25 years – There has to be a reason

Last week Merriman’s Restaurant in Waimea celebrated their 25^th anniversary. For a restaurant to be in business that long, they must be doing everything right. Chef Peter Merriman is one of the founders of Hawaiʻi Regional Cuisine. He features local fish, meats and produce in a refined setting in Waimea, the Big Island’s ranching area. He even has his own herb and vegetable garden on the grounds of the restaurant. Check out the website at: merrimanshawaii.com/waimea/.

We have been patronizing the restaurant for the past 20 years. We often go to Waimea to attend the Kahilu Theater and have dinner there before the performance. To demonstrate the commitment to the community, the restaurant usually opens at 5:30 PM. However, when a Kahilu performance begins at 7:00 PM, the restaurant will open at 5:00 PM to ensure diners will not miss the opening act.

Naturally, since we frequent Merriman’s we have our favorite wait staff, all of whom are extremely efficient and attentive. For example, we usually ask for Dylan as our waiter. A couple of weeks ago we arrived at the restaurant and as we were being seated Dylan appeared with two snifters of Macallan 12, our favorite whisky from their list. They have a nice list of 6 single malts with a mix of 2 from Islay, 3 from Speyside, and an Oban from the western Highlands. All are reasonably priced.

We usually begin with an appetizer; our favorites are either a Kalua Pig & Sweet Onion Quesadilla or Peter’s Caesar Salad. Both are excellent. The entrée is always a difficult decision, as there are local beef, lamb and pork specials each night. We have had all three and enjoyed them immensely. The fish dishes are also excellent, seared ahi being a particular favorite.

The desserts are also unique and difficult to resist. The Crispy Molten
“Original Hawaiian Chocolate” Purse is perhaps our favorite.

The total dining experience is delightful. There is no doubt why Peter Merriman has successfully operated the restaurant for 25 years.

The snow has come

Finally, today Mauna Kea received a significant snow. We have had a serious drought for a couple of years. This is evidenced by the water level in Lake Waiau on the mountain. If you check the pictures in the book you can see a tremendous change in the lake over the past few years. Hopefully, we will have a wet winter and the lake will return to its former level.

A cultural gem on Hawaiʻi Island

The history of Hawaiʻi Island cannot be complete without acknowledgement of the Parker Ranch, centered in Waimea in the northern part of the island. At one point Parker Ranch was the largest privately owned cattle ranch in the United States. The last individual owner of Parker Ranch was Richard Smart, who although the sole heir to Parker Ranch, had a calling for the theater. He performed on Broadway as well as in venues around the world. When we were in New Jersey, our local performance venue was the Paper Mill Playhouse where Richard Smart headlined. Eventually he left the stage and returned to operate Parker Ranch. In the 1970’s he decided that Hawaiʻi Island needed a performance venue and he set about to build a 490-seat theater in Waimea. In 1980 the structure was complete and he named it the Kahilu Theater after his mother, Thelma Kahiluʻonapuaʻapiʻilani Parker. Richard Smart passed away in 1992 and the theater remained a part of Parker Ranch until 2001 when it became an independent entity.

Today the Kahilu Theater is the primary cultural center on the island. From September through May performances are scheduled by artists from around the world, ranging from guitarists from Zimbabwe to bluegrass performances, Celtic dance companies, Van Cliburn piano competition winner, an Australian circus group, and , of course, local musicians such as the Brothers Cazimero who we are proud to say we co-sponsor. You can check out the complete schedule at: kahilutheater.org. The phone number is: 808-885-6868.

In addition to the regular performances, the theater offers many free performances to support local artists. There is also an educational aspect to the theater in that most of the visiting artists also provide performances and workshops for the local schools. All this is organized by Alva Kamalani, who is the Operations Director of the theater.

If you are on the island during the winter and spring seasons, be sure to check out the performances at Kahilu Theater. Tickets are available online. You will be amazed at the quality of the performances at Kahilu Theater.

