I spent over $450 at the best fine-dining restaurant in the US, and I'm already planning my next visit
I dined at Lahaina Grill, which Tripadvisor ranked as the US' best fine-dining restaurant in 2022.
My date and I agreed that our experience was worth the steep $450 bill, which included tips.
Both of us are excited to return to the Maui restaurant and already have a plan for our next visit.
Tripadvisor ranked Lahaina Grill as the best fine-dining restaurant in the US in 2022.
The exterior of Lahaina Grill, a top-ranked restaurant in Hawaii.
Every year, Tripadvisor publishes the Travelers' Choice Best of the Best, awards given to the top destinations, hotels, restaurants, and activities based on the reviews travelers leave on the site.
One of the most prestigious accolades is the award for the best fine-dining restaurant in the US, which Tripadvisor awarded to Lahaina Grill, a New American dining establishment on Maui, in 2022.
This is the fifth consecutive year that Lahaina Grill has been among the top 15 restaurants on the list, and it's the joint's first time at No. 1. Lahaina Grill also ranked 19th on this year's list of best fine-dining restaurants in the world.
So, I decided to check it out.
I made a reservation a few weeks ahead of time.
The only available table was during the evening's last seating.
Lahaina Grill, located on Hotel Lahaina's ground floor, is popular among tourists looking for a fine dining experience and Maui locals like me.
Many of us who live on the island perceive the restaurant as too pricey for everyday dining and consider it to be a place to celebrate special occasions.
The restaurant can be booked out for weeks in advance, so I recommend making reservations rather than just showing up.
I reserved a table for two using OpenTable. Though I would've liked to secure an earlier time, we ended up with the last seating at 8:45 p.m.
Our table wasn't ready upon arrival, so we ordered drinks at the bar.
We ordered cocktails as we waited for our table to be ready.
I relished the opportunity to experience both table service and the bar, which seats 16 and offers the restaurant's full menu.
One of the bartenders greeted us immediately, introducing themselves and their fellow bartender by name.
I tried the pho cocktail, a gin drink featuring pho-spiced syrup and habanero bitters.
Lahaina Grill's pho cocktail and an improved whiskey cocktail.
After perusing Lahaina Grill's extensive list of libations, the pho cocktail, priced at $19, stood out as a novel creation.
It incorporated Gray Whale gin, elderflower liqueur, fresh lime juice, pho-spiced syrup, and habanero bitters. The bartender garnished it with a lime wedge, star anise, and fresh basil.
The drink was light and refreshing but also had a savory element and a touch of tartness.
My date ordered an improved whiskey cocktail, which is an old fashioned with absinthe and maraschino liqueur.
We were both intrigued by the salad station that was set up in the bar area.
My date and I didn't expect to see a salad station behind the bar.
Neither of us had witnessed a salad station operating out of a bar area before. It was fun to watch the restaurant staff prepare a Buffalo mozzarella and tomato salad as we waited for our table.
The hostess returned to seat us before we finished our drinks.
I perused Lahaina Grill's menu as soon as I sat down.
We transferred our bar tab to the table, which was located in a cozy corner in the back of the restaurant.
The dining room was equipped to host both large parties and intimate date nights.
Pretty much every table in Lahaina Grill's dining room was filled.
The modern bistro-inspired dining room seemed to be filled to its 130-person capacity on the night we were there.
The restaurant also has a semi-private dining room, which offers a chef's table experience for parties of six to 10 people.
Historical images adorned the restroom walls.
A black-and-white photo of Hotel Lahaina in 1938.
The restroom was adorned with historical images, including a photo of the original 1938 Hotel Lahaina, which has been home to Lahaina Grill since 1990.
Our table had views of the lively restaurant and the colorful artwork hanging on the walls.
My date didn't love the colorful paintings, but I thought they gave the restaurant a unique personality.
My date thought the number of vivid paintings in the restaurant was overwhelming, but I genuinely enjoyed the eclectic decor.
The table setting had a fine-dining feel, but I wasn't impressed by the napkin arrangements.
I thought the napkins could've been folded into a more intricate design.
The leather-bound menus felt luxurious, and the table settings featured fine china, flatware, and crystal glasses.
Some restaurants get creative with their napkin arrangements, but the ones at Lahaina Grill seemed fairly simple. I remarked that the person responsible for making the napkins was likely grateful that they didn't have to fold them into a more complicated design.
