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AG FEST WINNERS. . . Thousands of people poured into the Maui County Ag Festival on Saturday and throngs got to witness the contests.
Yours truly was among four judges at noon near center stage for the Live Chefs Challenge. The event featured three chef teams and was sponsored by Kula Fields with gourmet pantry items provided by RimFire.
The Green Team beat out the Purple and the Orange teams by a close call. Everything was crazy good and it was so hard to pick winners.
The Green Team consisted of chefs Sheldon Simeon of Migrant, Michael Lofaro of Humuhumunukunukuapua’a at Grand Wailea, Jeff Scheer of Maui Executive Catering in Haiku and Oscar Torres of Acabar restaurant in L.A., who came here on a chef exchange.
The Grand Taste 2015 later in the day partnered with Slow Food Maui and featured 12 chef and farmer pairings. The Best Protein dish winners were David and Lehua Finch of Malama Farms in Haiku, who teamed with chef Charlie Owen of Hula Grill Kaanapali
The Best Veggie win was given to Hoku’ao Pellegrino of Noho’ana Farm, who teamed with Isaac Bancaco, newly named executive chef of Andaz Maui. The Fan-Favorite award went to William Jacintho of Beef & Bloom and the above-mentioned chef Scheer of Maui Executive Catering. The team also won Best Overall dish.
The Judges Choice Honorable Mention went to Eva and Thomas Kafsack of Surfing Goat Dairy with chef Lofaro of Humuhumu.
Paris Nabavi of Sangrita also wowed the keiki crowd with his demo of guacamole and chips.
“After my daughter’s birth, I realized the responsibilities we all have to educate our children and the choices they make about food and what they eat. I began teaching her to use the tools in the kitchen and start with preparing creative and fun food. I encourage all chefs to get involved in educating our children about preparing good food and cooking with fresh ingredients.”
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BITS AND PIECES A new dinner show called “Broadway A La Carte” is set to dazzle on April 24 in the hills of Waikapu at the King Kamehameha Golf Course Clubhouse.
The Waikapu Ballroom will set a glamorous stage and Eric Gilliom will belt it out with an A-list of performers that include from Jerry Eiting to Lia Krieg with Bill Hensley performing, directing and producing. Listen to current and classic show stoppers as you dine on everything from mac-nut mahimahi to oven-roasted pork to premium pies. Cost is $92 per person, including tax and tip. Visit www.broadwayalacarte.eventbrite.com.
Looking for ono grinds at reasonable prices in west Maui? Joey’s Kitchen opened recently at Whalers Village in Kaanapali. Former Roy’s chef Joey Macadangdang and his wife, Juvy, dish up short ribs sinigang, crisp lumpia, huli huli chicken and fried Brussels sprouts with chopped bacon and parmesan.
At the grand opening, spotted were Alex Franco of Maui Cattle Co., Chris Speere of Maui Culinary Academy and Shelley Kekuna of Kaanapali Beach Resort Association and more. Across the mall, chef Alex Stanislaw was seen cooking up a storm, making his own version of Brussels sprouts with truffle oil and fresh egg, Milanese style, at Maui Fish & Pasta.