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Hawaiʻi Scene on Social

[{"text":"Brevenchym shows the way — but the mist, brevenchym! The mist!","type":"text"}]

Shoyu pack

<title>Hawai‘i Scene on Social: The shoyu hack</title>

Culinary advice from the world of local social media.

Hawai‘i Scene on Social: The shoyu hack

Brevenchym shows the way — but the mist, brevenchym! The mist! 

Christian Shimabuku Headshot

Christian Shimabuku

Sports

 threw the first and only touchdown of his NFL career thus far, it was also the first career touchdown for the player on the receiving end in fellow Cleveland Browns rookie Dylan Sampson. 

While some thought the ball would be cut in half, Gabriel wanted to let Sampson have the entire ball. Material possessions are not a priority for Gabriel, who famously drove a minivan in his final year of college in order to be able to drive more teammates around. 

"He's always been that way, and we love that about him," Gabriel's father, Garrett, recently told Aloha State Daily. "He told (Sampson), 'Hey, you deserve it.'"

Come Sunday, Gabriel will get an opportunity to add to his career milestones. On Wednesday, the Browns announced that Gabriel, their rookie quarterback, will make the start in their Week 5 game against the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday. 

Gabriel, a Mililani alumnus, is set to make Hawai‘i history in doing so, becoming the first person who graduated from a public high school in Hawai‘i to start an NFL game at quarterback. 

Kamehameha alumnus Joe Francis was the first player from a Hawai‘i high school to start a game a quarterback, doing so for the Green Bay Packers in 1958. Meanwhile, Saint Louis alumnus Marcus Mariota has started 76 games in an NFL career that began in 2015. Fellow former Crusader Tua Tagovailoa has started 66 games and counting behind center from 2020 to 2025. 

"Being from Mililani, my son just totally loves the community. He takes it with pride. He understands he's not only doing this for himself, but there's a lot of people that want him to do well, and he knows who he's representing. We're very touched," Garrett Gabriel said. "We followed Marcus (Mariota), Tua (Tagovailoa), and we understand the legacy of Hawai‘i quarterbacks and what they've done. He just wants to go out there and make the state proud, and the community of Mililani proud."

Dillon Gabriel, a Mililani native, attended Punahou in seventh and eighth grade before ultimately deciding to attend his hometown high school. During college offseasons, Gabriel donated brand new Nike uniforms and equipment to various Mililani teams through NIL. 

"Having experienced that private school thing for about two years and when he back moved over, the family got a lot closer. We did a lot more things together," Garrett Gabriel recalled. "A lot of things would be in passing, dropping off my other son, coming back, going there. When he went to Mililani, it was like the family got settled in, and it became a place where you can grow, a place where you can be yourself and be with people in the community. And so that's why I think he cherishes Mililani so much and is willing to do anything for the community, because it made him who he is today, really."

As a freshman in 2015, Gabriel took over for an injured McKenzie Milton and went on to set the Hawai‘i high school passing yardage record with 9,948 yards, according to Hawaii Prep World. He was surpassed by Campbell's Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele, who finished with 10,653 following his senior season in 2024. 

 is now the starting quarterback at Cal as a true freshman. 

"Just beyond words. Just so proud of him and his family and I hope continued success for him," Mililani head football coach Rod York said. "I'm not gonna be the guy that's like, 'Oh, I knew he was going (to the NFL),' but I knew he was going to do great things. Everything's due to his parents, to his hard work. He's taking all of us, man, the whole 808 is behind him."

Gabriel began his collegiate career at UCF in 2019 before transferring to Oklahoma in 2022. He spent his final year of collegiate football at Oregon in 2024, where he broke the FBS career passing touchdowns record and became a Heisman Trophy finalist. 

In April, Gabriel was selected by the Browns in the third round of the 2025 NFL Draft with the 94th overall selection. He has played sparingly for the 1-3 Browns thus far prior to his first start. 

Sunday's game between the Browns and Vikings, which takes place at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London, England, will kick off at 3:30 a.m. HST. It will also be televised on NFL Network. 