The chef and owner introduced himself to every table.
The service was fantastic from start to finish.
I noticed that Jürg Münch, the chef and owner of Lahaina Grill, made a point to interact with every guest and hand out his business cards in case we had any inquiries.
The server gave us bread rolls with herb-garlic butter that was marked with Lahaina Grill's logo.
The server brought us bread and herb-garlic butter.
The logo turned out to be printed on a paper film, which we peeled back to reveal the flavorful butter beneath.
The appetizer menu offered a variety of rare delicacies — like caviar deviled eggs, foie gras, and wagyu-beef ravioli.
Our caviar deviled eggs arrived late, so the server gave us a complimentary dessert.
We ordered Maui farm-fresh deviled eggs topped with a 1/2 ounce of Ossetra caviar for $28.
My date also convinced me to taste the seared ahi and foie gras with fig compote, truffle oil, and Maui onion demi-glace, priced at $58.
Other standout appetizers included baked escargots for $34, wagyu-beef ravioli for $34, and Maui onion soup for $21.
Though we were tempted to order the soup, our server advised us against adding it to our other appetizers to save us from overindulging too early in the meal.
Something got lost in translation, and our deviled eggs didn't make it to the table until after we received our entrées. Upon alerting our server, he had the dish sent out from the kitchen right away.
The caviar added a sophisticated layer to the deviled eggs, an otherwise mundane comfort food, and the dish was worth the wait.
The foie gras melted in our mouths and overflowed with flavor.
The foie gras was a rich, decadent way to kick off the meal.
The appetizer was already split for us to share, which was a thoughtful touch by the kitchen.
The succulent demi-glace made the dish exceptionally rich.
Our server, who was also the restaurant's sommelier, suggested that we pair the dish with sauternes, a sweet French dessert wine that went perfectly with this buttery delicacy.
My date tried the seafood special for their main course.
Lahaina Grill's seafood special.
The seafood special, which cost $73, featured panko-crusted opakapaka, also known as Hawaiian pink snapper, atop a bed of risotto. It was smothered in a house-made sauce.
I ordered the rack of lamb, one of the most expensive entrées on the menu.
The rack of lamb was one of the most expensive items on the menu.
One of the restaurant's signature dishes is the Kona coffee-roasted Colorado rack of lamb. The $85 dish came with herbed mashed potatoes, roasted garlic, vegetables, and a coffee-cabernet demi-glace.
Other notable dishes I considered ordering were the sautéed mahi-mahi, as well as the Maui onion and sesame-seed-crusted seared ahi.
We ended our meal with a complimentary dessert sample platter.
My favorite dessert was the triple-berry pie.
To compensate for the inconvenience of our deviled eggs' late arrival, our server sent us a signature dessert sampler, listed on the menu for $38.
The assortment included miniature versions of the most popular desserts: flourless coffee-infused chocolate cake with Kona coffee ice cream, Kula lime tart, Maui vanilla-bean crème brûlée, and triple-berry pie with raspberries, blueberries, and black currants.
My date and I paired our dessert with espresso martinis.
We finished the night with a round of espresso martinis.
What originally started as an order for hot coffee turned into a round of espresso martinis, priced at $21 each. The nightcaps were made using Soli vanilla vodka, espresso, Kahlua, and Baileys.
The bill came out to about $365, and we paid a total of over $450 after factoring in gratuity.
I dined at Lahaina Grill, and the famous Maui restaurant didn't disappoint.
My date and I split the bill based on the items we ordered, though I agreed to cover the foie gras. So, I ended up paying $233, including tip.
The bill was expensive, but we agreed that the meal was worth the high price.
I've spent $200 on past dinners and left feeling remorseful, but that wasn't the case at Lahaina Grill. The impeccable service and outstanding fare created a delightful dining experience that was worth every dollar.
We've already made a game plan for our next visit.
Next time my date and I dine at Lahaina Grill, we'll eat at the bar.
We already know that we're going to share the wagyu-beef ravioli and Maui onion soup. Perhaps we'll add a farm-fresh side, like creamed spinach or roasted sweet corn, which we didn't have room to try during our first visit.
I also won't be able to leave without getting another slice of the triple-berry pie, which was a perfectly sweet ending to an indulgent evening.
