Dining in The Big Island

If you thought that hike was challenging, what about choosing among the Island's many dozens of dining choices at every meal? The ingredients are fresh, the flavors delightful and the settings beyond compate. From your first cup of Island coffee to your last chocolate-covered macadamia nut, your days on Hawaii Island are sure to be delicious.

Lu'au
Go outside the dining room to experience a lu'au, a traditional Hawaiian feast. Exoect a grand celebration of food, entertainment and learning about Hawaiian and Polynesian culture. The feast is a magnificent spread of traditional Hawaiian food, including kalua pig (pork cooked in an underground oven), laulau (pork and fish steamed in taro and ti leaves) and poi (Hawaiian staple made of taro). Hear Hawaiian music and chants while watching hula dancers tell beautiful stories of Hawaii with their elegant and graceful movements. If you're brave enough, you may even get a chance to dance the hula in front of your entire lau'au (dont forget the camera)!

Hawaii's Favorite Foods
"Local grinds" is a phrase used to describe Hawaii's unique mix of Island-style comfort foods. Be sure to sample some!

haupia: coconut pudding
ice shave: crushed ice flavored with sweet, brightly colored syrup
kalua pig: pork covered with ti plant and banana leaves and cooked in an imu (underground oven).
laulau: steamed fish and pork wrapped in taro and ti leaves
loco moco: hamburger patty, served over rice and topped with eggs and gravy
lomi salmon: raw, salted salmon combined with diced tomatoes and onions
malasada: Portuguese hole-less donut, golden brown on the outside, soft and fluffy on the inside and rolled in sugar.
manapua: meat-filled bun steamed or baked
mochi: Japanese rice cake made of glutinous rice
plate lunch: two scoops of white rice, one scoop of macaroni salad and a main entree
poi: mashed taro root
poke: seasoned raw fish salad
pupu: appetizer

Local Ingredients
It's the locally grown ingredients that make Hawaii Island's food taste so fresh. Fertile fields and gardens offer fresh produce and grass-fed beef from the upcountry ranches of Waimea create delectable dishes used in restauranta throughout the Island. You can follow the farm-to-table process by taking a farm tour. Hawaii Island chefs are committed to using the Island's fresh fare and importing only when necessary. An ideal climate helps produce local vegetables such as mushrooms, cabbages, ginger, greens, sweet corn, taro and tomatoes, all grown from the volcanic soil and bursting with flavor. Orchards produce delicious bananas, guava, lychee, mango and papaya.

You will also find unique products like vanilla, chocolate, honey and goat cheese, Macadamia nuts are another popular local product. You can tour an orchard as well as a processing plant to see how they crack open the shells of the world's hardest nut.