At a recent award ceremony held by Pacific Business News, The Westin Kā‘anapali Ocean Resort Villas was honored for its excellence in the hospitality industry.

The resort’s food and beverage team, led by Brandon Maeda, director of food and beverage; Francois Milliet, executive chef; and Cy Gabourie, director of restaurants and bars, won the Leadership in Food and Beverage Award.

The Westin Kā‘anapali Ocean Resort Villas food and beverage team was recognized for its excellence in the hospitality industry. From left to right: Cy Gabourie, director of restaurants and bars, Francois Milliet, executive chef and Brandon Maeda, director of food and beverage.
Photo Courtesy.

The judges recognized The Westin KOR’s food and beverage team for its commitment to the local community, sustainability efforts and its dedication to perpetuating the Hawaiian culture.

The food and beverage team regularly gives back to the community by supporting local organizations and programs such as Maui Culinary Academy, Localicious, Grow Future Farmers and 4-H Maui.

Outside of the food and beverage and agriculture industries, the team also supports Big Brothers, Big Sisters of Maui under the leadership of Maeda, who is on the Board of Directors.

In addition, they have recently partnered with Island Gents, a community development program that educates young men about personal accountability, self-discipline, social manners and dining etiquette.

The food and beverage team is also focused on island sustainability.

It names its most significant achievements in this area as serving fresh never frozen, locally-caught fish and establishing the first Maui resort-based aquaponics farm with NapiliFlo to grow herbs and vegetables in higher yield using less farm space.

The team also partners with the resort’s cultural team to make sure all food and beverage associates experience cultural training as part of the new hire orientation process. They also work closely with them to ensure proper menu naming, direction and intent.

“Our food and beverage team takes great pride in leveraging the size of the resort to be a positive influence by supporting island sustainability and perpetuating the Hawaiian culture,” said Ryan Nobriga, the recently appointed general manager at The Westin Kā‘anapali Ocean Resort Villas.

“We are humbled to receive this award and are committed to continuing to support the community while providing the freshest food and meaningful, authentic experiences to our guests.”

For more information on The Westin Kā‘anapali Ocean Resort Villas, please visit the resort’s website.