Eating Through Oahu, Hawai’i

From Asian food to classic American, Hawaii is a food oasis.

I am one of the biggest food people that I know, and my mother and sister often make fun of me because the only things I ever really talk about are food and movies. I work from home, so give me a break!

Nothing happens in my life outside of those things, so when we booked our trip to Hawai’i, I went on the offensive immediately to find the best eats in town. Hawai’i, especially Oahu, is unique because of the blend of Polynesian, Asian, and American culture all fused into one.

Now, there were some major struggles in the process of finding places to eat. Driving is a bit of a nightmare on Oahu as you have to drive an hour to really get anywhere from Honolulu.

Wait times in Waikiki can be insane if you eat your meals at primetime hours, so I recommend doing what we did and eat during the off hours. My final struggle was my family themselves. I live with a conservative family that isn’t used to nonwhite or anything but Iranian food, so it was a time trying to get them to go ahead and try new things versus constantly eating at classic American fare.

That did cause some major problems, but it worked out fine at the end of the day.

Writing this, I wish I was back in Hawai’i! It truly was a dream trip. That being said, let’s dive straight into the food portion of this post.

Haleiwa Joe’s (Kaneohe)

My eldest sister bought my mother a gift card for this restaurant for Christmas, so we made the thirty minute hike over to make it to Haleiwa Joe’s thirty minutes before opening. On a weekday, arrive at 3:30 (they open at four) if you want a table with the awesome view (look below).

They give fresh bread with guava butter (divine!) as your starter for free. I ordered the Korean galbi, which was just okay. My sisters and mother got the salmon pesto, while my father got a massive filet mignon.

For dessert, we ordered the burnt caramel macadamia nut ice cream with fresh fruit, which was absolutely amazing. If you finish eating before sunset, head down to the restaurant’s free gardens for a nice walk—it was worth taking a look around, that’s for sure.

Tonkatsu Ginza Bairin (Waikiki)

We swung by at around 1 PM on a weekday and were seated immediately; the restaurant was almost completely empty at the time.

I ordered the pork loin tonkatsu curry set, which came with an unidentified soup (it was not miso), a salad with miso sesame dressing, and a plate that consisted of curry, rice, the katsu, and some pickled vegetable.

The katsu was airy and light, while the curry had a lot of flavor. For $25, it wasn’t bad for lunch. My family all ordered the chicken katsu for their dinners, and the reactions were mixed.

If you’re into katsu this is the place for you, but if not you may not want to take the family. We stayed right across the street from the restaurant, so it was literally only a two minute walk from the front door.

Tonkatsu Pork Loin Curry

Taormina Sicilian Cuisine (Waikiki)

We ended up here because we couldn’t decide what to eat, and it was on a main strip of Waikiki. The prices here can be pretty steep if you come for dinner, but we ordered the lunch portions. 4/5 ordered the beef siciliana (which is spicy).

I liked it a lot, thought that it had quite a bit of flavor to it. My sister ordered a regular spaghetti pomodoro, which was a dinner portion. Fun fact: the dinner portion cost $26 but it was literally the same size as our $17 lunch portions.

We started out with foccacia bread for free, then the server offered a pear salad that cost $15. The pear salad was delicious, but each person could only take a tiny handful—it wasn’t something that you could easily share. Service was slow as well, but it seemed like they literally only had one waiter running around and doing everything.

Beef siciliana

Noi Thai Cuisine (Waikiki), Island Shaved Ice

We came here after it was my pick of where to eat, and I was sick of meat. Noi Thai was fairly steep prices for Thai food, if I’m going to be honest. I got the tofu drunken noodles and they came out to be around $25 with tax.

We all ordered some variation of a noodle dish and thought it was just okay. The interiors of the restaurant were very nice, though, so the ambiance seemed perfect—especially considering it was located inside of the mall in Waikiki.

I got a lychee Thai iced tea, while my mother and sister got Thai Iced Teas—get the Thai Iced Tea. It was so creamy and delicious, although very sweet. My image disappeared of the food, but they did adorn the plates with flowers for the aesthetic!

We stopped at Island Shaved Ice, which usually had a massive line—not on this day! It’s by the Hermes store. We ordered the lillakoi (Passion fruit) shaved ice, which came with mochi pieces and lychee flavored popping boba.

Half the ice was strawberry, the other half passion fruit flavored. I thought it was pretty good, as did my sister. As we dug deeper into the concoction, we discovered there was cream underneath it all, adding to our joy. For $12, it was a fairly solid shaved ice.

Lillakoi Shaved Ice

Marugame Udon, Paia Fish Market, and Ice Monster Hawaii (Waikiki)

Merging these three together because we hit them all up one by one in the same span of four hours. My family wanted to eat at Paia Fish Market because it had cheaper prices than some of the restaurants, so we went in and ordered the food. I ordered a single chicken taco ($5) and was impressed by the flavors it had to offer—it tasted very fresh and well-seasoned. My sister liked her seafood pasta, while my parents nodded into their fajitas.

