Last updated: 2/26/2023

There are only a handful of places in the world that I love so much that I’d want to visit at least once a year. Hawaii is one of them. I lived in Honolulu for 4 months in 2010 and fell in love with it to the point where it has become one of my favorite destinations in the world, and I’m lucky it’s only a 5 hour flight away. 

Oahu has a lot of haters, but I think those people either don’t appreciate amazing food or haven’t been to the right places. I can’t deny that part of Oahu has a lot of tourists and traffic, but I love that Oahu has the best of both worlds (city + nature). Just head over to Kailua, Yokohama, or North Shore and it feels like one of the less-populated islands with the beautiful unspoiled nature and wondrous hikes (did you know Oahu has more hikes than any other island?). Then come back to Honolulu and its amazing food and fun things to do! For those of you who thought you hated Oahu, I hope you will give it another chance after checking out this post.

My ranking of the islands in terms of activities and food is as follows: Oahu > Big Island > Kauai > Maui. Lanai is mostly private so I won’t put it in my ranking.

Please let me know if anything is out-of-date or if you have any suggestions. I update it after every trip to Oahu. Yelp is the best place to double check whether a restaurant I mentioned is still open, and to find more awesome suggestions and new places that have opened since my last trip!

Pro-tip: While living in Honolulu, I was part of the Honolulu Yelp Elite, and they’re a great group of locals who love food and stay up to date with all the new openings. When you’re checking Yelp reviews, give the reviews that have an Elite badge more consideration! 

Pro-tip 2: Instagram is a great place to discover new trends in food since most businesses have an account there.

Pro-tip 3: Grab the Oahu’s Best Coupons booklets from the kiosks at the baggage claim. It contains 10-15%+ coupons for many restaurants on the island, and many of these are actually really good restaurants such as Tonkatsu Tamafuji, Tonkatsu Ginza Bairin, Ramen Bario, Imanas Tei, and more. If you forget to get a book or carry it around, you can use the coupons from your phone too.

*** means I highly recommend it, and focus on the blue text if you’re short on time

Activities

One reason Oahu is the best island is there are tons of activities of all types; there is something for everyone here. You won’t be bored!

