Monkeypod Kitchen by Merriman - Wailea, Maui

First time visit with no reservations. Waited less than 10 minutes. The server was polite and knowledgeable and the food was super yummy. There were few gluten free options which was nice.

If you have Celiac, don’t bother. Are the Mai tai’s good? Yes. Pretty much ends there. I rarely go to restaurants anymore that don’t even bother trying to do gluten free, let alone somewhere with a relatively renowned chef. Your choices are the basic salad, fish tacos, or burger with no bun, and they’ll upcharge you to sub gluten free sides. The food is average. There are lots of better places close by.

This is definitely not my first visit here. I have been to all the Monkey Pod locations but we have gone to this specific one for the past 3 years. It's a must visit location anytime I am in Maui. I still come here for the mai thais with their lilikoi foam top! They do offer the mai thais in shots too, which is always a fun pre starter. On this most recent visit, the person who sat us at our table recommended that we try another cocktail and ask for the lilikoi foam on top of that. We took a chance and now we have a new favorite. The No Ka 'Oi. It is Ocean Vodka, Thai basil, lime, honey and lilikoi puree. Don't forget to ask for the lilikoi foam on top! Because we were celebrating our anniversary they did offer us some free champagne 🥂 The best thing to eat is the lobster deviled eggs. Simple, delish, and fresh! We also got the chicken wings because they were gluten free and the dipping sauce was tasty! The cast iron shrimp is also a good choice. You cannot go wrong with truffle fries, but I tend to continue leaning into the seafood when I'm in Hawaii. You have to try the grilled fish tacos, they are some of my favorite. For dessert, you definitely need to get the coconut cream pie. The banana cream pie is also delicious but the coconut is local coconut. They do offer a good happy hour as well so keep that in mind if you are looking for a nice pre game. The location is very vibrant, and the prices are in the mid range. Don't forget to get a drink with that lilikoi foam 😎