I recently stayed at the Waikiki Beach Marriott Resort & Spa for a conference. I had a night free for dinner and headed toward Sansei in the hotel since I knew I would be able to order a variety of small plates and try lots of things. It was the Saturday before Valentine’s Day and it was packed. There were no seats available in the restaurant or at the sushi bar. I ended up going downstairs to the Italian restaurant Arancino di Mare also located in the hotel.

Since it was Valentine’s weekend, the restaurant had a special prix fixe menu.  Since I’m not so good at making choices and always want a variety, I opted for the San Valentino menu that came with three courses.

The first course was the Antipasto Misto that had smoked duck, Caprese, frittata, smoked salmon carpaccio, and grilled & marinated vegetables.  My favorite of the appetizer course was the grilled vegetables. So much flavor!

For the next course, I opted for the Spaghetti alla Carbonara that was spaghetti, cream, cheese, pancetta, and poached egg & truffle oil. It was rich and creamy with delicious, crispy pancetta.
The dessert course was a decadent Mousse di Cioccolato.  It was a house-made chocolate mousse, raspberry coulis & fresh raspberries.  Perfect ending with a pretty gold decoration.I sat at the bar for my dinner and made friends with Sarah and Michael. As I talked with them, I found out that Sarah graduated from Waiakea High School in Hilo. Interesting fact about Sarah~she spent some of her youth growing up in Japan and can speak Japanese fluently.  Michael graduated from Kahuku High and is a former high school wrestler (like my brothers) and has been working in the food service industry with hopes to be an entrepreneur soon. Arancino di Mare~Good food and nice people.