We then headed over to Ice Monster Hawaii, a bingsoo place that was a couple doors down. My sister and I split a small bingsoo ($12) that was strawberry flavored. They placed fresh strawberries around it, as well as pannacotta and strawberry sorbet. It wasn’t like the traditional Korean bingsoo I was used to, but it was still delicious!

I then left my family to head over to Marugame Udon, where I was meeting with an old friend from my study abroad days in Korea. The line was about an hour long at 6:30, but we were in by 7:15.

We both got the beef nishijima curry udon ($10), which came with homemade udon, curry, beef slices, and a poached egg. I picked up a sweet potato tempura and a single inari, then we sat out back to avoid being inside the crowded restaurant.

I still dream about that udon. I was literally slurping up the broth as we chatted because I loved it so much. The noodles were freshly made, so they were perfectly chewy and full of flavor to soak up the curry broth.

The sweet potato tempura was everything I wanted out of a fried potato, while the egg and beef were the perfect compliments. Marugame Udon was my favorite meal of the trip, that’s for sure.

Kahuku Farms, Giovanni’s Shrimp Truck, Leonard’s Bakery

I don’t eat shrimp, so I can’t attest to Giovanni’s but my family thought it was just okay. The best part according to their verdict was the rice (it was agreed the rice was delicious), while the shrimp was merely okay. They all ordered the shrimp scampi, which cost $16 a plate.

My meal was at Kahuku Farms, which was slightly down the road from the Giovanni’s we stopped at. Put Kahuku Farms on your eating list—I absolutely loved this place. They’re farm to table, so everything you order they grow on-site or purchase from other nearby farms.

I started off with a Plantation Tea (Iced Tea with Mango Juice), then had the 1/2 Veggie Panini 1/2 salad with chicken added. The vegetables tasted like they were grown with love. We then ordered a papaya with ice cream (divine), and grilled banana bread smothered in a chocolate caramel sauce. I’d go here once a week if I lived in these parts, that’s how happy I was with the food.

We stopped at the famous Leonard’s Bakery on the way home and picked up a dozen malasadas. The best ones, in my humble opinion, were the cream, guava, and mango. None of us were a fan of the chocolate. You definitely have to eat the malasadas within two days, though, because they go bad after that.

Haleiwa Beach House, Nico’s Pier 38, Cream Pot

This open-air restaurant is located on the North Shore and opens up straight onto the beach. We couldn’t figure out where to eat when we stumbled upon this place, so it seemed like the perfect solution to our fighting. There menu was quite limited if you weren’t into meat (I am not), but I ordered a Thai Chicken BBQ sandwich on a taro bun. It was seasoned chicken that was topped with a papaya slaw, Japanese mayo, and came with a side of home fries.

My family absolutely loved the food here, that’s for sure. I wasn’t as into mine, but my mother thought her Po Boy sandwich was the beat meal she had on the island. My mother isn’t into food, so that’s a compliment.

On our last night, we stopped by the pier to go to Nico’s. Our boat tour guide said he came here often with his wife, so we came to try out the fresh fish. Supposedly they buy their fish fresh each morning to serve to customers, but no one except my sisters ordered fish. I got the pork belly, which came out crispy and with vegetables and mashed potatoes.

It was pretty decent, but a bit pricy at $28. My sister thought her fish & chips were the best she’s ever had in her life, while my parents shrugged at their steak frites. All in all, it was a mixed bag in terms of happy customers.

Our final breakfast was at Cream Pot. This was the longest we waited for, at a grand total of about twenty to thirty minutes. We arrived right at opening, too, at 8 AM. The inside is extremely aesthetic, it kind of reminds me of Alice and Wonderland.

We came for the Japanese pancakes and did not disappoint—they were so fluffy and creamy in the middle that it made it worth the $23. My mother loved her French toast, so it seemed like Cream Pot was a hit. Be aware that the service may be slow (the day we came people didn’t show up to work) and that this place is cash only. It is worth it, though, so get the pancakes. You won’t regret it.

Concluding Thoughts

Some places did not have good food (Dole Plantation, Polynesian Cultural Center, and Rainbow Drive-In we all didn’t like that much), but that’s fairly subjective. Be aware that in tourist areas you’re going to be paying upwards to $200 a meal—we were paying almost $200 a check for five people to eat at a sit down place.

Everything in Hawai’i has to be imported, so it makes sense why everything is so expensive. Be kind to your waiters as well—it’s really hard to make it in Hawai’i because of the real estate and living expenses.

I highly recommend eating during the off hours like we did, as it saved a lot of time and we never had to actually wait for a table to be open. We just showed up and were seated immediately. Definitely do try the local food and try to find out where the local people eat because that’s often where more affordable but good food tends to be.

Hope this was helpful for someone!