HONOLULU (KHON2) — The 14th annual Hawaii Food and Wine Festival starts next month on Hawaii Island and Maui. To get ready for the event and to fall in love with local chefs, there’s what’s called “Chefs Week” which is happening now until September 30. Chefs Colin Hazama of the Hawaii Food and Wine Festival and Colin Sato of Mugen Waikiki stopped by Wake Up 2Day Thursday morning to talk story about the events.
“We wanted to create an opportunity to highlight the fabulous local culinary talent we have participating in this year’s Festival events, while also encouraging the community to dine at their restaurants during the typically slower post-Labor Day season and help sustain Hawai’i’s vibrant culinary community,” Hazama said. “To say mahalo for dining local during Chefs Week, we’re giving guests an exclusive offer to elevate their Hawaii Food & Wine Festival experience with Priority Access tickets to select events at the General Admission price. Priority Access gives guests early entry to select events at 5:00 P.M. with an extra hour to taste the delicious food, wine, and cocktails and interact with the chefs, winemakers and mixologists.”
Chef Sato says that during the slower “shoulder seasons” when tourism slows down, it’s important to support local restaurants.
“When visitor traffic tends to slow down, local restaurants like mine need community support more than ever. Initiatives like HFWF24 Chefs Week are great because they encourage local residents to dine out and explore what our local chefs have to offer. Creating opportunities to keep our dining rooms busy doesn’t just sustain the restaurant and our staff, but is critical for our local farmers, ranchers, fishermen, and all the businesses that rely on restaurants to succeed. And events like the upcoming Hawai’i Food & Wine Festival that draw attention to local cuisine and agriculture make a big difference in supporting our culinary scene in Hawaii.”
You can find more information here.