It’s a season of “more” for The Kahala Hotel & Resort’s Huakai Chef Series — more dishes, more chefs, more “wow” factor. Created by executive chef Jonathan Mizukami, the culinary production acts as a delicious journey that gives guests a chance to sample dishes from nationally and internationally renowned chefs — all without having to get on an airplane.

“I bring in guest chefs to The Kahala and give guests something they couldn’t have unless they go to destination restaurants,” explains Mizukami. “We are able to share these different talented chefs with Hawaii and give locals an opportunity to try something different.”

Tickets are on sale now for the March 9 event, and it’s one that you won’t want to miss.

The upcoming spring installment of the Huakai Chef Series welcomes Sunny Jin, executive chef at The Resort at Paws Up in Montana (pawsup.com), who worked with Mizukami at The French Laundry.

“Chef Jonathan and I have had a longstanding relationship,” explains Jin. “A couple years ago, he came here to Montana, and he had a chance to cook with our team and showcase what he does.”

When Mizukami asked his old friend to be part of the upcoming collaboration dinner, “it was a simple yes,” to hear Jin tell it. As a show of thanks, Jin wanted to do more — more for his friend, more for his staff, more for the people of Hawaii.

“We went to chef Jonathan and The Kahala team and said, ‘We want to go above and beyond.’ It’s a chance to make sure that we’re honoring chef Jonathan for even inviting us. It’s not a small ask for him to invite us down there, and we respect the heck out of him and the location.”
Going that extra mile means extra dishes on the menu. Instead of the standard five courses, expect a special cocktail, two appetizers, bread, salad, pasta, lobster, venison and two desserts. To make all of this happen, Jin is also bringing chefs Brett Edlund and Krystle Swenson (a local girl who graduated from Kapiolani Community College’s culinary program).

Dishes will feature a little bit of Hawaii and a little bit of Montana, making each bite familiar yet exotic.

“I try to have chefs use local ingredients from here, but also ask them to bring something from their region,” Mizukami says. “When they bring things here, it’s more special for our guests. It’s a cool concept because now you have two regions collaborating together.”

For the Maui Nui venison, a dish playing off the synergy of Mizukami and Edlund, expect sour Kahuku corn grits, Kamuela tomato jam and luau leaves alongside preserved Montana garlic XO.

“They wrote their part, the corned grits and preserved garlic, those are their flavors,” explains Mizuakmi. “It’s kind of a Southern dish, and I thought collard greens instantly, but I wanted something from here, so I did luau leaves treated in the same fashion as collard greens.”

And then there’s Jin’s canape, a Montana loco moco, which pays homage to his place of work and his Korean heritage. The dish features bison pave with kimchi puffed rice (made with his mom’s kimchi) and a quail egg.
“It sounds rather plain Jane, but when you see what we’re going to do … we’re taking a lot of your favorites and wrecking the heck out of them,” Jin says with a laugh.

There’s also a Jin-created mojito with local sugar cane and Koloa rum; furikake milk bread with Paws Up honey and uni whipped butter; and Kauai shrimp with green papaya and fermented chile tartar sauce.

Fans of Mizukami’s culinary excellence, meanwhile, will enjoy his Kona kanpachi chazuke canape with trout roe and Mountain View Farms moringa tea. For the main course, his mascarpone-enriched hand-rolled ulu agnolotti with black winter truffles and Parmigiano-Reggiano is one of his favorites.
“Agnolotti is kind of like ravioli, but it’s folded and has this nice little pocket in front to catch all the sauce,” he explains.
Mizukami has also created a butter-poached Kona lobster served with tamarind barbecue-glazed carrots and Mountain View Farms turmeric golden milk.

“It (turmeric golden milk) has this kind of sweet curry flavor to it without the heaviness,” he says. “It’s delicate and I think will play very well with the lobster and carrots.”

Finally, ending the night are Swenson’s pastry confections. The two-time James Beard Foundation semifinalist for Outstanding Pastry Chef (2020, 2022) will create a POG semifredo with Flathead cherries straight from Montana and toasted meringue, as well as a mignardises comprising a huckleberry mochi doughnut made with Maui Kuia Estate Chocolate truffles and Midnight Forest bourbon.

“We really pulled out all the stops for this one,” Jin concludes. “We want to come out there with our best foot forward and throw down some extra special courses for guests willing to come out and have dinner with us.”

The upcoming Huakai Chef Series takes place 5:30-8:30 p.m. March 9 at Hoku’s at The Kahala. Cost is $295 per person, plus tax and gratuity. Make reservations on Hoku’s OpenTable or by calling 808-739-8760.