Name	Description
***Bishop Museum & Planetarium***	History of Hawaii, science museum, special traveling exhibits, and Planetarium shows with telescope viewings.
***Pali Lookout***	Great view of Kailua and the windward side. Really windy area. Parking may cost $ unless you’re kama’aina (a local).
***Pearl Harbor – USS Arizona Memorial, USS Missouri***	Historical site, free admission. Due to COVID-19, they now let you book tickets online, so I highly recommend that.
***Polynesian Cultural Center***	Supposedly their Ha Breath of Life show is AMAZING. Lots of coupons available. The luau dinner is not known to be as good. This is a really touristy destination but still worth going to once.
Chinatown (First Fridays)	Join local folks and visitors alike on the first Friday of every month for Chinatown’s First Friday evening festival. Chinatown and downtown galleries, museums and studios are open to the public for this popular event that provides an opportunity to experience the artistic and cultural resources of Honolulu. Festivities include live music, street entertainment, open cafes and bistros. antique stores — and even a tattoo parlor. The bars are going to be PACKED!
Paradise Cove Luau	Amazing beach luau at sunset. The food isn’t very authentic and it’s not very good…it’s definitely catered to tourists. But the sunset part and the activities make it worth it.
***Snorkeling at Shark’s Cove***	Snorkeling Shark’s Cove is a local secret (right next to Pupukea beach park). Saw turtles every time, plus a monk seal. Stay to the right side of the cove (when facing the ocean) …the turtles like to hang out on that side. ***Do NOT touch the turtles. It’s against state law. You’ll get fined $25k.***
***Snorkeling at Electric Beach (Kahe Point Beach Park)***	Lots of colorful fish and clear waters and turtles. The beach is next to the Hawaiian Electric Plant, which outflows clean warm water through two large cooling pipes. The pipes run out into the ocean and at the opening the water temperature is several degrees warmer than normal, which attracts a variety of sea life. Definitely google for some blog posts which have photos on how to follow the pipes along to the end where all the fish and turtles are. You have to swim out pretty far in relatively rough waters, but it’s worth it. If you’re uncomfortable with swimming, consider paying for a boat tour that will drop you off at the end of the pipes. If you get lucky you’ll also see dolphins!
***Snorkeling at Hanauma Bay***	Must visit!! Everyone goes to Hanauma Bay to snorkel, and it is totally worth it. Although they do crowd control and limited entries, to avoid long waits, I recommend going in the morning when there are less people, and on a weekday (it is closed 1-2 days per week, so check their website first). There is an entrance fee, which is free for kama’aina, and a parking fee, also free for kama’aina.  – Bring your own snorkel gear since they have stopped doing rentals due to COVID-19 – You have to watch a 15 minute nature conservation film before you’re allowed onto the beach – The Toilet Bowl is now permanently closed due to injuries/deaths and there is a fine if caught trespassing.
Other places to snorkel	If Hanauma Bay is closed and the North Shore or West side of the island are too far for you, check out Kaiona Beach Park, just past Sandy Beach. It’s a very small beach with a little parking lot and has bathroom facilities. There’s a little reef with fish and sea turtles! By the way, rent your snorkel gear at Snorkel Bob’s if you didn’t bring or buy your own.
Kayaking to the Mokulua Islands	I’ve actually never had a chance to do this, but I hear it takes about an hour from Kailua or Lanikai Beach. You could also paddle to Flat Island (bird sanctuary) which is shorter. If you’re super lucky you might meet monk seals at the Mokulua islands!
***Kayaking in Kaneohe Bay***	I haven’t done this either, but my friends highly recommend it and Kaneohe Bay is absolutely gorgeous (similar views as Kauai). Google for info on kayaking to the sandbar and the best times to do it (ideally low tide). You’ll probably see turtles while you’re kayaking too. Rent kayaks from Kama’aina Kayak and Snorkel Eco-Ventures first. They have the equipment you need to load it onto the roof of your car, even if it’s a rental car.
***Byodo-In Temple***	Beautiful Japanese Buddhist temple that makes you feel like you’re in Kyoto. It’s located in a memorial/cemetery area called Valley of the Temples (my grandparents-in-law are buried here, it’s probably the most beautiful cemetery I’ve ever seen in my life!). There’s a koi pond and zen garden too. There’s an admission fee here.
Ho’omaluhia Botanical Garden	If you like plants, you’ll probably love this botanical garden. Nice place to walk around and spend a day, with picnic tables too. Free admission too!
Wet ‘N Wild Waterpark	Frequently has special deals like 50% off or free admission. More for kids, most of the rides are pretty low-key and not very extreme or thrilling.
Makapuu Tide Pools	Go early-ish, before 3, when the sun goes over the mountain
Surfing or Stand Up Paddle (SUP)	Waikiki is usually the best place to learn and/or take lessons, but if you’re good, North Shore is the place to go. Ala Moana is most convenient.
Sea Life Park	Has dolphin encounters, sea lion show, etc. Like Sea World but not as big.
***Diving with Reef Pirates***	$115 for 2 tank dive (in 2018), with pickups/dropoffs at hotels in Waikiki. Their shop is in Hawaii Kai, and the spots they take you are great! On a recent trip I saw at least 10 huge turtles (like a turtle garage, with each turtle parked in its own little cave), baby octopus, a reef shark, frog fish, sea snakes, and pods of many dolphins.
Kualoa Ranch	This is really touristy, but if you’re into ATV, zipline, Jurassic Park tours, etc you might enjoy this!
Explore the art and breweries in Kakaako neighborhood	The hipster part of Honolulu. Check out the pics in the linked blog post.
***Tantalus Lookout***	Must visit! Great views up here just a 15 min drive from town – either during the day or at night to see the city lights. Kinda reminds me of Twin Peaks in SF. When you do Tesla test drives, they often recommend that you drive up here to feel the full power of the car. You can borrow a Tesla on your own for 30+ min from the dealership (they are lenient on the return time).
Spitting Caves / China Wall	Great sunset viewing spot and caves to explore. Sometimes there are cliff divers as well, and you can even hike to Hanauma Bay via a backdoor.

