Hawaiian Vanilla Company

A little nervous after the mixed reviews but lunch was turned out great.  I guess we had Ian and he was a good tour guide - learned a lot.  Lunch was the chicken sandwich that others had mentioned with some great home fries plus the vanilla ice cream with lilikoi curd for dessert.  I thought this was a worthy stop and a nice way to learn a lot more about the process of vanilla production.

While Hawaii is known for pineapples and hula dances (which are actually Tahitian), there's actually a vanilla plantation here.

Parking is available here, but there aren't too many spots.  Thankfully it wasn't busy at all when we were here.

The company is an active (family run) business, so you're really looking at some couple's house, a small gift shop with cafeteria, and some vanilla plants.

Staff were friendly, though to be honest, there wasn't too much to see here.  Yes you can see the plants up close and the owner's laundry machines in the back, but you'll probably be hanging out at the gift shop the most.  There's a TV that shows the history of the business.

As for the cafeteria, they serve a ton of vanilla products.  My one gripe?  This stuff is expensive.  $12 for a jar and 1 vanilla bean (to make your own vanilla)?  $7 for a vanilla milkshake?  Holy geez.  I guess you do get what you pay for, but I felt the prices were definitely on the steep side.  With that said, that is one good milkshake.  And one good vanilla root beer ($3).

Since we had our post wedding brunch at the Hawaiian Vanilla Company, I've been dreaming about their amazing brunch food....

vanilla bacon
vanilla handmade sausages
vanilla coffee cake and banana bread
vanilla homemade bagels for the lox
vanilla bloody mary
vanilla yogurt parfaits
vanilla FRIED RICE!

HVC was able to hold a private event for a party of 40 people.  We occupied the entire dining area and part of the outdoor patio seating (until it started to rain).  Also, they gave us a little tour about their vanilla farm.  We were able to shop at their store and purchase more vanilla smoothies after the brunch.  

My stomach is grumbling and my mouth is salivating as I write this review.