
Sean Walsh: Top of Waikiki
Mark Okumura: Kapiolani Community College
Also there was longtime restaurant manager Charly Yoshida.

Guarding the tent.

As for the “Star Wars” reference, Wade explained all in his program notes, writing:

“I remember long, long ago, in a kitchen not too far away …
The day I was new to the fish station … I had actually just learned to cook a simple fish fillet, and now, all of a sudden, as service was starting, I was responsible for a whole fish? I had no idea what I was in for. Being it was my first encounter with a whole fish (and nervous as hell), I nonchalantly asked,

“How do you know when it’s done?”

“The reply I received in the heat of the rush was, ‘Use your Jedi sense!’

“It was at that moment that I knew I wanted to commit myself to learn the ways of the Jedi. … It has taken many, many years of practice, long hours, and countless cuts, burns and mistakes to learn the ways of the Jedi."

Jedi chefs, from left, Wade Ueoka, Lance Kosaka and Jonathan Mizukami, who has returned home after working kitchens from Alinea, to Per Se, El Bulli and The French Laundry. Planning for the reunion event began about five months ago.

“… Through years of battle, and the opportunity to cook with hundreds of different troops, there have been those with which a group has formed. A group that has shown passion, dedication, determination, and the skills to become a true Jedi master. It had always been a dream of mine to bring all the Jedi back together again.”

As much fun as it may have been for them to see and cook alongside one another once again, it was just as thrilling for guests who enjoyed a lengthy grazing menu.

Charly Yoshida and Olena Heu were among the first employees at Alan Wong’s Restaurant. Heu continued working at the restaurant even after she took on full-time news duties at KHON.

Former front-of-the-house staffers were also there to check in with old friends and simply enjoy themselves. Among them was former KHON morning news anchor Olena Heu, who served as hostess when Wong opened his first eponymous restaurant in April 1995.

She had arrived from Kauai and was working at David Paul’s Lahaina Grill. When that restaurant was put up for sale, she simply decided she wanted to work at Hawaii’s No. 1 restaurant and rang them up.

She put in 10 years while attending school, and it was only after taking on an internship at KHON that she decided TV news was the place for her. Yet, even after landing a full-time job with the station, she continued to work at Alan Wong’s restaurant until she could no longer do so after taking the morning anchor job that required getting up at 2 in the morning.

“The restaurant shift didn’t end until midnight,” she said. “But they still let me come in and work one day a week. Everytime I see Alan I tell him I loved the time I spent working at his restaurant.”

As for the man who saw the promise in all of them, he is in Shanghai, preparing to open his next restaurant.

Michelle Karr-Ueoka shows a tray of her lemon meringue confections.

The Jedi moms, Marge Kosaka, left, mother of Lance, and Alan Wong's mom Terry Yamamoto, who's said to be a very good cook. She said she didn't teach him to cook, but through eating her food, he learned the optimal flavors. She said she's proud of all of her son's protégés, who still refer to her as "mama."

Some of the dishes:

 Jon Matsubara offered up a taste of his new menu at Bloomingdale's Kaola Restaurant, with "Hibiscus Egg," creamy "fu yung" topped with a dollop of ikura and scallions.

Guest 'chefs' take over The MODERN

Nadine Kam photos
Fresh Box’s Will Chen was the guest chef during The MODERN Honolulu’s inaugural Chef Takeover event. He presented an ahi-cutting and cooking demo leading up to guests’ takeover of the kitchen.

I headed to The MODERN Honolulu’s inaugural “Chef Takeover” culinary experience under the impression Chef William Chen, of Fresh Box, was taking over the kitchen.

Yes, he was there for an ahi-cutting and cooking demonstration of ahi tostadas, but, surprise!, it was actually the guests who were invited to take over the kitchen via a build-your-own poke bar and grill stations that allowed us to cook our own fish.

Fire and alcohol—that is, signature cocktails made with Ocean Organic Vodka and Deep Island Hawaiian Rum—can be a dangerous combination, but it was a fun evening, and I ended up making two batches of poke because I missed the sesame oil and wasabi on the first go-round.

The event took place Nov. 8, and may be the hotel's first in a series of annual events celebrating local sustainability and agriculture.

