INGREDIENTS OF SUCCESS

FOR TWO LONGTIME HUALĀLAI CHEFS, FINE CUISINE BEGINS WITH THE FLAVORS OF THEIR CHILDHOODS.

BY SHIVANI VORA

JAMES EBREO, FOOD IMAGES: ANNA PACHECO; ERIC GARRETT: DANA EDMUNDS James Ebreo

Eric Garrett

Chefs Ebreo and Garrett dazzle with fresh takes on everything from poke bowls to Waimea baby green salads—and beyond.

Big Island beef tartare at Hualālai Grille

ood is of the essence at Hualālai. For 25 years, the resort has been making the cuisines of its restaurants a top priority, and accolades from the likes of Wine Spectator and Food & Wine have ensued. Today, seven stellar dining venues and a dynamic team of more than 50 chefs and line cooks create experiences that stay with guests long after the dessert plates have been carried away.

Two of these chefs—James Ebreo, a 22-year veteran of the team, and Eric Garrett, with 19 years on staff—know especially well how to craft an unforgettable Hualālai dining experience. But aside from being long-standing resort employees, they have something else in common: Each chef draws on his childhood influences to make delectable dishes that are both worldly and world class.

Ebreo, executive sous chef and overseer of four restaurants at Hualālai, was born on Hawai‘i’s Hāmākua Coast and grew up on a sugarcane plantation, where he was surrounded by various Asian ethnic groups, including Filipino, Japanese, and Chinese people. “I adopted their cooking styles from a young age,” he says, “and ginger and garlic became the foundation to every recipe; they continue to be today.”

These two ingredients find their way into almost all of Ebreo’s recipes. His wildly popular Ora King salmon at Hualālai Grille, for one, has a gingery honey glaze. Then there’s his Asian pesto, with ginger, garlic, and green onions, spooned over a steamed local fish like opakapaka or mahi mahi.

While Ebreo’s love for Asian flavors hasn’t changed, his style and his menus during the last two decades have evolved. “When I started the Hualālai Grille in 1999, our cuisine was described as food for the soul—stir-fry, salads, pizza and pasta, and anything that reminded you of a home-cooked meal,” he says. “We later featured a well-known chef, Alan Wong, and the cuisine evolved into Hawaiian regional cuisine; his Asian background inspired his menu. Then, we adapted to the needs of our guests with Pacific Rim cuisine and used more local products from the island, which led us to our current American steakhouse cuisine with fresh island fish and produce.”

Ebreo’s hot rock appetizer

CHEF’S CHOICE

They’ve created hundreds of recipes during their tenures at Hualālai Resort, but that doesn’t mean chefs James Ebreo and Eric Garrett don’t have their favorites.

For Ebreo, it’s his hot rock at Hualālai Grille. The dish’s raw and thinly sliced American Wagyu beef and locally caught kanpachi fish are presented side by side on a single plate, along with a hot lava stone. Diners sear the proteins to their liking on the rock using chopsticks, then top them off with garnishes such as a Thai dipping sauce or Ebreo’s famous chimichurri.

“I came up with this around eight years ago when I wanted to offer an interactive culinary experience,” says Ebreo. “It brings together everything I love about food— ginger, garlic, Asian flavors, and fun.”

For Garrett, yellowfin ahi tataki is the top pick. Devised when he first came to Hawai‘i more than 15 years ago, the dish presents thinly sliced local fish drizzled with truffle oil and soy sauce and finished with Hawaiian sea salt for a bit of umami—Garrett describes it as “crave-able.” “I got introduced to Asian flavors when I arrived and started experimenting with recipes,” he says. “This is one of the dishes from that time, and it’s been on the menu ever since. I’ve seen diners order two and even three just for themselves.” —S.V.

Garrett’s yellowfin ahi tataki

At Hualālai Grille, guests can pair a perfectly cooked tomahawk rib eye, rack of lamb, or chateaubriand with salsa verde, chimichurri, and other sauces created by Ebreo or Garrett.

‘TIS THE SEASONINGS

Fresh from the resort kitchens of Hualālai’s own James Ebreo and Eric Garrett, these condiments are sure to spice up your favorite at-home dishes.

Chimichurri Sauce

From James Ebreo, Hualālai Grille’s executive sous chef

Ingredients ½ oz. garlic ½ oz. shallots 2 oz. Italian parsley ½ oz. basil ½ tsp. sambal 2 oz. red wine vinegar 4 oz. salad oil

Place all ingredients in blender. Blend until smooth. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Honey Tamarind BBQ Sauce

From Eric Garrett, Residents’ Beach House’s sous chef

Ingredients 1 cup honey ½ cup ketchup ¼ cup soy sauce 4 tsp. finely diced ginger 2 tbsp. tamarind concentrate 1 tsp. chopped garlic 1 tsp. sambal

Place all ingredients in blender. Pulse until smooth.

