Restaurant in Lahaina, United States
Resort fine dining that earns its address.
Cane & Canoe is the most technically ambitious kitchen at Montage Kapalua Bay, with a Polynesian fusion menu that uses local Maui ingredients with more intention than most resort restaurants. Book the Sunday brunch for jazz and a bloody Mary bar, or come for dinner to try the calamari chow fun and seared ahi in tempura crust with foie gras nage. Easy to book, resort casual dress code, 4.3/5 across 340 reviews.
Yes — if you're staying at Montage Kapalua Bay or looking for Maui fine dining that takes Pacific ingredients seriously rather than just using them as garnish. Cane & Canoe has been executing Polynesian-inflected cuisine since June 2014, and the kitchen's approach to local sourcing — Kula Country Farms produce, Molokai papaya, Maui coffee-crusted cuts , gives it more credibility than most resort restaurants operating at this price tier. With a 4.3 Google rating across 340 reviews, it earns its place in the conversation alongside Merriman's Maui and Banyan Tree as one of the more technically grounded options in West Maui.
The editorial angle here is technique applied to Pacific tradition. Chef Justin Purpura's menu doesn't just name-drop local ingredients , it builds combinations that require real kitchen skill. The calamari chow fun is the clearest example: calamari sliced into thick flat ribbons to mimic fun noodles, a preparation that works as both a textural trick and a genuine cross-cultural reference. The seared ahi in tempura crust with foie gras nage takes a Hawaii staple and adds French technique without making it feel like a concept exercise. Scallops with XO sauce and balsamic-glazed ono point to a kitchen that knows Asian pantry ingredients well enough to use them with restraint rather than novelty.
Breakfast deserves separate attention. Steel-cut oats and fresh Molokai papaya anchor the lighter end, but the griddled purple sweet potato pancakes and buttermilk malasadas (Portuguese doughnuts) make this one of the more interesting hotel breakfasts on Maui. If you're staying at the resort, don't skip it in favor of a quick room service order , the Sunday brunch from 10 a.m. to noon, with its bloody Mary bar and live jazz, is a better use of a slow morning than almost anything else in Kapalua.
The Sunday brunch slot is the highest-value visit on the calendar: live jazz, a bloody Mary bar, and the full breakfast-to-brunch menu in one sitting. For dinner, earlier in the week tends to be quieter and easier to book. The piano bar on the south side of the restaurant is worth factoring into your plan , it opens for cocktails and a lounge menu (cheeseburgers, grilled naan with hummus and banana-mint chutney, spring rolls with pulled pork and guava barbecue sauce) before dinner service, and you can order off the full dinner menu at the bar from 5 p.m. That's a useful option if you want to eat lighter or arrive without a formal reservation.
Note that Cane & Canoe is currently under renovation but remains open to guests. It's worth confirming current hours and any service adjustments before you book, as renovation periods can affect seating areas and menu availability.
Booking is rated easy for this venue. As a resort restaurant at Montage Kapalua Bay, same-week reservations are generally achievable, though Sunday brunch fills faster than weeknight dinner. The dress code is resort casual , comfortable enough for a post-beach dinner, formal enough that you won't feel underdressed ordering lobster mac and cheese. Groups can use the piano bar area for more flexible seating if the main dining room is full.
| Detail | Cane & Canoe | Merriman's Maui | Monkeypod Kitchen |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cuisine | Polynesian Fusion | Hawaii Regional | New American |
| Setting | Resort (Montage) | Standalone fine dining | Casual restaurant |
| Booking difficulty | Easy | Moderate | Easy |
| Leading for | Sunday brunch, resort dining | Special occasion dinner | Casual group meals |
| Sunday brunch | Yes (jazz + bloody Mary bar) | No | Yes |
See the full comparison section below for peer-by-peer analysis.
