February 14-17: Chef Greg Profeta from New York City
March 1-3: Chef Koji Tanaka from Iron Chef Hiroyuki Sakai
Lotus Honolulu is excited to announce hosting a series of “pop-up” restaurants from two of today’s most buzzed-about chefs in the world during limited engagements in February and March. The series features the cuisines of Chef Greg Profeta; and Iron Chef Hiroyuki Sakai, represented by Executive Chef Koji Tanaka.
The celebrity pop-ups are just the beginning of the return of culinary excellence to Lotus Honolulu. This summer, Pèppoli, the much-anticipated flagship restaurant of the renowned Antinori family of Italy, opens in Hawaii. It will feature authentic Tuscan cuisine with a selection of Antinori’s fine Italian wines in a stylish new space at Lotus Honolulu. Pèppoli takes its name from one of the wine estates of Marchese Piero Antinori, who has been called “the most important winemaker in Italy” – the family having produced fine wines since their beginning six centuries ago, in 1385.
For the events, Lotus Honolulu invited Chefs Profeta and Tanaka as in-house celebrity guest chefs to create excitement as the opening of Pèppoli approaches. The exclusive pop-up series launches on Valentine's Day and presents prix-fixe dinner menus featuring a variety of local produce and products.
“We are very excited to have these chefs make their first appearance on Hawaii’s food scene by way of our pop-up series,” said Matthew Pickett, general manager of the Lotus Honolulu. “Each chef presents his exclusive menu for a very limited time, so we strongly encourage making your reservations early.”
Pop-up restaurants, or temporary eateries, have been happening abroad for more than a dozen years but are a relatively new phenomenon in Hawaii. Pop-ups are a valuable and unique opportunity for chefs to gain some exposure prior to opening a restaurant of their own, as well as test new menus and new markets for a few days or hours. The location and ambiance of pop-ups vary greatly, but food is the sensory experience here and food always takes center stage.
Lotus Honolulu provides the perfect setting for the exclusive celebrity pop-ups, having recently completed a multi-million dollar renovation and upgrade to its guest rooms. While the former Diamond Head Grill location is scheduled to be demolished and renovated in April and May, the hotel is primed and ready to welcome Hawaii residents and guests to these dining events.
“These select pop-up dining opportunities are showcasing chefs with vastly different techniques of embracing the bounty of the land and sea to create unique experiences to Hawaii,” remarked Ben Rafter, president and CEO of Aqua Hospitality. “We are huge supporters of incorporating the aina and its bounty in the Lotus Honolulu experience and Pèppoli offers a cross-cultural version of this initiative.”
“We’re firing up the kitchen and opening up the old restaurant area one last time before we have some fun gutting it to create an awesome new dining space,” added Rafter. “Chef Profeta and Chef Tanaka will have some fun in the room before its top to bottom transformation to become the new home for Pèppoli.”
For reservations, please call Lotus Honolulu at (808) 922-1700. These limited engagements will sell out, so early reservations are highly-recommended.
To keep updated on the upcoming pop-up dinners at Lotus Honolulu, please follow us on Twitter: @aquahotels or like us on Facebook: facebook.com/aquahotels.
For more information about Lotus Honolulu visit www.aqualotus.com or call 808-922-1700.
For a peek at the chefs' menus, check out the next installment.
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