Chef Tylun Pang, a key figure in Maui’s food and hospitality industry who inspired a legion of chefs and cooks in Hawaii, died May 6. He was 65.
Pang was the executive chef at The Fairmont Kea Lani, Maui in Wailea, overseeing its restaurants, bars, bakery and deli. He developed the concept for the resort’s signature restaurant, Ko, the Hawaiian word for sugar cane. Its menu reflects the
diversity of Hawaii’s cuisine, but his experience covered a wide range of international tastes as well. He also authored a cookbook, “What Maui Likes to Eat.”
Tylun Wah Pang was born in Honolulu in 1956 and grew up observing his own father prepare traditional Chinese banquet meals for friends and family, said Pang’s nephew, Kealoha Domingo, one of many in the island food industry who saw him as a mentor.
“He joked that (his father) gave us a sickness, that we always have this need to feed people,” said Domingo, founder of the catering business NuiKealoha. He noted that one of Pang’s four sisters, Tami Orozco, co-owns Tango Contemporary Cafe near Ala Moana Center.
“Food was so important to our family,” Domingo said. “We can’t get through a family gathering without copious amounts of food. We’re talking food to feed the neighborhood. We just had food coming out of our ears.”
Pang’s formal entry into the business was modest. His first job was at Kenny’s Burgerhouse in the Kamehameha Shopping Center in the early 1970s. “That’s how he got his start, flippin’ burgers, but I know that at one point he was the youngest executive chef in Hawaii,” Domingo said.
Pang formally trained with Westin Hotels Culinary Apprenticeship Program, which gave him opportunities to work in Asia, Latin America and on the mainland. He returned to Hawaii after more than 20 years overseas, eventually going to Maui, where he became a fixture through his work at The Fairmont and at the Maui Culinary Academy, based at the University of Hawaii Maui College.
“He helped realize the partnership potential
between the hospitality industry and an academic program and institution,” said Clyde Sakamoto, retired chancellor of UH Maui, in
an email. “Tylun mentored generations of culinary students and professionals who became the foundation of Maui County’s hospitality and food services industry.”
Kyle Kawakami of Maui Fresh Streatery, a gourmet food truck, called Pang “the consummate champion of the local kid,” encouraging them by telling them they were as accomplished as mainland competitors seeking top jobs at local restaurants.
Kawakami first met Pang after volunteering for a benefit at The Fairmont, earning a job offer after the event was over. “Being a brand-new culinary student in my first semester, it was a pretty big honor,” he said.
Working with Pang was “a very positive experience,” Kawakami said. “A lot of people tune in to these ‘Hell’s Kitchen’ shows, with people yelling and throwing things. That was never his kitchen, ever.”
When the COVID-19 pandemic hit the islands and tourism was virtually shut down, some Maui chefs organized food deliveries to isolated kupuna. The Fairmont, under Pang’s leadership, was one of the first hotels to offer its inventory to the effort, donating “truckloads of food,” Kawakami said. “He helped us load up and was happy to get it to us so the food didn’t go to waste.”
The Fairmont, which established a scholarship in his name to the Maui Culinary Academy, expressed “heartbreak” over Pang’s passing.
“In his 25 years at the helm of Fairmont Kea Lani’s culinary programming, Chef Pang created a legacy as ‘the chef’s chef,’ ” said General Manager Michael Pye in an email. “He was always thinking of others and how his work could help bring up the next generation. This was much of the inspiration
behind his namesake scholarship as well as his commitment to the local agriculture community on Maui and
beyond.”
Pang received several commendations for his contributions to Maui’s culinary scene, including being asked to give this year’s commencement address at UH Maui College. Maui’s Grand Taste food event on June 4 has renamed its fan-favorite prize the “Chef Tylun Pang Fan-Favorite Award.”
Pang’s favorite dish was a simple, traditional homage to family. “My dad always made steamed fish with ginger and sizzling oil,” he told food writer Kim Sunee in 2013. “At my house for special occasions, I make that.”
Pang is survived by his wife, MaryJo, son, Timothy, and stepdaughters Malia, Moani and Mikiala. Services for Pang are pending.