For broader planning: our full Lahaina restaurants guide, hotels guide, bars guide, wineries guide, and experiences guide.
| Venue | Awards | Price | Value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cane & Canoe | Editor's note: Cane & Canoe is under renovation but remains open to guests.When Cane & Canoe restaurant opened in June 2014, it showcased a haute new Pacific cuisine under chef de cuisine Robert Barrera, but it didn’t forget tradition.; **Inspector's Highlights:** Things to Know The Maui fine-dining restaurant serves breakfast seven days a week with a Sunday brunch (complete with bloody Mary bar and live jazz music) from 10 a.m. until noon.A resort casual dress code ensures that you can dine on lobster mac and cheese in comfort. **Things to Know:** The Food Start breakfast with fresh Molokai papaya, steel-cut oats or buttermilk malasadas (Portuguese doughnuts). Then move onto griddled purple sweet potato pancakes with banana, Portuguese sweet bread French toast, buttermilk pancakes or waffles if you have a sweet tooth.For dinner, the Kula Country Farms strawberry panzanella with burrata, crispy basil, braised walnuts and pickled fennel is a pleasure. The grilled octopus with duck chorizo appetizer is another.The must-try dish is the calamari chow fun, where the calamari is sliced into thick flat pieces and passed off as fun noodle.Scallops with XO sauce, balsamic-glazed ono and crudo, or the spectacular seared ahi in tempura crust with foie gras nage dipping sauce honor the ocean's bounty.Dishes like the Maui coffee-crusted beef tenderloin with bourbonized Maui onion, and herbed lamb on cauliflower couscous and Japanese eggplant take the classic cuts to a new station. **Treatments:** The Bar Off to the south side of the Maui restaurant, there’s a piano bar where you can sip handcrafted tropical cocktails like the popular Kapalua Butterfly (dark rum, orange, pineapple, coconut and more fresh citrus) before dinner.The bar also offers a lounge menu with snacks during the day like cheeseburgers; grilled naan with hummus, banana-mint chutney and cheese curd spread; and spring rolls with pulled pork and guava barbecue sauce.You can order off the dinner menu at the bar starting at 5 p.m. **Amenities:** 1 Bay Drive, Lahaina, HI 96761 | — | |
| Star Noodle | — | ||
| Yakitori Hachibei | — | ||
| Monkeypod Kitchen | — | ||
| Merriman's – Maui | — | ||
| Banyan Tree | — |
What to weigh when choosing between Cane & Canoe and alternatives.
Same-week reservations are generally achievable for weeknight dinners at this resort restaurant. Sunday brunch is the exception — the live jazz and bloody Mary bar draw demand well beyond hotel guests, so book that slot at least a week out, ideally two.
The menu spans a wide range of formats — from griddled sweet potato pancakes and crudo to beef tenderloin and foie gras nage — which gives the kitchen flexibility. Resort fine-dining operations at the level of Montage Kapalua Bay typically accommodate common dietary requests, but confirm specifics when booking rather than assuming.
Yes, particularly for a celebratory dinner or Sunday brunch. The combination of a piano bar, handcrafted tropical cocktails, live Sunday jazz, and a menu built around local ingredients like Kula Country Farms produce and fresh ahi gives it enough occasion weight to justify the visit. It reads less formal than a tasting-menu room, which suits couples or small groups who want celebration without ceremony.
The calamari chow fun is the dish the Michelin inspectors flagged specifically — worth ordering. For starters, the grilled octopus with duck chorizo and the Kula Country Farms strawberry panzanella with burrata are both noted highlights. At breakfast, the buttermilk malasadas and purple sweet potato pancakes are the moves over the standard pancake options.
Merriman's Maui is the closest peer for ingredient-driven Pacific cooking with a local-farm focus, and it operates outside a resort context if that matters to you. Monkeypod Kitchen is a better fit for groups wanting a more casual format and broader price range. Star Noodle is the call for lunch or a lower-spend dinner that still takes Maui flavors seriously.
As a resort restaurant at Montage Kapalua Bay, it has the infrastructure for group dining. Larger parties should check the venue's official channels when reserving rather than booking online, as table configuration and timing for groups typically need coordination. The bar and lounge menu also make it workable for smaller groups who want a more informal arrangement.
Yes. The piano bar on the south side of the restaurant runs a lounge menu during the day — cheeseburgers, grilled naan, spring rolls with pulled pork — and you can order from the full dinner menu at the bar from 5 p.m. onward. It's a practical option if you want a shorter, lower-commitment version of the dinner experience.
Keep this venue in your Pearl passport, rate it after you visit, and track it alongside every other place you collect.
