This is my second visit to Sale Pepe and the second time was even better than the excellent meal I had before. The Chef , Waitress and the owner were very gracious and offered to make anything for us. I had the Rigatoni with Bolognese sauce ( even though it was not on the menu) and it was to die for !!.My wife had the Rigatoni with Speck, Mushrooms and Rosemary. The other couple had Pizza with Sausage , burrata and Mushrooms. If you like Italian food, it does not get much better than this !! We all had very good and fresh salads before the main course. Very good food and not overpriced, especially by Maui standards. I will go back again for sure !!
Sale Pepe is an Italian restaurant and pizzeria at 878 Front Street, in the Old Lahaina Center, in Lahaina. Phone 808-667-7667. The husband and wife owners of Sale Pepe, as well as the decor, give this restaurant a warm welcoming friendly feel. With husband Michele as chef in the open kitchen, and wife Quiana greeting and chatting with customers in the dining area, everyone seems happy to be here. That atmosphere and the tasty food account for its high ratings on TripAdvisor and Yelp.
Oh my gosh this place is amazing. Everything we had was awesome. The owners are so nice and so friendly. Very clean place and a place we will come back to many times.
One of the best!. Including five trips to Italy, this is one of the best Italian restaurants we have ever eaten at. It has the lively atmosphere of a trattoria, and the reasonable prices to match. The food is out of this world -authentic, traditional and delicious and the servings are generous. Pizzas are traditional thin crust from a wood fired oven too. They do takeout as well. Dont miss it if you like Italian!
Exquisite! The pasta was as good as they say— it really felt authentic Italian and was a nice pívot from the meals we had been having during our trip. Fresh ingredients, great tasting food, and friendly service. We booked at 5:30pm and there was a line out the door starting 30 min later.
We got:
the rigatoni with speck and mushroom - WOW unique and packed with flavor
Tagliatelle with ragu (the special for the night) - fantastic
Romaine and lemon salad- great
Shrimp crostini- such a fresh great quality shrimp dish
So glad we made time for this! This was our last meal before the airport and they were amazing. We didn’t have a reservation but showed up at opening and they were able to fit us in. Everything is from Italy down to the flour or it’s fresh from the island. Everything was delicious and authentic. Our server was Michelle and she was awesome. Loved her recommendations and quality service.
When you need authentic Italian food look no further. Chef Michelle and wife Qiana bring the perfect blend of traditional Italian, New York flair and local Maui ingredients. Fresh, local and delicious every time. You can taste and see the love in every dish. Order a few pizza and pasta for the table and enjoy family style. The rigatoni con speck is my favorite along with an order of polpete. Come hungry and enjoy a delicious Italian meal in a family environment.
Absolutely delicious! Pasta is homemade and tastes like it. Meat balls are so juicy with a great tomato sauce (I normally don't like tomato sauces). We got a pizza to go and my God was it great. Pizza Bianca. It made for a great lunch the next day. The Caesar salad was a bit underwhelming but the other mixed salad was very good. Shrimp were incredible and I wish I had an order to take home. Highly recommend!
Edit: Cosign other reviews about the hostess not being friendly. Idk what her deal was but she just had bad vibes and didn't come across friendly. We had a res and showed up and were told to wait - then 2 other parties with the same res showed up and were seated immediately.
Don't think Italian is normally on the list when you go to Maui, but Wow! We had the meatball pizza and the gnocchi. Pure Italian. Menu was above the norm cuisine you get here usually. It's great to see more restaurants like this in Maui taking it up a notch. You can tell it attracts a different crowd...maybe more local or foodies looking for the best...You will not go wrong with Sale Pepe!
This restaurant is wonderful. I can say honestly this is my second most memorable meal in my life. This restaurant was the first thing I really gushed over when telling my friends about my trip to Maui.
We had the
Rigatoni Con Speck, Funghi E Zafferano (Short pasta, tossed with speck, mushrooms, and saffron)
Tomato, Fior Di Latte & Basil Pizza
Lasagna (Classic pasta layered with Maui cattle co. Beef ragu, mozzarella, bechamel, and Parmigiano).
Unfortunately I do not have a picture of the lasagna. It was so dense and beautiful.
The servers are so warm and kind and the restaurant is comfortable and not stuck up. I will frequent this restaurant every time I return to Maui.
If you want to make your trip to Maui extra special make sure to have dinner here.
I would like to say thank you to all the staff and owners of this wonderful restaurant.
Cute little Italian restaurant with a romantic ambience. I loved the lofi music they played.