Another special guest of the MODERN’s executive chef Keith Pajinag was Brooks Takenaka of the United Fishing Agency, who spoke about the local fishing industry and it’s place in a global marketplace in which we find ourselves competing with others unwilling to abide by American laws regarding sustainable practices. And, in a state in which availability of fish is assumed, he said, 93 percent of our fish is imported.

That is why I never take enjoying fish for granted.

 The poke bar had everything we needed to make up batches of traditional and contemporary poke. There was much more ingredients than shown here.

Aya Nishihara started her poke sauce first with a litle mayo and Sriracha.

Brooks Takenaka’s wife Cynthia made up this more traditional-style batch of poke using ogo, green onion, inamona, rock salt and a touch of wasabi tobiko.

California-style poke with avocado and mayo.

Chef Chen’s seared ahi tostada with pomegranate seeds.

Also on the menu, roasted ahi collars.

Kristy and Matt Chun show their seared ahi dishes to chef Pajinag.

Matt had to deal with others’ mess, to arrive at the resulting relish, below.

Pam Davis sears her fish.

Sesame-crusted fish awaiting its turn on the griddle.
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Nadine Kam is Style Editor and staff restaurant critic at the Honolulu Star-Advertiser; her coverage is in print on Wednesdays and Thursdays. Contact her via email at nkam@staradvertiser.com and follow her on Twitter, Instagram and Rebel Mouse.

HFWF in house at Foodland Farms for Eat Local Tuesdays

Nadine Kam photos
Hawai’i Food & Wine Festival co-founder Roy Yamaguchi was among the chefs offering a preview of the fall foodie event during Foodland’s most recent “Eat Local Tuesdays” tasting.

BY NADINE KAM

In partnership with Foodland’s “Eat Local Tuesdays” tasting series, representatives from the Hawai’i Food & Wine Festival were at Foodland Farms Aina Haina on Aug. 11 to whet shoppers’ appetites for the full-range of epicurean and wine-centric events starting Aug. 29 on the Big Island, before moving on to Maui and arriving back on Oahu on Sept. 9 through 13.

Chef and HFWF co-founder Roy Yamaguchi (Roy’s Restaurant), Keoni Chang (Foodland Supermarket), Mark Noguchi (Pili Group) and Colin Hazama (Royal Hawaiian Hotel) were paired with local farmers and food purveyors including MAʻO Organic Farms, Ho Farms, Hawaiian Crown, and Wow Farm, to offer up tasty bites, sips and curated wine pairings.

Just as in past years, the festival started by Yamaguchi and chef Alan Wong will welcome more than 100 internationally renowned master chefs, culinary personalities, and wine and spirit producers. Funds raised will support local beneficiaries committed to sustainability and cultural and educational programs in Hawaii.
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Visit hawaiifoodandwinefestival.com for the full schedule and ticket information.


Non-flash video

Foodland launched its “Eat Local Tuesdays” tasting series to promote local produce and products, in line with HFWF’s mission to support Hawaii’s culinary scene, farmers, food products and promote sustainability.

Roy served up curry-coated New Zealand salmon topped with crunchy bubu arare, served with WOW Farm tomatoes and shallot sambal.

Shoppers had the opportunity to sample beer with flavors such as sweet potato and banana.

Colin Hazama, who recently made the move from the Sheraton Waikiki to executive chef position at the Royal Hawaiian Hotel, shows his dish, also below, a Taste of Tuscan Twin Bridge Farms starting with ahi prosciutto, with tomato sorbet, Waialua asparagus ribbons and caponata.

Pili Group’s Mark Noguchi with HFWF development manager Aya Nishihara.

The Pili Group offered up refreshing lime and Waiola coconut water-pineapple shooters with Kohana Rum and a cloud of dry ice emanating from the blender before the pour.

OnoPops Josh Lanthier-Welch served up bites of his Kona coffee and butter mochi paletas, perfect on a very hot day. 12th Ave. Grill's Kevin Hanney was also there sharing his very popular Koko Head Foods smoked ahi spread.

Keoni Chang served up lettuce wraps, below, with grilled fish, Ho Farms tomatoes, shiso relish and cucumber dill sauce.

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Nadine Kam is Style Editor and staff restaurant critic at the Honolulu Star-Advertiser; her coverage is in print on Wednesdays and Thursdays. Contact her via email at nkam@staradvertiser.com and follow her on Twitter, Instagram and Rebel Mouse.

