To Princeville and beyond
The day started out quite early. I woke up around 4am local time. Of all the good things we love about Hawaii, it’s the malasadas that we’ve not had since we began our vacation a few days ago. Malasadas are these Portuguese donuts but with no hole. When served hot….game over!!! Sprinkled with sugar….aaahhhh!! We seemed to have mastered the places to get malasadas on Oahu, Maui, and Kauai. However, our favorite place on Kauai that sold malasadas had since closed over a year ago. It was simply called Kauai Malasadas, more affectionately called the Malasada Lady. She had this stall right outside Kmart in Lihue. Her hours weren’t always set, weren’t always specific. It was a hit and miss. So during the many times we caught her, it was a thrill to buy and eat her malasadas.
Now that she’s no longer in business, I had to find one more place in Lihue, and I was advised to check out Hanalima Bakery in Puhi. And that’s exactly what I did. I woke up early, dragged my malasada crazed-son, Evan, with me. He gladly woke up and joined me on a drive from the resort to Hanalima. It wasn’t exactly nearby either. It was about a 15-20 minute drive….talk about sheer determination. But we were determined to get our malasada. When we arrived at Hanalima, the malasadas were already on display. I was afraid they’d be cold…but no. They were still quite warm. It was every bit delicious. Evan and I were happy with our malasada quest that morning. We also bought Göteburg Sausage and Spam Musubi.
By the time we got home, it was time to get ready and leave Kauai Coast Resort. If you recall my first post, this vacation was booked just two weeks ago. We took our chances in finding availability with our timeshare. It would’ve been great to stay in one place the entire time but it wasn’t the case. But since we’ve been on this island many times, we welcomed the idea of hopping to another location. After all, our timeshare fees had already been paid and we might as well use it.
Our next stop? Our favorite property on the island, The Cliffs at Princeville. We’ve stayed here before, and for this visit, we booked a one bedroom unit with a loft (essentially making it a second bedroom). We took a chance in trying to check in early, however the unit was not yet ready. We had an option to hang around at The Cliffs, but heck, we’re in
Hawaii. We decided to head over to Hanalei. So we left Princeville and turned right and once we got on the highway just passed the scenic overlook area, we hit bumper to bumper traffic. It was moving so slow. Madison suggested why not just go to Queen’s Bath? She was right. That was another alternative, it was a short hike in Princeville where I took Ethan and Madison to a couple of years ago. Lots of warnings were given to make sure to check the conditions of the waves before entering Queen’s Bath. This time around, all six of us went. The kids jumped in and enjoyed a refreshing swim. It was good enough to help us kill time before trying to head to Hanalei again.
Sure enough, the hour or so we spent at Queen’s Bath was enough time to let the traffic pass. By the time we got back on the highway, it was clear sailing then. It was close to lunch time and we had a plate lunch at Hanalei Taro and Juice Co. Oh, the Kalua Pig , poi, lomi loom salmon, and Taro Mochi Cake….need I say more????
After lunch, we spent our early afternoon at Tunnels Beach and Haena Beach. The weather was perfectly humid in the mid to high 80s. All of us swam and played in the water. It just couldn’t get any better than that moment.
After all that playing in the water, we headed back to Hanalei and picked up Loco Moco, Teri Beef plate, and Mac Nut Cream Pie at the Village Snack Shop…one of our favorite local eats on this side of the island. That was enough to get us through before dinner. 
The kids didn’t want to eat out for dinner. Their request? Daddy’s Huli-Huli chicken. All I had was Aloha Shoyu Sauce, Jufran Banana Sauce (hot and spicy), and minced garlic. So we made quick stop at Foodland. I bough chicken drumsticks and thighs, a can of pineapple chunks….that’s it. I also saw all these fresh fruits.
By the time we got back to The Cliffs, our room was ready for us to check in. And I’m glad we spent our days outside and enjoyed more of Kauai before we checked in.
Back to our dinner preparation I ended up mixing the shoyu, jufran sauce, minced garlic, Aloha Maid Passion Orange Guava drink, and pineapples in the mixing bowl. I added LOTS of garlic and prayed that this would work. I let it marinate and sit in the fridge. We all decided to jump in the pool to escape the heat of this very warm afternoon. While swimming, I thought to myself, do I really want to “grill” the chicken….which meant I’d be standing in front of a grill, and that I’d be grilling outside. Hmmmm.
After we swam, we went back to our room and I decided to “bake” the chicken. I baked at 425 degrees for about an hour (I turned the chicken halfway in between), and then I broiled the chicken (skin side on top) for about 5-10 minutes. That’s how I achieved a crispier look, as if I had grilled the chicken outside. I called the kids to eat their dinner….once they got to the dinner table, it was silent. No complaint. That was improvised huli-huli.
For me and Nancy, I used the same marinade that I used for the huli-huli and prepared our Shrimp dinner. I didn’t know what to expect. But, I think I just found another great way of having my shrimp. Aaaahhhh…I love Kauai shrimp….so succulent, so juicy, and the marinade gave it that nice sweet taste with a bit of heat.
It was another chop, chop, chop moment. Now that we’re back on this side of the island, we wanted to take family sunset pictures. It was a mad rush. We wanted to be outside before 7pm for the pictures. Sunset photos are a tradition for our family. Especially when we stay at The Cliffs. The grounds overlooking the ocean was a perfect spot to take these pictures.
After our sunset pics, we headed back to the room, played a boardgame – Sorry…..and that was it. That was our day. Mahalo.
Kauai is so beautiful! I was just there in February but would love to go back.
WE love Kauai!!!! 🙂