Wood Craft Ben Wood

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Billie Gabriel has a ball with the stars in Los Angeles

An e-mail this week from my pal Billie Gabriel made me jealous. Here I am chained to a desk, and she was in Los Angeles dancing -- make that tripping -- with the stars last week. Her daughter, Kona Carmack, is a production assistant to "Monk" exec producer Randy Zisk. Billie visited the set and met Tony Shalhoub, star of the USA Network show. This will really make Murphy's waitress Jan Diehl envious because "Monk" is a can't-miss show for her. Billie asked Kona who the tall basketball player was on the set. Kona informed her that he was not a basketball player and that he was rap star Snoop Dog. On the trip, Billie and her Kamehameha classmate Kimo Spencer went to the taping of "Dancing With the Stars" and gave leis to Olympic speedskater Apolo Ohno, who is in the "Dancing" finals, and "Dancing" Judge Carri Ann Inaba of Hawaii. Later, Carri Ann wore her leis on interviews with "ET" and "Inside Edition" ...

Traveling on: Alan Wong and Iron Chef Hiroyuki Sakai presented a dinner at Wong's restaurant in the Tokyo Disney Resort May 3. Wong took his chefs Wade Ueoka and Allen Hess on the trip. The dinner, priced at $165, was part of a monthlong "Aloha from Hawaii" promotion at Tokyo Disney. The evening was enhanced by isle beauty Liana Green's hula. HAPA -- Barry Flanagan and Nathan Aweau -- performed at the wrap-up party ...

Murphy's chef Erice will hit the trail to texas

Eddie Erice, chef at Murphy's for 20 years, is retiring Friday and is moving to Houston with wife Anna and their kids, E.J., 18, and Leeanne, 12. Eddie's brother, Rolly, and his family live in Houston. I was sorry to learn from waitress Diehl that Eddie was leaving, as I have enjoyed his cooking for many years. I'll never forget a fresh mahimahi dish of his I tried many years ago that was cooked perfectly and had a delicious sauce. From that day on I have ordered the mahi whenever it was on Murphy's menu ... Honolulu Symphony Concertmaster Iggy Jang and his childhood friend, harpist Sebastien Lipman, will share the stage with symphony violist Mark Butin, cellist Mark Votapek and bassist Kirby Nunez in a reunion concert at Doris Duke Theatre June 3, at 4 p.m. Violinist Greg Wrenn and harpist Sayo Lipman will take part ...