To be strictly proper, a Hawaiian feast is a paʻina or an ʻahaʻaina. But in 1856, the Pacific Commercial Advertiser used the slang term “lūʻau,” and it has been in the common parlance ever since. In the old days, lūʻau, taro leaf, was the mainstay at a paʻina, hence the modern name. Lūʻau is especially ʻono (delicious) boiled or baked with coconut cream and octopus or chicken. Lūʻau was the favorite food of Hiʻiakaikapoliopele, patroness of the hula and beloved sister of Pele, the volcanic elemental.

   When I was a little girl, lūʻau tables were long picnic tables or saw horses with planks across them. They were covered with paper and decorated with ferns, ti leaves, and fresh fruit – pineapples and bananas – arranged all the way down the center. Every foot or so a different color bottle of soda pop from the Hilo Soda Works was set, tucked into the other decorations. They were arranged so that the colors made a pretty pattern along with the other decorations.
     We children would make trades along and across tables to get our favorite pops. Mine were the creme soda and orange pop. The adults would sing and play their ʻukulele and guitars, and we children would dance hula. Once, I remember, Miss Aloha Hawaiʻi was a guest. Watching her dance was a real treat for those of us who dreamed of someday following in her footsteps.
     I don’t really remember the lūʻau ever ending. I just got happier and happier and and tireder and tireder, until I woke up in my own bed.

This page provides the basic instructions for your to create your own paʻina wherever you are. While many of the ingredients are non-traditional, the flavors are very close to the lūʻau of my childhood.

The entire paʻina serves about 20-25. Individual recipes serve about 6 as part of a smaller meal. For those do not eat pork, simply substitute mutton, beef, or chicken. For vegetarians, since the point of a pāʻina is the sociability, no worries! You don’t have to cook the meats to have a lūʻau. As long as you have the cooked greens, you are good!

Hawaiian Parties – What’s in a Name

ʻAhaʻaina – Feast, dinner party, banquet

ʻAhaʻaina pālala – Feast given to celebrate a child

ʻAipoʻolā – Feast given to celebrate the completion of a task, such as building a house

Hoʻolauleʻa – Large festival

Lū`au – Informal term for `aha`aina, coined in 1856 by the newspaper, Pacific Commercial Advertiser. It refers to lū`au, a dish of cooked young taro greens, a defining food at a Hawaiian feast.

Pāʻina – Small party with dinner

Lūʻau Time

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Hawaiian Parties – What’s in a Name