I made Kyle start Little Fires Everywhere so I would have someone to discuss it with and he dove right in.
Oh, and Happy Easter!
We didn’t do baskets or egg hunts or anything because I just thought it would be easier to skip all that. They are still young enough that we can do that so I am taking advantage. Plus they aren’t around any of their friends so nobody can tell them what they missed out on. We talked about what the day meant and celebrated with these fun little glasses my in-laws sent us (that I saved in my suitcase until Sunday the 1st). And then it was right back to vacation things.
I had the rest of my acai bowl from the day before and then decided it was time to get my Lava Flow on.
There is a running joke in my family that Valley’s middle name is “Lava Flow” because back in the summer of 2014 we were all in Hawaii boozing it up and I ordered one or two (don’t judge!) on a regular basis. They are so good!! And then we got home and I discovered I was preggo with Miss V. OOPS! She’s fine guys, it’s fine.
Turns out they are STILL really good. 😉
We had a nice morning at the beach and then made our way back to the pool again, all before noon.
Fishy fishy.
Banana break.
For lunch we tried out the food from Nanea (the Westin villas next door).
I got the poke bowl (deep fried avocado, what!?!?!), which was awesome but not quite big enough if I’m nitpicking.
Kyle got the pork belly udon bowl and loved it.
This dude listened to Native American Folk Tales on cd until V was down and then he followed suit with the zzzzs.
Back to the pool!
I tried the kombucha the hotel had on tap – a local flavor (Lilikoi Coconut) made by Valley Isle Kombucha. It was different than any flavors I’ve tried before and hard to describe. I miss my home brew!
For dinner we walked no further than 50 yards from the lobby, right to Duke’s on the beach.
We started with bread which I ate because (a) I was really hungry, (b) it was purple, and (c) it was sweet fluffy Hawaiian bread. Totally worth it.
The kids split a keiki order of mahi mahi with a side of roasted Brussels sprouts and rice.
I was a little jealous of their Brussels to be honest, and then Kyle’s pork arrives and he got Brussels too!
Food FOMO on high. His pork looked amaaaazing too. Fall off the bone tender.
I got a classic Duke’s dish – seared ahi with pickled veggies, wasabi rice, and bok choy.
You guys, the rice and the (unpictured) chili sauce was SO spicy! My lips were on fire by the end of the meal and I was chugging water like crazy. I actually couldn’t finish the rice it was too much! it was really good though. Kinda overpriced for the food, but what else is new?
The good news was that we had a coupon for a free Hula Pie (their signature dessert) with the purchase of two entrees.
You can’t tell the size of this from the photo but trust me when I say it was obscenely humongous. Kyle couldn’t even finish more than half of it and his ice cream tolerance is basically the highest it gets. DAMN. I’m just sorry I only have the to-go photo because once the hot fudge and nuts were added on top it was a whole scene. But that’s what happens when you can only get a reservation when your kids are usually going to bed. Dessert to go, it is!
Yes to all the frozen cocktails! I have no idea what a lava flow is but i’m also certain i would love it- and hysterical that’s valley’s nickname!! Speaking of, is she asleep holding the banana?? Too funny.
That’s a total bummer your dinner was so spicy, i’m such a wimp myself and i totally know what you mean
I love the Easter glasses! So adorable. And did V fall asleep eating the banana? That is hilarious and precious.
Cute suit, is that the one from cupshe? If so how do you like it?!
going to maui and kauai for our honeymoon next june…any idea of good places to stay or do?!
Yes! I love it 🙂 This was my first time buying from cupshe and I am totally happy with the quality/prices.
So many ideas!! Ka’anapali is my favorite part of Maui, Wailea is nice but it doesn’t have as many restaurant options aside from the $$$$ ones in hotels. If you stay anywhere in the Lahaina and Ka’anapali area you will have more foodie options. If you stay near Whaler’s Village you will be able to walk to almost anything you need so look for a spot nearby – there’s a beach path that goes along the water all the way up. The beaches are better in that area – we stayed at the Marriott Beach Club, but of course it’s all beautiful. As fas as restaurants go I have a bunch of faves: in the Lahaina / Ka’anapali area there is Star Noodle, Aloha Mixed Plate, Choice Health Food, Merriman’s, Sansei, Miso Phat Sushi, Monkeypod, Teppanyaki 2 Go (by 808 afternoons). And for the best poke you have to go to Tamura’s (it’s a liquor store, but has the best best best poke selection but you have to go early because by the afternoon they are sold out). Over by the airport there is Da Kitchen, which is super good but it’s obviously far away from everything else. There’s also a WF and Costco right by the airport, so plan out to get anything you need from there right after you land. That said, there’s a co-op kind of health foods store in Ka’anapali called Farmer’s Market that has anything you would need. I mean, really, even the ABC stores have kombucha these days so we didn’t even end up going to WF at all. That’s all for Maui. For Kauai, I don’t know as much because I’ve only been a couple of times, and mostly when I was young. There are a few posts on here from my honeymoon but that was so long ago it could have changed a bunch in the meantime. ENJOY!!!! YOU ARE GOING TO HAVE A BLAST!!! PS Congrats on your engagement!!
thanks so much elise for the recommendations!!!