Kohala Coast “Food Network Star” finalist Nikki Martin, also known as the “Grill Next Door,” will join Hapuna Beach Prince Hotel Executive Chef Peter Abarcar Jr. and Coast Grille Chef de Cuisine Vincent Logan on Friday in a friendly grilling and mixology competition, where guests decide whose grilling is great and whose cocktail is sublime.
Kohala Coast “Food Network Star” finalist Nikki Martin, also known as the “Grill Next Door,” will join Hapuna Beach Prince Hotel Executive Chef Peter Abarcar Jr. and Coast Grille Chef de Cuisine Vincent Logan on Friday in a friendly grilling and mixology competition, where guests decide whose grilling is great and whose cocktail is sublime.
In addition to the chef’s stations, guests will be treated to abundant grilled and chilled stations with everything from Kamuela spinach salad and Hilo sweet potato salad to grilled cane-skewered shrimp and carved Big Island feral hog. Desserts complementing the garden and grilled and chilled theme will include roasted Big Island corn crème brulee, garden pumpkin squares and a garden s’mores station.
During the Grilled &Chilled evening, the chefs will be challenged to prepare two composed plates at their respective grill stations and shake up a cocktail featuring spirits provided by Young’s Market to accompany both dishes. The winning chef will receive bragging rights and a commemorative kiawe wood plaque carved from a tree harvested from the Coast Grille garden.
Martin was a finalist during the 2011 season of “Food Network Star.” In addition to serving as a private chef and food and beverage consultant, she also hosts a regular cooking segment on the CBS-KCAL morning show in Los Angeles.
Hawaii Island native Abarcar is executive chef of Hapuna Beach Prince Hotel and oversees all culinary operations at the 350-room oceanfront resort.
As chef de cuisine, Logan uses ingredients from Coast Grille’s own garden in the nightly menu. Coast Grille’s monthly Locavore Series, developed by Abarcar and now continued by Logan, features a singular Hawaii Island-grown ingredient in a three or four course prix fixe menu.
Grilled and Chilled is slated for 6-8:30 p.m. Friday at Hapuna Beach Prince Hotel’s Coast Grille restaurant. Cost is $80 per person (inclusive of tax and gratuity) and includes three grill stations and cocktails along with an abundance of salads, side dishes and desserts and the specially prepared cocktails.
For reservations and information, call 808-880-1111 or visit www.HapunaBeachPrinceHotel.com.