Where I Actually Eat on Maui— Ep 132

Where I Actually Eat on Maui: Favorite Spots, Road to Hana Stops, and Honest Takes

Marcie of Hawaii Travel Made Easy shares the Maui restaurants she personally returns to each trip, starting with fish tacos at Coconuts Fish Cafe in Kihei (best at lunch) and dessert at Ululani’s Shave Ice, including a Maui Ocean Center location. She highlights Sweet Hula’s acai bowls in the South Maui Gardens, explains how Paia Fish Market differs in Paia versus Kihei (especially for takeout), and recommends Cafe Olei at the Maui Tropical Plantation for an upscale sit-down meal with reservations. For families, she suggests Monkeypod Kitchen for its crowd-pleasing menu and standout mai tai. She praises Da Kitchen for huge portions and Road to Hana stops like Huealo Lookout smoothies and Bruddah Hutts BBQ ribs, and offers a candid, less-enthusiastic take on Hali‘imaile General Store. She notes most stops require a car and promotes planning resources, consultations, and itinerary audits on her website.

00:00 Oahu Food Hangover
00:24 Maui Eats Mission
00:52 Coconuts Fish Tacos
01:38 Ululani Shave Ice
02:09 Sweet Hula Acai
02:55 Paia Fish Market Picks
03:44 Cafe Olei Plantation
04:16 Monkeypod Favorites
04:56 Da Kitchen Classics
05:28 Road to Hana Bites
06:10 Upcountry Reality Check
06:40 Car Rental Note
06:57 Wrap Up And Help

Who this episode is for: Anyone planning a Maui trip who wants real restaurant picks from someone who's eaten there dozens of times, not a generic "best of" list.

What you'll learn: Where to eat in Kihei, Paia, and Upcountry, which Road to Hana stops are worth the detour, and which hyped spot Marcie skips.

Restaurants discussed:

• Coconuts Fish Cafe (Kihei) — fish tacos, best at lunch
• Ululani's Shave Ice (multiple locations incl. Maui Ocean Center)
• Sweet Hula (South Maui Gardens) — acai bowls
• Paia Fish Market (Paia vs. Kihei locations, takeout notes)
• Cafe Olei (Maui Tropical Plantation) — upscale, reservations recommended
• Monkeypod Kitchen — family-friendly, mai tai
• Da Kitchen — huge portions
• Hali'imaile General Store — Marcie's honest, less-enthusiastic take

Places discussed: Kihei, Paia, South Maui, Maui Tropical Plantation, Upcountry, Road to Hana

Activities discussed: Driving the Road to Hana

Marcie's recommendations:

• Coconuts Fish Cafe for lunch specifically
• Cafe Olei for a nicer sit-down night out
• Huealo Lookout smoothies and Bruddah Hutts BBQ ribs on the Road to Hana
• Skip the hype on Hali'imaile General Store

Related Hawaii Travel Made Easy episodes: 

• What You Need to Know About the Road to Hana on Maui— Ep 31
• How to Plan a Trip to Maui— Ep 47

Related articles:

• Best Maui Restaurants for Kids: Where a Mom of 2 Actually Eats
• Road to Hana: 16 Things to Know Before You Go (2026 Guide)

About Your Host: Marcie Cheung is a Certified Hawaii Destination Expert who has visited Hawaii 40+ times and spent 20+ years as a professional hula dancer. Through Hawaii Travel with Kids, she helps families plan authentic, affordable Hawaii vacations that respect local culture while creating unforgettable memories.

