A MACARONI GRILL MAHALO

Romano’s Macaroni Grill has a free meal for first responders, an order of Mom’s Ricotta Meatballs and Spaghetti, available through Oct. 31.

Police officers, firefighters, paramedics and hospital medical staff can claim their meals at lunch or dinner when dining in at locations at Ala Moana Center or Queens’ MarketPlace in Waikoloa on the Big Island.

Call 356-8300 (Ala Moana) or 808-443-5515 (Waikoloa). Or visit macaronigrill.com.

AARP CLASSES COVER BASICS

AARP Hawaii’s interactive online cooking classes continue Thursday with sessions on basic skills. The free weekly classes, taught by Windward Community College chef Daniel Swift, are held at 5 p.m. via Zoom:

>> Thursday: “Knife Skills 101” covers selecting, sharpening and properly using knives in the kitchen.

>> Oct. 22: “Cooking from the Beginning,” explores the difference between moist and dry-heat cooking methods.

Register at 808ne.ws/aarpbasics.

In November, classes shift to foods of Hawaii’s many cultures. Recipes are provided in advance so participants may cook along.

>> Nov. 5: Punahou School’s Portuguese bean soup

>> Nov. 12: Japanese-style miso salmon with soba noodles

>> Nov. 19: Filipino chicken adobo

>> Dec. 3: Easy Chinese dumplings

>> Dec. 10: Vietnamese pho

Register at aarp.cvent.com/cook2.

AARP membership is not required. For those who don’t wish to register, classes are simulcast on Facebook, @aarphawaii.

ULU COOKING KIT TARGETS KIDS

If you’d like kids to grow up loving a food, it’s a good idea to introduce it to them early. The Hawai‘i ʻ‘Ulu Cooperative is on this path with the launch of its Kumu ‘Ulu Box, filled with items meant to encourage the cooking and eating of locally grown breadfruit.

The box includes mature and ripe ulu, an ulu chocolate mousse and a recipe for baked ulu fries, as well a science activity and memory card game themed to encourage ulu appreciation.

The box sells for $50 but is 10% off in October. Buyers can also opt to donate a box to the Food Basket, the Big Island’s food bank. Order through eatbreadfruit.com.

Also on the breadfruit front, chef Ed Kenney is hosting the ‘Aina Cooking for Change virtual cooking series, held via Zoom at 1 p.m. on Sundays in October.

The live cooking classes are designed for families to cook along, with ulu as the central ingredient.

Classes are free, but donations are accepted. Register, and find recipes and ingredient lists, at bit.ly/ainacookingforchange.

The first 50 families to register may pick up free ingredient kits at Kaimuki Superette or Kokua General Store in Haleiwa, sponsored by Whole Foods Market and the nonprofit Chef Hui.

CLASS PAIRS STEAK, BOURBON

Chef Lance Kosaka of 53 by the Sea will teach a class on making pan-roasted rib-eye on Oct. 29, and mixologist Jen Ackrill will prepare two bourbon cocktails to drink along.

“Perfect Steak & Bourbon” takes place via Zoom at 5:30 p.m., part of a series sponsored by the Hawai‘i Food & Wine Festival and Armstrong Produce.

Cost is $25, to benefit the Kokua Ag & Culinary Fund, which supports industries affected by COVID-19.

Attendees on Oahu may purchase a meal kit with ready-to-cook ingredients for $135 (includes the class fee), to be picked up at 53 by the Sea on the day of the event. A cocktail kit may be added for $30.

Those who opt not to purchase the kit, or those on the neighbor islands, will be given an ingredient list.

Register at HFWF.me/schedule.

Quickbites is a weekly listing of dining events. Email items to crave@staradvertiser.com.