The Weekly Eater
Tasty treats for Christmas
will please anyone’s palateCHOCOLATE DOESN'T last long around me, so it was surprising that a box of MarieBelle chocolates sat in my desk drawer for about three weeks, too pretty to be consumed.
That's the same kind of reasoning that drives people to stuff their closets with shirts, tableware and other gifts for some distant "special occasion." With food gifts the giver at least has the satisfaction of knowing the recipient has to open those bags/jars/boxes sometime soon.
The chocolates were by Central America-born Maribel Lieberman, who runs Lunettes et Chocolat and MarieBelle Fine Treats and Chocolates in New York. You can find her chocolates here at Neiman Marcus where prices run from $6.50 for a box of two to $60 for a box of 36 chocolates filled with creams, fruit essences or her trademark Aztec chocolate ganache, with abstract designs by Jacques Lieberman "painted" in cocoa butter. Yes, they are as rich and yummy as they look.
Also worth checking out from NM are Fauchon cookies and chocolates from Paris in their signature pink boxes and tins. Prices range from $5 for a candy bar to $250 for a gift set that includes truffles, aged balsamic vinegar, goose foie gras and more. More unusual is Fauchon's rose petal preserve ($9) with all the fragrance of a floral bouquet. It's out of stock, but more is on the way. Still, most people prefer to smell the flowers than taste them, so reserve this one for the gourmands on your list.
We didn't get lucky in the color lottery this week, but imagine these MarieBelle chocolates in luscious pinks, greens and blues. At $20 for nine, each bite is meant to be savored.
MEANWHILE, island chefs and kitchen menehune have been slaving away to put more edible treats under the Christmas tree. Shopping is just a matter of dining out and inquiring about that sauce or dressing you just devoured. Let your tummy be your guide. Here are a few of many products worth considering:
Russell Siu, of 3660 on the Rise and Kakaako Kitchen, is offering his dressings ($8) and seasoned salts ($5) but knows Hawaii consumers have a sweet tooth. Satisfy chocolate chip cookie cravings with his prepackaged mix ($12), available at Kakaako Kitchen. Add an egg, two blocks of butter and vanilla, bake, and you won't be lying if you said you made it yourself. Once I got home with all those ingredients, I must confess I felt too tired to bake, and Siu recommends using a mixer, but I put biceps and triceps into the task, and the seven dozen mini cookies (the mix is supposed to make five to six dozen teaspoon size, but mine were tablespoon size) disappeared in less than an hour at the office. If you get burned out from the Christmas haze, you could just hand the box over to your giftee. It comes exchange-ready, with a little bow and all!
Three products from Arturo's are Smoke 'N Hot Teriyaki Sauce, Molokai Hot Sauce and Hawaiian Passion Ginger Fire Hot Sauce.
Chai Chaowasaree is not the first Chai, but the latest to find his calling in tea. After introducing his own line of blended premium teas, he's now offering seven-piece porcelain tea sets from Thailand, each set hand-painted with 20K gold inlay. The sets, each unique, sell for $75 to $125 at Chai's Island Bistro at Aloha Tower Marketplace.
Then you get to the fun part: choosing the teas, ranging from $5 for the noncaffeine herbals to $15 for the greens. A favorite of guests at Chai's and Singha Thai is the Hau'oli Rooibos Ki, with the peachy aroma of the African rooibos and tasting of strawberries and roses with the red color of hibiscus. Chaowasaree's favorite is the Ilima Chamomile with the zest of orange, while I like the energizing zing of the Peppermint Lokelani tea. For pure novelty, you might also try the monkey-picked (honest, they scale cliffs inaccessible to humans) oolong.
Meanwhile, Arturo's continues its hot streak with a hot sauce that's hard to beat. Red Shark hot sauce is "meant to hurt," said general manager Stephen Geimer. The blend of Thai and habanero chilis -- both topping the Scoville scale measuring heat units -- is further enhanced by a fiery extract to satisfy customers' demands for more heat. "I don't know how they do it," Geimer said.
Red Shark joins other favorites such as the garlic- and Maui onion-flavored Maui Hot Sauce, and mild lilikoi- and guava-sweetened Kauai Hot Sauce. For a global-inspired flavor, you might try the Molokai hot sauce with a combination of curry and coconut. This would have to be used quickly due to the nature of coconut oil.
Hand-painted, 20K gold inlay tea sets and premium teas are offered at Chai's Island Bistro.
Arturo's also offers teriyaki sauces with a twist. Try basting your next batch of ribs with the Smoke 'N Hot Jalapeno.
All the sauces are quite versatile. Use them straight out of the jar as dipping sauces for lumpia and spring rolls, over baked potatoes or for quick stir-fries. Look for the products, at about $5 to $7, at places like It's Chili in Hawaii, Pat's Island Delight, the Islands Best, Island Keepsakes and Star Markets. Those outside of state can find Arturo's online at www.hotsaucehawaii.com.
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Nadine Kam's restaurant reviews run on Thursdays. Reviews are conducted anonymously and paid for by the Star-Bulletin. Star ratings are based on comparisons of similar restaurants:
To recommend a restaurant, write: The Weekly Eater, P.O. Box 3080, Honolulu, Hawaii 96802. Or send e-mail to nkam@starbulletin.com
excellent; very good, exceeds expectations; average; below average.