Shopping

Oahu also has the best shopping of all the Hawaiian islands.

***Aloha Stadium Swap Meet***	Souvenirs, food, clothing, car seat covers, jewelry, and much more and much cheaper than even Walmart or anywhere else. $1 admission per person but google for BOGO coupons.
***Ala Moana Shopping Center***	The biggest outdoor mall in the country. It’s seriously huge. Highly recommend checking out the Foodland here. Both of these are MUST VISITS. I love the poke bar at Foodland and there’s also a wine bar, shave ice bar, ice cream mochi (Bubbies) bar, bakery, and more. There are two great food courts here – Makai and Lanai. Definitely walk through both. At Makai, I recommend Ramen Bario and Holy Cow (Korean corndog). At Lanai, I recommend Ahi & Vegetable, BRUG Bakery, and Iyasume Musubi.
***SALT at Our Kaka‘ako***	Collection of great trendy restaurants and shops. Parking is free with validation.
Ward Center/Village	Not as big as Ala Moana, but nice outdoor/indoor mall with lots of good restaurants and a movie theater. It’s really up-and-coming.
Waikiki Beach Walk, Royal Hawaiian Center	These are nice outdoor malls in Waikiki. A few of them have good food courts.
***International Market Place*** (Waikiki)	Nice newly remodeled mall, with a Mitsuwa Japanese market on the second floor (50% off ready-to-heat foods after 5 pm and a small food court that includes Modo mochi doughnuts)
Aloha Tower Marketplace	Waterfront shopping mall
Costco	If you need bulk Hawaiian snacks and gifts to bring home, this is the place to go! Also get your gas here before returning your rental car to the airport. 🙂
***KCC (Kapiolani Community College) Farmer’s Market***	Farmer’s market at KCC (near Waikiki), bringing together produce, flower & food vendors on Saturdays & Tuesdays.
***Kaka’ako Farmers Market***	Saturday-morning market at the Ward Warehouse, with local produce, meat & seafood, plus live music. Generally the locals will say this one is better than KCC.
Sam’s Club, Walmart	Great places to get necessities, gifts, snacks, and things like snorkels if you didn’t bring your own.
***Don Quijote***	Very different from the ones in Japan, but has a nice cheap food court outside, a supermarket inside, and a great place to stock up on Japanese and Hawaiian snacks and souvenirs. There are multiple locations now.
Korean Markets – Palama, H-Mart, 88 Pal Pal, Keeaumoku Produce	Great places to get some cheap Korean foods and snacks to go

Beaches

The best beach in all of the Hawaiian islands (and arguably, in the world) is here in Oahu.

***Lanikai Beach***	This is a MUST VISIT. Voted one of the best beaches in the world with very fine sand, like powdered sugar/flour. Definitely my FAVORITE beach. Beautiful view of the Mokulua Islands. Very few people come here, which is nice…very romantic. =) (Update 2021: I guess the secret has gotten out, there are definitely more people now) There are no facilities here though, and you’ll be parking in a residential area on the streets.
Kailua Beach	Similar to above but this is a public beach (e.g. has facilities).
Ala Moana Beach Park	Great place to run, surf, BBQ, do an outdoor workout, or just chill. Really convenient and large park/beach. Lots of wedding photos done here.
Sandy Beach	Popular place to body surf. Dangerous though.
***Waimea Bay Beach***	Can jump off a huge rock (you’ll see people doing all kinds of flips).  Popular for surfing too. Very close to Haleiwa.
Sunset Beach	Popular for surfing also.
***Laniakea Beach/Turtle Beach/Chun’s Beach***	A couple miles east of Haleiwa… you’ll see a dirt parking lot on the right side and a grove of trees on the left – beach is on the left. Big turtles!
Pipeline Beach	Banzai Pipeline – world famous surfing competitions held here
Kaena Point Beach aka Yokohama Bay	Did you say you hate Oahu because it’s crowded? Then go here to get a pristine, gorgeous beach all to yourself, with no development for miles around. If you go to the very end, after a short easy hike, you might get to see the monk seals.
***Waimanalo Beach Park***	3 miles of beach; soft sand, not very many people, great if you want to avoid the crowds. Tends to be cloudier on this side though…but great if the sun is out
Waikiki	The most crowded beach, but great surfing for beginners; very mellow waves; tons of shops and restaurants (Waikiki Beach Walk); Dukes in Waikiki; Surfing at Canoes in Waikiki.
***Kualoa Regional Beach Park***	Great view of Chinaman’s Hat. Large park with lots of grassy space and beach too.
Makalei Beach Park	It’s a super small and narrow beach so not the best for hanging out, but is a great place to watch the sunset near Waikiki. Just a 15 min bike ride from Waikiki and you get away from the crowds. Shhh…don’t let this secret get out!
Kawela Bay Beach	Banyan trees, turtles, and sealife in this beautiful cove
Ko Olina Beach Lagoons	4 beautiful and calm lagoons. There are a few resorts here, including Aulani and Four Seasons. Much nicer beaches than Waikiki for sure.

