Local News

‘Finding the silver lining’

Cool Cat Cafe reopens in Kihei after losing Lahaina location to wildfire

KAHULUI--When you walk into the Cool Cat Cafe's new location at the Kukui Mall, you are hit with a feeling of nostalgia. The red retro grabs you the minute you cross the threshold of the front door. Then something else grabs you. It's a sense of what was lost and has now been gained.

"There have been some minutes where it just hits you," Owner Sean Corpuel said of the opening. "There was a lady in here the other day that took a bite of her burger and said she felt for a minute like she was back in Lahaina at the old location, sitting on the lanai looking at the Banyan Tree."

It's been a whirl of emotions for Corpuel and the 20 members of his crew from the old Lahaina location that have remained on staff for reopening. Cool Cats Cafe is the first restaurant that lost their store in the August 8 wildfires that has managed to reopen. It's something that Corpuel and his staff are keenly aware of.

"I used to eat at their old location in Lahaina," Tyler Mann said, a customer who stopped by the soft opening on Tuesday to support Corpuel and the Cool Cat Cafe. "I was glad to see that they have reopened."

The grand opening of the Cool Cat Cafe will take place this Saturday, which will be the culmination of 10 months of strenuous efforts to make that happen. Corpuel had been at the Lahaina location for 21 years before it was lost in the fires. It's something Corpuel hopes will inspire other businesses who have lost everything on Front Street to not give up, but to continue on through the struggles to find the silver lining that comes with rebirth and reimagining.

"It was a lot," Corpuel said of the process from last August to last weekend and the soft opening. "Just an emotional rollercoaster. Those first couple months it was just a shock. Initially it was where are my people at? Then it was just trying to figure out what happens next. Then the reality of--maybe Lahaina is back in three years set in. Then the reality of maybe this is more like five, six, seven, eight years."

When that reality struck home, Corpuel and his crew started looking around for a place to call home again. That's when they started to hone in on the Kihei location.

"Once we knew it was up for grabs, we just kind of came over here," Paul Kemp said, who is Corpuel's managing partner.

That's when the pieces started coming together for Cool Cats Cafe to reopen to their customers, employees, and to serve those burgers that have been voted best on Maui for decades.

"Once we went forward, it was just kind of dealing with the county, dealing with the liquor, dealing with the health department, dealing with all those places," Corpuel said. "Logistically getting stuff here, getting it all shipped over here and figuring out what we want."

Throughout the process of reopening, there was no playbook for what businesses would have to do in order to reestablish their livelihoods and replace what was lost in the fires. For businesses like the Cool Cat Cafe, which was a staple of Front Street, they have to start from scratch and rebuild from the ashes.

The Cool Cat Cafe is expecting their liquor license to be approved in time for the Grand Opening on Saturday and it's something that has taken time to acquire.

The Maui County Liquor Commission Director, Layne Silva told the Maui news on Wednesday that the Cool Cat Cafe is the second business that was destroyed in the Lahaina fires last August to be granted a new liquor permit. The first business was the Lahaina 76, which relocated to Kihei and is now the Kihei 76 gas station. Their license was reissued on April 6.

"Soon after the fire happened we immediately began working on what we call the relocation application," Silva said. "It was an application that was specific to licensees that were destroyed, or deemed inoperable by the fires."

Silva encouraged any business owners that are contemplating going through the process like the Cool Cat Cafe and Phillips 76 to reach out to the liquor commission to get the process started.

"If they're even considering it, they should reach out to us," Silva said of the re-permitting process. "Because we would be more than happy to explain the process and it is an expedited process."

For Corpuel, it's now about moving forward after the devastation that consumed the hearts and spirits of many.

"It's finding that silver lining in what's happened and a rebirth of the Cool Cat," Corpuel said. "We're able to do a lot of things better than we were before. We lost a lot, but the opportunity in that is--we have a new place, and we have a new slate."

The Cool Cat Cafe will have its grand opening on Saturday, June 15, from 11 a.m. until 9 p.m. in Kihei at the Kukui Mall located at 1819 S Kihei Rd.

The grand opening will be an all day affair starting with a usual classic car show with @mauiclassiccruisers limited edition Cool Cat Swag, raffles and giveaways. And those famous burgers will be served by the coolest crew who have, "missed you all and are so excited to welcome you back! No reservations, first come, first served."