Javier Barberi, owner of Hana Hou Hospitality Group — which comprises restaurants like Māla Ocean Tavern, Coco Deck, Down the Hatch, Pizza Paradiso and Pineapple Robot — vividly remembers when his team took officially took over Pizza Paradiso three years ago.
The restaurant, originally founded by restaurateur Paris Nabavi, opened in 1995 and has been “a staple in the community for a long time,” according to Barberi. The eatery was originally located at Whalers Village in Kaanapali; it’s now located in North Lahaina in Honokowai Marketplace.
“We’ve known Paris for years,” Barberi says. “When it was time for him to retire, he wanted to see if we were interested in taking over. He wanted it to be in good hands. We were really excited about the opportunity; we accepted his proposal.
“The ingredients, method of cooking and staff were all really good; they did a ton of stuff in house,” he adds. “Our focus was how we could better their operation — service, operational efficiencies, marketing, social media, and adding our creativity and design to the restaurant.”
Pizza Paradiso is known for its thin-crust pizzas and Mediterranean comfort food. Pizzas range from pepperoni and margherita to barbecue chicken, Maui Wowie — which is topped with ham and pineapple — and the Greek pizza. The latter features toppings like kalamata olives, red onions, gyro meat, feta cheese, tomatoes, tzatziki sauce and fresh mint.
Customers also have the option of creating their own pizzas by choosing a size and adding sauces, cheese and toppings.
“The pepperoni is one of the most popular pizzas,” Barberi says. “We switched to this cupped pepperoni; it’s very popular in the pizza world. The Paradiso is our supreme pizza with pepperoni, sausage, onions, bell peppers, black olives and mushrooms.”
Since Hana Hou Hospitality took over the business, they added the truffle mushroom pizza — which is similar to a white pizza, according to Barberi, as it includes truffle oil, local mushrooms and candied garlic sauce — and a specialty pizza of the month.
“Last month, we had a kalua pig barbecue pizza,” he says. “Sometimes they will do carnitas-style pizzas, using their favorite taco toppings.
“We have a lot of vegetarian and gluten-free customers,” he adds. “We have a handmade gluten-free curst that we make. The pesto veggie pizza is made with a nut-free pesto. We try to accommodate as many people as we can with our crust, sauces and cheese.”
Besides pizzas, the biz also offers falafel, chicken shawarma, a Big Fat Greek gyro — stuffed with shaved beef and lamb meat in a warm pita — and build-your-own kebab bowls.
Following the Lahaina fires in August 2023, the restaurant was shut down, due to power outages, for about a week, Barberi recalls. Once power was restored, the restaurant re-opened and quickly became a community hub.
“As soon as we got power, we opened up for free slices for the community during certain hours,” Barberi says. “We had discounted slices for a while. We would have our meetings there also, but it became a communication hub — not only for us, but for other people. We opened up Starlink for everyone in the community.
“We would have meetings with all the other restaurant staff, to explain what’s going on and give updates,” he adds. “Community members could also be on their phones or laptops to access the Internet. That’s a way we were able to help the community through the restaurant.”
Barberi was also impacted by the Lahaina fires on a personal level, as his home was one of many that were lost.
“It was two minutes away from Māla (Ocean Tavern); we are halfway done with rebuilding it,” he says, during our interview in late June. “We just put our windows in last week. It’s (the house) on the same lot.”
Barberi’s biggest memory regarding the fire, though, was going to Maui’s War Memorial Complex every day. The Wailuku complex was the primary evacuation shelter for displaced residents from the Lahaina fires.
“My concern was to get them (those living there) out of there; I wanted to get them into some stable housing,” he says. “I would go there every morning and give everyone updates. I received donations from people, so I would disperse whatever I could. It was such a feeling of relief when they (our staff members) were all housed and not living on a floor.”
At that time, Pineapple Robot — the tiki bar with karaoke within Pizza Paradiso — wasn’t built yet. But with the loss of late-night spots — like Down the Hatch — came the need for more gathering places for the community.
“The karaoke idea came after the fires; there was nowhere on the west side for people to relax and forget about the world for a little bit,” Barberi says. “We expanded Pizza Paradiso; the restaurant is a pizza joint by day, and then it’s a lively karaoke bar with drinks and a fun atmosphere until 2 a.m.
“We felt like the one thing that was missing was Pizza Paradiso didn’t have a good alcohol program, in terms of beers, cocktails and wines,” he adds. “It was a good opportunity for us to expand, put in for permits and build a bar.”
Pineapple Robot officially opened on Oct. 31, 2024. The bar is known for its daily happy hour — which features drink specials and pūpū — along with specialty cocktails like the Pink Power Ranger (Pink Whitney vodka, triple sec, pineapple, orange, lemon and sugar cane syrup); Pixelate My Pony (passion fruit-infused rum, pineapple, Campari and lime); and Tech Mex (tequila, ginger, pineapple, and allspice bitters).
Coming up with a memorable name for the space was essential, according to Barberi.
“We wanted a word that had some significance to Hawaiʻi, but something easy to understand,” he says. “We also wanted something kind of quirky and weird so it was easy to remember.”
The restaurant’s name is a nod to both, Hawaiʻi and the AI movement, according to Barberi, who remembers being at a restaurant convention in Chicago.
“The robots had gotten to a good point; we felt comfortable purchasing one,” he says. “We have a robot named Perry (at Pizza Paradiso); he goes around and delivers food and drinks.
“Perry works every day; he doesn’t show up late, he doesn’t have any drama,” he jokes.
Three years since the Lahaina fires, Barberi says that both brands — Pizza Paradiso and Pineapple Robot — are “doing great” and have recovered.
“That was a really difficult time period, especially for the restaurants in Lahaina on Front Street,” Barberi says. “We are just so grateful for the community support and tourist industry support; that’s what’s enabling us to reopen Down the Hatch now.”
Bringing back Pizza Paradiso’s sister restaurant, Down the Hatch, to West Maui is something Barberi is looking forward to. Down the Hatch, which opened in 2015, was one of the Front Street restaurants that was lost to the Lahaina fires. The eatery is expected to open in a new location in Kaʻanapali next year.
“It was right in the heart of Lahaina town; it was a really important part of the community,” he says. “I know it’s just a bar, but bars are important to have. It’s a place for people to meet one another, a place to relax after work.”
He says Down the Hatch hosted many community events, including surf contests and cleanups. Customers can anticipate the “same energy” in Down the Hatch’s new home.
“We’re going to incorporate as many elements from the old business into the new space,” Barberi says. “The County has been doing a good job of helping us out and getting back to us. We’re hopeful that the local and tourist community come and support us when we open next year.”
To learn more, visit pizzaparadiso.com.
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Kelli Shiroma Braiotta can be reached at kelli@alohastatedaily.com.
