Category Archives: Dining Outside

Take Five with the One and Only Nobu Matsuhisa

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Chef Nobu Matsuhisa in the new garden dining space at Nobu Palo Alto.
Chef Nobu Matsuhisa in the new garden dining space at Nobu Palo Alto.

Much like Madonna, Adele and Beyonce, this storied chef is so recognized the globe over that you know him readily by simply his first name.

The one and only Nobu Matsuhisa came to town this week to christen the new Japanese-inspired outdoor garden dining space at his Nobu Palo Alto restaurant and hotel, completely transforming what was formerly a florist shop into a zen oasis.

If you have an appetite for fine Japanese cuisine, you owe a debt of gratitude to him. If you appreciate impeccable sushi and sashimi, especially done with groundbreaking global influences such as jalapenos, olive oil, garlic, and lemon, you have him to thank for introducing this new style. Matsuhisa helped turn what was once considered exotic into a mainstay of which we now can’t get enough.

His accomplishments are nothing short of breathtaking, opening 21 restaurants in the United States and Canada alone, not to mention 16 in Europe; five in Mexico and the Caribbean; six in the Middle East and Africa; and eight in Asia and Australia. In all, 56 restaurants across the globe. Moreover, his hotel in downtown Palo Alto is one of 34 operating or in process of opening worldwide.

The Palo Alto restaurant is one of 56 Nobu locations worldwide.
The Palo Alto restaurant is one of 56 Nobu locations worldwide.

It’s been quite the journey for Matsuhisa, one that began with the most challenging of circumstances in Japan, when he lost his father at age 8 in a motorcycle accident, only later to get expelled from high school for acting out. Looking to turn his life around at 18, he moved to Tokyo to apprentice in a sushi restaurant. What followed next were a series of soaring highs and crushing blows — moving to Lima to open his first restaurant, only to have that business partnership dissolve badly, then relocating to Alaska to open a Japanese restaurant, only to see it destroyed in an accidental fire less than two months later.

Eventually, armed with a green card, he immigrated to Southern California with his wife and two young daughters for a fresh start. In 1987 he opened Matsuhisa in Beverly Hills. There, a regular nudged him repeatedly to open an outpost in New York until he agreed to do so, debuting restaurant Nobu in Manhattan in 1994. That regular was none other than actor Robert DeNiro, who would go on to partner with Matsuhisa in all his future projects and be instrumental in steering him to opening hotels, too.

Yesterday, I had a chance to spend a few minutes with Matsuhisa in the tranquil garden with its decorative bronze gate, seasonal blooms, and boulders that were hand-picked and flown in from Japan.

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Hawaii Eats: Pacifico On The Beach, Maui

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The impressive mahi mahi Wellington at Pacifico on The Beach.
The impressive mahi mahi Wellington at Pacifico on The Beach.

Lahaina, Maui, HI — If you’re lucky enough to be on Maui from now through Saturday, you can enjoy the inventive dish that landed Assistant Executive Chef McKenna Shea of Pacifico On The Beach victory on the Food Network’s “Chopped” last month.

For the past month, the inviting beachfront restaurant has featured that special abalone salad that helped her trounce three other chefs and score the $10,000 prize.

Admittedly, she was initially befuddled upon opening up the mystery basket to discover abalone and ube cheesecake. Who wouldn’t be, right?

Not only that, she had never worked with abalone before. But harnessing the skills she’d learned from her mentor, Pacifico’s Executive Chef Isaac Bancaco, she set to work.

The "Chopped'' special abalone salad.
The “Chopped” special abalone salad.

Visiting Maui last month, I had a chance to dine at Pacifico, a 28-year-old restaurant that Bancaco was hired to revamp a year ago. Don’t be surprised if some of the fresh catch of the day was actually caught by Bancaco, who’s an avid fisherman, too.

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Hawaii Eats: Tiffany’s and Papa’aina, Maui

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The incredible Peking Pata at Tiffany's.
The incredible Peking Pata at Tiffany’s.

