Our Picks for the Weekend
Star-Bulletin staff
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FREEBIE
Kailua block party to aid cancer patients
On the windward side Saturday, help celebrate the best of Kailua's food, fun and spirit at the Cool Kailua Nights Block Party & Health Awareness Fair.
"This is a fundraiser for the chemotherapy unit at Castle Medical Center that my mom has been going to," said event coordinator Danielle Scherman. Last summer, Scherman returned home to Hawaii from New York City after her mother was diagnosed with breast cancer.
The festivities include food sampling, local entertainment, a health walk, a kids corner, an auction, giveaways and more.
Those participating in the health fair include the Hawaiian Humane Society, the American Cancer Society and the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation.
It all starts at 5 p.m. and runs until 10 at Uluniu and Aulike streets, near Baci Bistro and Assaggio's restaurants. Admission is free. Parking will be available in the Kailua municipal and the Lani Huli Retirement Center lots.
STAGE
Tau Dance Theatre returns with 'Naupaka'
If you missed it the first time around, catch the Tau Dance Theatre's production of "Naupaka" Sunday at Hawaii Theatre.
Peter Rockford Espiritu's contemporary opera premiered in October and is back for a single performance. The ambitious production centers on a Hawaiian legend, merging classical forms of music and dance to tell the story. It is performed entirely in Hawaiian.
Espiritu worked in collaboration with John Signor on an original score and Puakea Nogelmeier and Kaupena Wong on the use of Hawaiian chant and culture.
Tickets are $10 to $50. Call 528-0506 or visit www.hawaiitheatre. com.
CULTURE
Hawaii Salsa Festival makes its debut
Hawaii's not immune to the rhythm of salsa, and history will be made Friday to Sunday with the debut of the first Hawaii Salsa Festival at the Queen Kapiolani Hotel.
There will be three days of workshops and performances by Hawaii's top dance instructors, as well as world-renowned dancers from the mainland.
Live music will be provided by BYU Hawaii Salsa Orchestra and the Grammy-nominated Son Caribe band during evening dance parties. In addition, Hawaii's salsa DJs Ray Cruz and Rod EL Moreno will be spinning salsa, merengue, cha cha and bacchata tunes.
A kickoff party takes place at Rumours nightclub in the Ala Moana Hotel from 5 p.m. to 1:30 a.m. on Thursday, Feb. 1. Cover is $5 before 9 p.m. and $8 after 9.
All-access packages include all daytime workshops and evening parties and are still available for a discount off the $250 rate at the door. Or purchase tickets a la carte for $30 to $40 for the various events. Call 255-8768.
FAMILY
Learn about isle skies at Bishop Museum event
Stargazers take note: The Bishop Museum presents "The Sky Tonight" at 7 p.m. Friday in the Jhamandas Watumull Planetarium.
The Hawaiian Astronomical Society hosts the special evening on the first Friday of each month. The event includes an hourlong talk on the seasonal Hawaiian skies and (weather permitting) a brief viewing session through a telescope on the planetarium's rooftop deck.
Cost is $4; $3 children; free for museum and Astronomical Society members.
Reservations recommended. Call 848-4168.
FOOD
Short Attention Span Eater
Oahu's appetite for new restaurants shows no signs of abating, and February looks sweet for all on the food trail:
» IHOP: It's better late than never for this restaurant, which has teased Windward Oahu residents for more than a year, so long that a Waikiki IHOP beat the Windward Mall store to the punch. No doubt Kaneohe diners will be glad to avoid crossing the Koolaus for 14 types of pancakes, omelets, burgers, sandwiches, and more. A grand opening celebration takes place at 9:30 a.m. near the food court entrance, attended by no less than IHOP Corp. chairman and CEO Julia Stewart.
STAR-BULLETIN / JULY 2006
Strawberry pancakes at IHOP are a breakfast treat.
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Restaurant Epic: Those walking past 1131 Nuuanu Ave. see only the bare bones of a restaurant but by mid-February the space will be transformed into a haven for new American cuisine presented by Anthony Vierra. Details to come.
» Yard House: It would be a good idea for restaurateurs to ask "What does Honolulu really need?" before adding to a landscape saturated with a repetitious spate of eateries. Yard House makes sense, boasting the "World's largest selection of draft beer." No one else here could say the same, giving this restaurant instant claim to fame. It opens Feb. 11 at Waikiki Beach Walk, 226 Lewers St., with a menu featuring burgers, blue crabcake hoagies, grilled Jamaican ribs, and miso Chilean seabass. Call 922-3811.
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