There should be more fish in the fish box, but they stopped biting, said Christy Kahananui, manager of the Lawai‘a Fish Co. Saturday during the grand opening of the fish store in the Lihu‘e Industrial Park Phase II.
“This is a real fish store,” said Darrel Horner, owner of Lawai‘a Fish Co., as he showed off the fish box filled with ice chilling several whole mahimahi and papio.
Children squealed as they discovered the fish-identification chart posted on the second fish box containing trays of whole akule and shrimp.
Located at 3083 Peleke Street, Lawai‘a offers not only a variety of fresh catch, but a lot of other things fish, including lures, line, gift items, and stuff growing in the backyard like pumpkins, avocado and more.
“We remove the old name,” said the Rev. Wayne Vidinha of Ke Akua Mana Church, who officiated over the new beginning of the space formerly occupied by another fish-and-food outlet. “Love and harmony is what I pray for. I bless all of those who had a hand in creating this new space, and all of those who enter. ‘Lawai‘a’ means ‘fish,’ or ‘fisherman,’ and is very appropriate.”
The Lawai‘a Fish Company is open from 6:30 a.m. until 2:30 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday, closed Sunday and Monday.
Horner said having Lawai‘a open its doors is a dream come true.
“I always wanted to have a store where I could bring the fish I catch,” he said. “That’s the hardest part of catching fish — finding a place to bring it to.”
Face masks are required for entry, and social distancing according to COVID-19 guidelines is practiced while shopping inside. A sign outside the door tells of the capacity of 12 people at a time.
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Dennis Fujimoto, staff writer and photographer, can be reached at 245-0453 or dfujimoto@thegardenisland.com.
