Restaurant Recommendations for all islands

OKay...

I know there is probably a thread about this somewhere else- but I like the opinions here! And I know that there are restaurant suggestions peppered throughout, but I thought we could start a thread with locals and veteran travellers giving their advice and opinions to us "virgins".

I would love to have suggestions for each of the ports (POAM)!

Hilo

Maui

Kona

Kauai

Waikiki

I have already seen some great ones and have been feverishly jotting down notes as I skim the boards. This way we can have "one stop shopping" to find out where we should go!

It would be helpful if the poster could give an idea of the kind of food, price, and appropriate dress as many of us will be coming from excursions.

I have kids (17,15, &10) so family-friendly places would be a BIG HELP. I already know that we will have to hit Cheeseburger in Paradise for my son!:rolleyes:

THANKS!

KML

KML - I am sure you are going to get a lot of answers with this posting, but thought I'd chime in.

In Hilo, and I will probably get into trouble for this, but I recommend Ken's Pancake House. It's always busy and it serves Denny style food with an island flair. It's also open 24 hours. If you want something more upscale than that, we always try to go to Harrington's at least once while we're there. If you're there on a Friday night, the seasfood buffet at the Hilo Hawaiian is good, but always jammed packed with locals.

If you have the abiilty, get out of Hilo and drive up to Volcano, the turn off is on the right, nearly across from the entrance to VNP. There is a Thai restaurant in Volcano Village to die for. We always eat there at least twice, sometimes three times when we visit. just up the road is the Kiluauea Lodge. Incredible food, but pricey. You do get your money's worth though.

Kona has more upscale restaurants than Hilo, but many of them are further up the coast in the Kohala district. If distance isn't a problem, try the main dining room at the Mauna Kea or the Canoe House. Brown's is fabulous, but pricy. For in town, it's hard to beat the fresh fish at Kona Inn.

In Honolulu, I highly recommend the Maple Garden. It's off the beaten path, set back from the main drag, but all the locals go there - it's inexpensive, plentiful and the murals are beautiful. There are lots of places to chose from on the strip, but this one offers the opportunity to talk with residents and the restaurant staff for a more island feel.

Can't really help you too much for Maui, although I rememer the food at the Kula Lodge being really great, especially the lamb, but that was years ago. Same thing for Kauai. it's been litereally 20 years since we've been to either island. We go to the Big Island or Honolulu to visit family and friends and usually stop with that.

Hope that helps a little

Charlie

In my opinion the three best restaurants we ate at while spending a week in Kauai were:

Gaylord's

Roy's

The Beach House

We REALLY enjoyed all 3 of these places, actually we ate at Roy's twice because it was so good!

I don't remember exactly where Gaylord's was but I do remember it is right on the road that takes you to the Eucalyptus tunnel right before you get to the tunnel.

Roy's and The Beach House were in Poipu.

Meh ... Maple Garden. Not my favorite Chinese restaurant but decent. Chinese food in Hawaii can be sort of hit or miss in general - some days (and if the chef's in a good mood), it can be REALLY good. On other days, it's mediocre.

In any case ... (changing directions) ....

It's hard to define "best" restaurant since it can encompass so many things for people - the most extravagant/special occasion type of restaurant, the best for the money type of restaurant, and various best of ethnic types.

A good place to start would be here - our local paper's yearly roundup of the "best" restaurants in Hawaii.

http://the.honoluluadvertiser.com/specials/bestrestaurants05/

I'd say I agree with the majority of choices in here. There are a few exceptions but in general ... :)

Spleen

Nice to see that two of my fave Big Island eateries are on the Honolulu Advertiser list: Huggo's in Kona, and Cafe Pesto in Hilo. The latter has possibly the best pizza I've ever eaten. (I just don't recall Pizza Hut placing an orchid in the middle of my order.) Huggo's is a little hit-and-miss, but the "miss" meals were still very good. And when they're "hits" they're marvelous. A little pricey.

There are a few very nice eateries in Volcano, but they keep changing names/menus. I understand the fusion place is gone, and the Steam Vent keeps changing owners too. Is this true?

