B on Hawaii

Ala Moana Shopping Center turned up the holiday heat last week, with the opening of a store that boasts top locally-made products perfect for gift giving.

Which holiday card hanging on your refrigerator do you remember best? Why, it's the one that was hand-written on custom stationary, of course. It's elegance harkens back to a time before email, when kind words were scripted, stamped and mailed on a regular basis. It seems like a distant memory.

The first whispers of the holiday season can be heard around town, and like most years, everyone is beginning to look for that unique gift to bestow upon their loved one(s). Just in the nick of time, the Honolulu Academy of Arts is celebrating it's annual "World Art Bazaar" at the Academy Art Center at Linekona, in Honolulu. 

If any of you dear readers haven't been to the west side of Maui in a while, things are a-changin' in them parts of the chain. First off, the number of townhomes, condos and developments on the mauka side of the highway is staggering. Which obviously isn't going to help the insufferable traffic problems West Maui is already experiencing.

When it comes to eating healthy, there is an ever-expanding array of information. And it can seem at times like the more we learn about our options, the more complex the decision making process becomes.

Everybody knows fresh tastes better. Living on the islands, I find one day old fish is rather unacceptable to my palate; I'm sure most would agree. In that same vein of thinking, could you imagine if we had the luxury of demanding only the freshest of meat and vegetables?

Truth be told, we're not slaves to the fashion of whatever happens to be fashionable at every tick of the clock. Sure, we like to dress in our best vintage aloha attire for an event, possibly pull the iron out of the closet to spruce up a button down on occasion.

This week, the Fairmont Orchid on Hawaii Island's Kohala Coast opened the Luana Lounge. While it takes more than a new bar or restaurant to find it's way into this newsletter, we want to spotlight this venture for one very good reason.

Maui favorite eatery Lahaina Grill has taken feedback from enthused patrons and launched a Demi menu at its horseshoe bar for diners that want to sample smaller portions – and more of them.

Hot off the news wire: Nobu Waikiki is now open for lunch.

After spending the last two weeks testing and refining, the management of Nobu Waikiki -- the 18th Nobu Matsuhisa-inspired eatery worldwide -- has launched weekday lunch service at its Waikiki Parc location.