Hikes

Oahu is the best Hawaiian island for hiking, with over 50 popular trails and many more lesser-known trails. This is more than any of the other islands.

***Diamond Head Trail***	Easy 30 min hike, there is an entrance fee (free for kama’aina) so it is touristy but has amazing views with whale sightings if lucky. Go to Da Cove Health Bar for a well-deserved acai bowl afterwards, Diamond Head Market & Grill for a meal, or to the KCC Farmer’s Market on Saturdays!
***Lanikai Pillboxes***	Amazing on a clear day with a gorgeous view of the Mokulua islands
***Makapu’u Lighthouse***	Easy paved 2 mile hike without much elevation; can see whales
*****Koko Head Ridgeline*****	MUST MUST DO (and free)!!! I do this hike every single time I go to Oahu. 1048 stairs up, 0.5 miles, really strenuous. Takes me about 30 min, but my fit friends run up and down twice in 30 min. Known by locals as Nature’s Stairmaster…literally. Almost 360° of panoramic views of the south, east, and west shores. Go early in the AM, otherwise you will probably pass out from the sun and heat because there is NO SHADE. Look up directions to Koko Head District Park, then drive to the very end. There’s a parking lot on the left and near a baseball field. Park there and walk up. You’ll see other people going up or coming back down to help you find the trail. Note: people coming down have the right of way – stay to the right when you see someone coming down.
Likeke Waterfall	Easy hike. A 30-foot cascade nestled below the Pali Lookout and accessed via the Likeke Trail. It is popular with eco-tours and has a shallow (ankle deep) swimming hole. Starting from the Pali Lookout, the hike is about 3 miles roundtrip.
***Maunawili Falls***	Easy, you can jump off the ledge and into the water, hike, jump, and swim! Located in Maunawili Valley on the windward side of Oahu. Nice swimming hole and waterfall. Second most popular waterfall hike after Manoa Falls. 1.5 mile hike from trailhead on Kelewina Street.
***Kuliouou Ridge Trail***	5 mile roundtrip, don’t do it when it’s muddy like I did. Beautiful 360° view up at top.
Mariner’s Ridge Trail	Easy, short. NOT a sanctioned hike. General rule is the residents only become upset when you make noise, leave trash or take all the parking in the neighborhood. Best to park two blocks away and walk in. Update from AllTrails: “This trail is closed to the general public. The only way to hike this trail is with an official hiking club (e.g. HTMC, Sierra Club, or other). There is now a big fence and gate that locks the entrance.”
***Manoa Falls***	Very popular with tourists and very easy. Nice high falls but shallow swimming hole. One mile hike.
Lulumahu Falls	You’ll need a permit for this hike, and it’s an adventurous one (you’ll get wet and muddy since you have to cross some streams and climb over some rocks/fallen trees)
Stairway to Heaven (Haiku Stairs)	It’s closed and you’ll get fined if you’re caught going on the stairs, but people are still doing it. There’s a guard posted at certain times. Look it up on Youtube if you’re curious, there might be a legal way to do it.
Jackass Ginger Pool	Small waterfall and swimming hole, pretty easy to get to (1 mile roundtrip) but some streams to cross.

