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RESTAURANT REPORT
A chocolate showcase
STAR-BULLETIN
The Valentine's Day dessert sampler at Alan Wong's King Street restaurant is made with Waialua chocolate.
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Waialua chocolate -- made from cacao beans grown on the North Shore -- has been added to the menu at Alan Wong's King Street restaurant.
Pastry chef Michelle Karr has developed a rich chocolate-coffee drink -- with a shot of Irish whisky -- called For Adults Only, along with a dessert sampler of items that vary nightly.
Always part of the plate: the Wong Way Candy Bar, a toffee-chocolate-nut creation.
Karr says the dark Waialua chocolate -- which is 70 percent cacao -- has a deep, fruity flavor with good acidity and creaminess.
The chocolate will be the final note on the Alan Wong's Valentine's Day menu: a plate with candy bar, German chocolate cake, chocolate-covered ice cream "bombe," a mojito-flavored truffle and a strawberry coated in chocolate.
The four-course dinner is $90. Call 949-2526.
Tower packs a punch
The Tower of Power, a new cocktail served at the Tower Grill, is a tropical blend of lilikoi juice, vodka, grenadine, 7-Up and sweet-and-sour mix.
It doesn't come in a glass, though. The drink is served in an 8-inch-tall model of the Aloha Tower, complete with a working clock, with a hole at the top for a straw.
The drink sells for $25, or buy the tower alone for $20.
The Tower Grill is in Aloha Tower Marketplace (of course). Call 537-4446.
Mardi Gras dining
Dixie Grill celebrates Mardi Gras through Feb. 20 with regional specialties in the spirit of New Orleans.
Specialties include French Market Onion Soup, Na'wlins Bar-b-Que Shrimps, Broiled Mahi Mahi Pontchartrain, Na'wlins Muffeletta Sandwich, and Louisiana Crab and Shrimp Etouffée.
Dixie Grill Aiea will hold a Fat Tuesday party from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. Feb. 20, with entertainment by the Chris Vandercook Band.
And for Valentine's celebrations Feb. 10 to 14, the menu will include Candlelight King Crab for Two -- She Crab Soup, three pounds of king crab with peach cobbler for dessert. Cost is $75 per couple.
Call 596-8359 (Ward) or 485-CRAB (Aiea).
Beer and romance
The Willows' Hops & Grinds beer tasting in February takes a Valentine's theme -- "Strawberries, Chocolates & Reds," 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. Feb. 9.
Beer expert Andy Baker leads the tasting, and chef Jay Matsukawa will serve a Valentine's pupu menu.
Tickets are $25 advance, $30 at the door. Available at the Willows, the Liquor Collection, the Wine Stop, Tamura's Kaimuki. Call 952-9200.