The Lahaina Food & Wine Festival kicked off Wednesday — a five-day celebration of local cuisine and drink in its second year.
This year, a new Grand Taste event on Saturday will be held at the Lahaina Jodo Mission, featuring a lineup of Maui chefs and curated wines at the historic location.
LahainaTown Action Committee is one of the organizers. President Sne Patel says the event is all about bringing community together.
“One of the main reasons is connecting people back into the places that were hosting the events, which is back into Lahaina town, and also the culinary arts, right? Reconnecting a lot of the restaurants that are participating — some of them still don't have a brick-and-mortar restaurant set up," Patel said.
"So it's also the food that the community misses as well, right? So just really celebrate Lahaina's culinary community, while also generating and directly supporting local organizations and continue the ongoing recovery efforts."
Proceeds from Saturday evening's Grand Taste will benefit Lahaina Jodo Mission and the LahainaTown Action Committee. Both groups support Lahaina community recovery efforts.
“While we continue to plan for rebuilding, we are grateful to share our temple grounds as a place for people to gather and reconnect,” said Yayoi Hara, representing Lahaina Jodo Mission in a press release.
“We look forward to welcoming everyone and reactivating the grounds with community offerings like our farmers market and weekly yoga classes. We are deeply thankful for the support and inspired to see so many people coming together here.”
For tickets and information, click here.
