Legacy of Takamiya Market: Celebrating the man behind the Maui market

HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) – There’s no better place on Maui to get the best grab-and-go bentos and poke than Takamiya Market.

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On any given day, mouths water as locals and visitors alike get their fix.

“These are the places, the kind of mom and pop spots that I grew up going to all over the island and there are a lot less, this is kind of what makes our community and our culture what it is and I think it is important that we support places like here,” said champion surfer and Maui resident Kai Lenny.

Lenny and HNN’s Guy Hagi stopped by last year to film the popular “Cheap Eats” segment on Maui and got their fill of Takamiya’s entrees.

The man credited with really making all of these offerings available to customers is Jimmy Takamiya, also known as “Uncle Jimmy.”

His family established the Takamiya Market in 1946. They worked long hours to serve plantation workers at the nearby Wailuku Sugar Mill.

Takamiya served in the Korean War as a Marine, where he was a cook and later learned how to be a butcher.

After he completed his military service, he returned home and helped run the family business.

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After marrying his wife Suzanna, Takamiya continued to work hard at the market.

Aside from offering fresh meats and fish, he expanded Takamiya’s offerings of prepared food, at first in a tiny kitchen behind the market.

At the time, only one other place offered prepared food.

It all started with prepared hamburgers and teriyaki, which remain two of the best-selling items at the market among all the other offerings.

After many decades, Takamiya has since retired. Last Sunday, however, hundreds were on hand to wish him a happy birthday at a celebration at the Maui Beach Hotel.

It was a time to reflect on Uncle Jimmy’s contributions to the greater good of the Valley Isle beyond Happy Valley, where his children and grandchildren now run the business.

Takamiya said one person he wished was his long-time friend and Marine buddy who passed away in 2016, Dennis Shiroma, father of HNN’s Jonathan Masaki.

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Hauʻoli lā hānau, Jimmy Takamiya, and may you be blessed with many more.