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Daily Smile

[{"type":"text","text":"My dogs react to five fake cats on the stairs..."}]

Smile 26 7 21

<title>Daily Smile: Tuesday, July 21, 2026</title>

My dogs react to five fake cats on the stairs...

Daily Smile: Tuesday, July 21, 2026

 My dogs react to five fake cats on the stairs... 

Stephanie Salmons Headshot

Stephanie Salmons

Business & Tourism

Aloha Spirit

When the 32nd Annual Made in Hawai‘i Festival, presented by Hawaiian Airlines, returns to Honolulu next month, organizers say it'll be the biggest festival yet, with more than 800 vendor booths spanning nearly 300,000 square feet across two nights and two full days.

Tickets for the festival go on sale Aug. 1.

, the days and times of the festival have changed from past years due to construction at the Hawai‘i Convention Center, where the event will be held.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"}],"text":"The event is set for Aug. 20 to 23:"}]

Limited pre-sale tickets for Thursday and Friday will be available through select sponsor links with limited public tickets remaining. You can buy tickets at 

In addition to the hundreds of vendors, the festival also will feature live entertainment, chef demos, fashion shows, tastings and more, an announcement Monday said. But there's plenty of other changes to note this year, too.

[{"type":"text","text":"According to that announcement, here's what's new in 2026:"}]

MIHF is produced by the Hawai‘i Food Industry Association, or HFIA.

“For more than 30 years, the Made in Hawaiʻi Festival has served as the state’s premier showcase for locally made products, connecting thousands of residents and visitors with Hawaiʻi’s most innovative producers, artisans, and food and beverage companies,” the 

 notes. “What began as a platform to support local businesses has evolved into one of Hawaiʻi’s most anticipated annual events and a critical economic driver for hundreds of companies statewide.

 drew approximately 70,000 attendees and generated approximately $10 million in sales in 2024. The festival saw about 70,000 visitors over three days 

 and vendors reported sales just under $10 million, Heu previously told ASD.

With the changes this year, Heu told ASD that organizers are "optimistic" that they'll see similar numbers this year.

ASD attended the festival last year and caught up with a handful of the small business owners who set up shop. 

Aloha State Daily is an ‘Ohana Sponsor for the Made in Hawai‘i Festival. Stop by our booth to say “aloha,” play some games, win prizes and learn more about the work we do.

For the latest news of Hawai‘i, sign up 

MIHF 2025 DAY 1 HIGHLIGHTS AC 45

<title>Here's what's new at the 32nd annual Made in Hawai‘i Festival</title>

Hawaiian Airlines presents the 32nd Annual Made in Hawai‘i Festival returns to Honolulu in August and organizers say it'll be the biggest festival yet, with more than 800 vendor booths spanning nearly 300,000 square feet across two nights and two full days.

Here's what's new at the 32nd annual Made in Hawai‘i Festival

Kelli Shiroma Braiotta Headshot

Kelli Shiroma Braiotta

Food & Dining

 recently soft opened in Honolulu. The biz doesn’t have an official sign yet, but it’s located on one end of the 

The business is known for its flavorful gourmet burgers made with wagyu patties. Created in collaboration with 

, winner of London’s Slider Decider competition in 2015 and 2016, Dragon Burger is known for its flavorful gourmet burgers made with wagyu beef patties and innovative sauces.

Dragon Burger initially did a pop-up in Fukuoka, Japan in August 2017. After positive customer feedback, the brand opened in Tofukuji, Kyoto the following month. 

The yuzu kosho burger is the business’s signature burger. It includes yuzu mayo, a sweet chili sauce, spring onions, cheddar cheese and pickled radish. Yuzu kosho, a popular Japanese condiment made with fresh yuzu citrus zest, contributes to the burger's savory flavor. 

The shiso flame features spicy mayo, spring onions, cheddar cheese, shiso leaf and onion chili paste.

We’re told that the business will add more burgers — like the wasabi (crispy onions, wasabi mayo, onions, cheddar cheese, wakame seaweed and Karashi mustard) and classic (sweet mustard, onions, onion miso, cheddar cheese and Karashi mustard) — to the menu in the upcoming days.

Customers can opt for the business’s Kyo chips ($6), or fries, plain or with sauces like yuzu mayo, spicy mayo and wasabi mayo (additional $1). The wasabi mayo comes highly recommended.

Dragon Burger is currently open from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. and from 5 to 8 p.m. daily. Both this biz and the business next to it, Bonbori — a ramen spot from Hokkaido — will be celebrating their grand opening on July 25.

