Julie Fisticuffs

We took a Fairwinds snorkel cruise from Keauhau Bay to Kealakekua Bay and the snorkeling was awesome! The reef is a marine life conservation district and there is no shortage of fish or life under the surface.

The bay can only be accessed by water (kayaking is a great option), but it’s well worth it.

Watch out for the time share salespeople. They’ll start a friendly conversation and the next thing you know you’re telling them “no” 14 different times.

This place isn’t my idea of a vacation. It’s big and loud and kind of obnoxious. I prefer to stay up the coast a little farther, where it’s quieter and not so much like Disney. Perhaps I’d feel differently if I had children?

I’ve been meaning to go here for quite a while & I kept forgetting it was there.

Clearly Cafe Moose knows the way to my heart. Immediate coffee! They brought it to us while we waited outside & it was great coffee. It comes from a friend’s (of the owners) coffee plantation in Mexico, and is then roasted locally (i think in Kirkland).

It’s nice to get a breakfast that’s accompanied by something other than toast and hashbrowns. Everything at our table from the pancakes to the huevos ala mexicana (onions, peppers, salsa & avocados w/ a side of black beans) was delicious. The mexican side of the menu looks delicious. i can’t wait to get back to try more. The american side has enough options to please less adventurous diners as well.

I haven’t had a bad meal at The Dish. In fact I usually get multiple meals out of every visit. The Dish gets extra points for having self-serve coffee while you wait (or as I like to call it, “immediate coffee.”)

Don’t forget: cash or checks only

Sun Liquor is a great place to go even if you’re not drinking. I asked the bartender for something juicy but without any alcohol and I got a delicious concoction of freshly squeezed citrus juices with a little pineapple and soda water thrown in. I didn’t miss/need the alcohol for that to be delicous!

I need to go back for the cafe espanol, because I’ve got a thing for drinks that are set on fire.

Get there early or get there late to avoid the wait/line. Also, be prepared for the staff to not pay much attention to you and then flat out give your table away to two or three groups of their friends if they arrive while you’re still waiting.

We put up with it, because the pizza was delicious.

The flatbread with smoked chicken and sun-dried cherries is one of my favorite things.

Our party of 13 was treated like royalty. The menu was mexican (not the lardy/cheesy kind), and the featured wines were Argentinian and everything was delicious. We left the wine choice up to our server and he delivered beautifully. He deduced that it was a birthday party based on the conversations and the presents on the table and put a candle in our birthday girl’s dessert while we sang. The menu changes (quarterly?) and I can’t wait to go back to find what else they’ve come up with.

My love affair with tacos al pastor has yet another place to carry on.

In only three weeks I’ll be away from the Seattle rain and drunk in a hut on the beach!