We understand that time is the most valuable thing for everyone — especially you! And after time, its food. Life is too short for a bad bowl of soup. We firmly believe that each meal is an opportunity for bliss, hence we have done the hard work for you in selecting the best “fill in the blank” dining options. We work with local food editors up and down the coast, to compiles our “Best of” roundups.
Who’s we? Please meet our Clean Plate Club that comprise the Local Getaways food editors.
And if we missed our favorite, please email us connect@localgetaways.com.
Featured Photo: Highway Inn
Jeanne Cooper
After many years of reporting on trends in the state and visiting friends, my husband Ian Hersey and I have moved to the Big Island, a.k.a. Hawaii Island. If you check my Instagram account, you’ll see cute puppies (I foster) and tasty treats. Getting a photo of me with the meals was not as easy. Luckily, Ian often has a camera in hand during Happy Hour.
Leela Linder
Leela loves food and writing and has been doing a combo of both for the past ten years. Whether she is sharing the story of the people who make it, its cultural significance to the best places to eat it — a Kauaʻi native, Leela loves to explore the culinary options around the islands.
Elizabeth McGonagle
My parents loved cooking and primed me for two decades of work in restaurants and my eternal quest for the “next best thing.” Hawaii has been home for 12 years, via Vermont, France and Brazil, and I’ve been psyched to learn that there’s some seriously good food here in the middle of the Pacific. The farmers and the fisherman bring fresh ingredients to dishes that reflect the Islands’ diversity. If you want, Thai curry, you got it. Dim Sum for lunch, that’s not a problem. Korean BBQ, it’s here. Smash burgers at their finest, you bet. Here in Hawaii, the sushi is the freshest, the plate lunches are hefty, and the pho is ladled all day long. So, if you want to try a new restaurant, I’ll sit across your table. If you’re on the hunt for the best poke bowl, I’ll be your copilot. If you take me to a dark, late night izakaya place with a menu in Japanese, we’ll probably be friends forever. And, if you make me something from your heart, I just might fall in love. May your next meal be amazing. Bon appetit!
Kasia Pawlowska
A Californian by way of Poland, I’ve spent the past 13 years living and eating in the birthplace of snobby ice cream flavors and (potentially) the martini — San Francisco. Whether it’s wood-fired Neapolitan pizza from a no-reservations-hour-long-wait spot, seasonal ankimo at 10-seat sushi bar, $2 take-out har gow, or a new chip at the bodega, selecting food is one of the most thrilling and important decisions of my day. Hence when I’ve traveled for work or pleasure, I study up on where I will spend my two precious resources, time and money. I believe that we can all eat really well regardless of budget and that an expensive meal isn’t always a good one. I love uncovering hidden gems tucked away in strip malls, and am a bit of a heat seeker, so you can catch me slapping on the wasabi and splashing on the Crystal house sauce on just about anything.
Matthew Poole
Matthew has authored more than two dozen travel guides to California, Hawaii, and abroad. Before becoming a full-time travel writer and photographer, he worked as an English tutor in Prague, a ski instructor in the Swiss Alps, and a scuba instructor in Maui and Thailand. His writing and photography clients include Frommer’s, HarperCollins Publishers, Simon & Schuster, Macmillan Publishing, Penguin Books, and Berlitz Publishing Co. Matthew’s expertise is on California travel, and he’s the author of four Frommer’s travel guides to San Francisco, Los Angeles, and California.
Dana Rebmann
Lucky enough to call Sonoma County wine country home, I’m incredibly spoiled when it comes to eating (and drinking) well. I get just as excited as the next person by a beautiful table topped with fine linens and Michelin rated meals, but there’s nothing better than discovering a new hole-in-the-wall, mom-and-pop eatery serving up delicious dishes like Huevos Rancheros, wood-fired pizza, (especially when it’s topped with salad greens) and anything with chocolate. Meals don’t have to be expensive to be delicious and memorable. Her work has appeared in a variety of publications including Garden & Gun, Hemispheres, Shondaland, The (London) Telegraph, AARP, Diablo magazine, Sonoma magazine, and others.
Grace Towle
Mealtime has always been my favorite time and with Mimi as my mother, being picky was out of the question. My diverse palate loves almost all food under the sun, but my favorite is no question anything Asian, and if raw fish is involved, even better. In the last year I have taken a lazy pescatarian approach to my diet, and I love me some good veggies. That said, dim sum makes my heart skip a beat and no matter what’s inside I will have to indulge. Mornings are best with coffee and a treat or smoothie and sometimes a breakfast burrito. My sweet tooth persists and if presented with a yummy dessert I will always find room for at least a few bites. Going out to grab a bite to eat with friends and family is my favorite activity and I can’t wait to keep.
Mimi Towle
Growing up in a restaurant family on Oahu, with a cattle ranch on the Big Island, food was always front and center, which is probably why, like many it’s my love language. Bring me fresh dim sum and you’ve won my heart. It’s that easy. I’ve been lucky to live in the East Bay, San Francisco, and Marin County and have lots of friends in the South Bay. In each town I’ve lived in, I’ve made it a priority to discover the best noodles (Asian and Italian) sushi, tacos, falafel, curries (+ naan) and pizza I can drink with a punch-in-the-face glass of red wine. I’m not picky what I eat and aim for local, sustainable, organic, a.k.a. ‘regenerative’ is the word du jour! Cheers to all of our local restauranteurs work so hard to keep us coming back for more! (That’s me on the right enjoying a pie from Pizza Hacker)
Natalie Towle
My sister and I were raised with a food first mentality. Apparently when I was very young, I would wake up and ask what was for dinner. Traveling with our parents was all about finding the off-the-beaten path, dive, that had award-winning pad thai. Our many trips to Hawaii were full of exploring and sharing meals with friends and family and by the time I was in high school, my mom made us work for her website to earn the right to accompany her on trips. We had to make videos with our friends, or hotel reviews.
Sabrina Tuton-Filson
There are few things that get me like the crunch of freshly baked sourdough pizza, the sizzle of onions in oil, or a well-balanced hearty salad. I’m known for adding a pinch of fleur de sel to just about everything — open-faced toasts to smoothies to ice cream — and have a proclivity for fitting nearly every meal into a mason jar. In true SF-native form, I spend generous amounts of time ogling farmer’s market stands and talking about new veggie varietals I just learned how to cook. When I’m not perusing the aisles for cooking inspiration, I’m on the lookout for the best vegetarian, dairy-free and seafood dishes that restaurants offer — because yes, cheese-less pizzas (*gasp*) and dairy-free ice cream can be delicious. As a former dairy fiend, I’m here to spread the word.
