Happy Heart Kona began as a bakery stand at the Pure Kona Green Farmers Market in Captain Cook with a simple idea, “bake food that makes you feel good.” That is a mission we can get behind – and so when owners Isabel and Neil had the opportunity to open a storefront in Kealakekua, we knew they would knock it out of the park! Isabel started baking professionally at a gluten-free bakery in Seattle and also gained experience working with organic fruit at a tree fruit orchard.
She dreamed of owning her own local bakery. She met Neil in Kona while they were both on vacation and later decided to make Hawaiʻi home. It was shortly after their move that Isabel combined her baking expertise with her love of fruit and selling her baked goods at the farmers market. Neil helped Isabel with the market and even sold his own homemade granola! The duo focuses on delicious, dairy-free and plant-based pastries with locally sourced ingredients. The goal of Happy Heart Kona is to “be a community space that fuels people with good food. Our focus is to keep our ingredient sourcing local and transparent so you always know whatʻs in your food.” They use added sugar sparingly and focus instead on letting the ingredientʻs natural sweetness shine through. Speaking of ingredients, they source as many organic, fresh and locally grown produce as possible, purchasing from nearby farmers through Adaptations and KTA. The cafe serves delicious breakfast and lunch with plenty of gluten free and vegan options. If we could recommend one item on their menu it would have to be the homemade fresh fruit poptarts! They are naturally sweet with lilikoi, guava, mango, and other tropical fruits and baked to perfection. Happy Heart Kona Cafe also offers fun fruit tasting adventures where guests can try local, seasonal fruits like dragonfruit, mango, lychee, and guava. Guests will try between 10 – 16 fruits, depending on what is in season and learn more about the variety of fruits grown in Hawaiʻi. Book a fruit tasting here.
Read more about Happy Heart and check out their menu here!
Follow alone on their instagram here!