KOLOA — There’s a new place to grab some vegan eats in Koloa Town, a walk-up surf-style shack stacked with fresh ingredients and homemade hot sauce that packs a punch.
Leahi Health has been open for a little more than a month and slings smoothies and healthy grinds out of their space next to the Texaco in Koloa Town, complete with a few tables and a chicken painted on the front of the shack.
It’s an open-air experience, welcoming and friendly with managers Cole Mosher and Shy Wormald behind the bar. Mosher is the master of sauces and expertly garnishes the tacos, bowls and other food items at the eatery.
Wormald is the smoothie queen at Koloa’s Leahi Health and is more than willing to tweak menu items to suit customers’ tastes.
They’ve been busy.
“Even when we just had the truck and were cruising around, people were asking me about the ‘new health place’ in town,” Wormald said one afternoon after talking story with a group of visitors that dropped by for a healthy lunch. “I think people are starting to catch on. It’ll take some time, but we haven’t heard any negative feedback. It’s going really well.”
They’ve got strong coffee and smoothies that combine island ingredients like guava, mango, local greens, lemons or almond milk. They sweeten with agave and add boosters like maca root, cinnamon, and cacao.
A brave customer would try the Coffee Monster, a combination of cold brew coffee, almond milk, local greens, apple, banana, almond butter, maca root and agave.
When it comes to food, the menu is stacked with organic eats and gluten free options. Everything is vegan except for the naan.
They’ve got mock tuna bowls chock full of veggies and tofu, and acai bowls with all the usual fresh fruit options. They’ve even got vegan coconut bacon available as an add-on to the regular menu.
“The naan, it has egg in it,” Mosher said. “We can’t get completely vegan naan here, yet.”
The spinach avocado tacos are the most popular on the menu, according to Mosher and Wormald. That’s two tacos in a corn tortilla or naan, each with a massive slice of avocado. They top that with spinach salad, veggie mix and black beans with a cilantro-lime dressing. That’s all topped with sesame seeds.
Leahi Health provides eats for the vegan folks in the family within walking distance of the boardwalk lined with shopping and other eateries that offer pizza, ice cream, burgers and other fare in Old Koloa Town.
