The concept of living foods is alive and well on the South Shore, where Living Foods Market & Café has been open for nearly a year in Kukui`ula Village. The store and mini bistro has found its niche in the
The concept of living foods is alive and well on the South Shore, where Living Foods Market & Café has been open for nearly a year in Kukui`ula Village.
The store and mini bistro has found its niche in the idea of locally grown produce and playing host to an abundance of fresh and healthy foods, carrying arguably the largest selection of organic and sustainable produce in its boutique-y retail space.
Launched and owned by Jim Moffat (chef and owner of the North Shore’s Bar Acuda restaurant in Hanalei) the market has been thriving since it opened its doors, and banks on the relationships it has built with farmers and growers.
General Manager Kim Barkow said the success is in part due to the fact that Moffat has “been in the food industry since he was a child under the guidance of his parents who were in the food and hospitality business.”
That, combined with the experience of Barkow and fellow General Manager Jondy Malone, has made for a good clean start.
“(Moffat) had two very successful restaurants in San Francisco before deciding to follow his dream to live on Kaua’i,” Barkow said. “Both Jondy and (I) started as teenagers (in the food industry), with Jondy working with such greats as Alice Waters,” she said. Though Barkow didn’t have hands on cooking experience, she did work “in the front of the house” for a handful of well established and famous restaurants, she said.
The concept behind Living Foods Market & Café is above all a gourmet market, but one that focuses on sustainability and healthful food, Barkow said.
“We seek out quality, the best, the hard to find, the unusual, the popular and the trend,” she said. “We like to lean toward sustainability but, if something amazing needs to be imported to make someone’s passion for food complete – we do that, too.”
The little café inside makes for the perfect grab-and-go for those in a healthful or gourmet mood, where bites to eat include pizzettas like the classic margherite (with tomato, basil and mozzarella) the Milano, (with prosciutto, arugula and mozzarella) or the funghi, (with local mushrooms and fontina cheese), the lobster pot pie (with lobster meat and black truffle summer vegetables inside a puff pastry) or an array of crepes (savory mushroom, smoked ham and cheese or chocolate).
Other menu highlights have included Euro-style simple items, such as the poached eggs, nicoise salad or roasted chicken.
Of course, even their cup of Joe is gourmet, as they have samplings from each island, and roast it themselves.
“We have a set menu for our café that was carefully put together when we first opened and there have been seasonal changes,” Barkow said. “Our additions to the menu come from adding several specials in addition to the menu each day.”
The store also offers groceries for the “green” inclined, as well as organic wine.
And for those foodies out there who aren’t vegetarian, like to cook but are sick of grocery stores with MSG-laden meats or preservative-heavy canned and packaged foods, Living Foods Market also carries in-house made bread, pastries and homemade sausages, salamis and pancetta, along with organic steak, chicken, duck, pork, lamb and seafood, perfect for holiday roasts or outdoor grilling.
“We have several fabulous fresh breads and pastries made right here, daily,” Barkow said. “We have a small butcherie with local Kaua’i beef, wonderful domestic and imported cuts and fresh local fish. We have prepared foods made here.”
Barkow added that in addition to a unique wine collection, the market offers a large selection of, you guessed it, cheese.
“Everything is delicious,” she said. Which makes for some hard, upcoming decisions for those planning to cook a whole-foods type of holiday dinner.
“For Thanksgiving we had a full catering menu loaded with dishes we would prepare for your feast: From fully cooked turkeys and hams to side dishes and desserts. It was a huge success and we had a lot of fun with it-so we will be doing the same for Christmas,” she said.
The Living Foods Market and Café restaurant is open every dayfrom 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., offering a simple European-style menu.