Sample “Circle Island” Self-Guided Tour (Counter-Clockwise):

I’d make a Google map for you but maybe next time.

1. Tantalus Lookout – beautiful view of Honolulu
2. Scenic Viewpoint just before the Halona Blowhole – you can climb down through a tunnel too
3. Halona Blowhole/Sandy Beach
4. Lanikai Beach (and Kailua Beach if you have time, but Lanikai is way better)
5. Kualoa Regional Park/Chinaman’s Hat
6. Shrimp Trucks in Kahuku − Giovanni’s Shrimp Truck is the most famous one, Fumi’s Shrimp Truck is the one the locals recommend and go to, and Famous Kahuku Shrimp Truck (btw you can just order a half plate if you’re not hungry). TBH, there is garlic shrimp in Honolulu (Giovanni’s has some locations in Honolulu, and EbiNomi is great too) that is just as good if not better than these shrimp trucks, but if you want to be a tourist and say you’ve done it, I guess you can go do it once.
7. Kahuku Farms – fresh foods, baked goods, acai bowls, and smoothies straight from the farm
8. Turtle Bay Resort – free 30 min parking to check out the resort and the beach
9. Kawela Bay – nice little bay to look at banyan trees and look for turtles
10. Ted’s Bakery – get the haupia chocolate cream pie (that’s what they’re famous for), but my personal favorite is the lilikoi cheesecake cream pie!
11. Laniakeia Beach – look for turtles
12. Sunset Beach (optional)
13. Waimea Bay Beach Park – watch people jump off the big rock and do cool dives
14. Matsumoto’s Shave Ice (Haleiwa) – most famous shave ice place
15. Kua’aina Burgers (Haleiwa is the original location) – get the avocado burger!
16. North Shore Goodies (Haleiwa) – get some delicious coconut peanut butter and lilikoi butter to take home as gifts (or for yourself!)
17. Dole Plantation – get the Dole Whip with fresh pineapple topping!
18. Tanioka’s Seafood – due to the hours, this should be the first stop if you’re doing a Clockwise Circle Island Tour. Get some poke to go and enjoy it on the ride!

Terrace House!

For fans of the Japanese reality TV show Terrace House: Aloha State, you can see all the locations the cast members visited with this custom Google map. Many of them are well-known and vetted places, so even if you’ve never watched Terrace House but just want a quick and easy map to bookmark, check it out!

What to Eat

Most of these recommendations are decades-old well known culinary staples. As a good rule of thumb, optimize for Hawaiian and Japanese food the most, then Korean, Chinese, Vietnamese. If you’re from blessed Asian food areas such as California or New York, just focus on Hawaiian, Japanese, and desserts.

I recommend double-checking Yelp and Instagram, since I only go to Oahu less than once a year and can’t keep up with all the new trends. I also recommend checking out these frequently updated foodie blogs: Frolic / Honolulu Magazine, Eater, Onolicious. This is how you can learn about limited time popups like TenTen.

Best Tonkatsu

This is a MUST-HAVE in Hawaii – it is Japan-level quality and you can’t get quality like this anywhere else in the states. Like, don’t go home until you’ve had this here.

• ***Tonkatsu Tamafuji*** – ABSOLUTE MUST VISIT (and make a reservation), a tonkatsu restaurant from Japan, super authentic, crazy delicious, and you grind your own freshly toasted sesame at the table to make your dipping sauce. Do not do takeout, you lose 20% of the quality. And definitely choose one of the special rice options. Unlimited rice and cabbage.
• **Tonkatsu Ginza Bairin** – Another solid joint for authentic tonkatsu. Also unlimited rice (not as good as Tonkatsu Tamafuji’s though) and cabbage. Reservations can be made on the Yelp app.

Best Poke and Hawaiian Food

What’s Hawaii without poke?

