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If you ask Simiz Kai Lelei co-owner Lorrita Achica what’s a must-have on a plate of Polynesian food, she answers quickly.
“Starch,” Achica said.
Think taro, green bananas, sweet potatoes and cassava, often cooked in coconut milk. These starches are more than just a side dish: They anchor a traditional plate of Tongan and Samoan cuisine, which is not always easy to find in San Mateo County.
Other common ingredients in Polynesian cuisine are seafood, corned beef and coconut, as well as tropical fruits. These flavors can be tasted by ordering a “Poly Plate” from Simiz Kai Lelei, an East Palo Alto eatery showcasing the rich flavors of Tonga and Samoa.
Owners and husband-and-wife duo Bautista Sione Atu Latu and Lorrita Achica have been serving genuine Polynesian flavors from their licensed home kitchen and food trailer since November 2023. Both Achica and Latu cook for the business; Latu is the main chef and Achica focuses on prep work, service and social media marketing.
Both grew up in East Palo Alto and have raised their five children in the city. Latu worked as an industrial tow truck driver for 17 years and is now an HVAC technician. Achica was a stay-at-home mother and gained kitchen experience at See’s Candies.
Married since 1999, Achica’s family is from Tonga, while Latu’s hails from Samoa. Together, they create fresh weekly menus featuring dishes from each country. Behind the scenes, preparing for a Poly Plate sale is a labor of love and a family affair.
“We need four hours to make it happen,” Achica said. “A lot of love is put into the food, and the kids even help, like skinning the potatoes or doing local deliveries.”
The Polynesian community has long had a strong presence in East Palo Alto, making up 7.83% of the population as of 2026. In San Mateo County, Polynesians represent 1.09% of residents, or just over 8,000 people as of 2026.
Even so, Tongan and Samoan food can still be difficult to find. Fabric store and food market Polynesian Luau in Daly City is currently the only brick-and-mortar restaurant in the county serving Tongan food. San Mateo-based restaurant Tokemoana helped introduce the Peninsula to Polynesian cuisine before closing in 2023. One of its founders later became instrumental in helping Simiz Kai Lelei get off the ground.
The couple cooks from their home and shops for staple ingredients at local Fijian markets, with Achica’s uncle providing starches grown on his farm in Tonga. Since many entrees and starches are time-intensive to prepare, the business offers Poly Plate sales once a week to balance work, family and catering orders. The weekly menu is posted on Instagram a few days before each sale.
Poly Plates include entrees, side dishes and a starch for $25. A recent surf-and-turf plate featured kuku (baked coconut mussels), crispy coconut shrimp, crab macaroni salad, feke (octopus in coconut cream sauce), lu pulu musima (taro leaf-wrapped brisket) and taro. Another plate included their signature mui pipi (turkey tail), sapa sui (Samoan-style chop suey), manioke (cassava) and Samoan sausage bangers stuffed with egg salad. Other weekly entrees have featured lamb curry, pilikaki (mackerel), fried chicken and cabbage-salted brisket.
Desserts include pineapple custard pie and trifle cake ($7 each), which was inspired by Achica’s grandma, who often made the English layered dessert when Achica was growing up. A staple drink on the menu is otai ($7), a Tongan beverage made with shredded watermelon, coconut milk and crushed ice. For her own spin, Achica adds Cool Whip to make it creamy and dairy-free.
“It’s always quality over quantity for us,” Achica said, noting that they prepare 50-60 plates for the weekly sale. “We don’t cut corners to keep the flavors and the culture authentic.”
For plate sales, Simiz Kai Lelei has built a steady customer base, most of whom are Tongan elders who stop by for a plate after Sunday Mass. The eatery also offers catering on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays for funerals, weddings, bridal showers and graduations. Vending at community events such as the Top of the Hill Festival in Daly City and Tonga Day has helped widen their customer base.
“Currently, about 20% of our customers are non-Polynesian,” Achica said. “It means everything to me for a new audience to try our food.”
For the owners, cooking is rooted in tradition. The East Palo Alto community had already tasted Achica and Latu’s cooking through food exchanges, especially at funerals. In Polynesian cultures, providing meals for mourners is a common practice, and Achica and Latu often contributed to families in need. The name Simiz Kai Lelei honors Latu’s father, Simi, who encouraged the pair to turn their cooking into a business.
As she set up her business, Achica turned to Renaissance Entrepreneurship Center for guidance. Fusi Taaga, co-founder of Tokemoana and a business consultant at the nonprofit, has been a key resource for Simiz Kai Lelei. As a fellow East Palo Alto native and Tongan food entrepreneur, Taaga helped Achica and Latu obtain their business license, get food handler’s cards and establish an LLC.
Despite the closure of its brick-and-mortar location, Tokemoana continues to offer catering, and Taaga looks forward to seeing more Polynesian spots build a bigger audience for the cuisine.
“I take the lessons learned as a small business owner in the food world and help other owners avoid those mistakes,” Taaga said. “Being able to do that has been really fulfilling.”
Taaga also shared insight into why there aren’t more brick-and-mortar Polynesian eateries. The high cost of living, the expense of importing ingredients and the cost of utilities and staff wages make the Bay Area challenging for restaurateurs. Epi Aumavae, board president of Burlingame-based nonprofit Samoan Solutions, echoes these concerns.
“There is a lack of access to resources and economic disadvantages our community experiences,” Aumavae said. “Entrepreneurs have the talent and drive, but not necessarily the information to legitimize their business.”
To help fill the gap, Samoan Solutions offers outreach, advocacy and education programs to empower the community, especially youth. During the summer, they host a monthly Nesian Night Market to provide Polynesian-owned businesses a space to vend and showcase their goods, and Simiz Kei Lelei has been a past vendor. The last Nesian Night Market of the season was held Aug. 21 in San Bruno. The nonprofit is also organizing the fan festival at the Stanford vs. Hawaii football game on Saturday, Aug. 29, which features a Pacific Islander Heritage Celebration.
Alongside these efforts, eateries like Simiz Kai Lelei are celebrating Polynesian culture while introducing communities to a cuisine they may not have tried before. For those discovering Tongan and Samoan cuisine for the first time, Achicha invites them to try a Poly Plate not just for the food, but also for a taste of her family’s culture and hospitality in every bite.
“Our food is filled with love,” Achica said. “We want to create that feel-good, close-to-home impression on everybody.”
Simiz Kei Lelei, 2228 Pulgas Ave., East Palo Alto; Instagram: @simiz_kai_lelei. Open Sunday from noon until sold out; check hours on Instagram.
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