WHAT STARTED AS THREE college roommates cooking out and sharing the flavors of home with friends has grown into Wavez Food Hawaiian-Cajun, serving a bold fusion of Hawaiian and islander flavors with Cajun spice and a side of Aloha spirit.

“We grew up cooking,” says co-owner Lui Fa’amasino (from Hawaii and Alaska), recalling years spent prepping ingredients and helping to prepare family meals. “We were volun-told.” 

In 2023, Fa’amasino and friends Vitolio Vitolio (from American Samoa) and Tre Abraham (from Baton Rouge, Louisiana) started selling plates of Aloha chicken, braised in soy sauce and brown sugar, with Cajun-seasoned cabbage and bell peppers to New Mexico State University athletes on weekends. About six months later, they graduated to a food truck. Fa’amasino, a former Aggies linebacker, says the business continued building momentum through their athletic connections, and they were hired to cater team dinners. After another year and a half spent refining recipes and building a following, Wavez opened a fast-casual brick-and-mortar restaurant near Apodaca Park in July 2025.

Two of Wavez’s owners, Lui Fa’amasino (left) and Tre Abraham. Photograph by Tira Howard.

“We had to be open-minded too,” Fa’amasino says. “For our parents, it’s like, ‘Don’t mess with the recipe,’ because all of these come from our moms.” His take on katsu sauce, for example, departs from the traditional Japanese condiment with streamlined ingredients plus a New Mexico–inspired kick of red chile. The Wavez signature sauce appears on the popular Katsu Delight: a panko-breaded and fried chicken breast finished with sesame seeds.

Customers have had to approach their plates with an open mind as well, since Hawaiian and Cajun flavors aren’t common in southern New Mexico. “It’s a different palate,” Fa’amasino says. The menu mixes heartier comfort food, like Cajun mac and cheese, and lighter grab-and-go options, such as the musubi cake—marinated baked Spam layered over a block of rice and wrapped in seaweed. “People will come for the food,” Fa’amasino adds, “but they come back for the hospitality.”

525 E. Madrid Ave. Suite 1, Las Cruces; 575-520-3911, wavezfood.com