• ***Tanioka’s*** – a bit out of the way, but worthy stop on a Circle Island tour (best done on a clockwise trip)
• ***Alicia’s Market*** – this is technically a grocery store, but they have a huge poke selection, so I love coming here to order several varieties of poke and take it home to eat with my own rice (or take it to the beach!). I think this is probably my personal favorite poke shop.
• **Helena’s** – probably the most famous Hawaiian restaurant hands down. Get the laulau, kalua pig, etc
• **Diamond Head Market & Grill** — portabello mushroom sandwich so good here, also really good desserts (lemon crunch, lilikoi cheesecake!), basically everything is good here. Also great for brunch.
• ***Ahi & Vegetable*** – the poke bowls here are fresh and amazing, and are served on sushi vinegared rice (most poke joints just use regular rice). There are a few locations now, I only linked to the original, but the Lanai Food Court location inside Ala Moana Mall may be more convenient for you.
• ***Ocean Taste*** – newer place for poke bowls
• ***Off the Hook Poke Market*** – get the sampler platter!
• ***Nico’s Pier 38 / Nico’s Fish Market*** – very well known restaurant and great poke too
• Adela’s Country Eatery – in Kaneohe, I haven’t been here but it has a very interesting menu, you just have to look at it. Very few restaurants maintain a full 5 star rating when nearing 1000 reviews, but they’ve done it.
• Redfish – this is a Foodland restaurant, so the poke is the same as Foodland, but they make fancier rice, have fancier toppings, and other nice dishes
• Tamashiro Market – really good poke too
• Ono Seafood – solid standby for poke, it’s a lot of people’s favorite
• Yama’s Fish Market – awesome poke, also known for their haupia sweet potato dessert
• Young’s Fish Market – laulau and kalua pig
• Maguro Brothers (Chinatown, Waikiki) – best poke and sashimi in Waikiki, but on the pricey side
• Da Ono Hawaiian Food – get the combination plate with laulau and Kahlua pork
• The Alley Restaurant – known for fried chicken and kalbi, but even more for their lemon crunch cake
• Side Street Inn – famous, but I thought it was ok
• Highway Inn – another famous one, but I haven’t tried it
• Sugoi – plate lunch joint known for garlic chicken
• Utage Restaurant & Lounge – tempura, shoyu pork
• Guava Smoked – doesn’t literally taste like guava as it is smoked from guava tree WOOD, but great BBQ mixed plates here
• Zippy’s – chain restaurant with good loco moco, also very famous for their chili. I see Zippy’s at local grocery stores in the Bay Area haha.
• Rainbow Drive In – cheap plate lunches, where Obama used to go, popular for post-surfing fooding (honestly, the food is mediocre, but since it’s so historical you might as well check it out right?)

Best Musubis

Great snack and perfect for taking on a hike.

• **Iyasume Musubi** – many locations, this is probably my favorite for musubis and onigiris. Upgrade to the 10-grain rice for an extra 10 cents!
• **Mana Musubi** – seriously really good musubis of all kinds, it’s like gourmet musubis and onigiris
• 7-Eleven – they have some good spam musubis and manapuas, but not a huge variety
• Honolulu VAMC – If you’re not a healthcare student here for rotations, ignore this haha. This is where I worked! The café downstairs has really good musubis in the morning. I loved the spam/egg/furikake musubis and would often get one for breakfast. 

Best Expensive Fusion Food

Sorry, don’t know how else to describe it.

• **Ka ‘Ikena** – the culinary school’s restaurant, really good fine dining for a bargain, but only open certain times of the year, great sunset view too
• **Hau Tree** – I haven’t been yet but it was recommended strongly by friend of friend. Looks like a bougie place run by Chris Kajioka (Senia and Miro Kaimuki) and chef Alan Takasaki of Le Bistro, good for brunch or dinner, nice ambiance near Waikiki on the Gold Coast.
• Roy’s – the one in Hawaii Kai is much better than the one in Waikiki, awesome sunset view over the ocean, great desserts too. There are now chains throughout the world, but I think the original is probably still better. =)
• **Alan Wong’s** – really good: the plantation iced tea, the poke-ball appetizer, opakapaka, and all the desserts are good. Update: unfortunately, this amazing restaurant is now permanently closed due to COVID-19 ='( I’ve been deleting permanently closed restaurants but will leave this one up for posterity.

