Rent A Car, Get an Avo (or banana, lime, lemon, star fruit etc.)

April 30, 2019

“Have a banana.” “Have some limes.” “Would you like to try a star fruit?” “It’s liliquoi season, have a few.”

If you have ever rented a car at Kihei Rent A Car, you may have heard these words. Depending on the time of the year, Maui has an abundance of organic fruits and vegetables growing in private gardens, yards, or along the roadside. Almost all year round there is some sort of fruit or vegetable on the counter at Kihei Rent A Car’s office.

As April turns into May and the Jacaranda trees are blooming upcountry, the avocado trees are bursting with fruit. We highly recommend taking a drive up to the Kula area to see the many flowers and trees in full bloom right now. Of course, you only want to look at the trees with fruit. Picking without permission is Kapu.

It’s Jacaranda season in upcountry Maui.
That means the avocado trees are full of luscious fruit.

Since Dave and Sugar (the owners of Kihei Rent A Car) live in Hana and have hundreds of banana trees, very often you will find bananas on the counter and a bunch hanging outside the back door. Besides sending bunches in to Kihei Rent A Car, they give their bananas away to the Hana Senior and Youth Centers along with any extra eggs from their 35 chickens.

We don’t have eggs on the counter but we’ve been known to offer a cup of coffee for our early morning customers.

Have a look at some of the fruit most likely to be on the Kihei Rent A Car counter…

Apple bananas from Hana are a favorite treat for our car renters who just arrived from a long airplane ride across the Pacific Ocean.
Liliquoi, otherwise know as Passion Fruit, are great for adding to lemonade or other juices.
In the lychee, the balance of sweet and tart is perfected. Its light, floral taste — some say it’s a grape/rose, others insist pear/watermelon — pairs perfectly with coconut, lime, and other tropical tastes.

Star fruit have a tart and sour undertone. The taste is difficult to match, but it has been compared to a mix of apple, pear, grape, and citrus family fruits. Unripe star fruits are firmer and sour, and taste like green apples.

Hawaiian Mountain apple is a member of the Myrtaceae family, and related to the Java plum, guava, eucalyptus and Surinam cherry trees. It is botanically known as Syzygium malaccense. It is also known as Malay apple, Pomerac, Rose apple, Waterapple, or Ohi’a ‘ai in Hawaiian.

How do you like them apples?
Guavas are usually oval in shape with small edible seeds inside. Some varieties are seedless. There is also a small red guava, known as the Cattley or strawberry guava.Guavas emit a strong, sweet, pungent fragrance.
Strawberry guavas fall from the trees in Haiku when they are in season.

Maui awaits your arrival. As soon as you get off the plane you will be in awe of the flowers and trees bursting with all kinds of bright colors.

And the fruits and vegetable are plentiful. We would love to share our harvests with you when you pick up or drop off your car. But just in case you want more fresh, organic produce, here is a list of some of the many Farmer’s Markets on Maui: https://mauiconcierge.com/maui-farmers-markets/

Thank you for supporting local farmers by buying local produce!

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Maui Rental Cars

since 1990

As a family-owned business, we understand the budget challenges of vacationing in Hawaii. We endeavor to offer the best, personalized service and quality vehicles, for the lowest rates we can. We sincerely want our customers to have a great experience on our island!

When you rent from Kihei Rent A Car, you’ll receive great personalized service and a quality car at a reasonable price. Contact us today to make your reservation!

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