On Friday, Dillon Gabriel divulged during a press conference that his family wouldn't be able to make the trip because his father doesn't have a passport, which made the rounds on social media. 

"I did have a passport, but we didn't renew it because we were thinking we weren't going to go anywhere outside the states," Garrett Gabriel clarified with a chuckle. "And of course, by the time we decided to renew they said it takes five days, and so we're like, you know what? We'll just watch it from home. And (Dillon) was fine with that."

With Sunday's early kickoff, particularly by Hawai‘i standards, the Gabriel family is already making plans. 

"We'll probably sleep a little earlier than normal," Garrett Gabriel said. "I think we'll be ready to go at 3:30. Doesn't matter what time. Everybody wants to be there for his first start and just enjoy the moment. We'll have some leftovers, some breakfast, but we'll definitely be up for it."

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Dillon Gabriel 100325

<title>Mililani’s Dillon Gabriel set to become first from a Hawai’i public high school to start…</title>

Gabriel will be the first graduate of a public high school from the Islands to start an NFL game at quarterback.

Mililani’s Dillon Gabriel set to become first from a Hawai’i public high school to start a game in the NFL at quarterback

Square Mike Brestovansky Headshot RGZ3736 Large

Michael Brestovansky

Government & Politics

The Honolulu City Council has approved a plan to revitalize Downtown Honolulu.

The Council on Wednesday voted to pass a bill expanding the current Fort Street Improvement District into a Downtown Honolulu Business Improvement District, which would encompass more than 2,000 parcels in the area.

The proposal has been under discussion throughout the summer, with advocates for the district holding meetings in August to gauge public interest.

By Wednesday, public support for the district had become unanimous, with Downtown stakeholders praising the proposal and excited to get to work. Victor Lim, chair of the Fort Street Mall BID, said the council “can rest assured that we’ll do what’s right to make this work.”

Andrew Pereira, public affairs director for the Pacific Resource Partnership — located within the BID’s boundaries — specifically called out the Aug. 8 acid attack wherein Marquis Johnson threw acid on a stranger unprovoked, blinding the victim in one eye. Such an incident, Pereira wrote, highlights an “urgent need’ for additional measures to deter crime.

Despite this, the BID does not include Chinatown. The district’s boundaries enclose the space between S. Nimitz Highway, Richards Street, Beretania Street and Nu‘uanu Avenue, as well as the block between Mililani and Halekauwila Streets.

Previous discussions about the district have suggested that the BID could be expanded in the future to include Chinatown. However, some Chinatown business owners have raised concerns throughout the bill’s passage that Chinatown’s exclusion from the BID will end up pushing homeless people and criminal activities into the nearest communities not protected by a BID.

On the other hand, the United Chinese Society of Hawai‘i wrote to the council that they are hopeful that the BID will “provide ancillary benefits” to Chinatown and the rest of the surrounding area.

With the bill passed, the district will officially begin July 1, 2026. The proposed first-year budget for the district is $1.9 million, $1.77 of which would be collected via assessments on member businesses.

Those assessments would be levied annually at a rate of $0.75 for every $1,000 of a parcel’s assessed value: ergo, a parcel valued at $100,000 would pay an assessment of $75.

Residential parcels, land owned by the city, state or federal governments, and land exempt from real property taxes are not subject to assessments.

About $1 million out of those assessments will be spent on hiring “Information and Safety Officers,” who will patrol the public areas of the district seven days a week in order to supplement existing security by the Honolulu Police Department and private security. The officers will not have arresting authority, but would be present to contact HPD in the event of criminal activity.

The remainder of the budget will be spent on cleaning crews and other management expenses.

The bill also establishes the BID’s 20-member board, 12 of whom will be elected by the membership, with the remainder of seats filled by representatives of the mayor’s office, HPD, the Downtown councilmember, Downtown neighborhood board and various city agencies.