A hearty "second that" to sceptic's recommendation of Pesto in Hilo. Yum! They have many other things besides pizza, and everything we had was excellent.

We really like Lahaina Fish Company on Maui for lunch/pupus and drinks. Cafe O'Lei is good too. For a simple outdoor setting and good plate lunch, try Aloha Mixed Plate (right by Old Lahaina Luau). Drinks are good, as are the views.

beachchick

Yes, this is a good one, although the last time I was there, my salad was a little...um...hairy. Sort of put me off the place. Huggo's is also good, but we found Kona Inn before them and it's always held a special place in our hearts, esepcially after we watched a poor little gecko get launched into the garden via the overhead fans - it was out of a Bugs Bunny cartoon.

Perhaps one of the easiest ways is to get a copy of the latest Zygat (sp?) and see what they have to say. We've used them for years and found some really fun places. You can find them either at a locla bookstore or the library - those are a little older, but you can always call beforehand.

Charlie

If you want fast food - skip the usual mainland chains and try L & L Bar-b-que. The Chicken Katsu (sp) is great - low prices and large portions! They are all over the islands - they have a few on the west coast now also.

Thank you all for your replies- I guess I was a little surprised that I didn't get more opinions.

As far as checking restaurant guides and all that, I have already been looking at these and I have the "Revealed" books. But, it is always nice to have someone you "know" tell you that they had a great experience.

We will definitely be stopping by Cafe Pesto for a snack before returning to the ship in Hilo!!:D

And most likely will make a stop at Roy's as well (It will be Thanksgiving Day, so we will have to decide if we want to take a chance on the ship or pay to go someplace great-and I am sure I will have to get reservations WAY in advance.):rolleyes:

Anyone found a shaved ice place that was good and not an insane wait? I feel like we need to try this island treat.

One more question...

We are staying at the Moana Surfrider post cruise and we were going to do the Sunday Brunch. Has anyone done this? It's quite expensive and the "Revealed" book seems to think it is not worth the money. Would going to Duke's for breakfast be a better option? I will definetly spring for the Moana Brunch if it is worth it.

KML

We will be on the Pride of America in October and want to eat dinner off the ship when we are in Kona, Maui, and Kauai. We will not be renting a car but we love to walk are any of these restaurants within walking distance or maybe a short cab ride?

Thank You

I admit I get lazy sometimes - after answering the restaurant questions multiple times, I see another one and say to myself, "didn't we just do this a few months ago?" :)

Might be easier if you looked at the recommendations, the guides that you have, and then come back and ask specifically about restaurants. Such as, "I'm thinking about going to this restaurant, has anybody had any experience with this one?"

... which is exactly how you did the question about the Moana Surfrider Sunday brunch. Unfortunately, have never been there for Sunday brunch so can't answer the question. :D The best Sunday brunches are still considered to be Orchids in the Halekulani (walking distance for you), Hoku's in the Kahala (cab ride away), or John Dominis (cab ride away AND overrated IMHO).

I'm not sure if going to a fancy restaurant for Thanksgiving makes a whole lot of sense since the tradition is the carved bird and the assorted side dishes which practically any place can do fairly decently - so not sure why you'd want to pay the money for a fancy place along with the surcharge that comes with eating out on a holiday? At least, that's how I'd look at it. Might be better to eat back on board.

And it's not "shaved ice" - it's shave ice - at least that's what we call it here on the islands. Great places are Matsumoto's on the North Shore and Waiola Shave Ice in town - Waiola is kind of a hidden location (though they have 2 locations now at least) so if interested, I might have to try to give you directions. I like Waiola better than Matsumoto's anyway. Both can have waits at times but the line usually moves quickly. Don't think I've ever waited for longer than 5 minutes to order. Others here have mentioned Scandinavian Shave Ice in Kona but never been there myself so don't know.

