5 things worth eating on Hawaii island

A few days on the Big Island were filled with tasty experiences worth passing on. Should you find yourself in these areas, check out a couple of these recommendations:

1. Rebel Kitchen Hawaiian Fire Sauce: Created in a Kealakekua restaurant, this hot sauce offers a well-rounded flavor along with decent heat, thanks not just to Jamaican jerk spice, ghost and Hawaiian chili peppers, but red wine vinegar, tomato paste, molasses — and 100 percent Kona coffee.

If it sounds delicious, it tastes even better. Find a 5-ounce bottle for about $8 at the restaurant, at Island Naturals Market & Deli in Kailua-Kona or online at squareup.com/store/rebelkitchen.

2. Vegan scones: My visit to Island Naturals Market & Deli also led to the discovery of the store’s wonderful gluten- free, vegan scones. These babies, baked up fresh daily in different flavors, aren’t overly sweet or fatty, just satisfying the way a good biscuit can be.

The first day, I lucked out with a chocolate-chip scone so addictive that I drove back for another for breakfast the next day. I should have bought a third, because every day afterward I haunted the store hoping for more chocolate chip.

Though I wouldn’t see it again, other options were hardly booby prizes — both the mango and lilikoi-coconut versions (the latter kindly mailed to me by my best friend, Lisa) were delicious as well. They go for $2.69 apiece.

3. FF Sliced Smoked Pork: Frank Frenz, a German immigrant, started Frank’s Foods in Hilo in the mid-’50s. I almost missed the company’s humble package of smoked meat while prowling KTA Super Stores in Kamuela.

But when I realized what this was, I snapped it up quickly. And once back home on Oahu, I stir-fried the salty meat with dark leafy greens and white beans, and ate it over rice. Alas, it was so ono I’ve been longing for smoked pork ever since.

The 8-ounce package was $8.99 and worth every penny. Order online at franksfoodshawaii.com.

4. Hava Kava Hut kava-dark chocolate bar: Top-quality Vanuatu kava is mixed with 70 percent dark chocolate and studded with little nuggets of dried pineapple to create this unique bar.

Some who tried it said their tongues went slightly numb, a side effect of the kava. But the kava also contributed a rather deep, slightly bitter flavor brightened and balanced by the bits of pineapple in each bite — real food for thought.

I saw this 1.25-ounce bar in various spots from Kona to Kohala and purchased mine for $4.49 at KTA Super Stores in Kailua-Kona. Buy online at havakavahut.com.

5. Cheesy heaven, aka raclette: At the Cheese Please! booth at the Saturday Waimea Town Market, partners Elyse Cummins and Cody Luman bring an amazing cheese experience with roots in France and Switzerland. It’s called raclette and it’s beyond delicious.

Before customers’ eyes, Cummins melts the flat surface of a large half-moon of raclette cheese under a special heat lamp, then scrapes the melted wonder over all manner of accompaniments, from potatoes ($10, a classic) to portobello mushrooms ($15), or just plain toast ($8).

Not only is the nutty cow’s milk cheese called raclette, so is the heating device and any dish topped with the gooey goodness.

Also find the Cheese Please! folks at the Maku‘u Market in Pahoa on Sundays.