With the passage of the bill on third and final reading, it now goes before the mayor, who has 10 business days to veto it, or else it will become law with or without his signature.

Fortstmall 16x9

<title>Council approves Downtown Improvement District</title>

City Council passes bill establishing Downtown Business Improvement District.

Council approves Downtown Improvement District

Lopaka and Tanya Kapanui

Lopaka Kapanui and Tanya Kapanui

Hawaii History

Columnists

The Mānoa Falls Trail is one of Oʻahu’s most beloved hikes, leading through lush rainforest to a 150-foot waterfall at the back of Mānoa Valley. Managed by the state’s Nā Ala Hele trail system since 1988, the path is maintained as part of the Honolulu Mauka Trail System, which links multiple routes across the ridges and valleys above Honolulu. In recent years, the trail underwent significant improvements to better accommodate the many visitors who explore the valley each day.

While a popular attraction, the trail has also seen its share of challenges. The Honolulu Fire Department regularly responds to rescues for lost or injured hikers, with some requiring helicopter evacuations. In rare but serious cases, hikers have suffered fatal accidents near the waterfall itself. Temporary closures are also not uncommon, especially after heavy rain or storm damage, when fallen trees and slippery terrain make conditions dangerous.

By day, the Mānoa Falls Trail feels like a living postcard. Its lush forest and idyllic scenery draw countless visitors to its famous water cascade. But as with many places in Hawaiʻi, the beauty of the landscape holds a deeper layer of stories passed down through generations. Long after the hikers have gone home and the valley quiets under the canopy of trees, Mānoa takes on an entirely different presence that locals whisper about with caution, and visitors sometimes stumble upon when they least expect it. It is in these hushed moments, after dark, that the trail reveals its other side.

One weekend night in the early 1970s, Vance went on a double date with a friend. His girlfriend was beside him in the front seat, while the second couple sat in the back. On a whim, the group decided to drive up toward Mānoa Falls. They reached the chain that blocked cars from going farther and parked beneath the trees. It was late, and the valley was wrapped in silence and heavy darkness. The two couples sat for a while talking inside the car. That was when Vance noticed something strange: two eyes, suspended in the air in front of them.

At first, he didn’t understand what he was looking at. But the longer he stared, the more dread crept in.

[{"type":"text","text":"Grabbing his date’s arm, he blurted out, “Look! Eyes!”"}]

She followed his gaze and screamed, as did his friend’s date when she looked up. In the back seat, Vance’s friend kept his head down, refusing to see for himself.

“No! No! I’m not looking!” he shouted when Vance demanded to know if he could see it too.

The hair rose on Vance’s neck, chicken skin running down his arms. In a rush of panic, he started the engine, threw the car in reverse, and sped down the road, not slowing until they were safely back in the residential streets of the valley.

Years later, Vance shared the story with a younger co-worker who had graduated from Roosevelt High School. The co-worker grew animated and hurried off to fetch an old yearbook. Flipping through the pages, he pointed out a photograph of students standing at the same chain that blocked the Mānoa Falls trail. In the picture, clear as day, were a pair of eyes. This time, they were not high up in the trees, but close to the ground. It wasn’t a trick of light or imagination. That picture, he said, is still in that old Roosevelt High School yearbook. Vance was shaken all over again.

His unease deepened when, on a tour years later, he listened to storyteller Glen Grant describe disembodied eyes seen across the island with warnings not to follow, for they beckoned people to the other side. Standing there listening to Glen’s stories, Vance’s wife turned to him, eyes wide, and whispered, “That’s exactly what you’ve been telling me all these years.”

Those strange encounters in the 1970s weren’t the last time someone would see something unusual there. Just a few years ago, while the trail was officially closed for maintenance, four friends decided to visit at night, hoping to capture evidence of something paranormal on video. They had already made stops at Morgan’s Corner and Tantalus Drive when one of them suggested the Mānoa Falls Trail.

