Diamond Bakery to launch “Kimo’s On The Go” Ocean Care Program with mascots “Kimo” the Dolphin and “Olina” the Octopus

Hawaii's Diamond Bakery (www.diamondbakery.com) announced the October 1, 2010 launch of “Kimo’s On The Go” – Diamond Bakery’s Ocean Care Program for school children of all ages. 

Diamond Bakery is partnering with Waikiki Aquarium on a program that educates students about the beautiful, yet fragile nature of Hawaii’s ocean.  "Kimo’s On The Go” – Ocean Care Program is open to all schools and grade levels and teachers are encouraged to plan a trip to the Waikiki Aquarium with their students this fall.”

How the program works – 5 easy steps:

All classrooms registering with Waikiki Aquarium for a school visit between October 1 and November 30, 2010 will be automatically qualified for “Kimo’s On The Go” – Diamond Bakery’s Ocean Care program. To enter your classrooms into a pool for $100 prize drawing, teachers must finish the following steps:

·     Log on to www.diamondbakery.com, and complete the KIMO''S ON THE GO REQUEST form online. You will be asked to provide school and teacher’s name, class information and time & date of your proposed school visit to the Waikiki Aquarium. Upon completion, an email confirmation will be sent to you.  Each electronic request should be submitted only once per clssroom. 

·     Program mascots Kimo (right) and/or Olina* (left) will make an appearance during each school visit, greet the class, hand out snacks and take photos with the students. 

·     When the school tour has successfully been completed, the class must share with Diamond Bakery, photos and a one-page (or longer) summary of their aquarium visit to be eligible for the $100 prize drawing (up to a maximum of 20 classrooms).

·     The collection of writings, illustrations and photos will be assembled and printed as part of Diamond Bakery’s Kimo’s On The Go Initiatives’ collection. Diamond Bakery will provide 20 FREE printed books to the students to take home or to use as a fundraising opportunity. Kimo and/or Olina will drop off the books for a book signing party to reward and congratulate the class for finishing their Ocean Care program.

·     All visits to the Waikiki Aquarium must be completed by November 30, 2010.

* Kimo the dolphin and Olina the Octopus are two shapes that Diamond Bakery uses to make its Hawaiian Animal Cookies. They are the inspiration for Diamond Bakery’s commitment to save Hawaii’s Reef. And now the company thinks the world is ready to meet them in real life --- newly revealed mascots Kimo and Olina, for its Ocean Care campaign.

Dianond Bakery is providing cash and printed books as an incentive to Hawaii classes for participating in the program, our goal is to advance students’ understanding and aloha for Hawaii's ocean.

Diamond Bakery is donating the profits from sales of Hawaiian Sea Animal cookies to fund this worthwhile program. A check for $3,000 will be presented to Waikiki Aquarium for their school educational programs.

“Kimo’s On The Go” is the next chapter in Diamond Bakery’s Ocean Care Program that kicked off in 2008.  The program is part of the company’s mission to “share heartwarming aloha” with the world.

For more information, visit www.diamondbakery.com or call 847-3551.

Sarento's Top of the "I"

On the heels of the Hawaii Five-0 premiere, I had an opportunity to dine at Sarento's Top of the "I" restaurant ... located, where else, but at the top of the Ilikai Hotel & Suites ... of the original Hawaii Five-0 fame.

The restaurant has its own elevator and the ride up gives you a wonderful view of the yacht harbor, Waikiki and west Oahu.

 
We had a breath-taking view from our table that was very similar to this.

Here's what the website says about the restaurant:  With breathtaking views of Diamond Head, Waikiki Beach and Honolulu's famous skyline, Sarento's brings a bit of Italy to Hawaii with style.  Old country warmth, hospitality and live piano music are part of the atmosphere that makes this fine dining establishment one of Hawaii's most celebrated.  The casual elegance yet superior service coupled with the outstanding culinary offerings has earned Sarento's numerous accolades from the community.  Beautiful private dining rooms are available for groups up to 36. 

