~ Day Four ~

Waimea Canyon
Waimea means red water and the Waimea River is full of sediment that dyes the water red. According to legend, a chief's beautiful daughter named Komali'u was much sought after by the village men. When Mano asked her to marry him she refused and he he killed her at a waterfall where her blood ran into the river. The chief named the village, canyon and river Waimea in her memory.

Waimea Canyon Lookout
These photos are sized larger so you can appreciate this gorgeous canyon. This is one of the places where they have all the helicopter tours.

Waimea is on the west shore and Jo Jo's Clubhouse is the must stop! They are known for having Kauai's best Shave Ice! What's shave ice? (And you better not get caught saying "shaved" ice or calling it a snow cone!) Shave Ice is an island delicacy made by using a sharp blade to shave ice off a large block, creating a fine powder of ice unlike a snowcone's crushed ice. Exotic fruit juices are then added and if you choose, it can all sit atop ice cream in a large cup. As you can see in the sign, there are over 60 flavors to choose from! I picked the "Berry, Berry" which had juices from four different types of berries and I had mine on vanilla ice cream. Jeff picked the famous "Rainbow" which has many different flavors and had it on macadamia nut ice cream. Here's a link to another famous shave ice place that we visited when we were on the north shore of Oahu on another trip. Matsumoto's is even more famous than JO JO's!

Tree Tunnel
Whenever we headed back south to Po'ipu where our hotel was, we went through the tree tunnel. In the early 1900's, 500 eucalyptus trees were donated to the county and the residents showed up to help plant the trees. Before Hurricane 'Iniki in 1992 they used to intertwine at the top.

~ The Beach House ~
Without question, our favorite restaurant on Kauai! The food is great but it's the location that makes it so spectacular! Notice how the surf is rolling in sideways? The restaurant sits on a point and the waves roll past the open floor to ceiling windows and you can literally watch people surf by. These tables along the open doors are highly coveted for watching the sunset and if you don't make reservations way in advance, you won't get one. This photo was taken just before they began seating people. We had 6:15 reservations and knew that we would have to hope for a no-show by someone with 6pm reservations when they opened to get one.

So we waited in their popular bar area to see if we would be in luck. Jeff pleaded our case that it was our 30th anniversary trip. That's me in the turquoise outfit again and a passion fruit Margarita sitting in front of me.

We lucked out! The square table on the left was ours! It was so funny because once the sun starts to set, everyone gets up out of their seats and streams out to the lawn in front for photos. The waiter's call it "prom night!" Every night is prom night at The Beach House. Jeff had their famous seafood chowder and their Shrimp Pasta for an entree. I had one of their special salads and Ono for an entree. Because of the pleading for a good table, they knew it was our anniversary so they gave us a complimentary sorbet dessert (a very fancy one) and a cute card signed by the employees. This was getting to be a racket!

And there was the sunset! Taken right from our table. A memorable end to a memorable day.

Tomorrow: Our exciting kayak trip up the Wailua River and hike to Secret Falls

~ Recipe of the Day ~
The Beach House's Appetizer:
Prosciutto-wrapped Ahi

Ingredients

For Ahi Preparation:

1/2 lb thinly-sliced prosciutto
4 2.5 oz. fresh ahi blocks
4 stalks blanched asparagus
4 oz. Boursin cheese
sprouts for garnish

For Miso Vinaigrette:

1/2 cup sushi vinegar
2 Tbsp white miso paste
1/4 cup mirin
1 Tbsp soy sauce
2 Tbsp minced fresh ginger
1/2 cup canola oil
salt and pepper to taste

For Cucumber Namasu:

1 Japanese cucumber ~ peeled, seeded and sliced
1/2 cup fine-julienned carrots
2 Tbsp sushi vinegar
1 tsp toasted sesame seeds
salt and pepper to taste

Method

For Ahi

Slice each ahi block in the center, 3/4 of the way down. Place asparagus and
Boursin cheese along center of each block. Press ahi together. Place ahi on
sliced prosciutto and roll tightly. Heat a sauté pan over high heat and
add enough oil to coat pan. Sear ahi on both sides to crisp prosciutto, one
minute on each side.

For Miso Vinaigrette

In a blender, combine vinegar, miso, sesame oil, mirin, soy sauce and ginger.
Blend on high, slowly adding canola oil until smooth. Season to taste with salt
and pepper.

For Cucumber Namasu

Combine all ingredients in a bowl and mix. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Presentation

Place cucumber namasu in center of plate. Slice ahi and fan from plate's
center. Drizzle miso vinaigrette around border of plate. Garnish with sprouts.
Serves 4-6.

Click here for printable recipe