Best Sushi

For all budgets!

• ***Sushi Sasabune*** – $120-150 omakase
• Sushi Sho at Ritz Carlton – $300 omakase, I’ve never had it
• ***Imanas Tei*** – more affordable sushi
• Morio’s Sushi Bistro – more affordable sushi and general Japanese food
• Doraku Sushi Kakaako – known for sushi rolls
• Kuru Kuru Sushi – very affordable sushi conveyer belt style, multiple locations
• Sansei – 50% off after 10 pm, located in Waikiki. There are Sansei’s on other islands as well, so you may recognize this name.
• Genki – very affordable popular chain from Japan with multiple locations, conveyer belt style, good garlic ahi

Best Udon/Ramen

Most of these are legit shops from Japan.

• **MARUKAME Udon** – fresh udon, Japanese cafeteria style. This chain is originally from Japan. It’s worth the wait, but try to go during off-peak hours to minimize the wait. It used to be super cheap but prices have creeped up over the years, and they’ve expanded locations around the world, including California (known as Marugame elsewhere), so it’s not as special anymore. Hot diggity, they have nearly 10k Yelp reviews?!
• **TsuruTonTan** – gourmet udon…I’m talking like uni udon, wagyu udon
• ***Ramen Bario*** – my favorite ramen in Honolulu. Get the tsukemen or the #1 bario ramen with the thick noodles. YUM.
• Menya le Nood – best known for tsukemen
• Hokkaido Santouka Ramen – famous chain from Japan that you may recognize as part of Mitsuwa locations in California
• Goma Tei – multiple locations, known for their Tan Tan ramen too
• Ramen Nakamura – known for oxtail ramen (expensive!)
• Tenkaippin – this used to be my favorite until I met Ramen Bario, but they’re most famous for the creamy chicken ramen (their Kotteri ramen).
• ***Noods Ramen Bar*** – great name, huh? Get the black garlic tonkotsu, it was good. Also, the garlic fried rice is a MUST! I don’t recommend their tori paitan, it was pretty normal. Go to Tenkaippin if you want that creamy chicken ramen.
• Junpuu – I haven’t tried it yet, but it’s known for tonkotsu and garlic miso ramen
• Wagaya – another place known for its tantan ramen

Best Japanese Food

I’ve already listed a lot of Japanese food, but those were specific categories, so this list is more general. Honolulu has basically become an English-speaking little Japan, with the best chains from Japan imported here and more opening all the time.

• ***Shirokiya Japan Food Walk (at Ala Moana Mall)*** Shirokiya was always high on my recommendation list but the 2016 renovations and expansions has COMPLETELY SURPASSED all my expectations. It feels like Japan. Spacious, with plenty of seating under beautiful wisteria and cherry blossom decorations, tons of food stalls (some recognizable names there such as Marion ice cream crepes and Iyasume Musubi), and $1 beer. Incredible. You MUST MUST MUST go here. Many of the stalls offer free samples too. Permanently closed 🙁
• ***Yokocho Gourmet Alley — Now replaced by Stix Asia! *** in Waikiki – Japanese food court with some famous spots like Ramen Bario, Tsujita, Nana’s matcha ice cream café, and more. The Yokocho has been reopened as Stix Asia and is now home to a Noodle Street and an Asian Street with 17 restaurants/shops. Definitely stop by and check it out! Marugame Udon finally has a competitor. 😄 “STIX ASIA has everything from Michelin Guide-rated ramen to Asian-inspired cocktails. Stroll through our STIX ASIA and discover mouth-watering dishes offering simple yet complex contrasts of flavors and textures. From noodle soups to a glorious green tea parfait, irresistible crispy tempura, freshly made udon noodles, and sushi reminiscent of Tokyo’s Tsukiji Market.”
• **Aburiya Ibushi** – really delicious charcoal grilled Japanese izakaya, I especially recommend the chicken. Great happy hour deals as well.
• **Shokudo** – happy hour 4-6pm pupus (appetizers), very well known for their honey toast, so definitely get that!
• **Tokkuri Tei** – Japanese izayaka that literally feels like Japan
• **Mitsu-ken** – Japanese fried chicken
• Curry House – Japanese curry (katsu curry is famous here) chain from Japan, really good takoyaki too
• **Yakitori Hachibei** – authentic yakitori, from the original restaurant in Fukuoka, Japan
• Torikyu – yakitori
• Tori Ton – yakitori
• Irifune – known for their furikake garlic ahi
• Menchanko-Tei – I haven’t been here yet, but it was recommended to me by a local for general Japanese izakaya
• Pioneer Saloon – haven’t been here yet but been recommended many times by locals and the Terrace House housemates 🙂
• Asuka Nabe + Shabu Shabu – shabu place
• **Nabeya Maido** – very reasonable prices for shabu
• Ichiriki – shabu shabu and sukiyaki feast (there’s another location near Ala Moana)
• Ichifuji – fancy shabu place
• Shabuya – shabu chain, it’s good but skip if you’re from a location that has it

