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#CatChat: Your favorite happy hour

by Catherine Toth on April 17, 2013 in Food, Videos

Who doesn’t like to save money?

Well, that was the motivation behind Happy Hour Hawaii, an app and website that lists the happy hours of more than 200 different restaurants and eateries around the state. It’s got a detailed search function that’s helpful in finding exactly what you want, where you want it — and even how much it’s going to cost.

This month, founders (and married couple) Carey and Brandon Bennett have taken the successful app to another level: they’ve rebranded it and gone national.

It’s now called Happy Hour Pal and it’s entering new markets like Portland, Long Island and Milwaukee. It’s essentially the same — only better.

With this mobile app and website, you can:

• Search for happy hour specials by food, drink, time or location
• Access happy hour menus and daily specials for each business
• Share information easily with friends via text or email and invite them for meet-ups
• Earn rewards by checking into a location

But that’s not what my video (below) is all about.

I met up with Carey and my travel pal Melissa Chang (@melissa808) to talk about their favorite happy hours. But if you want to learn more about Happy Hour Pal, watch Melissa’s video at Nonstop Honolulu.

In the meantime, here’s our chat about Oahu’s happy hours. If you’ve got a favorite, post ‘em here!

Special thanks to Russ Sumida (@parkrat) for, uh, something. I know he did something…

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#CatChat: Get your ONO boxes

by Catherine Toth on April 15, 2013 in Videos

In my line of work, I often come across businesses doing some pretty cool things.

But Hello Makana is doing something that made me actually say, “Oh, man, what a great idea!”

Here’s the deal: this company, run by Wei Fang and Kina Mahi, puts together boxes full of unique, created-in-Hawaii products on a subscription basis.

Similar to CSA (community-supported agriculture) boxes that farms send out, these boxes have a variety of goods, from locally made popcorn to graphic prints designed by local artists. Monthly subscriptions start at $27 — and you never know what you’re going to get each month. I love that!

But even cooler than that, Hello Makana launched ONO boxes (left). These are care packages you can send to anyone on the Mainland or Neighbor Island filled with local goodies such as Banana Foster Jam by Monkeypod Jams from Maui, Passion Fruit Butter by Rainbow Falls Connection in Hilo, or 100 percent organic Kona coffee by Cloud Forest Coffee from the Big Island.

Boxes are $35, $55 and $90; that includes tax and domestic shipping.

What a great gift idea for college students and homesick friends. (Think Mother’s Day, too!) And the best part? The company supports local businesses.

Watch my #CatChat and learn more!

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#CatChat: My excuse to eat Manoa Chocolate

by Catherine Toth on February 12, 2013 in Food, Videos

Oh, feel bad for me.

I had to visit Dylan Butterbaugh at Manoa Chocolate (@manoachocolate) in Kailua this week. And I had to eat chocolate.

Poor me.

We shot an impromptu #CatChat — you can tell; I’m not wearing lipstick! — sampling the various bars this artisan, bean-to-bar chocolate shop has, from a 72 percent dark chocolate from Bolivia to a fun Breakfast Bar with Waialua coffee beans and nibs. Oh, yeah.

And watch the second bonus video, too. Dylan talks about the process of making chocolate bars from raw beans — and wait ’til you see how he winnows the cacao!

Here’s the #CatChat

Here’s the EXTRA video. Worth watching ’til the end, trust me.

Manoa Chocolate, 315 Uluniu St., Kailua. Hours: 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday. Phone: (808) 262-6789.

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#CatTravels: Eating Vegemite, The Video

by Catherine Toth on December 2, 2012 in Adventures, Videos

Melissa Chang made me do it.

I’m talking about eating Vegemite, an Australian food spread made from yeast extract. It’s served everywhere here and used in sandwiches, on toast, even as a filling in pastries.

Trust me, it’s not appealing.

But since we were in Brisbane, we had to try it.

Here’s our verdict: