COMEDY

Comic Augie T announces 4 upcoming appearances

Augie Tulba continues to be a busy man. The popular comic has announced his upcoming appearance schedule:

» 8 p.m. Friday at Dot's in Wahiawa, with tickets $10 in advance and $15 at the door. Call 479-0576.

» “;Augie's Give Back Show”; at 8 p.m. Nov. 22 at the Kauai Community College Performing Arts Center, with part of the proceeds going to the Kauai Foodbank. Tickets $10 in advance and $15 at the door. Visit www.kauai.hawaii.edu.

» 6:30 p.m. Nov. 29 at the 2nd annual Ho'omake'aka at the Palace Theatre in Hilo. Tickets $20 in advance. Call (808) 934-7010.

» 8 p.m. Dec. 5 at the Maui Beach Hotel. Tickets $10 in advance and $15 at the door. Call 479-0576.

FESTIVALS

2 schools hosting fundraiser fun fairs

Two school fairs highlight this weekend for appropriate family fare.

Makiki's Hanahau'oli Ohana FunFest takes place 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, featuring the popular white elephant sale and country store, the latter including various chutneys, hand-picked berry jams and jellies and guava and lilikoi-flavored butters. Specialty foods will also be offered, including hand-rolled tempura sushi from Sansei Sushi and culinary delights from Chef Ed Kenney of town in Kaimuki. Pony rides, carnival games, keiki crafts and even a spa will be at the FunFest.

And in Hawaii Kai, Hahaione Elementary School puts on its annual fun fair 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday. Food, rides, live entertainment, family field and classroom games and a bargain garage/yard sale will be on tap for the day.

Hanahau'oli is located at 1922 Makiki St., three blocks Ewa of Punahou School. Hahaione's address is 595 Pepeekeo St. Admission is free.

FOOD

The Contemporary Cafe

The Contemporary Museum, 2411 Makiki Heights Drive / 523-3362

The new economy has some advantages for beleaguered consumers. On the bright side, businesses are working extra hard to entice people to shop, buy and eat, even if it simply means tweaking what they already have.

At The Contemporary Museum Cafe, that means taking advantage of the lovely grounds overlooking Honolulu, the impetus behind “;Lauhala and Lunch,”; which means nature lovers are no longer confined to the restaurant area. Instead, retail operations manager Bob Madison and his staff are inviting art enthusiasts to enjoy a picnic lunch on the grounds.

The museum staff aims to make it as easy as possible. There's no need to worry about bringing your own mat, because they'll pack one with your lunch. (No, you can't keep it; drop it off at the front door before leaving.)

Call ahead to order a salad, sandwich or wrap off the regular menu, which can be viewed at www.tcmhi.org/. Two soft drinks and a dessert of the day will also be tucked into your basket, ready to take to any shady spot under the sprawling branches of the property's 70-year-old monkeypod tree.

The cost is $30 for two, roughly equivalent to a la carte prices at the restaurant, where salads and sandwiches run about $10.50, deserts are about $5, and soft drinks are $2 to $3.

Among your options are a Hawaiian chicken wrap of avocado, carrots, sprouts and mixed greens in a flour tortilla, and other simple basics, such as a Waldorf salad, tuna sandwich served with greens and slices of hard-boiled eggs, and a grilled vegetable sandwich of eggplant, zucchini, portobello, sun-dried tomato and melted provolone.

It's definitely a place to consider over the holidays, when you might need a relaxing middle-of-the-day respite from shopping and house-cleaning chores.

Open 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Tuesdays to Saturdays, and noon to 2:30 p.m. Sundays.

FREEBIE

Global conference lends hula theme to Sunset

Sunset on the Beach this weekend will be specially themed in light of the International Waikiki Hula Conference being held at the Hawaii Convention Center.

Instead of the usual featured film, three Hoku award-winning groups—Na Palapalai, Na Leo and Ho'okena—will perform live on stage and be joined by hula dancers from the conference. This event will be the official closing ceremony for the conference.

In keeping with the theme, the popular 2006 Japanese film “;Hula Girls”; will screen on Sunday. It's a film that features the music of local-born (and Japanese favorite) ukulele virtuoso Jake Shimabukuro. Live music by David Asing and Blaine Kia will be presented that day prior to the film.

On Saturday, the live entertainment starts at 6:30 p.m., after the sun sets. On Sunday, music starts at 4 p.m., and the film will screen after sunset, at about 6:30. Food booths open at 4 p.m. both days.

Sunset on the Beach is, as always, free to the public.

MUSIC

Jupiter String Quartet performs at arts academy

The Honolulu Chamber Music Society's season continues with the Jupiter String Quartet, playing Tuesday at the Doris Duke Theatre at the Honolulu Academy of Arts.

The youthful quartet originally met as students and, since finishing their studies at the New England Conservatory of Music, have played together professionally since 2001. They have garnered many awards and prizes since then, including the Young Concerts Artists International award and an Avery Fisher Career Grant.

The quartet will perform Quartet Opus 77, No. 2 by Franz Joseph Haydn; Quartet No. 5 by Bela Bartok; and the Quartet Opus 132 by Ludwig van Beethoven.

The concert starts at 7:30 p.m., with a chance to meet the quartet beforehand at 6:30. Tickets are $35 and $30 for academy members. Call 532-8768 or visit www.honoluluacademy.org.