Today we’d like to introduce you to Nani Sumi.
Hi Nani, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
Born in SoCal but raised Hawaiian style–mom from the Big Island and dad from Maui– with cherished memories of the Hui Aikane sisterhood was the foundation of my childhood traditions. Huge gatherings made up of family and friends, everyone was Auntie, Uncle, or Cuz. Blood-related and non-blood related (a.k.a. calabash) still made them ohana. Gatherings included everyone and anyone. Friends in town? Bring’em! Someone got plans? Come o-vah!…and don’t forget your ukulele!
Every 4th of July, Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day included iconic gatherings of upwards of 125 relatives and friends. Besides ohana, ONO grinds was central to every party–Grandpa and Grandma would order a whole kalua pig decorated with an apple in its mouth, Grandma’s chicken long rice or her futomaki was my favorite–a true labor of love and I especially loved when she’d shove a ball of extra sushi rice into my mouth after all the rolling was done, Auntie Myrt’s cardamom ribeye roast and fruit platters, Auntie Millie’s Chinese chicken salad, beef flank skewers and guava 7-up punch with perfect ice ringmolds made by my mom Doris, Uncle Karl’s Thanksgiving turkey–my dad Frank was designated carver, Uncle Clarence’s mayo spaghetti salad, Auntie Bernice’s warm crab sushi or Portuguese bean soup, Uncle Italo and Auntie Misao’s fresh cranberry sauce or full sheet of homemade lasagna, Auntie Jane’s (a.k.a. the original Martha Stewart) holiday dessert spread that took a week to prepare…wow, such wonderful memories and this is only the tip of the iceberg!
Music was also an integral part of every gathering…Uncle Karl was the bandleader who sang with gusto! Anyone that wanted to sing sang. Anyone that wanted to play ukulele grabbed one that was free and started strumming along. Prior experience was not necessary. Auntie Millie lead everyone with her beautiful voice…she shared her gift so effortlessly. All the kids had to gather and put on a talent show on the fly. Each family’s brood would have to think up a skit or other to perform for the thorough enjoyment of the parents. How did they make us do that?! Every year!
Fast forward and now I continue my culinary journey from Chez Moi Food Culture, global menu catering, to share with you Big Island Eats and Shave Ice, a taste of aloha and gathering spot for sharing comfort food and music.
Mahalo for letting us into your ohana. We look forward to serving you!
– Nani
OTHER NOTES/HIGHLIGHTS:
— Chez Moi Food Culture, global menu catering 2012-2015, Torrance
— Big Island Eats and Shave Ice, Hawaiian comfort food, 0pened mid-pandemic August 2020 – present, Rolling Hills Estates
— Super Bowl LVI Los Angeles at SoFi Stadium 2022, VIP Tailgate Party caterer, only caterer to run out of food before party closed! We served 2,500 Guava Chicken Skewers w/ Cilantro Jalapeno sauce or Guava Sauce
— Torrance Memorial Healthcare Foundation YPPA Welcome Back in Person Fundraiser event, September 2022
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
It has been only an uphill climb since we opened mid-pandemic August 2020. We are a new business opening during a pandemic with no recent retail clientele base who knew who we were. So, we have had to dig very deep and work “old school” hard to meet our obligations while trying to stay positive and reach out to a wider audience.
As a new business, we do not qualify for PPP nor grants as we do not have a history for taxes to show our drop in revenue although we experienced an 80% decline in sales when everything was shut down in November 2020. So, everything that we have achieved has been with no outside support though we need it the most.
Meanwhile, food prices have increased 2-3 fold and have not come down which has eaten away at our earning potential as everything, especially for small restaurants, has a price ceiling. Our profit margins have been turned upside down which has put more pressure on us to continue to provide the best quality Hawaiian comfort food possible and not compromise the premium ingredients that we use.
Another challenge is that we are at the mercy of Yelp and Google reviews to say whether our food and service are worth it. Most reviewers get us and understand what goes into making food especially at our price point; however, there are some that use Yelp and Google to vent anonymously. We appreciate the time each person takes to write a review, good or bad, but we do hope they one day the negative reviewers learn how their posts can potentially hurt businesses.
We have been building our following little by little and hope to continue the momentum by keeping our food quality and customer service top-notch and full of aloha. We aim to stay positive and use each challenge as a teaching and learning moment…then, we can continue to grow in the right direction!
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
We specialize in Hawaiian-style comfort food and Shave Ice with each of our ingredients handpicked resulting in da best ono grinds! All of our proprietary sauces and syrups are made in-house to control the flavor, quality, and selection that is uniquely ours. Our housemade Signature Hawaiian Seasoning Salt has 25% less salt with every pinch made with a special blend of premium spices and herbs that makes everything SO ONOLICIOUS. It’s our secret ingredient! Guava Chicken is our #1 signature protein–savory, sweet, and umami all in one and you can only get it here at BIE on the mainland. We skim excess fat from our kalua pork to make it less greasy but it remains very tasty, soft, and juicy. Our thin-cut Ginger Tare Beef has great texture and is tender–it’s the cut, quality, and the way we prepare it that makes it a fan fave!
With our catering background, we are able to help our customers choose a menu that is just right for their event, accommodate dietary restrictions, and keep them coming back for more! We enjoy sharing the aloha with every customer and their ohana. We are also proud to have extended that aloha to the Super Bowl LVI VIP Tailgate Party at SoFi earlier this year along with other corporate events.
Can you talk to us about how you think about risk?
The restaurant industry is a very fickle and arduous industry to be part of and everything that we do is a labor of love. Having to open mid-Covid pandemic in 2020 was that biggest risk we have had to take. Unknown outlook for the pandemic and no precedent for Covid protocols placed many restrictions on how we were able to open, operate, and try to establish our new business. Continuing the business over two years later has only been accomplished by putting out a consistently great product with great customer service. This has allowed us to build a following of amazing customers. Since we have never qualified for government support nor local grant relief, we have had to dig deep, work extremely hard, and change our view of our purpose for opening. The goal quickly changed from creating a brand that would grow for us to make a profit to focusing on the staff and their life experience through working at BIE. It is now our way of giving back to the community while allowing high school and local junior college students to gain first-time work experience and solidifying strong employee 101 skills and work habits. BIE is a place to learn, grow, and be part of a team that knows how to work hard and enjoy all that comes with it while supporting each other.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.bigisland-eats.com
- Instagram: @bigislandeatsandshaveice
- Facebook: bigislandeatsandshaveice
- Yelp: Big Island Eats and Shave Ice