The restaurant itself was very clean. The food was fresh and delicious. Food and drinks came out in a timely manner. The dish portions were perfect- not too large and not too small. The staff was very friendly and accommodating.
We will definitely visit Sale Pepe again the next time we’re in Maui.
I highly recommend visiting Sale Pepe if you get the chance.
The best Italian restaurant in Maui. We started with the Crostini Pomodorini Arrostiti e Ricotta. A savory crustini topped will creamy ricotta, basil, and topped with marinated cherry tomatoes. For the entree I had the special, a delicious braised short rid Ragu. I paired my meal with a dangerously delicious L’ Amarino. It's always a great experience at Sale Pepe.
Incredible food here on Maui. Once we got past the hostess (not super friendly, but then switched it on when talking to another person she thought was important from Pacifico) we got to our table and our server was great. Extremely attentive and knowledgeable of the menu. We got appetizers, entrees, and dessert. All of it was fantastic. Clearly using top notch ingredients and made with care. The pizza was among the best Italian I’ve had. Would definitely recommend heading to this place. If you’re greeted by a not so welcoming hostess don’t let that spoil your experience. Loved it!
I'm going to give this place five stars. I don't usually give five stars anymore but the food was excellent and the service was excellent. The waitress was the daughter of the owners. She was half Italian and half new yorker. She was friendly and helpful. The garlic bread was good and my lasagna was excellent. Also the octopus ink pasta that my daughter had was very good.
Very nice dinner at Sale Pepe. All the food was delicious! They accommodated a large group of us (14!) and were sweet about kids. I ordered the mushroom pasta and it had so much flavor!
In someways I hate to give such a high rating as Sale is already hard to get reservations, but on the other hand they deserve it. Nearly perfect authentic Italian cuisine with great service. Everything was delicious, especially the risotto. Yum.
My wife and I went to Sale Pepe during our Honeymoon. We were tired of the usual grilled fish or grilled meat offered by most restaurants in Maui and wanted to try finding something different. We were far from disappointed and were actually pleasantly surprised.
As an appetizer, we had a selection of three salumis (prosciutto, mortadella, and coppa). On their menu, it states that it comes with focaccia, but it definitely looked and tasted more like pizza dough than focaccia that we're used to eating, which is usually thick and fluffy. Nonetheless, it was good just not what were expecting. It also came with pickled grapes. Definitely not something I thought I'd ever have, but also not bad.
For the main dishes, I had the pasta of day and my wife had the Strozzapreti with beef. I would definitely recommend the pasta here. It's just really good.
Overall, if you're in Maui and you're looking for some good Italian food, Sale Pepe is definitely the real deal.
If you're in the mood for some amazing Italian food while on Maui, you have to check out Sale Pepe!!! Make reservations and be prepared to enjoy a wonderful meal. If Spaghetti al Tartufo Nero is on the menu, DO NOT PASS IT UP!!!! The Black Truffles are insanely good!!! My husband had the Polpette and I'm not a big meat eater, but they were some amazing Meatballs. This is a wonderful place worth the visit while in Lahaina!!
The absolute best meal we've had in Maui so far. The arancini and meatball appetizers were fantastic! We all had pizza; sopressta, margherita and mine with pancetta, percorino and a poached egg. AMAZING!!
Excellent. Italian Uber driver told us to come here as did 2 other locals. He was right. The salad dressing, lemon parmesan, was fantastic. Had Pizza Margarita which was very good (can you tell we asked for EXTRA basil). We then went all out to try the spaghetti carbonara and the lasagna. Hey, we knew we were ordering enough for the next days condo lunch! Carbonara was very good (and we have had it many times in Italy). The lasagna was great too. We rolled out of there and passed on desert for obvious reasons.
My group of 5 came on Monday evening and I would recommend making a reservation before coming. I ordered their pasta special Fettuccine al Coniglio ($32) because of how well described and delicious our waiter explained it and indeed it was very delicious that I was crying tears of joy! It was my first time eating rabbit but I would highly recommend it! The rest of my friends loved what they ordered as well. It took about 20 minutes or so to recieve the food (two of my friends ordered lasagna ($29) and the server let us know ahead of time) but well worth it! Our waiter was very friendly and she made sure to check on us even though it was busy. I did not try the dessert but my friends liked it. Total came to about $200 with tip for 5 people. Would come by again!
Absolutely delicious. Truffle pasta was easily one of the best pastas I’ve ever had. The pizza is great. Fantastic Italian food and the espresso is even good!! Hard to find quality coffee in the area.
The staff seems hard working and they are very attentive.
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