Papa'aina at the Pioneer Inn
Restaurant · Lahaina ·
Brunch with inventive dishes like French toast and ramen
Brunch with inventive dishes like French toast and ramen
"Papa‘aina’s wide veranda that overlooks Lahaina harbor is one of the best places to have brunch in Maui. While you can feel the history of the place (the restaurant is on the ground floor of Pioneer Inn, which was built in 1901), the menu is very much in the now, with dishes like mapo tofu loco moco and breakfast ramen topped with ham and bacon, american cheese, and miso coffee butter. Order the seasonal tropical fruit plate, which might include spiky rambutan or poha berries." - martha cheng, team infatuation
"A wharf-side restaurant led by chef Lee Anne Wong that showcased Hawai‘i-style cooking—dishes included breakfast ramen and mapo tofu loco moco—and doubled as a community teaching space (notably hosting dumpling workshops where participants learned to roll crescent-shaped dumplings and dip them into boiling broth). After the fire the chef has focused on relief efforts and the restaurant’s future remains uncertain." - Shannon Wianecki
"A restaurant housed in the town's historic inn that was destroyed in the fires, representing the loss of a local dining institution and part of the community’s historic fabric; its chef was among the island’s culinary leaders who joined relief efforts while coping with the loss of her own restaurant." - Viola Gaskell
"Lee Anne Wong, whose restaurant, Papa‘aina, was housed in Lāhainā’s historic Pioneer Inn and burned to the ground."
"A restaurant that operated inside a historic Lāhainā inn and was consumed by the fires; the owner and staff escaped safely. Beyond the loss of the physical space and kitchen equipment, the owner highlighted the broader environmental damage — including boats exploding and leaking into the harbor — and has been active in coordinating and providing meals for the community during recovery." - ByAli Francis