Tiffany’s

Wailuku, Maui, HI — If there’s one chef who embodies aloha spirit and is the ultimate cheerleader for Maui’s hospitality industry, it has to be Sheldon Simeon.

The “Top Chef” star who was voted “Fan Favorite” of the Bravo TV competition not once but twice, has the golden touch when it comes to heading restaurants, from his days at Star Noodle, Leoda’s Kitchen and Pie Shop to Migrant, Lineage, and finally, Tin Roof. In essence, if he opens it, they will come.

Such was the case, too, when he and his wife Janice Simeon bought the nearly two-decade-old Tiffany’s restaurant last year when its former owners, the Orite family, decided to retire. Long an old-school locals’ favorite, the expansive restaurant had a lived-in look and a huge menu leaning into Chinese, Japanese and Korean classics.

When the Simeons took over, they refreshed the interior a bit, but kept its funky island flair. The menu was honed, with some more Filipino influences added, as well as a few of Simeon’s signatures such as his version of Fat Chow Funn.

A little out of the way, but definitely worth the trek.
A little out of the way, but definitely worth the trek.

Having visited nearly every other one of their restaurants, my husband and I couldn’t pass up dining at Tiffany’s on our most recent visit to Maui last month.

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Hawaii Eats: Waicoco at the Westin Maui Resort, Maui

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The biggest slab of seared ahi I've ever had -- at Waicoco.
The biggest slab of seared ahi I’ve ever had — at Waicoco.

Lahaina, Maui, HI — It’s been nearly four years since I last stepped foot inside a plane. (Yeah, thanks a heap, Covid.) But with a gracious invitation to stay and dine this year at the Westin Maui Resort & Spa as its guest, Hawaii proved the perfect destination to take to the skies once again.

With its low infection rate and year-round balmy weather that makes outdoor or open-air dining possible year-round, Hawaii was one of the first prime destinations that travelers headed to in droves once the pandemic began to subside. That proved both unnerving — since Maui, for instance, only has two hospitals — and a boon, because Hawaii’s main industry of tourism bounced back more quickly than anticipated.

Save for mask wearing at times indoors by some workers, locals and yours truly, you’d never know anything had ever been amiss because crowds of visitors were definitely back in force when I visited the Westin Maui last month.

The waterfall at the Westin Maui.
The waterfall at the Westin Maui.
The resort has flamingos.
The resort has flamingos.
And talking parrots.
And talking parrots.

Once checked in, many of those tourists probably never left the grounds, either, as this sprawling beachfront resort has everything one could need.

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Hawaii Eats: NatuRe Waikiki, Oahu

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Executive Chef Nae Ogawa at the chef's counter at natuRe Waikiki.
Executive Chef Nae Ogawa at the chef’s counter at natuRe Waikiki.

Honolulu, Oahu, HI — For a truly special experience, snag a seat at the chef’s counter at natuRe Waikiki — if you can.

The two-story restaurant opened in 2022 with plenty of outdoor seating on the first floor with an a la carte menu. But the best spot in the restaurant is definitely at the 10-seat chef’s counter, where Chef Nae Ogawa and her young team hold court in the open kitchen.

I had many wonderful meals on my trip to Hawaii last week. But by far, one of the most outstanding was the tasting menu at this gem that Honolulu Magazine named “Best New Restaurant” in 2022.

To be honest, natuRe (pronounced the French way, “nah-tur) was not even on my radar. On a sun-and-sand, sandals-and-shorts kind of vacation, I wasn’t necessarily even contemplating an upscale, fine-dining dinner.

A Kumamoto oyster is one of two supplements available to the tasting menu.
A Kumamoto oyster is one of two supplements available to the tasting menu.

But friend Sarah Burchard deserves special thanks for steering me to it. The former chef at San Francisco’s Barbacco, Burchard moved to Honolulu more than six years ago to become a successful food writer. In fact, anyone planning a trip to Hawaii should check out her online site for tips on must-visit places. When she’s not writing or volunteering her time for all manner of community eco projects, she is a server at natuRe. So, when she recommended the chef’s counter there, I knew she wouldn’t steer me wrong.

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