I visited the new Village Cafe and Sweet Shoppe today and must say that Stuart and Debbie Katz and two busy bees. For those of you who don’t know who they Katz couple is, they run a charity event called the Aloha Team Classic each year to benefit isle children.
In any event, the golfing duo are residents of Kapalua and have thrown their hat into opening a new eatery in what was the Village Course’s very prominent clubhouse. It is a superb location and if Kapalua can get out of its own way and give them some signage, which they will in time, then the fledgling enterprise may stand a prayer. Heaven knows they are trying their best.
I just wanted a snack before driving back to Kula, and the host (Eddie from California) was very friendly and let me have any seat in the house. It was a nice mix of late afternoon sun and a sprinkle of mist outside so I took a shot from my vantage point, of the golfers practicing on the tee. (By the way, there is an 18-hole putting course here that is Hawaii’s finest, with only the Lodge at Koele rivaling it.
In any event, I perused the menu and the one thing I liked right off the bat is that they serve breakfast all day, are open for all three squares a day, and have a good mix of healthy and not-so-healthy fares.
I opted for an onion soup. It was not your usual onion soup, however, as it was made with ingredients I had never before seen in such a soup. The owner, Stuart Katz, came to my table to visit for a few minutes. He has a lot on his own plate, and was calm, cool, and pleasant. I told him I thought the onion soup was unique, and gave him a thumbs up for the effort (the place is only two weeks old for Pete’s sake).
I paid my check, which was $8.50 with tip. I don’t know that I’d order the soup again, but I do plan to be back there later this week and will tell you about some of their other dishes. One family seated near me had lots of yummy looking dishes being served. Perhaps I was too cheap to order something really good, but I’ll be back.
There aren’t too many affordable places to eat in Kapalua. This one is situated in the heart of it all, and the parking is plentiful. If you plan to be up there this high season I recommend trying the Village Cafe and Sweet Shoppe.
Just because I wasn’t crazy about the soup is no reason to miss out on what appears to me to be the best place to grab a casual bite up there.
