BEST TOWN THAT STILL HAS A BOWLING ALLEY, THANK GOD
Wailuku
Blink and you’ll miss it. But half the fun of trying to find it is discovering all the other little gems along the way. You could literally spend the whole day in Wailuku just contemplating the bizarre existence of seemingly random shops and storefronts. There’s a record store on the corner of Market and Main, a used bookstore, a pawn shop, a shoe store, a popcorn store, a leatherie, a farmers market, a coffee shop, an historic theater and a trophy maker. Eventually, you’ll get to the crème de la crème of small town bowling alleys. Maui Bowling Center, 1976 Vineyard, Wailuku, 244-4596. [SC]
BEST KARAOKE
Sansei
I got hooked on Karaoke during my recent trip to Japan. Now I’m hooked here. Sansei is a far cry from the Kyoto karaoke boxes. At Sansei they put you on stage out in front of everyone and people get really into it. Locals and tourists of all stripes, fueled by great draft beer specials and half-off sushi after 10 p.m., passionately belt out tunes. Even celebrity guests like Pink have shown up to see what they’re made of. Sansei offers thousands of tunes to choose from, in various languages even. They have the new and the old, although I always go with the funkiest ‘70s tunes. “Le Freak” by Chic never fails to get the party going. Ahhhhhh, FREAK OUT! 115 Bay Dr., Unit 115, Kapalua, 669-6286; 1881 S. Kihei Rd., Ste KT116, Kihei, 879-0004. [JG]
BEST TOWN TO ESCAPE THE HEAT OF SOUTH/WEST MAUI
Makawao
Why get stuck in your one little convenient but sun-drenched town when there’s still so much to discover out there? Like, the sleepy little town of Makawao. You can opt to sip a cappuccino at Duncan’s or Casanova’s deli while watching the occasional drizzle outside, walk around window shopping the numerous little boutiques and art galleries, sign up for a glass blowing session at Hot Island Glass, or waste the afternoon drinking tequila shots with the locals at Polli’s or Stopwatch! [SC]
BEST OLD-TIMEY THEATER
Iao Theater
Built in the 1930s, the Iao Theater’s been open for 70 years. Renovated in 1995, it’s also the home of Maui Onstage, which hosts true community theater. That means they tend to put on rather colorful productions, like the recent Hair, which features a bunch of dancing hippies who, though briefly, get a little bit naked. Hey—it’s called “culture.” Try it sometime—you might enjoy it. 68 N. Market St., Wailuku, 242-6969. [AP]
BEST RECORD SLINGER
DJ Twist
Viva la Disc Jockey! This appeared to have been a confusing category for some readers, with entries ranging from music conglomerate “Borders” to local musician “Willie K.” But DJ Twist has been spinning records on Maui for almost four years now, having started deejaying almost 10 years ago in Phoenix, AZ. He fell in love with the underground hip-hop culture and started promoting shows with the first DJ Battle at the Hard Rock Café last year. Since then, he’s brought the likes of Atmosphere, Psychokinetics and Gershwin DLX to Maui, among others, as he said, “to give people an opportunity to hear something different.” And he’s humble, too. “It’s nice to know that I do something for a living that makes people happy at the same time,” said Twist. Aww, shucks. DJ Twist spins “old school” at Hapa’s every Thursday. DJs Boomshot and Platelunch tied for second place. [SC]
BEST PLACE TO MEET YOUR FUTURE EX
Moose McGillycuddy’s
It might have something to do with their dollar drink night, or their centrally located upstairs Front Street digs that gets to everybody’s head. But the fact is that you, the reader, have recognized Moose’s as THE place for a potential torrid affair. Or a potential tepid affair, depending. Whatever the case may be, Maui Time’s readers also found their future exes in the sneakiest of places, like “Safeway,” “the laundrymat,” and “any hostess bar.” Uh, yeah, that’s scary but again, you only speak the truth. 844 Front St., Lahaina, 667-7758. [SC]
BEST BAND THAT PLAYS SONGS SOMEONE ELSE WROTE
Willie K
I mean, he’s so talented, he can sing and play the hell out of anything! [SC]
BEST CONCERT ON MAUI IN THE LAST 12 MONTHS
Prince
The Prince concert this past December was the best thing to hit the MACC since… umm… ever. After all these years, everybody still wants a piece of Prince and all the purple-rain-crazed women storming the stage at his encore proved it. This was even in spite of the fact that he kept the show pretty clean. Maybe there were no 23 positions in this One Night Stand, but there were still enough dirty minds out there for a spanking good time. Oh, and Prince, if you are reading this, please know that I want to bear your little Prince babies and name them symbols that no one can pronounce. Call me. [EG]
BEST BAND THAT PLAYS SONGS
THEY WROTE
Willie K
Everybody loves Willie K. He’s a singer, songwriter and musician, and whether he’s wielding his electric guitar, slack key or 12-string, it’s hard to mistake his immense talent in any genre. Be it traditional or contemporary Hawaiian, rock, reggae, jazz, salsa, country and even those normally irritating Christmas songs—well, that Willie K. just goes and makes them all nice and everything… [SC]
BEST APRIL
FOOLS PRANK
“The Sub Train”
Go back and reread the story (Vol. 7, Issue 40) if you don’t believe me. Come on, people—it came out on April 1! An underwater tunnel to Oahu… please. [AP]
BEST LIVE
MUSIC VENUE
Hapa’s Night Club