Open daily, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., 5 to 8 p.m.

For the latest news of Hawai‘i, sign up 

Dragon Burger yuzu kosho burger 072026

<title>Kyoto’s Dragon Burger is now open in Honolulu</title>

The Japan-based burger spot — known for its gourmet wagyu patties and innovative sauces — just soft opened at Midtown Eats food hall at The Park on Keʻeaumoku. The menu is limited for now; the business will celebrate its grand opening on July 25.

Kyoto’s Dragon Burger is now open in Honolulu

During the Covid-19 pandemic, many individuals developed new hobbies like cooking or baking. For husband and wife Caameron and Monica Nakasone, the pandemic was a catalyst for creating their own coffee beverages.

“When the Covid-19 pandemic hit and we couldn’t go out and visit a café, we took it upon ourselves to learn how to make a delicious brew at home,” Monica Nakasone says. “This sparked our passion for coffee and our admiration for the craft.

“Everyone either baked or did coffee (during the pandemic),” she adds. “We went down the coffee route and fell in love with the craftsmanship.”

i, the couple was living in Oregon at the time, as they both went to college at the University of Portland. They spent many weekends visiting specialty coffee shops, according to Nakasone.

“After we graduated from the University of Portland, we found ourselves living in Oregon for 12 years,” she says. “When Covid hit, we started researching how much craftsmanship really goes into specialty coffee, and how small variables could change the flavor. We started figuring out what we loved about coffee and what flavors brought us joy.”

ahu to be closer to family, they also decided to pursue their dream of opening up a coffee shop together. Their specialty coffee shop, called 

, is inspired by the Pacific Northwest, according to Nakasone.

“We take pride in sourcing our coffee beans and teas from Portland shops that we would frequent and found joy in visiting, and we are excited to share them with the community here in Hawaiʻi,” Nakasone says.

Third Space Coffee opened about two weeks ago; it’s located on the third floor of the 808 Center in a shared space with Cake M. The business’s logo features their dog, Kuro, with a cup of coffee, according to Nakasone, who says the café’s name stems from its goal to be a “third space” for the community.

“Our mission is to be a place to spend time that’s outside of work or home, where anyone can come in, enjoy a memorable cup of coffee, and return for the hospitality and warmth they felt from our shop,” she says. “Third Space is the culmination of our gratitude and appreciation for the communities that supported us, our experience living in the Pacific Northwest — a region known for its multitude of coffee roasters and coffee culture — and our passion for specialty coffee.”

The café offers a variety of coffees, teas and specialty beverages. The signature drinks are inspired by some of the couple’s favorite places and features about Oregon.

“They pay homage to where we first experienced a particular beverage,” Nakasone explains. “For example, The Bluff — an iced London Fog, topped with our marionberry cold foam — is a reference to the University of Portland, where we first had a London Fog. Some of our other popular drinks include the Cedar Hills — a brown sugar vanilla, honey and cinnamon latte — and Mount Hood, our cold brew topped with marionberry cold foam, and the St. John’s.”

The St. John’s is a brown sugar cardamom latte. All of the café’s syrups and cream cheese flavors are made in house, with the exception of the caramel sauce, according to Nakasone.

“I had never heard of a London Fog until we moved to the Mainland,” Nakasone says. “We try to incorporate some of our favorite flavors — like marionberry — from the Pacific Northwest.”

Teas include options like iced hibiscus punch tea, Rose City Genmaicha and Portland breakfast. The café also features bagels from Big Time Bagels, and housemade baked goods like chocolate chip cookies ($4.75) and Spam-cheddar and gochujang scone ($6).

“We are proud to share that all our baked goods — with the exception of our bagels — are made in house,” Nakasone says. “The scones are my husband’s recipe. The Everything bagel with our housemade pizza cream cheese ($8) is a fan favorite.”

Third Space Coffee is open from 7:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tuesdays to Sundays (closed Mondays).

“We are a small team of two who find joy in crafting a cup of coffee and sharing our take on it with others,” Nakasone says. “This is our way of bringing some of the Pacific Northwest and some of our favorite things to Hawai

Open 7:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tuesdays to Sundays

Third Space Coffee owners 071626

<title>This Pacific Northwest-inspired coffee shop is open on Oʻahu</title>

Hawaiʻi locals Caameron and Monica Nakasone moved back to Oʻahu from Oregon about two years ago. Their new café, Third Space Coffee, features some of their favorite flavors from the Pacific Northwest; the shop is in a shared space with Cake M in the 808 Center.