Our Guide Book Has Been Published

In 1979, when we first came to Hawaiʻi, as we toured the islands and I explained to Betty what we were looking at and how it got there, people would crowd around and ask questions. That is what started our adventure in leading tours. All those people wanted to know what they were looking at and if they could tag along behind us.

When we moved out here and started our tour business, we were unique in offering personalized tours which weren’t tourist oriented, but rather explanation oriented. That was why our business was successful. When we finally sold the business, we still kept getting phone calls and emails asking us to do tours.

Since we are no longer licensed to operate tours, we decided to accommodate those people who want us along with them on a tour of the Big Island by writing a guide book that will be the next best thing to actually having us along. This book, BIG ISLAND, HAWAIʻI GUIDE, covers the areas on the island that we visited on our tours. It is available as a Kindle Book on Amazon.com. There are a lot  of guide books so it is easier to look it up by the author: A. Lee Meyerson. It is available* for readers to purchase here. By publishing it on Kindle we are able to provide people with a convenient, transportable book which contains abundant pictures so people don’t have to guess if they are looking at the appropriate thing. If we did a print book, the price would be unreasonable for such a book.

Dining near Volcanoes National Park

Most people who visit the island visit Volcanoes National Park. It is the premier attraction on the island. To explore the Park is at least a full day affair; more if you are into hiking. When we offered tours to the Park, we would be ready to exit the Park at about 6:00 PM. There was no way that people would tolerate a two hour ride back to the Kona Coast without dinner. We would take them to Kilauea Lodge in the town of Volcano, just outside the Park. It is a gem situated in the rain forest and good enough that we didn’t mind eating there several times in a week.

The Lodge is situated in an old YMCA camp. The first thing that catches your eye on entering the dining room is a huge fireplace, usually with the fire roaring. That is particularly inviting on a winter night. It is the Fireplace of Friendship and contains items from all over the world embedded in it, a fitting relic of the YMCA camp.

The Lodge is open for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Check out their website at www.kilauealodge.com. We will dwell on dinner, since that is when we visit after a full day in the Park. First of all, if you would like a drink before dinner, they have a full bar. They even have a nice list of Scotch whisky at reasonable prices. We once took a liquor distributor on tour and he allowed as how they have an excellent wine list.

Kilauea Lodge is owned by Lorna and Albert Jeyte. Lorna was a local school teacher and Albert was an Emmy winning make-up artist. He was working on the Magnum PI show and when it closed, they bought the Lodge on their honeymoon in 1986. Albert was born in Germany and loved to cook. He went off to school and became the executive chef. As you might imagine, with that background, many of his dishes have a German flavor.

We have had almost everything on the menu and it is all superb. Naturally we have our favorites, since we have been eating there for 20 years, including just last week. Our favorite is Paupiettes of Beef, which consists of rolls of sliced prime rib stuffed and crispy fried. It is the only restaurant that we have visited that offers that entrée. Be sure to check out the menu on their web site.

The wait staff is excellent. Some have been working there for the entire 20 years that we have been going there. They are attentive and knowledgeable. You will be treated as family, or as we say in Hawaiʻi, ohana.

In addition to the restaurant you can book a room to stay there overnight. We have stayed there and found the rooms to be excellent. Of course, breakfast is available when you arise.

We cannot recommend Kilauea Lodge more highly. It is a restaurant you will not want to miss.

Who we are and what we will do

My wife, Betty, and I have lived on the Big Island of Hawaii for 20 years. Prior to that we conducted college geology tours of Kauai, Oahu, Maui, and Hawaii for 15 years. Upon moving here we started a tour business, Hawaiian Eyes Tours, which operated for 5 years until we retired.

Before moving here Betty was a high school science teacher and Lee was a geology professor at Kean University in New Jersey. We have an avid interest in all things Hawaiian, including  geology, botany, astronomy, and archeology. In addition we will be presenting restaurants, events, and cultural attractions such as musical performances, theater offerings, ethnic festivals, academic events and our special places to visit, as well as anything else that might be of interest to our readers.

As we are dedicated foodies, we will particularly focus on our favorite restaurants. Since we are also Scotch lovers, that will be an aspect included in our posts.