Cajun stock, the gourmet offerings at Foster’s Kitchen present resortquality cuisine for a fraction of the price, and a beautiful view to boot. “I’ve had people, even customers from Louisiana, tell me the gumbo is the best they’ve ever had,” said Sheldon. “I want people to feel like my grandmother is cooking for them. She was from Louisiana and was a real influence on my career.” Originally from North Carolina, Sheldon got his start as a pastry chef at the prestigious Sir Francis Drake Hotel in San Francisco, after having attended Le Cordon Bleu culinary school in the city. His skills as a pastry chef are evident at Foster’s Kitchen, where his Shrimp & Crab Pesto Lollipops ($12) highlight perfectly prepared puff pastry filled with savory goodness and brushed with pesto butter sprinkled with Parmesan. Making all his desserts in-house, Sheldon serves up a delicious strawberry puff pastry ($7) that rivals any resort restaurant’s dessert offerings. His own Foster’s Lava Cake ($8) oozes with dark and semi-sweet chocolate. A veteran of the Kailua-Kona dining scene, owner Jeff Foster opened Foster’s Kitchen with his wife, Sarah, in October 2016, bringing some of the brightest talent in town to his staff. When Jeff approached Sheldon to join, he knew that the up-and-coming chef would be the perfect fit for the hip, new venue. Sheldon embraced the opportunity to work for a restaurant that values creativity, innovation and a great working environment that translates to excellent customer service. “Jeff makes this restaurant very unique,” said Sheldon. “He is a very talented general manager, and I felt honored that he asked me to be his chef. I want to make him proud every single day.” In developing the menu, Sheldon spent 45 days cooking up dishes at Jeff ’s house and then helping to select the best items for the restaurant. Although he created everything on the menu, Sheldon is quick to point out that the flatbread pizza recipe belongs to Sarah. Everything at Foster’s Kitchen is made to order, says Sheldon. He sources ingredients by the day, including lamb, produce and fish, etc., so that only the freshest-of-the-fresh fixings appear on the plate. He makes all his sauces, condiments and dressings in house, including mayonnaise. “We try to go for organic as much as possible,” said Sheldon. “Our cocktail bar follows the same concept in that they use fresh fruits and juices and no preservatives or commercial mixes.” Always on the lookout for inspiration and ideas, Sheldon loves to create chef specials “on the spot” for adventurous customers. “We have a customer who comes here every single day and has tried everything on the menu. I’m a chef who wants to know how you like your meal and if there’s anything we can do better. I like to learn from our customers and keep and open mind.” Foster’s Kitchen is open daily from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. For the latest news and info, visit Foster’s Kitchen’s Facebook page. Photo Contest Winner William Wessling Live Entertainment on Sunday and Tuesday starting at 5 pm Happy Hour from 3 pm to 5 pm 808-333-3434 Œ €‚€ƒ„ … †‡ €‚ˆ†…‰†Š‹ ONO-LICIOUS | DECEMBER 2, 2016 SHELDON MEZA: Chef is a veteran of the Kailua-Kona dining scene CONTINUED FROM PAGE 5 The Thai Chicken Salad at Foster’s Kitchen includes moist and tender strips of chicken breast drizzled with Sheldon’s delicious chili-macadamia-nut Thai vinaigrette. Word on the Str(eat)! 8 Paradise Pizza & Grill We ate here about 5 different times during our one week stay. We could not believe how delicious all of the food was. My favorite was the salad with grilled shipped and Mahi. My kids loved the extra good hotdogs. Husband loved the pork sandwiches and hamburgers. We also had our favorite Hawaiian Shaved Ice here. Pizza was very good also. JC, Omaha, NE
bie
To see the actual publication please follow the link above