Roasted Maui Tomato Soup. Photo by Vanessa Wolf.
Standing 6’6” and having founded and remained an active member of one of the biggest bands of all time, it’s safe to say Mick Fleetwood is not subtle.
The same can be said for his brand new restaurant in Lahaina, Fleetwoods on Front Street. The space is at once lavish and welcoming, featuring a large bar, ample dining room dripping with portraits of 70s rock gods, and a stunning roof top terrace with a decidedly Moroccan vibe.
Scott Leibfried, known to reality TV fans as Gordon Ramsey’s sidekick on both the Hell’s Kitchen and Kitchen Nightmares series, heads up the kitchen. The resulting menu is something of a Maui meets grown-up pub food affair. Only four days into operations and our generally well-informed waitress seemed confused by a few menu items, indicating changes are already underway. Presumably this will be the norm for the first few months, as Chef Leibfried becomes adjusted to what products he can and can’t consistently obtain here on Maui.
Classic Clam Chowder. Photo by Vanessa Wolf.
Maui Now sampled a range of items from the comfort food-based menu, starting with the Roasted Maui Tomato Soup ($8), one of the few vegan offerings. The San Marzano-based soup, finished with a basil oil, was thick and rich with tomato flavor. In truth, it fell a little more on the pomodoro sauce side than soup, but one presumes many of these items will be reworked in the upcoming weeks. It was accompanied by a wholly unremarkable piece of toast with some sharp cheddar melted on top.
The clam chowder ($10), however, was outstanding. Rich, flavorful, and dense with clams, it was everything one would hope. The accompanying package of Westminster oyster crackers (“the chef’s favorite crackers”) were hardly necessary, and the first spoonful made it clear why this chowder has won awards.
The hand-formed Wild Mushroom Ravioli ($12) were…read the rest here!
And in other news, I built a website for a great lady and her yoga business (Easy Yoga Maui) – and I think it turned out pretty great, as well.