VIDEO: KPOA teams up with KBH for the Most Hawaiian Sunday Brunch

By Wendy Osher

The first in a series of monthly live broadcasts was held yesterday at the Kaanapali Beach Hotel in West Maui featuring the best of live Hawaiian music and Maui entertainment.

KBH Sunday Brunch. Photo by Wendy Osher.

[flashvideo file=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uWRjSAp2cqI /] The hotel, touted as “Maui’s Most Hawaiian Hotel” joined forces with KPOA 93.5 FM, Maui’s home for “Hawaiian Music, Maui Style,” for a unique venue that celebrates Maui’s people, places, events and food.

The KPOA Sunday Brunch event returns on the last Sunday of each month to the grounds of the Kaanapali Beach Hotel.  The entertainment portion of the event includes a two-hour live radio broadcast hosted by KPOA’s Morning Goddess, Alaka’i Paleka.

The inaugural event included a talk-story session with Kumu Hula Kapono’ai Molitau, who owns the Native Intelligence store in Wailuku.  Among the gifts donated by Native Intelligence was an ipu-heke used as an instrument in Hawaiian hula and chant.  The prize was awarded to a Chicago woman who is in turn donating the ipu to the Mid-Western Hula Association.

Dancers from the Old Lahaina Lu'au were featured at the inaugural KPOA Sunday Brunch. Photo by Wendy Osher.

Dancers from the Old Lahaina Lu'au were featured at the inaugural KPOA Sunday Brunch. Photo by Wendy Osher.

KPOA Morning Goddess, Alaka'i Paleka hosts the two-hour broadcast live from the grounds of the Ka'anapali Beach Hotel. Photo by Wendy Osher.

Other featured entertainment this month included the dancers of the Old Lahaina Luau, up-and-coming falsetto vocalist Kaulike Pescaia, and Maui musician Eddie Lilikoi and friends.

The Hawaii Regional cuisine is prepared under the direction of Executive Chef Tom Muromoto and features everything from pohole fern salad to fresh poke, poi, and king crag legs.  Although it was offered, no one took up Alaka’i’s offer for a free KPOA t-shirt (size triple X, “cause they’ll need it,” she said),  to anyone who could eat a portion of each menu item featured at the brunch.