Finale of 'Farm to Chef' season marks new beginning for Hazama

Nadine Kam photos
Chef Colin Hazama, center, and chef Darren Demaya, far left, presented the finale of the “From Farm to Chef” dinner series at the Sheraton Waikiki’s Edge of Waikiki July 31.

BY NADINE KAM

Colin Hazama chose the finale of the Sheraton Waikiki’s “Flavors of Hawaii: From Farm to Chef” dinner series to make the announcement of a new beginning as he makes the leap from senior executive sous chef at the Sheraton Waikiki Resort to executive chef at sister property the Royal Hawaiian, A Luxury Collection Resort.

It was a bittersweet evening for the chef who started the ambitious dinner series last year, and he had a choked up moment as he thanked his crew for all the support they have shown him during his tenure at the Sheraton.

Not to worry, this won’t be the end of the events that aim to showcase the farmers that make it possible to sustain a culinary scene that is as inviting to sophisticated travelers as it is to us. Hazama has always been an advocate for local farming and other sustainable practices, and is envisioning a Fanta-sea table for the Royal Hawaiian, highlighting aquaponic farming and aquaculture, tentatively beginning 2016.

Ever so humble, as soon as I got there, Hazama goes, “Sorry, you probably wanted to be at Joy of Sake tonight.”

Uh, let’s see. Hazama’s food, table side at the beautiful oceanfront vs. long lines and standing and eating from disposable plates? There was no place else I wanted to be.

The setting.

 A display by the Wailea Agricultural Group featured fruit and spices grown on the Big Island, including cloves, mace, nutmeg, bay leaves, limequats and calamondins, a Mandarin orange and kumquat hybrid.

I think you’ll be seeing a lot more of finger limes around town, easy to serve and accent food and drinks as a sort of fruit caviar.

In the meantime, the finale dinner brought back farmers and their produce highlighted through the course of the series including Ho Farms, Nalo Farms, Twin Bridge Farms, Naked Cow Diary, Shinsato Farms and Wailea Agricultural Group. Chateau St. Michelle and Stags leap provided the wine pairings.

Wailea Ag presented a display table stocked with some of its Big Island produce, including hearts of palm, and an array of citrus fruits and whole spices: nutmeg, cloves, mace and bay leaves. A look at their web site shows cinnamon is coming soon. I was particularly taken by the finger lime, which I’d never seen except for those sensationalistic ads connected to weird Facebook stories that people share. Of course now that I’m looking for one I can’t find it, but the ads usually read, “Eat this and never diet again,” or something along those lines. Clicking on it just sends you to some infomercial.

But the finger lime is a relatively new Hawaii experiment, imported from Australia. As the name implies, it is about the length of a finger or gherkin, in a smooth casing that opens to reveal juicy, citrusy pearls that explode like caviar or ikura on your tongue, which is why it’s often referred to as lime caviar or citrus pop rocks.

I can always count on finding something new at Hazama’s table, and for now I’ll say thank you and see you across the lawn. Congratulations!

Guests started with a small bite of sweet Lanai amaebi dressed with Nalo Farms yuzu, Ho Farms chili, Twin Bridge basil oil, Wailea Ag finger lime 3-caviar relish and Naked Cow Dairy yogurt. Paired with Chateau St. Michelle Riesling, Cold Creek, Columbia Valley 2004, California.

 Next up was tender Shinsato Farms head cheese tonkatsu with Nalo Farms baby spicy greens, pickled persimmon mustard, Ho Farms smoked tomato marmalade and yuzukosho chimichurri. I could eat buckets of that sauce. This dish was paired with Willamette Valley Vineyards Pinot Gris, Oregon 2011.

The Taste of Ho Farms salad featured a centerpiece of golden Kahuku and currant tomato gelee, butternut squash, gherkins, purple long beans, pearl onions, and deep-fried okra. Served with Penner Ash Viognier, Willamette Valley, Oregon 2012.

Deconstructed Hawaiian cioppino featured nutmeg- and clove-smoked Hawaiian abalone, Wailea Ag hearts of palm and roasted ulu, Kona Cold mussels and lobster, and Ho Farms tomato-chardonnay coulis. Paired with Joel Gott Pinot Noir, Willamette Valle, Oregon, 2012.