Today Ebreo increasingly focuses on produce, seafood, and other ingredients from Hawai‘i. “As the years have passed, I’ve realized more and more that I can rely on the bounty around me rather than look to imports,” he says. “Every dish I create has to have a local flair or ingredient.”

This Hawaiian touch is evident in Ebreo’s addictive brussels sprouts. Blanched, deep fried, and tossed with fish sauce and sriracha, they’re a nod to the Asian influence that permeates the island. His beef tartare is akin to the classic French version but presented with Hawaiian taro bread instead of the traditional crostini. Local chilis give his chimichurri just the right kick of spice and make for an ideal steak sauce.

Ebreo’s current menu at Hualālai Grille is almost entirely gluten free, and his vegan dishes are a hit with both omnivores and non-meat eaters. “We’re well known on the island as one of the best steakhouses in west Hawai‘i,” he says. “Using the best-quality meats available, along with local produce, we satisfy not only meat eaters but also pescatarians and vegetarians. I’m offering more gluten-free and vegan dishes because that’s what guests want today.” His tempeh with Moroccan stewed vegetables and jasmine rice is among the most ordered entrees, as is the grilled portobello mushroom with cauliflower fried rice. Steak eaters ordering vegan dishes? Yes, Ebreo makes it happen.

Like Ebreo, Eric Garrett has Hualālai homeowners and hotel guests returning time and again for his cuisine. The chef de cuisine of the Residents’ Beach House—an all-day casual beachfront restaurant centered on seafood— Garrett grew up in Monterey, on California’s Central Coast. “Fishing was something that everybody did, and the Salinas Valley, where most of the produce in the country grows, was a short drive away,” he says. “I learned how to cook with access to so much incredible seafood and vegetables and fruits.”

These early experiences were formative, shaping Garrett’s culinary philosophy of cooking with what’s seasonally available, because, in his words, “it’s always going to be the freshest and tastiest.” He also was surrounded early on by Latino, Italian, and Central American influences, which he infuses into his creations today. His menu at the Residents’ Beach House features fish tacos,

The Residents’ Beach House’s Chinese-style steamed local catch

Hualālai Grille’s tomato salad

Hualālai Grille’s Ora King salmon

tomatillo salsa, and pico de gallo served with blue corn chips.

“When I started at the Residents’ Beach House in 2002,” Garrett recalls, “it and Hualālai Grille were the only two club restaurants on the property, and Residents’ Beach House was strictly lunch for Members and hotel guests, 11:30 a.m. until sunset. But we did a weekly residents’ reception where we got to create and offer a variety of small plates, and it was a great opportunity for the restaurant staff to connect with Members and develop long-lasting friendships.” After a few years, the restaurant was also offering dinner for Members seven nights a week, and today dinner is open to hotel guests as well. “Many hotel guests discover the Residents’ Beach House during a stay and continue to return on subsequent visits, so we’ve developed a kind of following that continues to this day. Just a few days ago, a couple from New Jersey staying in the hotel told me, ‘We’ve been coming to the Residents’ Beach House for 12 years. It’s our favorite spot at the resort, and we look forward to coming back every year.’”

There’s certainly much to look forward to, from what Garrett refers to as the restaurant’s “aloha spirit, warm atmosphere, and familiar faces” to the chef’s own expansive culinary repertoire. His riff on a typical English fish and chips highlights beer-battered locally caught ono—he notes that it’s “a constant best seller”— while his dinner lineup is a long list of heartier entrees, some inspired by Asian cuisine. Standouts include a vegan Thai yellow coconut curry with vegetables such as kabocha squash. “There’s always something seasonally available from the Big Island that we can work onto our menu,” he says.

For his art, Garrett relies on three cooking staples: garlic, shallots, and vinaigrettes that double as salad dressings and marinades. “I can add flavor to any dish using these ingredients,” he says. He makes staying at the forefront of the food movement and how travelers like to eat a priority: “I often hear from Members that the Residents’ Beach House is the first place they like to come after a long flight, to enjoy a cold drink and something tasty to eat.”

His lighter cooking techniques reflect how plugged in he is. “People today are very interested in eating clean and healthy—they don’t want a stick of butter in their food; I’m definitely focused on giving our diners delicious dishes that are also light,” he says. “Unchanged over my 19 years here is the freedom to create and cook what we feel the guests will really enjoy.”

Indeed, the guest experience is at the heart of every Garrett or Ebreo culinary creation. How fortunate Hualālai guests are that each chef brings so much of his own experience to his carefully curated dishes.