Humuhumunukunukuapua'a

Wailea, Maui, Hawaii, United States

It's also the name of a fish, the official state fish of Hawaii, as a matter of fact. It's not on the menu. But other fish are. Humuhumu, as the name is mercifully shortened, is one of the restaurants at the Grand Wailea resort on Maui's southwest coast.

It's hard to go wrong at a fish restaurant in Hawaii, and yes, the food is good here. Their gimmick, besides the name, is that the lobsters they serve live in the lagoon around the restaurant. That always creeped me out a little. It's like that episode of the old Battlestar Galactica where they find the planet, and the aliens there keep the humans well fed and distracted with casino-style gambling up until the moment they're eaten. I imagine the lobsters in much the same situation. Although, I think that the roulette wheel would get soggy.

What makes the restaurant is the atmosphere. The entire restaurant is situated on a deck in the middle of aforementioned saltwater lagoon. Some parts are covered. Others are more alfresco. Some tables are even on their own little island. They even have a troupe of Hawaiian musicians to serenade you. A meal there, if a little pricey, makes for a good evening. Just don't do what my mother-in-law did and mistake a pat of butter for a pearl onion. I shouldn't have laughed, but it was funny.

A note about the Grand Wailea if your're planning to travel to Maui. My wife and I think it's a little over-the-top, but it does have a lot of family activities. There are more low-key hotels in Wailea and in Kihei, a few miles north, and in Makena, a few miles south.