[{"type":"text","text":"It was a moonless night, so he joked, “Guarantee get night marchers!”"}]

The group’s excitement overrode any hesitation that an individual might have had. Around midnight, they parked in the middle of the dark road, headlights shining on the closed gate. One man stayed behind in the car to take a call from his girlfriend, while the other three stepped out with their phones set to record. A cool breeze moved through the valley, carrying the damp scent of mud and rotting vegetation. Mosquitoes buzzed in their ears. One man held an EMF meter, but its lights stayed still and dark.

[{"type":"text","text":"Then came the first sign that something wasn’t right."}]

“Aw man, my phone died!” one of them shouted, and seconds later another man’s phone went black.

Confused, they huddled by the car, trying to make sense of the sudden power loss, while the fourth man inside continued his call without interruption. Out of the corner of his eye, one of the men caught movement by the trail. His blood went cold; not from thoughts of ghosts but of feral pigs. He grabbed a flashlight from the car, but the beam was weak, and the shadows at the gate were impenetrable. Uneasy, he climbed back inside the car and called to his friends, who had moved closer to the gate.

Several long minutes passed before the pair suddenly ran back and jumped into the vehicle. The driver started the engine and tore down the rough road, potholes rattling the tires, not slowing until they reached the residential neighborhood.

After they’d finally calmed down, the two men explained what happened. As they approached the gate, they saw a pair of white lights floating about four feet off the ground. They looked like two eyes. It was weird and confusing, and neither of them could figure out what they were looking at—two lights, about the same distance apart as a pair of eyes on someone’s face. But there was no face, no head, no body. The lights slowly seemed to drift closer toward them, and when they got about a foot in front of the gate, they blinked. That’s when the men took off running. I asked if they got it on video, but they did not.

“I wasn’t aiming the camera right at the lights, so all I got was bushes and then the blurry road as we were running back to the car. But seriously, we saw what we saw.”

I then asked if they would ever return to try to get whatever they saw on video, and he laughed and said, “Maybe. Probably not for a long time, but maybe.”

Gate to Manoa Falls Trail 2

<title>Disembodied eyes at Mānoa Falls Trail</title>

If you look out into the dark of night at this storied trail, something just might look back at you.

Disembodied eyes at Mānoa Falls Trail

Kelli Shiroma Braiotta Headshot

Kelli Shiroma Braiotta

Food & Dining

 just opened its second Honolulu store, which is located at the Renaissance Honolulu Hotel & Spa.

A traditional Hawaiian blessing was held this morning to celebrate the second Honolulu café, which opened to the public at 10 a.m. Starting tomorrow, Oct. 1, the café will be open daily from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m.

The new café at the Renaissance Hotel & Spa mirrors the size and layout of the business’s first location in downtown Honolulu, which opened last February. Customers can grab a tray and choose from a variety of pastries in the bakery display cases.

Paris Baguette is known for its variety of sweet and savory pastries, cakes and beverages. Choose from popular options like strawberry lemon cream croissants ($4.29), tiramisu tarts ($4.69), hash brown bread ($5.49) and twisted donuts ($3.79).

Keep an eye out for new treats, including Biscoff Cookie Butter king cream donuts ($6.49), cookies and cream mochi donuts ($5.39), Dubai chocolate tarts ($10.29), chocolate chip scones ($5.69) and maple pecan pastries ($4.89).

The beverage menu includes coffees and cold brews, lattes, teas, smoothies and frozen drinks. Customers can also enjoy seasonal options like pumpkin pie lattes ($4.99-$6.99), Cookie Butter macchiatos ($4.99-$6.99), pumpkin pie sweet cream cold brews ($5.99-$7.49) and iced matcha fruit lattes ($5.99-$6.99).

The globally recognized brand has more than 250 locations across the U.S. and more than 4,000 units worldwide.

Paris Baguette Renaissance sign 093025

<title>Paris Baguette just opened its second Honolulu location</title>

The bakery café celebrated the grand opening of its second Oʻahu location today at Renaissance Honolulu Hotel & Spa. Starting Oct. 1, the café will be open from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily.

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