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Local Chef Frank Pabst, Ka’anapali Beach Resort’s Shelley Kekuna with Jim Gordon & Leeta Liepins.

Photo courtesy ‘Our City Tonight’

Maui welcomes back Hawaii Food and Wine Festival

By Jim Gordon and Leeta Liepins

Published 11:59 PDT, Fri September 13, 2024

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In early August of 2023 we sat across from Shelley Kekuna, the executive director of Ka’anapali Beach Resort Association, in a restaurant in Vancouver. It had been a very difficult 24 hours for her and for the place she loves, the island of Maui. Just the day before, wildfires swept across the Island and all but destroyed the town of Lahaina.

Kekuna had arrived in Vancouver the day before to talk to the media about the upcoming Hawaii Food and Wine Festival and Maui’s participation. On that day, we learned there would be no festival on Maui, as all attention, energy and support turned to helping the survivors and mourning their loss.

A year later, Kekuna returned to Vancouver with updates about this year’s festival (the 14th) which will be taking place Oct. 13 to Nov. 5, with the Maui portion Oct. 25 to Oct. 27. This festival is Hawaii’s largest food and wine festival and brings together more than 150 global tastemakers, Michelin-starred chefs, celebrated winemakers and master mixologists, to showcase the best of Hawaii’s local ingredients.

Festival ticket purchases go towards supporting the farmers, ranchers, and fishermen of Hawaii, as well as investing in the up-and-coming chef talent at local culinary colleges and agricultural education for children. Vancouver will be well represented by the Executive Chef of Blue Water Café, Frank Pabst. It was at Blue Water Café that we sat down with Shelley Kekuna and Chef Frank.

OCT: Shelley, we were with you a year ago when this tragedy was actually taking place on Maui and in the town of Lahaina, but you’re back this year to talk about the festival and the money that will be raised at the festival, please tell our readers more.

SK: We have just passed our one-year mark since the fire. This wonderful Hawaii Food and Wine Festival is run by a non-profit, probably the only one we know of when it comes to food and wine festivals, so it’s not only important to Maui but all the islands because of all the charitable contributions that’s fed back into the communities.

OCT: This is a three-island event, including Maui and also The Big Island, Oahu, but we are talking today about Maui. This really is an event where locals and visitors will all come together and enjoy the wonderful food and wine, and as you said, raise money. Tell us about some of the great things taking place during the Maui portion of the festival on Oct. 25 to 27 which includes a golf tournament, an afternoon barbecue and a pickle ball tournament.

SK: This will be the first pickle ball tournament included in the festival portfolio and that will be on Sunday, Oct. 27. Friday Oct. 25 is the golf tournament, it’s a very successful sold-out tournament with great chefs at all the holes providing food for all the players, and sponsored by Southern Wine and Spirits. On Sat. 26, we will do a big walk around event at the Sheraton Maui Resort and Spa. It’s a great resort, beautiful outdoor property.

We’ll have ten fantastic chefs and in the centre of all the chefs will be a hollow square that will be full of fabulous wines. We’ll have mixologists, live music, and fireworks at the end of the night. This year, we offer “Vita La Vino”, a Mediterranean-Italian themed event on the Saturday. Sunday is the pickle ball tournament which will be lots of fun, followed by a backyard barbecue, which will include another five chefs, including Chef Ming Tsai, all providing fabulous barbeque delights. Again, all these events feed to local charities.

A lot of people are asking how they can help Maui, and this festival is a wonderful way to help. You can combine your vacation while supporting this festival, which will support our local charities. We are excited to welcome everyone back.

OCT: Hawaii is such a popular destination for Canadians, especially people in B.C. and other parts of Western Canada. We love Ka’anapali and we have been there a number of times. One of the things we love is that you can park the car and not have to drive again until you leave. Everything in Ka’anapali is walkable.

SK: Ka’anapali is a great place, it truly is where the world comes to play.

OCT: One of the elite invited chefs from Vancouver will be attending the festival and we asked Executive Chef of Blue Water Restaurant, Frank Pabst, what he was looking forward to the most, at the upcoming festival.

FP: First of all, I am very honoured to be invited to this exclusive event and I am looking forward to sharing my joy and happiness about the fact that this event is able to happen this year. I am looking forward to seeing all the people enjoying the great food and all the amazing wine that will be available. Overall, I am excited to get together with all the friends and families and having a great time during this celebration in Maui.

Hawaii’s largest food and wine festival brings together 150+ global tastemakers—Michelin-starred chefs, celebrated winemakers and master mixologists—to showcase the best of Hawaii’s local ingredients. Join Our City Tonight in Maui from Oct. 25 to 27, 2024. For more details on how to attend, please go to hawaiifoodandwinefestival.com and kaanapaliresort.com