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Mama's Fish House

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Maui Jon
Maui Jon
First Reviewer
4 out of 5
Avg. Member Rating
23
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23
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1-5 of 23

$100 View, $0.50 Quality, $0.10 Customer Service

  • July 9, 2009
  • Rated 1 of 5 by Mattson1 from Toronto, Ontario
The location and view are top quality; with an ambience that requires a modest week to be "fine dining" material. The meal was a 7 out of 10.....Hey, when the entree prices rival those of high-end charity events, the meals MUST be truly outstanding to warrant higher praise.
The customer service is of McDonalds quality; my car was valet parked (mandatory at this restaurant) and returned to me with a 1.5 inch gash. The manager claimed his people are "above reproach and 100% honest" and apologized profusely for this unfortunate situation, but sadly, admitted he was "powerless" to "do" anything about it. Repeated calls to the establishments vice president (as suggested my the manager) were met with deafening silence. I was left to cover the repair cost by the rental agency (who actually recommended the restaurant).

Overall, a very frustrating experience ruining a perfectly good day during our honeymoon; a very expensive meal indeed.

BTW, a top notch meal was had at Stella Blues in Kihei; for about half the price!! Now that's a real quality restaurant!!
Editor Pick

Best Meal In Maui

  • April 11, 2009
  • Rated 5 of 5 by Princess00 from Dallas, Texas
Best Meal In Maui

We had heard mixed things about Mama’s … mainly stemming from the cost of the food. Well, it was the most expensive meal we have every had, but was it worth it? Absolutely yes. Every step of the meal, from location to service to food was top notch. The restaurant is what I would describe as casual elegant with soft lighting and warm woods. No white table cloths or stuff feel … the atmosphere was unmistakably Hawaii. The entire restaurant is open to the oceanfront, affording a lovely view of the beach and the soothing sounds of the waves crashing along the shoreline. I had the best fish I have every tasted in my entire life at this restaurant – Opakapaka – upon which no other fish dish we enjoyed during our entire trip could live up to the fish I ate at Mama’s. We started with their Shrimp Won Tons with macadamia nut dipping sauce as an appetizer and then moved on to salads. I had the Waipoli Baby Romaine and Big Island Heart of Palm Salad with Reggiano Parmesan vinaigrette and Nathan had the Haiku Tomato, Maui Onion and Point Reyes Blue Cheese Salad with virgin olive oil, eighteen year old balsamic vinegar and pine nuts. My husband is not a big fan of tomatoes so when the waiter told him they could do ‘whatever he wanted’, he asked that they add some greens to the tomato salad. Both salads were fresh and light, but my husband’s was amazing. The greens, combined with the sweetest, most flavorful tomatoes, sweet maui onion and blue cheese just burst in your mouth with flavor. We moved on to entrees and my husband ordered the Mahimahi stuffed with lobster, crab, Maui onion and baked in a macadamia nut crust. I ordered the Opakapaka sautéed with Kamuela tomatoes, white wine, garlic and capers. We both agreed that my opakapaka was the better of the two dishes. Although I was beginning to get full, I stuffed every flavorful, light, buttery bit of fish in my mouth, savoring each bite and wishing there was more when I was done. We finished with the Polynesian Black Pearl and the Banana Macadamia Nut Crisp, both of which were excellent. In total, our meal cost $260 (which included drinks) and was the most expensive meal we have ever had. Why so much? Well, the quality of ingredients partially accounts for the cost, but overall, we felt the extra price related to service. Mama’s has their service so efficient; you don’t even notice when they are there and when they are not. Our waiter started off our meal with "We can do whatever you want. Just ask." And we felt like we were the only people in the restaurant and we had the full, undivided attention of the staff. As we finished each item, there always seemed to be someone standing off to the side watching our table to make sure that empty dishes were cleared and our water was full. And it was smooth and precise – no water sloshing onto the floor as the glass was filled or a waitstaff reaching over you to grab your glass to fill it. There was not one time I had to stop my conversation with my husband or lean back from my chair to accommodate a waitstaff trying to service our table. My husband believes that to accomplish this, they would watch for a lull in conversation or a point that the diner would look away and swoop in to handle their service so you would not notice they were there. It was the best service we have every received at a meal and justified the cost. If you are looking for a lovely meal, on a beautiful beach, with great service, this is the place to go. If you are going to run the numbers in your head off the menu during the meal and flip out at the price when you are finished, then don’t bother. This is a place to go in with the expectation that it is going to be expensive, but it will be worth it. We visited knowing that it would be our ‘splurge’ romantic meal for our trip and were very pleased with the outcome. It was our most favorite meal on the trip. Loved Mama’s! As a side note, a couple nearby ordered one appetizer, salad, entrée and dessert and split every course. So, if you want to try Mama’s and not flip out at the cost, this may be a nice option. They appeared to have their ‘system’ down and I would imagine it would be a good way to enjoy the restaurant, come home full, and only pay half the price. Very smart ‘budgeting’, IMO.

