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Restaurant Report

Guest chefs at Roy's

Three chefs with strong culinary ties to Japan will cook together in dinners at Roy's restaurants next month.

Ron Siegel of Masa's in San Francisco, the contemporary French restaurant founded by chef Masataka Kobayashi, will be the guest chef at dinners Oct. 1 at Roy's Kihei on Maui and Oct. 3 at Roy's Hawaii Kai.

Siegel has received four-star reviews for his cuisine, but he is perhaps best known as the first American to win the Japanese "Iron Chef" competition.

He will be joined by Roy Yamaguchi and Hiroshi Fukui of Honolulu's L'Uraku for the two six-course dinners. The menu reflects each chef's Japanese influences: Fukui's shrimp chawan mushi soup, for example, Siegel's hamachi carpacccio, Yamaguchi's fish with "cassoulet of pig trotter."

Cost is $70; $90 with wine. Call 396-7697 on Oahu or 808-891-1120 on Maui.

Fukui, Wong at Kea Lani

L'Uraku's Hiroshi Fukui follows up the Roy's dinners with a return trip to Maui for the Kea Lani Food & Wine Masters series, where he will appear with chef Alan Wong Oct. 11 and 12.

The resort has been featuring Hawaii's nationally recognized chefs in a "Buy, Taste & Keep It In Hawaii" theme of special dinners. Fukui and Wong will host luncheon cooking demonstrations each day and prepare five-course dinners each evening, with wine pairings. A wine tasting will precede the dinners, featuring Australian wines and hosted by Neil Hadley of Penfold's Winery and Andrew Koerner of Rosemount Estate.

Cost is $45 for lunch; $130 for dinner. Call 808-875-4100.

Wong a finalist for award

More kudos for Alan Wong: The FS EXEC National Conference has named the chef a finalist for the "2002 Cutting Edge Award" for Culinary Innovation.

Judges recognized 10 chefs for culinary excellence, innovation and their national and regional impact. Also finalists: Jose Andres, Jaleo, Washington D.C.; Rocco Dispirito, Union Pacific, New York; Laurent Gras, Fifth Floor, San Francisco; George Perrier, Le Bec Fin, Philadelphia; Anne Quatrano, Bacchanalia, Atlanta; Guenter Seeger, Seeger's, Atlanta; Marcus Samuelsson, Aquavit, New York; Andrew Weissman, Restaurant le Reve, San Antonio; and Sharon Hage, York Street, Dallas.

The winner will be honored at the Cutting Edge Awards Dinner in New Orleans Oct. 14. FS Exec is a national organization of food-service professionals associated with the Texas Restaurant Association.

Cooking up honors

Ryan Day, former executive chef at Sunset Grill, has been named executive chef at the Ala Moana Hotel.

Thomas Muromoto, executive chef of the Kaanapali Beach Hotel won the top prize at A Taste of Lahaina last weekend. His Banana Caramel Eruption took first place in the dessert category and also won the Best of Show Award.

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