The appetizers we had were delicious and included:

1) Bocconcini - Mouthfuls of Bufala Mozzarella wrapped in speck and grilled.  Served with grilled Kamuela Roma tomatoes. Finished with a baby arugula salad tossed in a lemon-truffle vinaigrette.

2) Sarento's Smoked Salmon - Bermuda onion creme fraiche wrapped with smoked salmon and layered with crispy russett potato chips, Avruga caviar, and Maui onion shavings.

3) Carpaccio del Giorno - Blackened Ahi sashimi served over a basil citronette.  Accompanied by an avocado/Maryland blue lump crab tower.

For dinner, we shared the Sweet Tiger Shrimp Entree.  Grilled Tiger Shrimp served scampi style with a sautee of white wine, lemon, garlic, shiitake mushrooms, sun-dried & fresh tomatoes.

As you can see, I almost forgot to take a photo of this fabulous meal.

And, for dessert, Sarento's General Manager Adam Miller prepared Strawberries Panzini - local strawberries flambeed with Grand Marnier, Blue Curacao and 151. Drizzled in caramel and chocolate and served with the accompaniment of Devonshire cream, dark chocolate, and Maui brown sugar.

Adam did it at the table and this single photo does not do it justice because the picture I took of the flambe did not turn out.



Valet Service is available at the front entrance Porte Cochere of the Ilikai Hotel.  Self-parking is also available in the hotel parking lot and in the Marina Parking on Hobron Lane.  With Validation, the cost is:  Valet: $2.00 per hour, Self Parking: $2.00 per hour

Dinner:     Nightly 5:15 pm to 10pm
Lounge:     Nightly 5pm to 12am
Happy Hour:     Nightly 5pm to 7pm ... Half off well drinks and special priced appetizers.

For more information about Sarento's Top of the "I", visit http://www.tristarrestaurants.com/sarentos_top_of_i/

Attn. Seattle ... fabulous island-style concert happening on 9/27

As part of Hawaii Visitors and Convention Bureau's Perfect Moments campaign, they are sharing the aloha spirit with Seattlelites with month-long consumer events showcasing the music, dance, flavors, and culture of Hawaii. 

HVCB is hosting several concerts by renowned Hawaiian musicians at The Triple Door in downtown Seattle.  On Monday, Sept. 27, Brother Noland will be performing.  HVCB is offering a $5 off special on Twitter to the first 100 people who use the promo code “perfect moments” to purchase a ticket by phone or at The Triple Door box office.  Non-Twitter users are welcome to use the code as well.  More detailed information about the concert and promotion are in the emails below.

Link to purchase tickets is - http://bit.ly/c2JeXt
Mountain Apple Company has also created a special widget where people can download free Brother Noland music.  This is to also promote his show on the 27th.  Feel free to share this one as you see fit too.
http://www.mountainapplecompany.com/seattle/
 

Preview of the new Scion "iQ" with photo gallery - Honolulu Transportation | Examiner.com

Preview of the new Scion "iQ" with photo gallery - Honolulu Transportation | Examiner.com

Kauai Mokihana Festival, September 19 - 25

A week-long Hawaiian cultural festival ... come on down.

Photos by Joe Olivas.

Paesano Ristorante Italiano - photo gallery

Had a chance to check out Paesano at Waimalu Plaza for the second time recently and this time ... I had my camera.

The menu is (I’m told by the waiter) identical to Assagio’s.  Someone else told me that a while back, the owners of Assagio split up and one partner opened Paesano and the other opened Verbgano, so the food was good here.

For starters, we tried the Paesano Salad … almost large enough to be considered a meal

And Sweet Broccoli Sauté (oops ... one broccoli missing)

Entrees were Linguine with Garlic Clam Sauce

Chicken Alle Saltimbocco

And Rigatoni Arabiata

Paesano has lots of seats and semi-private areas that are great for small groups.

For the complete dinner menu, click on this link: 

http://www.paesanohawaii.com/yahoo_site_admin/assets/docs/Dinner.301174936.pdf

The restaurant is located in Waimalu Plaza … and open for lunch and dinner.