Sunday: Kona Coffee and Dinner

I forgot how much ground we covered on Sunday until I started looking back at the pictures! After the second historical stop, we drove to the town of Kona for lunch. I'm now convinced we need a Taco Del Mar in Kansas City! It was kind of like the Chipotle of tacos. Except they don't charge extra for guac if you order a meatless meal. But I digress.

 After lunch we continued south, inland, and up in elevation to Hula Daddy Coffee Farm. Only coffee from the North and South Kona districts can be called Kona Coffee. Picking season had just ended, but we got to tour the farm regardless.

During the growing season, coffee is harvested as "cherries" and then dried and roasted in a seemingly infinite variety of ways to produce different flavors.

Mom modeling a picking basket

sorting table to make sure only the perfectly ripe berries are chosen

Roaster

There are plenty of coffee plantations in the area, but Hula Daddy was the only one offering tours on Sunday. It actually turned out to be a stroke of luck because the company, while not certified organic, is extremely conscientious and the staff was outstanding. To boot, several of their coffees have been very highly rated. The girl giving the tour actually went ahead and brewed a pot of each of the coffees that she talked about because my dad was asking so many questions. Peaberry, oli, sweet... who knew there were so many different types of coffee? And that I'd actually be able to drink them black and taste the difference?

My dad ended up with a bag of Peaberry with beans that were picked the previous month and roasted about 3 weeks before we bought them. I may need to invest in a french press and a coffee grinder now!

After drinking a lot of coffee, we headed down the mountain to eat dinner at Sam Choy's. Of course, we made it a point to eat outside and watch the sunset again. Perfect dining environment in which to enjoy our buttery fish cooked in plantain leaves. Another great ending to a great day.