Punalu’u Bake Shop and Visitor Center has been named a TripAdvisor Certificate of Excellence 2013 winner for the second year in a row, placing the quaint Naalehu bakery in the top 10 percent of the more than 2.5 million accommodations,
Punalu‘u Bake Shop and Visitor Center has been named a TripAdvisor Certificate of Excellence 2013 winner for the second year in a row, placing the quaint Naalehu bakery in the top 10 percent of the more than 2.5 million accommodations, restaurants and attractions worldwide featured on the TripAdvisor website.
The recognition is awarded to businesses that earn high ratings from travelers who write comments and reviews on TripAdvisor, a large online community with more than 200 million unique monthly visitors.
The bakery, which is the southern-most bakery in the United States, saw an estimated 343,000 visitors in 2012 and sold about 85,000 of its signature malasadas in the same period, according to General Manager Connie Koi. Reviews on TripAdvisor rave about the bakery’s popular taro and guava sweetbreads and unique apple and lilikoi glazed malasadas.
“We are so humbled to receive this very prestigious award that is determined by travelers who appreciate the aloha and hard work of our staff that goes into each and every one of our products,” said Duane Kurisu, chairman and CEO of aio, the parent company of Punalu‘u Bake Shop.
“This is a big honor for a small Big Island bakery and we couldn’t be more thrilled.”