Size does matter. Especially when it comes to the place you’re going to dish out your hard-earned cash to see some band perform. You want a nice, intimate atmosphere so you can get up close to the stage and feel the energy. But you also want room to breathe, space to dance and a very large bar from which you can order your cocktails. From Pepper to Prince, Hapa’s provides and so much more. Like those photos of Matt LeBlanc in the women’s restroom, for instance. This past year Hapa’s has hosted live music from punk bands like the Stitches, reggae from Midnite and Bambu Station, contemporary Hawaiian bands like Ekolu and Nuffsedd—what, you want me to go on?! 41 E. Lipoa St., Kihei, 879-9001. [SC]
BEST MOVIE
THEATER THAT DOESN’T SMELL LIKE FISH
Maui Mall Megaplex
It’s one thing if you’re watching Finding Nemo, but fish-smelling theaters are distracting during those serious love scenes in films like Harry & Kumar Go To White Castle. Maui Mall Megaplex is Maui’s newest theatre complex so that means we haven’t had enough time to contaminate it with our soda and popcorn, which apparently, over time turns into that rancid cat pee-fish smell. The MACC’s classy Castle Theater was an obvious runner-up, but they’re only a part-time movie theater, unfortunately. 70 E. Kaahumanu Ave., Kahului, 249-2222. [SC]
BEST EVENT THAT
GOT THE SPONSOR IN SERIOUS TROUBLE
2003 Halloween Maui AIDS Foundation fundraiser at Hapa’s
Hapa’s owner Gus Hoeft earned himself a $2,000 fine from the Maui County Department of Liquor Control for trying to keep his club open until 4 a.m., even though he had removed all trace of alcohol. The LC’s reasoning: being open after 2 a.m. is a violation. Period. In entertainment circles, that’s known as a “tough crowd.” [AP]
BEST SHOW THAT NOBODY WENT TO
Lyrics Born
It was everything we wanted but when it came time to happen, who showed up? Not you and you sure missed out. Not only that, but you made it harder to get anybody else of the same caliber to come to Maui and integrate our sometimes stale club scene. So thanks. We had a good time without you anyway. [SC]
BEST THING TO DO ON A FIRST DATE
Dinner
Seriously, this is the best you guys can do? Dinner? Lonely single people who have no lives somehow manage to eat dinner. This is a first date, we’re talking! You only get one chance at a first date. You’ve got to do something exciting, daring—even crazy. Dinner… It’s like I don’t even know you people anymore. Amazingly enough, some of you managed to jot down at least some wit. “Cliff jumping,” “take a bath with healing crystals” and “the hokey pokey” were some of the more noteworthy entries. Oh, and to the young woman who voted for “Sugar Cane Train,” you can reach me during normal business hours at 661-3786. [GT]
BEST RADIO STATION
Mana’o Radio
That’s KEAO 91.5 on your frequency-modulated dial. Their music library is beyond eclectic and their disc jockeys are all volunteers who love music but hate commercial radio. It’s a low-power station, so people who live on the West Side and Hana are screwed. Of course, anyone can listen to the station stream live at www.manaoradio.org, but that’s kinda difficult when you’re driving to work. [AP]
BEST LOCAL
MUSICIAN
Willie K
And again, whether he’s playing songs he wrote, songs someone else wrote or just sitting on stage singing the alphabet in his underwear—which he doesn’t, sorry—Willie K wins your vote. A multiple Na Hoku Hanohano Award winner, Willie K. has played with or opened for B.B. King, Santana, Al DiMeola, Willie Nelson, Prince, Crosby, Stills and Nash, Elvin Bishop, Bonnie Raitt, Jackson Browne, Mick Fleetwood, George Benson and Jimmy Buffett. A couple years ago he appeared on VH-1 “100 Greatest Love Songs,” Extra, and even performed the halftime show on Monday Night Football’s Jets vs. Raiders game. Then in February of this year, Willie was featured at the NFL’s Pro Bowl Halftime show! Currently, Maui’s favorite rock-god uncle Willie K. is on a world tour but expect to see him back at Hapa’s at the end of August. Marty Dread was your runner-up in this category. [SC]
BEST PLACE
TO DANCE
Hapa’s Night Club
What with gay night and Ladies Night, there’s no surprise here. Hapa’s has also been a haven for visiting DJs like Beat Junkies and Q-bert, and underground hip-hop artists like Atmosphere and Lyrics Born that no one—certainly not you, the reader—could resist this past year. Uh, or maybe it’s the on stage pole and cage, but who knows. Casanova and Tsunami tied for second place, with Lahaina Coolers curiously entered in the race with one vote. Hey, who the hell’s dancing at Lahaina Coolers anyway? 41 E. Lipoa St., Kihei, 879-9001. [SC]
BEST THING
ABOUT THE
MAUI COUNTY FAIR
The Food
The Maui County Fair comes but once a year, filling the Kahului air with the sound of children, the bright lights of the Ferris wheel and the wonderful smells of the food court. There are so many booths, each with different local specialties, you could come all four days and never eat the same food twice. It’s no wonder Maui Time Weekly readers voted the food the best thing about the fair. And what food—Smoke Meat, Chow Fun, Flying Saucer, Coscaron, Malasada, Fried Ice Cream, Kalua Pig, Lau Lau, Taco Bag, Chili ‘n Rice are just some of the things you can pick up on a good night. Don’t forget to bring some home, too. [JR]
BEST ART GALLERY
Maui Hands
Ever lie awake at night wondering where you can buy yourself some nice Hawaiian basketry? Or perhaps you’ve been searching for that perfect piece of nature jewelry to accessorize your Saturday night evening-wear? Well, wonder no more. Maui Hands has the best in all that’s hand-spun. From 275 participating Hawaiian artists, you’ll find paintings, prints, ceramics, jewelry, baskets, iron and copper sculpture, photography, blown glass and more. Owner Panna Speas says she has no talent, but she sure is good at showcasing the talent of others. Find Maui Hands in Paia, Makawao, at the Hyatt in Kaanapali, and soon on Front Street in Lahaina. [EG]
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