Food festivals and other special food experiences to check out this fall

Come autumn in Hawai‘i, we don’t see landscapes ablaze with red, gold, and orange foliage as do many parts of the mainland, but the transition from the dog days of summer is evident. The air is cooler, moods are lighter in anticipation of the holidays, and thoughts turn to comfort food.

My family especially enjoys Thanksgiving with extended ‘ohana because in addition to the traditional turkey, mashed potatoes, and pumpkin pie, the buffet table is laden with beef tongue, cake noodles, steamed pork hash with salted duck eggs, mochi rice with lup cheong and shiitake mushrooms, and homemade lemon bars and “broken glass” Jell-O. As we fill our stomachs, our hearts are filled joy, gratitude, and aloha.

No matter the occasion, enjoying food experiences together builds lasting bonds, as you’ll find at these five special fall events.

Events will spotlight fresh local produce, seafood, beef, poultry, and spices. For example, on October 2, the CanoeHouse at Mauna Lani, Auberge Resorts Collection, on Hawai‘i Island will host a five-course Cuisines of the Sun dinner prepared by Wong, who headed the kitchen there from 1989 to 1995. As the event’s name implies, his menu will showcase dishes inspired by warm destinations bordering the equator.

On O‘ahu, HMAA Presents Keiki in the Kitchen is set for October 24 at Bishop Museum (HMAA is the Hawaii Medical Assurance Association). You can cheer culinary superstars in grades 4 through 12 in the finals of HFWF’s Localicious Recipe Contest. A panel of chef judges will select three winners in two age groups (grades 4–8 and grades 9–12), and the audience will choose the recipient of the People’s Choice Award.

A new component invites festival attendees to help farm, harvest, and remove litter from shorelines—developing greater appreciation for the resources, dedication, and hard work involved with producing nutritious food in the process. Since its 2011 debut, HFWF has donated more than $3 million to support beneficiaries committed to sustainability, cultural programs, and culinary and agricultural education in Hawai‘i.

Info: Hawai‘i Island (October 1–2), Maui (October 7–10), and O‘ahu (October 14–24).

Skip the supermarket. It’s way more fun to pick your pumpkin yourself at Waimanalo Country Farms, a 52-acre family-owned and operated farm on O’ahu, which was founded in 1948 by Gee Chong Wong, his son, Ronald, and Tuckee Wong. Six generations later, the farm grows corn and watermelons year-round along with sunflowers in the summer and pumpkins in the fall.

Because COVID-19 remains a concern, this year’s Pumpkin Patch will be a drive-through event. You’ll cruise to the pumpkin field in your car, hop out, and spend about 30 minutes choosing your pumpkins (no limit).

After that, continue driving around the picturesque farm, with the magnificent Ko‘olau mountains as a backdrop. Stands along the way will be selling grab-and-go goodies, including corn bread, corn on the cob, and Low-Country Boil, a popular Southern dish that the farm’s owners make with sausage, shrimp, corn, potatoes, and their homemade garlic sauce.

You might be able to pet and feed the resident donkey, llama, sheep, pigs, cows, and goats before concluding your visit with a complimentary cup of sweet tea or pineapple, strawberry, mango, or li hing–flavored lemonade. Admission is $10 cash per person age 3 and older ($10.84 when paid with a credit card). Pumpkins cost $5 to $20 each, depending on size.

Info: 9 a.m.–4 p.m. daily in October. 

Reverend Samuel Ruggles, an American missionary, brought the first coffee plant to the Kona district in 1828. Farmers began cultivating superior coffee in the area’s rich volcanic soil, but it remained under the radar for decades because sugar and pineapple were the Islands’ primary agricultural crops at the time. The award of excellence that Kona entrepreneur Henry N. Greenwell received for his coffee at the 1873 World’s Fair in Vienna, Austria, changed that, and Kona coffee went on to gain international renown.

Today, workers tend coffee at some 650 farms on 3,500 Kona acres. The Kona Coffee Cultural Festival was founded in 1970 to celebrate the success of those industrious entrepreneurs, some of whom trace family histories in coffee for five generations. After being on hiatus in 2020 because of COVID-19, the festival observes its 50th anniversary this year with a schedule that includes a parade, an art stroll, farm tours, an art show, a recipe contest, a coffee-picking experience, and the Miss Kona Coffee pageant.

Admission to most events and activities is free with the purchase of a $5 festival button; some events will be available virtually.

Info: Kona, Hawai‘i Island, November 4–7.

The weekend before Thanksgiving, Williamson will be the sixth of seven guest chefs in the Four Seasons Resort Hualālai’s new Chef in Residence series. She will conduct cooking classes on Friday and Sunday ($120 per person; other details had not been confirmed at press time) and create to-be-determined à la carte appetizers and entrées for ULU Ocean Grill and Sushi Lounge’s dinner menu on Saturday ($20–$60 per item).

Chef in Residence is open to hotel guests and to residents of Hualālai Resort. Reservations are recommended. The series concludes December 10–12 with Nyesha Arrington, who owns a chef consulting and catering company in Los Angeles.

Info: Four Seasons Resort Hualālai, Kona-Kohala coast, Hawai‘i Island, November 19–21.

First, it’s important to note that ube and the Okinawan sweet potato are not the same root vegetable, although they’re similar in taste and, when cooked, both flaunt a vibrant purple color.

Okinawan sweet potato is a common local crop. Ube, its relative, is a yam that’s indigenous to Southeast Asia and grown predominantly in the Philippines, where it’s popular in sweets such as jam, cakes, pastries, and halo-halo—coconut, palm seeds, azuki beans, white sweet beans, colored gelatin, shave ice, and evaporated or condensed milk topped with a scoop of ube ice cream.

Originally from the Philippines, Apple Yadao has enjoyed halo-halo from the time she was a toddler. She started selling it at her Bahay Kubo Asian Store in Kona in 2018, and it was an instant hit. Customers were curious about the ingredient that made the ice cream purple, and Yadao thought an event focused on ube would raise awareness about it. She launched the Big Island Ube Festival in 2019.

Plans for this year include door prizes, live entertainment, children’s activities, and booths selling food, jewelry, clothing, soaps, lotions, and arts and crafts. Hawai‘i Island chefs will vie for top honors in a juried ube cookoff, and attendees can vote for their favorite ube dessert and savory ube dish made by vendors.

Info: Hilton Waikoloa Village, Kona-Kohala coast, Hawai‘i Island, 9 a.m.–4 p.m. November 20. Admission is $6; kids 10 and younger are free.

Before COVID-19, Cheryl Chee Tsutsumi notes, there were special foodie events in Hawai‘i every month. Happily, fall seems to kick off their return. She is a frequent contributor to AAA Explorer. Her other stories include: 

• 3 Island artisans who create delicious, handcrafted ice cream
• 5 delightful food tours and classes in Hawai‘i
• Extreme outdoor adventures in Hawai'i you have to try