From journal Return to Paradise - Maui and Kauai

Best Seafood We've Ever Eaten!

  • January 11, 2008
  • Rated 5 of 5 by julilew from Medford, Oregon
Best Seafood We've Ever Eaten!

I had heard about Mama's before our trip to Maui and was intrigued. Our experience far exceeded our expectations. We decided to beat the crowd and go for lunch (also thinking that may be a little cheaper) and we still made a reservation. This is a must if you want the best table. The complimentary valet parks the car and leads to where to go. The grounds are absolutely beautiful!!! Palm trees and the raked sand grounds, private walkways, exotic plants, trees and flowers, and the most spectacular view of the ocean. They have their own private beach where you can watch the windsurfers.
Our table was next to the window. The windows all pull up, so there is no glass between you and the amazing scenery.
The service was excellent! The food was the best we've ever had. In fact, our trip to Mama's was probably the highlight of our trip. Mama's has their own fishermen that catch the fish and they serve the fish daily. So it is always fresh, never frozen. There is a different lunch and dinner menu daily, and the presentation was just beautiful!!! It began to rain while we were dining, and were pleased to know that they provide umbrellas for all coming and going, so we didn't have to be in the rain. The prices were quite a bit higher than we expected them to be for lunch, but upon finding that out, we just decided to go for it. Drinks, appetizers, lunch, dessert and coffee. It came to $200 with the tip. But it was a complete, delicious meal that we will never forget. We would highly recommend this restaurant. But plan on spending at least $135.
Editor Pick

Mama's Fish House

  • November 13, 2006
  • Rated 5 of 5 by wanderer 2005 from Phoenix, Arizona
Mama's Fish House

Driving thru the cute town of Paia, there are galleries, shops and a gas station, but the real draw is the food at Mama’s Fish House. Don’t fret if you don’t see it right away... you have to drive completely thru the town, up a hill, then you will see a boat with the name written on it, on the left hand side.

Mama’s is set on a beautiful stretch of beach that is breathtaking at sunset. The window seats are literally 50 feet away from the ocean. The bartender told us that the restaurant works with about 30 local fishermen that they get their fresh fish from and they never know what the daily catch will be, until the fishermen show up in the morning. They also change the menu twice a day to reflect the freshest fish. This particular day, the Ahi was only 2 hours old, so we ordered the sashimi and an order of the Maui onion soup to start off with.

To our amazement, we were brought an amuse’ of lobster bisque. Now THAT was good... It was both creamy and sweet. Our sashimi came out next and it absolutely melted in our mouths. The only other time I’ve had fish that fresh, was when I caught it myself in Key West.

My onion soup was really good as well. It’s their version of French onion soup, but the crouton is topped with Vermont cheddar. It was really, really good. The sweetness of the onions, mixed with the saltiness of the broth were a perfect combination.

On to the Piece de resistance, our entrées. Hubby had the signature dish of Macadamia nut encrusted, stuffed Mahi mahi. It was served with a side of steamed asparagus and was out of this world. The lobster and crab stuffing was never too salty or overbearing, it let the sweetness of the lobster shine thru. Yummy!

I took a risk and ordered the sugar cane grilled Ahi with a green papaya salad. When my plate came out, it looked like grilled pork chops because the sugar cane was skewered right thru the tuna (see my picture, below). Wow this was good! Cooked to rare, of course, it was wonderful. The papaya salad was excellent as well, really complimenting the tuna.

I was stuffed, but knew I had to have dessert, so we chose the Kuau pie, which is a chocolate pie, baked in a caramel crust. To die for! The sunset was awesome, as was the food and the atmosphere.

It was a really long drive back to Lahaina and had we not been on that side of the island, I can’t say that I would have driven all the way over there, just for dinner, but it was really good.

It cost us $170 before the tip and really was an event for us.

From journal Hawaiian Dream Vacation

Mama's Fish House

  • September 28, 2005
  • Rated 4 of 5 by islandgirl83 from Smith's, Bermuda
Mama's has traditional Hawaiian cuisine such as poi (taro root) and local seafood. Under each seafood plate, it will say which fisherman the fish was caught by. The poi is interesting to try, but I wouldn't say it's delicious. The dishes my family and I ordered were all great, though. Also, the ambience of the restaurant was very nice because the decor was a very traditional Hawaiian-style, with tiki torches, wooden sculptures, and large windows right next to the beach. The service is very good too. This is not the place for budget travellers, but for those who are willing to spend a little more, it's worth the money!

From journal Two weeks in Maui, Hawaii

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