WRITTEN BY SINEAD BYRNE
PHOTOGRAPH COURTESY OF SHERATON KAUAI RESORT

Not too long ago, the words “locally sourced ingredients” were enough to make a restaurant stand out on the discriminating diner’s ethical checklist. Happily, this buy/eat local concept has proven quite trendy and locally sourced menus are becoming downright common. Excellent. But what’s the next step in this progression? The folks at the Sheraton Kauai Resort’s RumFire Poipu Beach restau-rant seem to be figuring it out. Since October 2012, RumFire (which features a menu steeped in local ingredients) has been nurturing the Kauai community through its innovative fundraising program, Table 53. Each month the restaurant selects a different local charity to be the beneficiary of 100% of the food and drink sales accrued at Table #53. To date the program has raised over $115,000 for various medical, educational, and humanitarian organizations on the island. Using it’s platform as a fine dining establishment, RumFire helps pave the way to a future that is truly sustainable and supportive of the local community not only before the meal, but after it as well.