Slow-cooked Molokai venison was served with, below, Waialua tomato fennel compote, Twin Bridge charred red cabbage kraut, melted cabbage butter, drunken sour cherry gastrique and “The Works” twice-baked potato. Accompanied by Stags Leap Wine Cellars Artemis Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley 2012.

The baked potato was based on one of chef Colin’s favorite childhood treats.   

Dessert of Berries Wild marinated berries, Nalo Farms lemon verbena, champagne gelée, and Naked Cow Dairy fromage blanc panna cotta was accompanied by Cookies & Milk, spiced toasted Naked Cow Dairy coconut butter shortbread, raspberry-pomegranate jam, mac nut brittle and smoked Hawaiian sea salt caramel leche.


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Nadine Kam is Style Editor and staff restaurant critic at the Honolulu Star-Advertiser; her coverage is in print on Wednesdays and Thursdays. Contact her via email at nkam@staradvertiser.com and follow her on Twitter, Instagram and Rebel Mouse.

Jonathan Mizukami presents pasta pop-up at MW

Nadine Kam photos
Chef Jonathan Mizukami created a Pasta Cafe pop-up in MW restaurant’s private dining room, with an assist from his 13-year-old son Nalu.


BY NADINE KAM

It’s a shame that more people were not able to experience chef Jonathan Mizukami’s food while he was at Vintage Cave, but prices there are prohibitive for most people.

The 99 percent had their opportunity to sample a smidgen of his wide-ranging capabilities when the chef presented a pop-up Pasta Café in the special events room at MW restaurant on June 22.

The Maui-born chef started his career at Roy’s Nicolina, then Alan Wong’s Restaurant before finding his into the world’s top kitchens, including The French Laundry; Ferran Adria’s El Bulli during that restaurant’s final year in Rosas, Spain; New York’s Per Se; Chicago’s Alinea; Gordon Ramsay in London; and Petrus (now Marcus), in London.

I had a wonderful birthday dinner at Vintage Cave last year, and among the dishes that blew me away was an elegant matsutake royale with juniper brown butter, black trumpet mushrooms and rosemary that conveyed the fall essence of a forest floor. Without knowing Mizukami's background at the time, I was impressed by his intellectual, well-considered approach to food. Hawaii rarely sees this level of mastery and artistry, that goes beyond the purely visual.

Photo courtesy Jason Kim
Jason Kim, a k a @Turkeyboy, lived up to his Twitter name by bringing in his own ground turkey, due to dietary limitations. Chef Mizukami obliged by preparing a simple, but wonderful pasta Bolognese for Kim, below. Of course I couldn’t resist taking a bite!

Guests were delighted by simple but well-executed dishes of gnocchi, hand-cut spaghetti and some dishes we’d never seen offered here, such as pillowy ricotta gnudi that turned out to be a new favorite of many, and toasted semolina cavatelli, a hot dog bun-shaped pasta that—without referring back to the menu—had people thinking they were mushrooms, as I was told.

I tasted it and was like, “This is not mushroom, it’s pasta.”

Sadly, everything was so good, and because it's hard to keep track of just how much you're eating when multiple small plates are involved,  I ate until my stomach hurt.

Hopefully, the next time Mizukami does something like this I’ll have more lead time to get the word out.

Mascarpone-enriched sweet pea ravioli with accents of mint and chopped pistachios was among my favorite dishes of the evening.

Also loved the spiciness and light crispiness of bacony guanciale topping hand-cut spaghetti with San Marzano sauce.

For now, one of the next MW events to put on your calendars is “Brunch!” The collab event will feature b. patisserie San Francisco’s Belinda Leong and Michel Suas, 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Aug. 1 and 2. The cost is $50 per person and reservations are being taken at (808) 955-6505.

It is one you shouldn’t miss for the James Beard Award-nominated Leong’s divine confections. The two also recently opened B. On the Go cross the street from b. patisserie, to expand production due to popular demand for their kouign amanns and other pastries, as well as grab-and-go sandwiches.

My experience of the kouign amann, was being asked to bring some home from my last trip to San Francisco. I was like, WTF! Such a pain to stop here and there for stuff and bring them home, right?