Wassup!
No, no – I’m not talking about the new video game that just came out … it’s about this cold virus that I got in Japan and now my whole family has it! Alex was its latest victim, waking up yesterday morning with a sore throat and body ache. Damn … this virus is wicked and apparently very contagious! Nick got it over the weekend and Carla came down with it a couple of days ago. I just hope they don’t get as sick as I did … the cough is a killer and the laryngitis just seems to linger. Hopefully everyone will be ok by this weekend …
And now on to some brighter news … hmmm, can’t seem to think of any! Hahaha! Oh yeah … so far, the economic boost that the APEC conference was supposed to bring to Hawai’i has apparently not materialized yet. Some friends in the local travel industry told me that a lot of Waikiki hotel rooms that were blocked off in anticipation of APEC are still unsold, and that overall retail sales have dropped off in many stores. It seems like the attitude of many in the local business community is “let’s just get this over with so we can get on with our lives” … even our IOLANI on Kona St. store has experienced a slight downturn in business since the week started.  Many are treating this like a holiday week by letting workers take time off and reducing their hours of operation.  However, everyone should understand that APEC doesn’t officially start until today so I’m sure Waikiki will see start to see a surge in activity which should last through the weekend. In any case, keep your fingers crossed … eyes too! Nah, just kidding …
Took some clients for pau hana at the original Side Street Inn last night and was pleasantly surprised when manager Albert had the kitchen prepare some of their awesome hoisin chicken for us! I’ve raved about this dish in my previous blogs, but will say it again – this has gotta be one of their best dishes ever … and I still can’t understand why they still don’t have it as a regular item on their menu! It’s a creation of chef Chris, and I think you can only get it at the original Side Street location.
Aloha, “D”