Food - Quality or Quantity

Is it better to go to a well-known establishment's buffet dinner with a million choices and mediocre food OR is it better to have a few things simply and wonderfully cooked? That is the question. Does quantity (variety and servings) trump flavorful food? It seems that when I go to a buffet, I try not to pig out and only taste those thing that seem enticing or wonderful like the chocolate laced bacon at the Mauna Kea Hotel. Yet, at the end of the day, the many tidbits add up to an overstuffed belly and a desire to get home and make a bowl of ramen to round out the meal.

This weekend, we went to Huggo's Restaurant in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii. With its footings in the ocean, one can watch the Kona sunset. We started off with drinks at the bar while waiting for our table. The Happy Hour drinks are $3 each and so our $9 glasses of wine were $3 each. Our table along the ocean side was sunny yet cooled by salty breezes. The mixed greens salad was shared and it was wonderful with sliced hearts of palm and sweet Maui onions to add the crunch to the salad. The dressing was light and sparingly used. I had the New York steak which had a wonderful sauce and a potato au gratin made from four or five times of potatoes and topped with sweet onions which were sauteed. For dessert, I had the honu pie, a cheese cake with a chocolate top and huge chunks of macadamia nuts. The lilikoi and strawberry sauce were combined with chocolate to make a honu or turtle design. Divine!! My husband had the Hualalai Mud Pie which should have come with a warning advising people that this was a HUGE dessert. It stood at least six inches high and that does not include the whipped cream. The service was marvelous and the waithelp very attentive...sometimes something of a rarity these days. The meal which included three glasses of wine, salad, two entrees - NY Steak and prime rib, and two desserts cost a little over $100. Money well worth a wonderful meal and a great way to celebrate a special occasion. For us, it was our 33rd anniversary and the topping was that one of the desserts (the more expensive one) was given to us complimentary!! I highly recommend this establishment.

The only problem is the lack of parking. But do what we did. Get an early reservation. Go to the restaurant about half an hour before the reservation and enjoy the happy hour drink bargains. There were also free appetizers available for the customers. THEN you will indeed have made the best of your HUGGO's experience.

Spend the next hour or so after dinner, walking along Ali'i Drive walking off the wonderful calories you consumed. Bon appetit!!