Where I Love To Eat on Maui
These are the restaurants, bakeries and takeout spots I hit up every time I'm on the Valley Isle.
Had I written this post back in July, this list would have looked very different.
It would have included Sale Pepe on Front Street, Papaʻaina at the Pioneer Inn and Leoda’s Kitchen and Pie Shop. The first two were destroyed in the deadly wildfires that ravaged Lāhainā on Aug. 8, killing at least 97 people and destroying the historic coastal town. The third was mostly spared but is temporarily closed.
Also gone is Fukushima Store in Haʻikū, with its Redondo’s hot dog topped with a mustard-relish-mayo sauce, chopped white onions and a pickle spear that cost $1.25. It closed in December 2022. The Mill House Restaurant in Waikapū also shuttered, a victim of the pandemic. And Huihui Restaurant, which anchored the Kāʻanapali Beach Hotel, closed this year. RIP that chili pepper water.
Still, Maui boasts some of my favorite restaurants and bakeries around. So much so, years ago, I took my mom on a 36-hour food tour of the island. And it was a trip she talked about all the time.
Disclaimer: This is not the end-all-be-all list of the best eateries on Maui. This is where I like to go when I’m on the Valley Isle. And honestly, it changes, too. Restaurants open and close, change owners and menus. But right now, if I were jumping on a plan to Kahului, these are the places I’d try to hit up.
Tin Roof Maui, Kahului
My first stop off the plane is almost always Tin Roof Maui, a small takeout spot run by Top Chef alum Sheldon Simeon and his wife, Janice. The menu is a throwback to plantation-era meals: kau kau tins with fried chicken thighs, succulent pork belly, chop steak with ginger-scallion pesto or garlic shrimp, on either white or brown rice or garlic noodles. There’s also classic dry mein — a Maui-only dish of saimin noodles topped with the usual fixings that comes with a side of dashi (broth) for dipping — and a popular spicy chicken sandwich. Takeout only.
360 Papa Place, Suite 116, Kahului, (808) 868-0753, tinroofmaui.com
Four Sisters Bakery and Catering, Wailuku
If you know me, you know how much I love bakeries. My mom and I would travel just to visit bakeries, from Tokyo to Los Angeles to, yes, Maui, too. And this bakery is a must for any diet-rejecting carb lover.
Four Sisters is really a caterer, with a huge menu of American, Filipino and local dishes. But the bakery is really the star of this operation, open at 6:30 a.m. and serving the softest pastries I’ve ever had. Pillowy. Buttery. Sugary. Everything I could want in a yeast doughnut or malasada or cinnamon roll. The butter rolls — probably its most popular bakery item — is everything a butter roll should be. Light, fluffy and packed with butter. The Spanish rolls are equally amazing.
1968 E Vineyard St., Wailuku, (808) 244-9333, foursisterskitchen.com
Wabisabi Hawaiʻi, Pāʻia
This charming outdoor soba-ya opened in April 2023 in Pāʻia, its dining area under a canopy of mango and avocado trees. The owners, who are from Osaka, brought all of the décor from Japan, including a 16-foot slab of highly prized Japanese keyaki wood to create a community dining table and a 14-foot sakura (cherry blossom) counter from Kyoto. But its the noodles that really shine here, all freshly made from 100% Jyuwari buckwheat. It’s one of the only soba shops not just on Maui but in Hawaiʻi, so dining here is a special experience.
161 Hāna Highway, Pāʻia, (808) 318-3342, wabisabihawaii.com
Sam Sato’s, Inc., Wailuku
The dry mein from Sam Sato’s in Wailuku is nothing short of legendary. It’s a dish unique to Maui — and really not found anywhere else — consisting of a bowl of seasoned saimin-like noodles served with the broth on the side. The noodles, which have been crafted by the Iwamoto Natto Factory in Pāʻia for decades, are slightly thicker and chewier than traditional saimin noodles. It’s topped with bits of char siu pork, bean sprouts and green onions. With the exception of the manju, which is sold out of a small display case by the cash register, I don’t think I’ve ever ordered anything else on the menu. (Read more here.)
1750 Wili Pa Loop, Wailuku, (808) 244-7124
T. Komoda Store and Bakery, Makawao
I can’t be anywhere near Makawao without stopping at T. Komoda Store and Bakery, an old-time bakery that has a loyal following for its cream puffs, long johns and glazed doughnuts. It’s been run by the Tazeko Komoda’s family since he started it in 1916, using family recipes.
3674 Baldwin Ave., Makawao, (808) 572-7261
Tiffany’s Maui, Wailuku
For almost 20 years, Tiffany’s Bar & Grill in an industrial part of Wailuku has been a popular local watering hole with its pages-long menu of bar staples like sizzling steak and kimchi fried rice. When Sheldon and Janice Simeon, also loyal patrons, found out the Orite family was ready to move on, the couple, which already runs Tin Roof Maui, bought the restaurant. They pared down the menu to about 50 items — from 150! — with a focus on Korean, Chinese, Japanese, Filipino and Portuguese flavors. The dishes are unique and familiar at the same time. Like an oxtail soup made with brisket or hamachi sashimi topped with a ponzu finadeni sauce. The couple did keep some favorites from the old menu, including sizzling steak bites and honey-walnut shrimp.
1424 Lower Main St., Wailuku, (808) 249-0052, tiffanysmaui.com
Happy Opu, Kahului
Chef Jason Kashtan, who’s from Mansfield, Massachusetts, tried his first manapua at the old Suda Store in Kīhei — and was hooked. Though he didn’t originally set out to open a manapua shop, it turned out to a smart — and tasty! — decision. Open in January 2023, Happy Opu serves steamed and baked manapua, filled with char siu, curry chicken, and kālua pork and cabbage. Kashtan recently unveiled Opu Rolls, decadent rolls with a thin layer of fresh mochi.
60 E. Wākea Ave., Kahului, (808) 500-2522, @happyopumaui
Tasaka Guri Guri, Kahului
Guri guri is a frozen dessert that’s a cross between sherbet and ice cream with a creamy texture — and you can only find it at Tasaka Guri Guri at the Maui Mall. This small, family-run shop has been serving it since 1973 — and only in two flavors: strawberry and pineapple. You can’t go wrong with either one.
70 E. Kaʻahuanu Ave., Kahului, @tasakaguriguri.
Kitoko Maui, Kīhei
This food truck opened during the pandemic — and its innovative Japanese fusion dishes have made it one of the buzziest eateries on the island. French-trained pastry chef Cole Hinueber crafted a menu that’s as fun as it’s delicious: ʻahi pastrami with kimchi, Maui venison tortellini with fermented garlic and heirloom carrots, banana bread with salted caramel. It’s unexpected in all the right ways.
35 Auhana Road, Kīhei, @kitokomaui
La Provence, Kula
This family-run café opened in 2003 in Upcountry Maui with French-inspired breakfast and lunch dishes, like eight kids of eggs Benedicts, a variety of crêpes, and a very tasty oven-roasted chicken sandwich topped with avocado and melted Brie cheese. You can’t skip the café’s classic French pastries and desserts, including buttery croissants, sticky buns, cream horns and fruit tarts.
3158 Lower Kula Road, Kula, (808) 878-1313, laprovencemaui.com.