What surfers eat for breakfast.

by Mollie Chen

There are many things I love about Hawaii, but near the top of the list: You're rarely expected to wear shoes, and I can get a shave ice or a coffee in my bathing suit.

Last week, minutes after a surf lesson on Waikiki (yes, it's a cliché, but it's still the best place on the island to learn), my cousin Nani, a local, and I stumbled into Da Cove Health Bar for her favorite breakfast (which is also the latest obsession of every attractive surfer or wannabe surfer on the island): an acai bowl. I've been hearing about acai for a while now; it has crept into my life by way of smoothies, beauty products, and even cocktails. The Brazilian berry supposedly has one of the highest concentrations of antioxidants, as well as healthy monosaturated fats and other minerals (perhaps this is Gisele's secret?).

Despite all its good-for-you properties, I'd never been a fan of acai, mostly because I don't think the eggplant-colored berry pulp (it's nearly impossible to get fresh because the berries go rancid a day after they are picked) tastes like anything. At Da Cove, frozen acai pulp--packet after packet of Sambazon--is blended with fruit to make an icy slushy mixture that is then topped with sliced bananas, strawberries, granola, and honey. It's crunchy, cold, sweet, and delicious.

West Coasters can already find acai at most juice joints. Here in Manhattan, the trend is just creeping into some health bars and the quirky Valley, a hipster boutique on the Lower East Side that also has a cult following for its one-room waxing salon. Now that's something Honolulu doesn't have.

More reading:
* 14 Perfect Days in Hawaii