Sky Barnhart

A handy guide to dining on a budget, island-style.

The handmade pita bread at Pita Paradise is so good you could wrap a shoe in it and we’d consider eating it. Maybe not a shoe, but definitely a salad. The Greek Salad Pita ($6.95) is a blend of greens, Maui onions, Greek olives, feta cheese, herbs, cucumbers and tomatoes, tossed with a yogurt dressing and tucked into a warm, thick round pita. It’s a fun way to eat healthier.

With the cost of everything rising lately, does that mean we’re all stuck eating bulk spaghetti at home from now on? Will that precious “date night” dinner or wonderful Sunday brunch become a joyless fast food experience?

No way! Armed with a copy of 50 Thrifty Maui Restaurants, you should be able to enjoy a pleasant meal anywhere on Maui—one that is not only friendly to your wallet but supports local Maui businesses as well.

How to find these places? Authors Yvonne Biegel and Jessica Ferracane are longtime veterans of Maui’s hospitality industry, and they’ve done all the legwork for us. “We’ve surveyed our friends, our friends’ friends, cousins, aunties and even the former mayor about their favorite Maui eateries and served up the results,” Biegel and Ferracane write in the introduction. Their writing is friendly and informative, usually including a little background about the place’s owners and history along with the food recommendations.

The book is broken down into breakfast, lunch and dinner for Maui’s West Side, South Side, Central, North Shore/Upcountry and East Maui. With only 50 spots, it’s hardly a comprehensive listing, but it certainly hits the highlights, plus a few surprises.

All of the old standbys are there: Pa‘ia Fishmarket, Colleen’s, Charley’s (“try a cinnamon buckwheat pancake, so big it falls off the plate”), Tasty Crust (“the island’s best Loco Moco is served here”), Take Home Maui (although they could’ve given more space to the yummy smoothies!), A Saigon Café and so on. There’s only one national restaurant chain in the bunch, and the rest are local, usually family-owned businesses.

Since this revised edition was published in 2006, things in the ever-evolving restaurant world have changed somewhat. The book lists Azeka’s Ribs & Snack Shop as the “longest-running restaurant in Kihei” (sniff!), and the prices throughout may be a bit nostalgic by 2008 standards.

It’s also missing a few spots that would fit right in, such as Bridget & Bernard’s Garden Café in Kahului, Hana Hou Café in Ha‘iku, and the new Rosa’s Cantina on Market Street in Wailuku.

But there’s no arguing with the choices that are listed—like Pauwela Café, Maui Coffee Roasters (“one of the best coffee joints on the island”), and Joy’s Place, where although you can easily spend $15 for lunch, it’s always worth it because you feel so wonderfully healthy afterwards.

There are a few upscale surprises among the 50, like The Dunes at Maui Lani for breakfast, and Hali‘imaile General Store for lunch (“We’re glad Chef Bev serves lunch at her esteemed restaurant. While it’s not exactly thrifty, it’s less expensive than the dinner menu and offers a welcome retreat from the resort scene.”).

Even if you’re a longtime Maui resident, you’ll still find a few new ideas. I had never heard of the poolside Castaway Café at Maui Ka‘anapali Villas, which appears to have a surprisingly extensive wine list. And I’ve been meaning to try Bentos & Banquets by Bernard in Wailuku forever.

The book is recommended by Maui News dining editor Carla Tracy, who wrote the foreword. With simple maps, photos, and listings of hours, parking, seating and credit cards, you’ve got everything you need to head out on the town. The spaghetti can wait for another night.

50 Thrifty Maui Restaurants