by Maui Restaurants Blog Team on June 11, 2009
Local plate lunch and chow fun. Takeout available. Read what local restaurant reviewers James and Molly Jacobson think about Allright Grinds in Kahului, Central Maui.
Tagged as: Central Maui, Chow, Chow Fun, Kahului Maui, Plate Lunch
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Wow! Love your book, your blog, your video, and your spirit! We love Maui and will be taking my mother in law this June. Our food experiences in Maui have been awful! We have discovered only a handful of restaurants that we liked and would recommend to our friends. It was exciting to see that [...]
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Very useful on North Shore (Pa’ia) and UpCountry, too. Every comment in the book was “right on.” Highly recommend using this book when in Maui.
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Very handy book, we read and reviewed before our trip to Maui and went to the restaurants we wanted, just wish we had more time as the ones we visited were exactly what the book described.
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—Samantha Mar, Seattle, WA
“In the past, we used another book on Thrifty Restaurants of Maui. This new book is a must on saving money but most of the restaurants listed are in a bit more pricey range. I liked that they also listed restaurants that they DON’T recommend and explain why. Restaurants are divided into areas of Maui; [...]
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“We just got back from a week in Maui and found this book very useful. We love to eat well on our vacations and it was fun to read before the trip. One restaurant we went to twice after their recommendation – Mala – and it was one of my favorite memories on our trip, [...]
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“We haven’t been to Maui in several years so we thought that getting advice on the best restaurants would be worthwhile and this book really fit our needs. So far every restaurant we’ve tried has been good and we have tried a few that we might not have considered. We still have 4 more days [...]
—Ellen Arnold, Seattle, Washington
“I love the honest and artful writing style, as well as advice that is unbiased and never steers me wrong. I have found many excellent recommendations and new favorites in this book. I have also had my suspicions confirmed….(why did I think that meal was so average when this restaurant is supposed to be so [...]
—DeLane
We used this book in early June. Every place we ate at was worth the money. We also tried some things we wouldn’t have because of the book. They do seem to cover all the same restaurants our hotel concierge lead us to. This was helpful actually. While we were in Maui one of the [...]
—Local Beans
“We bought the Jacobson’s “Top Maui Restaurant” on the second day of our visit to Maui. It was worth every penny and allowed us to avoid some bad choices. It also helped us make good decisions. Ultimately, we ended up favoring one of the restaurant not far from our hotel (we had dinner at Longhi’s [...]
—Maria Salapska
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“This guide was extremely helpful and is highly recommended. We’ve been to Maui twice and this helped us find favourites and also discover gems we would not have known about. We went from cheap and great to expensive and great and all price levels in between, all of them great food and/or service. The guide [...]
—Scott, Toronto, ON
“This book has been extremely helpful while vacationing in Maui. Dining out is always a big part of our vacation and this guide definitely helped us avoid disappointments. The reviews were right on and the rating system accurate. We are here for three weeks and plan to try many as many restaurants as possible. This [...]
—Gini Ma
“We went to Maui with only breakfast and 2 dinner plans for the whole week. We studied the book before we left. We knew exactly what to expect before we ordered dinner anywhere. From the top onion rings at the Hyatt to the Bento box at Cascades, we were truly surprised at the quality. A [...]
—The Treats, Nebraska
“Very helpful info! Carried this book with us at all times during our stay and found the reviews very accurate. Also, found some great restaurants we wouldn’t normally have tried. Highly recommend.”
—Jetguy
“James and Molly Jacobson are a pair of well-heeled restaurant reviewers who don’t want you to miss a four-star restaurant or bargain dive that serves great food. They make sure your visit is packed with options for great food broken down by location. They will direct you to the very best of places to eat [...]
—Brenda Poklacki, Trabuco Canyon, CA
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—Elizabeth B. Cooney
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—Curtis Jackson, San Jose, CA
“There’s nothing worse than trying to pick out a place to eat and then finding out that the reason there are few other cars in the parking lot is because the food (1) is too expensive or (2) is poor in quality or selection. With this book, you can have a much better chance of [...]
—S. Littlefield, Missouri City, TX
“We live here on Maui. We also eat out several times a week. The reviews of the restaurants are dead-on accurate! We were amazed at how much we agreed with the so-so review of the fancy restaurant on the beach (Page 212). We are now beginning to work our way through some of the smaller [...]
