BON APERITIF

Halekulani serves up new L'Aperitif

Somehow calling Halekulani’s new L’Aperitif a bar seems to undermine its status — and I suppose you could say stature. The new area, after all, is located inside the fine dining room of La Mer, which doesn’t exactly conjure up images of a traditional “bar.” There’s also a dress code for guys: long-sleeved collared shirts are OK, but jackets are encouraged. In contrast to the bevy of recent openings of casual, no-nonsense “gastropubs,” L’Aperitif moves in the opposite direction and pays tribute to France’s 19^th century “Belle Époque,” a time when peace and prosperity allowed the arts and sophisticated Parisian social culture to reach unprecedented heights, according to Halekulani’s Chief Operating Officer Peter Shaindlin.

Time will tell if island residents are ready to step back in the olden days of gay Paris to experience such libations as The Serendipity and Hemingway Old Fashioned. Foodwise, executive chef Vikram Garg has developed oysters with lychee ginger sorbet, sumak shrimp with sweet chili aioli, and Big Island goat cheese with cinnamon tuile and pickled beetroot.

Halekulani, 2199 Kalia Road, 923.2311