of The Plantation House Restaurant
 The Plantation House in Kapalua opened in May of 1991, and Chef/Partner Alex Stanislaw has been there ever since. However, the story doesn’t begin there. Chef Alex began his culinary career as a prep cook in Virginia Beach, Virginia. After several years in the kitchen he applied to the CIA, Culinary Institute of America. After being accepted he moved to Hyde Park New York. Upon graduation, he was offered a job at Kapalua Bay Hotel through Rock Resorts; it was a cold and rainy November day in New York and the decision was a no brainer.
Even over the phone in his kitchen at the restaurant, Chef Alex exudes experience, charisma and a good sense of humor. It’s obvious that he is a chef that has been around long enough to have weathered a few storms, and now sails right on through. The Plantation House, under his direction, has received many awards including eight Awards of Excellence from Wine Spectator Magazine, and in 1999 he personally was recognized as the Best Chef on Maui by The Maui News readers’ Poll. Yet when asked what his greatest culinary achievement was, Chef Alex said he is happy to have attained the status of craftsman. He explained that an artist creates a masterpiece, never to be recreated again; whereas a craftsman creates a masterpiece, and then consistently recreates it over and over again, with the same quality and passion as the original.
 Chef Alex describes the food he serves as a Warm Weather Cuisine; he aims to bridge the foods and relaxed culture of the Mediterranean with those of the Hawaiian Islands. He strongly believes that we, as a culture, need to be wary of fast foods, and instead settle back into slow foods. For Chef Alex, this ideology is implemented through the K.I.S.S. (Keep It Simple Stupid) method. For example, he is a firm believer in supporting local farmers and using seasonal produce. The fledgling Kapalua Farms happens to be in his area, and Chef Alex gobbles up anything and everything they have to offer, from vegetables, herbs, and leafy greens, to eggs laid by roaming, free range chickens.
Another example of this ideology and his commitment to quality is the use of seasonal fish. Chef Alex describes this lovely protein as “the last wild animal we eat.” He says, “I want every person that comes in this restaurant to eat fish.” He uses only the freshest of what is available that day. There are usually at least two different species of fish on the menu to choose from, and then one of the five different innovative preparations to pair it with.
Chef Alex’s culinary philosophy is that, “Food needs to be more than a function. We’ve kind of gotten ourselves, in the last 50 years in this country, to a point where food has become a function. Food needs to be entertainment, it needs to be sustenance, [and] it needs to be pleasure. It’s the time your family needs to be together.”
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