Spleen

I discovered after posting that reply that it is called "shave ice" not "shaved" ice and that I would be considered ignorant if I made that mistake on the islands. Well, maybe not ignorant- but would definitely tag myself as a "mainlander". (As if the Midwest accent and Scandinavian coloring wouldn't be a dead give-away)

The only reason that I was thinking of not going back to the ship for dinner on Thanksgiving is that we will be on Kauai! I want to stay on the island as long as possible- since the next day we leave at 2pm. I was thinking of driving up to the North Shore and watching the sun set at the Kilauea Lighthouse- I've heard it is a "must do". But, now I realize that after horseback riding and "tubing the ditch" (have to keep the kiddies happy) we will look like street urchins and probably won't want to try a nice restaurant. Maybe we will grab a snack to watch the sun set and go back to the ship for the traditional dinner.

Spleen- thanks for the tip on Waiola- I looked it up in my "revealed" book and they gave it an "ono" as well!

KML

Kimo's is easily one of my top 3 favorite restaurants in the world. (I can't wait to go there again in January!)

Love the macadamia encrusted mahi-mahi, the Chinese Chicken salad, and the veggie sandwich. Everything I've ever had there has been good (did I forget to mention the ribs?) - but those are 3 of my favorites.

And the hula pie...YUMMMM!!!!!

kml, regarding seeing the sun set from Kilauea lighthouse on Kauai on Thanksgiving. I'm basing the following on the assumption you want to see the sun set on an ocean horizon.

In two words - you can't.

At least, not from the lighthouse on Thanksgiving. Here's why. When you're at the lighthouse and you look to the west you're looking along the north shore of Kilauea. It's truly a glorious place. However, the point where island meets ocean from the lighthouse view is at a compass heading of about 267 degrees or so, basically due west.

On Thanksgiving day, the sun will be at declination -20 degrees. That's its astronomical position in the sky, and location on the Earth doesn't affect this.

What this means is that the sun will set at a point about 22 degrees south of west in Hawaii on Thanksgiving. Basically, from the Kilauea Lighthouse the sun will be setting over the mountains above the Na Pali coast. Now, if you're just going to the lighthouse to potentially see the colors of a glorious sunset and not trying to scope out a green flash, the lighthouse is one of the great places on Kauai (we went there almost every evening on our last trip there, which was in April, when the sun was setting NORTH of due west). But to see the sun set on Thanksgiving on a horizon of ocean you have to be able to see the ocean over 20 degrees south of west. This means Poipu, Port Allen, and points west of there.

As far as looking rather scruffy in a restaurant for Thanksgiving, my advice is to not sweat it. Thanksgiving dinners at restaurants are overrated IMO, unless you're going for a banquet. Heck, we once had Easter dinner at the old Sizzler on Kauai - excellent sashimi, btw... a true Easter memory. LOL. (And last Thanksgiving, our super turkey dinner was a crummy "turkey sandwich" on a plane heading to Trinidad. So whatever you find on Kauai you're probably better off.) Just go with the flow - if nothing appeals to you there's always the ship. If need be, bring along a clean shirt on your day in Kauai so you can de-scruff a bit. And who wants to go to a "dress up restaurant" after a day of flume riding on Kauai?

Sceptic- Thank you so much for the info about the sunset at the Lighthouse. I would have been so disappointed! And judging from your comprehension of the science of it- I will not doubt your word!

I think we will just play Thanksgiving by ear and go with whatever moves us!

This will be anything but a traditional Thanksgiving!

KML

in Mauia Lahiana Try Chesseburger in Paradise

Had Burgers and beers at9Am 3PM EST

last week.

Kauai- Shrimp Shack by the canyon

Bamboo Restaurant in Hawi on the Big Island. Yummy potstickers! Say hi to Auntie Mary.

MMM...

I DO love potstickers!!

While we're on the subject (and being too lazy to search tonight), what about Legends in Honolulu/Waikiki (I think that's where it is)? It might be in Chinatown. A friend mentioned it, but we've never been there and don't even know exactly where it is. Any thoughts?

Mahalo,

beachchick

Legend is great for dim sum (they actually don't do potstickers if I remember correctly - at least not during lunch). There are at least 2 branches I'm aware of - the main branch in Chinatown and another branch in Waikiki.