This Pacific Northwest-inspired coffee shop is open on Oʻahu

Square Mike Brestovansky Headshot RGZ3736 Large

Michael Brestovansky

Government & Politics

Crime & Courts

A Virginia nonprofit’s lawsuit against Hawai‘i's election officer could go to the U.S. Supreme Court.

, a public interest law firm focused on election integrity, filed a lawsuit against Scott Nago, Chief Election Officer for the state, arguing Nago had failed to make statewide voter records publicly available as per federal laws.

According to that suit, PILF contacted Nago in April of 2023 requesting to inspect Hawai‘i's complete voter registration system data. While Nago didn’t directly respond, the Office of Elections’ General Counsel Aaron Schulaner eventually directed PILF to direct its request to individual county clerks.

Schulaner’s response cited state statutes that place the responsibility for maintaining voter registration data on the county clerks, rather than the state elections officer. However, PILF responded by arguing that the National Voter Registration Act of 1993 does not allow the state to delegate that authority: according to the U.S. Department of Justice, the NVRA requires each state to designate a state officer to be responsible for coordinating state voter registrations.

When PILF sent requests to Honolulu, Hawai‘i and Kaua‘i's county clerks in August of 2023 — as the Lahaina wildfire had only recently happened, PILF did not send a request to Maui — those clerks denied the requests.

However, U.S. District Judge Leslie Kobayashi granted a motion by Nago to dismiss the case in 2024. While the judge concurred that PILF had standing to sue Nago, she noted that PILF had technically not been wronged yet: PILF had not, at that point, actually gone through the counties’ information request forms for the voter registration data.

PILF subsequently appealed the case in October 2024. But the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed the dismissal of PILF’s claim in April of this year.

Among the arguments in the Ninth Circuit’s decision was a claim about the NVRA’s requirement to provide “all records concerning the implementation of programs and activities conducted for the purpose of ensuring the accuracy and currency of official lists of eligible voters.”

The Ninth Circuit suggested that the best reading of the law is that voter lists are not “records concerning the implementation of programs” but are instead the objects of those programs, which are not themselves required to be provided by the NVRA.

[{"type":"text","text":"PILF disagrees."}]

“Congress said the public is entitled to all records concerning voter list maintenance. ‘All’ means ‘all’,” said PILF President and General Counsel J. Christian Adams in a statement Friday. “The statewide voter file is exactly what Congress requires be made public.”

PILF, having once again appealed the case, this time to the nation’s highest court, has requested the Supreme Court to determine whether a list of registered voters in a state is a record as specified by the NVRA.

While PILF has requested that the Supreme Court hear the case, the court has not yet granted that request; Nago can file his own request for the case not to be heard.

I Stock 1149364911 16x9

<title>Lawsuit against Hawai‘i's chief election officer could go to U.S. Supreme Court</title>

Virginia-based Public Interest Legal Foundation sued Chief Election Officer Scott Nago over access to state voter registration data in 2023.

Lawsuit against Hawai‘i's chief election officer could go to U.S. Supreme Court

Christian Shimabuku Headshot

Christian Shimabuku

Sports

The University of Hawai‘i women's volleyball team has released its 2026 schedule and is set to officially begin the 

The Rainbow Wahine will open their season with the 

Hawaiian Airlines Wahine Volleyball Classic, playing three matches in as many days from Aug. 28-30. The 'Bows will open against Georgia Southern on Aug. 28, then will take on Baylor, Walker's former team, on Aug. 29. UH then wraps up the weekend against San Diego on Aug. 30. 

Hawai‘i has two other preseason tournaments on its schedule: the OUTRIGGER Invitational from Sept. 3-6, as well as the Lucky Aces Women's Volleyball Invitational in Las Vegas from Sept. 18-20. 

 will begin with a pair of home matches against New Mexico on Sept. 25 and 26. After 18 regular season conference matches, the 'Bows will head to the conference tournament in Las Vegas on Nov. 24-25. 

Additionally, the Rainbow Wahine have recently announced multiple changes to their coaching staffs. 

 and Nick Castello, two of former head coach Robyn Ah Mow's main assistants, have both announced their departures from the program. 

On Tuesday, Walker announced the addition of Kolby Kanetake as one of the program's new assistant coaches. Kanetake, a former standout libero for the UH men's volleyball team from 2013-2016, was the associate head coach for Chaminade before departing for his alma mater. 

Daily Smile: Tuesday, July 21, 2026

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Daily Smile: Tuesday, July 21, 2026

Authors

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