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Chef Mavro

1969 S. King St.
Honolulu, HI 96826
www.chefmavro.com
808-944-4714

Rarely can one find a culinary experience that so elegantly and completely captures the essence of Hawaii as Chef Mavro in Honolulu. George Mavrothalassitis, whose Provensal/Hawaii cuisine earned raves at La Mer at the Halekulani Hotel and Seasons at the Four Seasons Resort Maui, is now well established at his intimate 68-seat restaurant, located five minutes from Waikiki. Book a table in the pleasant, though hardly ostentatious dining room. The cooking, as you might expect under such circumstances, is highly personal and almost invariably perfect: Pacific oysters cressonnire, with salmon roe and chilled velout of "sumida" watercress; salad of grilled Kahuku prawns marinated with cumin and served with hummus, cream of garlic and upcountry baby greens; and sesame-crusted uku, made in the Hawaii regional style with snapper, lotus root and island spring vegetables.

Dishes are consistently excellent throughout the menu, but a few of Mavro's signature entres stand out as particularly sensational choices---like onaga, baked in a thyme-and-rosemary rock-salt crust with a sauce of fresh herbs and ogo; and Keahole lobster in Asian broth, accompanied by upcountry baby vegetables and Hawaiian vanilla custard. You may order a la carte, if you absolutely insist, but every night's menu is organized into three-course, four-course and six-course prix-fixe dinners. You're in good hands here; just let Mavro serve you as much food as your appetite will allow. One caveat: be sure to leave enough room to sample the desserts---pastry chef Jeff Walters and Mavrothalassitis have been a steady team since their days at La Mer, and their shared philosophy towards regional, seasonal ingredients is evident in the seamless transition from main course to finale. Of particular note is the Lilikoi Malasadas, served with guava coulis and pineapple-coconut ice cream: a perfect golden pastry which, when sliced into, erupts with a richly-colored lava made from local Lilikoi berries---a culinary interpretation of the island from which the dish was borne. Mavro not only wants to encourage you to eat, but will also strongly suggest what to drink with it.

Each dish comes with a recommended wine, served by the glass. The wine list is not extensive, and even the bar is limited, but great care is taken to fine tune the pairings, which are actually voted on in an unbiased, democratic manner by a pairings committee. You'll find the staff to be consistently knowledgeable and well-trained. Not the least surprising aspect of Chef Mavro is that while a meal here is far from inexpensive, it is the most reasonably priced food and wine we've ever had from a chef of this caliber in Hawaii. This is a dining experience not to be missed: truly a special treat.