—Bob & Georgia Kronenberg, Kihei, Maui, HI
“I bought this book before my first trip to Maui, even though I was going with my boyfriend who goes about 2 or 3 times a year. It was fantastic! We both loved it! It would be a really great book to leave at your condo or time-share there, but it’s also good to have [...]
—J. Vincent Pullman, WA
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“This was a great resource. I especially liked that the authors would give negative comments about certain restaurants – it made the good reviews much more believable. So many of these books seem like puff pieces while this book struck me as fair and balanced.”
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“I’m a resident of Maui, and think this book is great. So far I haven’t been disappointed by their recommendations. Thanks for bringing honest reviews about restaurants to Maui rather then having to rely on the Menu guide.”
—Laura A. Burger, Kihei, Maui, HI
“This is my last night on Maui, and I just picked up this book… Having it two weeks ago would have saved me some indigestion “challenges”! What I love most about this book is the way the authors (a great husband and wife team) describe not just the food, but their entire EXPERIENCE at each [...]
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“Reading your book Top Maui Restaurants in advance of our trip enabled us to plan where we would eat out each night (often with the decision made at the last minute) and not spend valuable vacation time trying to figure out where to eat. All in all it made for a very enjoyable and memorable [...]
—Brenda & Ray Poklacki
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—Ivan & Doris Taylor
“We just returned from Maui yesterday. We can’t tell how much your restaurant guide helped us. We had many wonderful meals and planned them using your guide. We ate at Lahaina Grill (our favorite), Mama’s, Waterfront, Mala, I’o, Pineapple Grill, John Paul’s (yum), and Paia Fish Market. The chefs tasting menu at Lahaina Grill was [...]
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—Mike Dinstell, Moraga, CA
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“Thank you for making our first trip to Hawai’i and to Maui so special. We ate like kings and loved every minute of the trip. For your information, we enjoyed Lahaina Grill, The Feast at Lele, Mala Ocean Tavern in Lahaina, Gannon’s, Hali’imaile, Mama’s Fish Market and the Paia Fish Market. Your restaurant guide is [...]
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—Marjorie B, Las Vegas, NV
This is the third edition of the book that I’ve purchased over the years, and each year James and Molly exceed my expectations and amaze me that they continue to seek out and find gems of restaurants on Maui. This book is more like a “Bible” than a reference book when it come to providing [...]
—Edward M, Weston, FL
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—Brenda, Salt Lake City, UT
“My wife and I spend a couple months on Maui every year, and we eat out every day, so we thought we knew a lot about Maui restaurants. I even have a website of my own reviewing Maui restaurants, hotels, condos, sights and activities, so I constantly try to keep up on the latest and [...]
—Jon, Michigan
“I had gotten Molly and James first version of this book for our initial visit to Maui. It was a god-send in steering us in the right direction for food decisions both good places to hit and the “misses” to avoid. I had heard due to family health issues (of parents) that an updated version [...]
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WV”My husband & I are planning our first trip to Maui and I am a research, plan ahead nut. I bought this book so we can enjoy some of the local places without totally and completely breaking our budget and get some good food in the process! I love how once you purchase the book [...]
—WV Book Lover, West Virginia
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“If you are going to Maui and want to make the most of your dining out budget, I’d highly recommend this book. It rates many restaurants for food, ambience, value and more. We’ve used it for two years now and dined on some fabulous island food and avoided the pitfalls of dining based on advertising [...]
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“Just got home from Maui and this book was great in helping decide where to eat (both in advance and for some last-minute decisions). The tips section in the back had some good information as well on more general questions like “Should I drive the road to Hana.” However, this is a restaurant guide and [...]
—Maya, North Carolina
“I can’t tell you how much my wife and I have enjoyed your book Top Maui Restaurants. I’m being very honest in telling you that we have been coming to Maui since 1975 and have been going to the same old restaurants year after year. This year, however, was a totally different experience. I accidently [...]
—Bill & Norma
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“We Really LOVED all twelve restaurants we visited based on the books advice. Wasn’t sure it would be worth spending the money on the book for a week and a half stay on the island, but we are so glad that we did, as the restaurants gave us terrific food and memorable experiences at fair [...]
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“Top Maui Restaurants gives reader a fair and thorough review of the restaurants but also informs best places to shop, farmer’s markets, types of fish available on islands, etc. We got much more than a restaurant guide. Would definitely recommend this book to anyone going to Maui. This is our third visit to the island [...]
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