Popular bakery plans to reopen

Waialua’s Paalaa Kai Bakery brought in new refrigeration equipment Wednesday in an effort to reopen after being shut down by the Health Department because of food safety violations.

The popular bakery at 66-945 Kaukonahua Road should reopen by the end of next week, said attorney Richard Ing, who represents the bakery’s owner.

“The public has been very supportive,” said Ing. “We want to thank the public for their patience.”

Paalaa Kai is known for its Snow Puffies — custard-filled pastries topped with chocolate swirls and powdered sugar. It became the first establishment closed under the state’s color-coded placard program.

The Health Department closed Paalaa Kai on Oct. 6 when inspectors issued the bakery a red placard for temperature-control violations. Janice Okubo, spokeswoman for the Health Department, said aging equipment was part of the problem.

During inspections, foods requiring temperatures at or below 41 degrees were being kept at temperatures between 51 and 56 degrees.

The bakery plans to request another inspection so that its food safety permit can be reinstated.

A crew on Wednesday morning delivered a new three-door freezer, three-door refrigerator and a merchandiser/display refrigerator.

The bakery is expected to receive more equipment later this week.

“I want to see them reopen as soon as possible,” said Lamont Brown, a sales representative with Bargreen Ellingson Foodservice Supply & Design. “(The community) wants it open so bad.”

As the bakery sets up new equipment, Ing said, it will also address allegations that it sold baked goods a day after it was shut down.

The Health Department fined the bakery $12,000 for temperature-control violations, leading to the posting of the red placard, and an additional $10,000 for the alleged sale of baked goods.

Ing “vehemently” denied that baked goods were sold after the closure. “We hope to resolve that with the Department of Health,” he said.

A nearby resident had called the Health Department to report seeing a crowd of people inside and outside the store the morning after it was closed. The caller signed a sworn statement that people had left the store with baked goods.

A store manager at a mini-mart located next to the bakery said the people were employees, not customers, attending a meeting that day. The manager also said he did not see anyone carrying baked goods.