Learn more at hawaiitravelwithkids.com

Connect: @hawaiitravelwithkids on Instagram | Book a Consultation

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Transcript

0:00

We had just spent several days eating our way through Oahu, like really putting in the work: plate lunches, shave ice, garlic shrimp, Spam musubi in more forms than I knew existed. By the time we boarded the flight to Maui, my son had eaten five acai bowls that week. My husband was ready to subsist on pretzels for a while. They were done. I stepped off the plane thinking about fish tacos Welcome back to Hawaii Travel Made Easy. I'm Marcie, and today I'm sharing where I actually eat on Maui. Not a best of list, not hidden gems, not where locals eat, just the places I look forward to before I even board the plane, the meals that earn a permanent spot in my rotation, and a couple of honest takes on spots that show up on every Maui roundup ever published. If you wanna dig into the full Maui planning picture, I have a travel guide and all my trusted resources at hawaiitravelwithkids.com under Hawaii Resources. Okay, let's talk food So that fish taco craving I mentioned, we had literally just flown over from Oahu. We'd been eating for days. My son grabbed a burger from next door because he was officially done with fish. I sat down at the table at Coconuts Fish Cafe in Kihei and savored every single morsel of those fish tacos. They have two locations in Kihei, and the fish tacos are the thing. Two grilled tacos on white corn tortillas loaded with around 17 different ingredients: cheese, tomato salsa, coconut milk coleslaw, mango salsa. There's a lot happening, and it all works perfectly together. It just hits all the right flavors at once. This is my first stop on almost every Maui trip. There is one practical note. I recommend going at lunch if you can. We almost always do, and the line is usually pretty short, but dinner can get long. While you're in Kihei, Ululani's Shave Ice is the natural next move. After coconuts, we almost always head over for dessert. I've had a lot of shave ice across all the Hawaiian Islands, and Ululani's is one of the best in all of Hawaii. The ice is incredibly fine, the flavors are vibrant, and I get mine snow-capped, that's sweetened condensed milk drizzled over the top with homemade mochi. They have locations all over Maui, and if you're heading to the Maui Ocean Center, which I did a whole episode on recently, they have a location there too. Marine life and shave ice, that's a solid afternoon. All right, my son has strong feelings about acai bowls, like ranking every single one he's ever eaten strong feelings, and Sweet Hula's topped his list For the whole trip. We actually did it for breakfast the morning after a sunrise photo shoot in Wailea, and the timing was perfect. You've been up since 4:00 in the morning, you watch the sky turn pink, and then you sit down with an acai bowl where everything tastes incredibly fresh and refreshing The Honolua is what I get. That's organic acai, granola, blueberries, bee pollen, banana, papaya, honey, and almond butter, and it's a full meal. They're in the south Maui Garden, and fair warning, I got a little turned around while trying to find it the first time, so give yourself a few extra minutes. After that first bowl, my son declared it the best of the entire trip and was ready to go back every single morning after that. Okay, Paia Fish Market has two locations, and they serve a slightly different purpose for me, so let me break this down. The Paia location is where I go when I'm up in Paia. I love that town. There's a whole vibe to it. There's North Shore energy, funky shops, this hippie-meets-surfer thing it has going on, and eating at Paia Fish Market feels like part of the experience. I always get the mahi-mahi sauteed in butter, wine, lemon, and garlic with home potatoes. And the tartar sauce, I will say this plainly, it is the best tartar sauce I've ever had in my whole entire life, and I don't know what they do to it, but I wanna take it home with me every single time. Now, the Kihei location is smaller and more casual, but for takeout, it's the best takeout I've had anywhere, not just in Hawaii, anywhere. If you're based in South Maui and want a great dinner without a full sit-down situation, Kihei is your answer. Now, if you want a proper sit-down meal, more upscale than Paia Fish Market, that's where Cafe Olei comes in. They have a location in Kihei, but I point you to the one at the Maui Tropical Plantation. The setting is gorgeous, And it turns an already great meal into a whole experience. I get their sauteed mahi-mahi with lemon keeper butter every time, and it's the kind of dish where I finish dinner, feel completely satisfied, and then eat the leftovers two hours later. I have absolutely no shame about this. Make a reservation here, especially for dinner at the plantation location because it fills up. Monkeypod Kitchen is the one I recommend to a lot of families because the menu genuinely has something for everyone. Kids love it. There are plenty of familiar options, fun drinks, and the energy is lively without being overwhelming. My go-to is the kalua pork and pineapple pizza or the fish sandwich, and both are really solid. The food is an easy yes across the board, but the mai tai is the reason I go. They use macadamia nut orgeat instead of a traditional almond-based version, and they top the whole thing off with a honey passion fruit foam. It's the best mai tai I've ever had in Hawaii, and I order mai tais everywhere, so that's not a casual statement. But you're gonna wanna book ahead because it's popular And the wait without a reservation can get long. Da Kitchen holds a special place in my heart because it's where I had my first deep-fried Spam musubi, and I still think about that meal. My husband and I were on our first trip to Maui together, and my hula sisters back in Seattle had talked about this place like it was a requirement. So we went, and we did what we always do, which is over-order completely. We got the deep-fried Spam musubi, the kalbi ribs, and the mochiko chicken. All of it was incredible. The portions are enormous, so sharing is very much encouraged. We were on our way to the airport. We packed up the leftover musubi and took it on the plane ride home, and I've never been so full on a flight in my life. Zero regrets If you're doing the Road to Hana, I have two full episodes on that drive, and I'll link both in the show notes. But one food stop I always make early on Is Huealo Lookout for a fresh fruit smoothie. You're winding along the road, the scenery's everywhere, and the smoothie is so flavorful and refreshing. It's one of those, oh, this is exactly what I needed right now stops. Don't skip it. Also on the road to Hana, just past Hanatown, is Bruddah huts. And I mean this completely, they make the best barbecue ribs I've ever tasted in my whole entire life. It's a food truck with outdoor tables. It's rustic, cash-in-hand kind of place, and it's absolutely worth every bit of it. The portions are enormous, and I came very close to licking the container, very close. And here's my candid take on a place you will find on every Maui restaurant list ever published: Hali'imaile General Store. It's in upcountry right near the Maui Pineapple Store, so it's convenient if you're up that way. I've had the fish and chips, and they were good, but I'll be straight with you, it's not a meal I dream about. The price point is high even for Hawaii. A lot of people love it, and I understand why. It's charming, it has history, and it's a solid choice if you want a sit-down meal in upcountry. I just wouldn't put it above half the places I've already mentioned. If you're going for dinner, definitely make a reservation. All right, one logistical note before I wrap up. Almost everything on this list requires a car. That's true of most of Maui, but it's worth saying. So if you're still sorting out your rental, I have a trusted car rental resource at hawaiitravelwithkids.com under Hawaii Resources, along with my Maui travel guide and everything else I recommend. Here's what I want to leave with you. Hawaii's food is so fresh, and I swear it nourishes my soul in a way that food at home just doesn't. That's why I plan around these meals. They're not an afterthought. They're part of what makes the trip feel like the trip. If you want help figuring out how to weave these spots into your actual itinerary, which ones make sense on which days, what fits with where you're staying, what to pair with a road to Hana day versus a beach day, that's exactly what I dig into in my consultations. You can book them at hawaiitravelwithkids.com under Hawaii Travel Consultant. Or if your itinerary is already drafted and you just want a second set of eyes, I do itinerary audits for fifty dollars. You submit your plan, and I send it back with inline feedback within two business days. That's at hawaiitravelwithkids.com under Hawaii Itinerary Review. Thank you so much for being here. I'll see you next time. Aloha.