Spleen

Has anyone been to Alan Wong's? Is it worth the price? I was thinking of having this be our "last meal" in Hawaii as we were heading towards the airport. You know, trying to go out with a "bang". What do you think?

KML

OKay...

 

I know there is probably a thread about this somewhere else- but I like the opinions here! And I know that there are restaurant suggestions peppered throughout, but I thought we could start a thread with locals and veteran travellers giving their advice and opinions to us "virgins".

 

I would love to have suggestions for each of the ports (POAM)!

 

Hilo

Maui

Kona

Kauai

Waikiki

 

I have already seen some great ones and have been feverishly jotting down notes as I skim the boards. This way we can have "one stop shopping" to find out where we should go!

 

It would be helpful if the poster could give an idea of the kind of food, price, and appropriate dress as many of us will be coming from excursions.

 

I have kids (17,15, &10) so family-friendly places would be a BIG HELP. I already know that we will have to hit Cheeseburger in Paradise for my son!:rolleyes:

 

THANKS!

 

KML

I'd also endorse the two Cafe Pestos - the one in Hilo and the one in Kawaihae (which I actually like better)

Other Big Island spots to try - Ken's Pancake House is good for huge portions and since you have boys, that is always a good thing.

Bamboo up in Hawi may be a reach for a cruise day, but if you have a car in Kona and are heading north, it is very good.

Other more northern area places are Roy's at Waikoloa Beach Resort (dinner only at the moment) The Waimea (or Kamuela?) Ranch House - used to be the Koa House and that's what we all still call it - anyway, it is across from the Ace Hardware above the KTA in Waimea - really great. Merriman's in Waimea and a new branch in Waikoloa Beach Resort at the King's Shops, Daniel Thiebaut's in Waimea. Two of my favorites in Waimea Aolis and the Little Juice Shack are gone now and haven't tried their replacements yet, but Tako Taco is still around, but moved. It is now on Mamalahoa Highway at Cook's Corner by the stop light.

Tex Drive In in Honoka'a is still the place of choice for malasadas and is also good for a typical Hawaiian Plate Lunch (and I think their chicken katsu is much superior to L & L)

The Kona Ranch House, up on the hill above the intersection at Kuakini and Palani (walking distance of the pier) is good for breakfast and lunch.

We like Ba-Le for lunch time sandwiches and saimin - it is in the Kona Coast Shopping Center, down by the KTA grocery, again, walking distance of the pier in Kona, and also Buns in the Sun, which is in the shopping center across from Kona Coast - Lanihau, on the corner of the upper section. There's also an L & L there, although unlike one of the other posters, I'm not partial to them.

There's a small Chinese place in Lanihau, too - name escapes me at the moment - that is pretty decent.

Quinn's Almost by the Sea, which is across from the parking lot entry at the King Kam is good - again lots of food, nothing fancy, but good for growing boys.

Other stuff in walking distance of the pier: Huggos is good. Hard Rock is - well, - Hard Rock - go for the souvenirs and eat someplace else. Lulu's is okay, view is great. Bubba Gumps is pretty decent and has a great location. You can sometimes see turtles from their deck tables. Cassandra's is pretty good for Greek food - actually if you have a yen for Greek food, it's the only place on the island as far as I know.

O's up in the Crossroads shopping center is the latest version of Oodles of Noodles - Amy Ota's place, and is good but fairly pricey. Next door is Cold Stone Creamery for the most decadent ice cream on the planet. Good sandwiches can be made to order at the deli counter at Safeway, and they have outdoor and indoor eating areas now. The organic foods store in the same complex also has a sandwich counter for the vegetarians in the family.

Usual complement of fast food chains around and about, of course, but most of them have some variety of local type menu, particularly at breakfast.

That should keep you well fed on the Big Island at least...

Alan Wong's is the best restaurant on Oahu. Hands down. Books up around 2-3 wks in advance - call early for the reservation. You have to like Asian food to appreciate all the nuances though - if you don't like Asian food, you might want to try a more Continental restaurant.

Spleen

Spleen: Mahalo. Maybe we'll give it a try on our one Oahu day this fall.

beachchick

I recommend the 7-course Chef's Tasting menu. :D

Spleen