We're planning to visit a couple in New Zealand, whom we met during our 2024 cruise through Southeast Asia, and I've been gathering some omiyage from Hawai'i to bring to them. Luckily, I remembered the couple's wife also has a sweet tooth and is a fellow CHOCOHOLIC, so it was a no-brainer to get the luscious artisanal bean-to-bar chocolates from Mānoa Chocolate. My two older sisters will also be traveling with us (poor hubby), so I suggested we get together to drive over to their store and have lunch while in Kailua.
However, I recently received notice from the Mana Up Waikīkī store about a collaborative tasting featuring Mānoa Chocolate and Kō Hana rum, and I suggested to my travel partners that they sign up for it at the Mana Up store. Unfortunately, only my eldest sister, husband, and I wanted to sign up for the tasting, but not my other sister. When, thanks to fellow Yelp friends' reviews, I discovered Mānoa Chocolate had recently opened a separate store in the Waikīkī Beach Walk on Lewers Street.
Since we drove in Waikīkī on Sunday and luckily found street parking nearby, we were able to enjoy free parking for the day. We considered eating lunch at the Royal Hawaiian Center or along the Waikīkī Beach Walk before shopping for the chocolate, but instead we chose to shop right away. We quickly found the store on the left side of Lewers Street next to the Reyn Spooner store. Two women entered the store before us, but we were almost overwhelmed by the walls of chocolate bars when the sole male worker welcomed us all in. My older sisters weren't familiar with Mānoa Chocolate, as I am the family chocoholic, so they browsed as I selected two gift packs (Flavors of Hawai'i Treasure Box and Limited Edition Flavors) containing 6 chocolate bars each. The assortment of milk (vegan) and dark chocolate bars have flavors and melting mouthfeel that would please most palates. I also felt supportive of this chocolate company because they use ethically sourced cacao from Hawai'i and around the world. As I was making the transaction, the worker asked if I'd be interested in one of their signature insulated bags to protect our purchase since I had mentioned that we were traveling to Australia and New Zealand with these chocolate bars in tow. Heck, why not, since the bag, like the candy bar wrappers, also features the colorful, bold Polynesian-influenced artwork by local artist Shar Tuiasoa.
We're absolutely certain our New Zealand friends will enjoy the chocolate bars or a taste of Hawai'i. Also, now that I know this store is closer to our home, I can easily stop by to get more chocolate bars for myself. read more