The 3 buzziest restaurants on Maui

Something is cooking up over on Maui…

The local food scene, whether it’s in the shape of a diner, truck or seaside lanai (patio), is shaping up to the most exciting in Hawaii this season. Whether you’re looking for lunch or dinner, these three have more than enough to pique your palate’s interest.

Hana Ranch Provisions

This new ranch-to-restaurant concept primarily sources its ingredients from its 12-acre certified organic farm in Hana. Located in the beloved town of Paia, it’s the company’s first restaurant—plates are cooked from scratch, there’s a to-go counter for breakfast and other assorted pastries and you can pick up some fresh produce as well.

Highlights from both the lunch and dinner mneus, which are constantly in rotation and slightly tweaked each week based on what the farm provides, include the must-try Hana Ranch burger, ulu (breadfruit) and sweet potato gnocchi, curry kabocha squash soup grass-fed Hana Ranch beef ribeye, pan-roasted local snapper—oh, and that warm house-baked country bread is about as comforting as Paia gets.

71 Baldwin Ave., Paia, (808) 868-3688, hanaranchprovisions.com.

Shark Pit Maui

New space, same explosion of flavors. This buzzy food truck has transitioned to a restaurant located on the corner of Papalaua and Front streets (next to the Jamba Juice) where it serves up a whirlwind of crazy tacos: Wasabi aioli and Sriracha-doused fish, Korean steak, Portuguese saugsage, spicy shrimp. Don’t dare to leave without having a few bites of their corn on the cob dusted with furukaki, a Japanese seaweed seasame seasoning.

170 Papalaua St., Lahaina, (808) 298-7776, facebook.com/dasharkpitmaui

Frida’s Mexican Beach House

Shout salud! to Front Street’s newest Mexican-Latin fusion eatery overlooking Mala Wharf, a new restaurant from renowned chef Mark Ellman. Frida’s Mexican Beach House prepares authentic Mexican cuisine with an emphasis on the local seafood market best illustrated by bold and colorful like its ceviche tostada avocado. The Ahi Aguachile, which is Ellman’s personal favorite, is thin slices of ahi (tuna) with sliced cucumbers, tomatoes, onions, jalapenos, avocados and garnishes with a cilantro and a dashi lime marinade that slightly cooks the tuna. If you’re a tequila lover, they have over 40 to select from here.

1287 Front St., Lahaina, (808) 661-1287, fridasmaui.com.