LILIHA BAKERY MARKS 70 YEARS
Liliha Bakery is celebrating its 70th anniversary with $7 off on one of its best sellers. Poi mochi doughnuts are going for $11.70 a dozen instead of the regular $18.99, through the end of January.
Coco Puffs are the treat most associated with the bakery near the corner of Kuakini and Liliha Streets, and is the first of nearly 100 items listed on its website. But the poi mochi doughnuts have moved up quickly in popularity since their introduction in 2016.
Business at the original Liliha Bakery and its coffee shop, at 515 N. Kuakini St., continues to thrive — with lines for bakery items, as well as for a seat at its old-style diner counter that features local-style comfort food. It’s still a 24/7 operation, closed only from 8 p.m. Sunday to 6 a.m. Tuesday.
Newer shops are at 580 N. Nimitz Highway (6 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sundays through Thursdays; until 10:30 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays) and Ala Moana Center (open at 6 a.m. daily, closing at 9:30 p.m Mondays through Thursdays, 10 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, and 8:30 p.m. Sundays).
Call 531-1651 (Kuakini), 537-2488 (Nimitz) or 944-4088 (Ala Moana) or place pickup orders at lilihabakery.com.
CHANGES GREET VIAGGIO IN 2020
Viaggio Restaurant marks its first anniversary with a new chef and a new Italian menu.
Now in the kitchen is Jeffrey Vigilla, replacing Rodney Uyehara, who has moved on to other projects, the restaurant said.
Menu highlights include slow-cooked octopus with sauteed potatoes and saffron aioli, pan-roasted kampachi with cannellini confit, and Filet di Manzo, topped with Gorgonzola cheese.
Vigilla, formerly of the Hilton Hawaiian Village and the Ritz-Carlton in San Francisco, said the menu will continue to evolve; soon to include fresh-made pasta.
Viaggio is in the Velocity luxury car showroom, 888 Kapiolani Blvd., open Tuesdays to Sundays. Call 592-8881.
THE PEARL RETURNS TO SERVICE AT LCC
The Pearl, the Leeward Community College restaurant staffed by culinary students, reopens Thursday after going dark last semester for renovations.
The restaurant’s spring session runs through May 1, serving lunch on Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays.
Chef-instructor Chris Garnier and his Contemporary Cuisines class have compiled three-course menus costing $16 to $19 depending on entree choice: beef Bolognese cassoulet, kochujang-glazed scallops or steamed mahimahi with Asian pesto.
The menu runs through Jan. 31. Menus for the full semester may be found at leeward.hawaii.edu/thepearl. Reservations: 455-0475.
Quickbites is a weekly listing of dining events. Email items to crave@staradvertiser.com.