The Big Island, Hawaii

Never been to Hawaii and this year we decided to take the first week of vacation and make the journey.  We really aren’t big beach vacationers so we will see how the week goes.  Yesterday we basically did nothing but hung out by the pool and relax.  Another day of that we’d all go crazy so we are going on a group surfing lesson today.

I am going to have to find an electronics store.  Of course I have every attachment but I grabbed the wrong attachment that downloads my pictures onto the computer.  Drag. 

After watching the sun set at our hotel, which was beautiful, we drove over to the Fairmont Orchard Hotel to have dinner.  As always, we made a variety of reservations at different places beforehand for dinner to check out the food.  I’d love to hear from anyone who has suggestions of local fare that is worth going go.  We ate at Browns Beach House.  I am not a big fan of hotel restaurants but on the big Island most recommendations are for that.  For any of you who plan on going there, although it is supposedly "award winning" make sure you cancel your reservations now.

The prices are high and the food is terrible.  No better than a high end fern bar.  We began with the poke tuna which is the signature dish.  Chopped up tuna and some seaweed in a rectangular bowl.  When they serve the bowl to you they then pour on a four small bowls of onions, chili sauce, scallions and sesame oil.  Salty and heavy.  Fred went with the deconstructed tomato salad with a goat cheese panne cotta on it and drippings of balsamic vinegar.  Inedible. 

For dinner, four of us went with the hamachi house specialty called crispy Kona Kampachi.  Two large pieces of hamachi stacked high over fast fried soba noodles, a sauce and some vegetables.  Over cooked fish, heavy handed and just gross.  I went with another appetizer.  A crab cake that was actually not bad but it was the accompaniments.  Corn mango salad, heavy on the corn with no flavor that sat in a coconut curry sauce. Didn’t taste like curry and not even like coconut but there was a sauce that covered the plate.

A total disappointment.  Make sure to avoid Browns if you plan on coming to the Big Island.