Best Garlic Shrimp

• ***EbiNomi*** – honestly better than any of the North Shore food trucks. The best part is that the shrimp are already peeled without losing any flavor. They have other great dishes besides garlic shrimp too. 
• Giovanni’s – most famous one, they now have a location in Honolulu so you don’t have to go to the North Shore
• Fumi’s – the one the locals recommend/go to
• Famous Kahuku Shrimp
• Romy’s

Best Shave Ice

It’s SHAVE ice, not SHAVED ice.

• *****Monsarrat Shave Ice***** – MUST VISIT! Only open on weekends, little hole in the wall next to Pioneer Saloon run by a super sweet Japanese lady, $5 for shave ice (one or two fruit flavors) with free condensed milk and 50 cents per topping after. The flavors are made from REAL fruit puree, no artificial syrups, and she does the purees in layers (ice, puree, ice, puree, ice, puree, toppings). Super legit and highly recommended even if you don’t get any other shave ice. Takes a few minutes to make a bowl so be patient. I love the yuzu and acai.
• **Waiola** – the SOFTEST shave ice ever, lots of options too (like mochi, ice cream, custard, etc), possibly one of the best
• **Shimazu Store** – really soft as well, and HUGE servings, lots of options
• Matsumoto’s – North Shore (Haleiwa), most famous, but not the best on the island. You might go just to say you’ve been.
• Aoki’s – next to Matsumoto’s, it’s better but still not the best

Best Acai Bowls

The mainland’s acai bowls ain’t got nothing on the OGs.

• **Da Cove Health Bar** – get the Da Cove or Mauna Kea bowls
• **Island Vintage Coffee** – multiple locations with one in Waikiki. I know it’s a coffee shop, but you must get the acai bowls here! ANY of their acai bowls are highly recommended!
• **Hawaiian Crown Cafe** – small hole in the wall in Waikiki a block from the Hyatt Regency. Amazing and beautiful acai bowls served in the shell of a pineapple. Great lilikoi butter jars you can buy to take home too! Permanently closed 🙁

Best Bakeries

Warning: you may gain weight from this section.

• ***b.Patisserie inside Kona Coffee Purveyors*** – MUST VISIT IN WAIKIKI!!!! Get the lilikoi bostok and the black sesame kouign amann. And anything else that you fancy. Yes I know, you don’t have to tell me again that we have this in San Francisco already. Because the SF location doesn’t have all the same flavors, and it’s also more convenient here, ok? Seriously, you must go here, because everyone that goes here ends up going multiple times during their trip. How is it so amazing?! The coffee is here is excellent as well, from what my friends say (I don’t drink coffee).
• **Ted’s Bakery** – (North Shore) known for their lilikoi chiffon cheesecake and chocolate haupia pie. You can buy their pies at Foodland (like the one in Ala Moana Mall), but if you go to the original bakery in the North Shore, I think they have some more flavors.
• **Pipeline Bakery** – fresh malasadas made to order (no filled ones) and amazing cake bombs as well. I’m not usually a fan of cake bombs but I highly recommend you try them here. Known for ice cream too but that part is closed for COVID-19. If you love Pipeline Bakery, you can order them shipped anywhere in the country on Goldbelly.
• **Paalaa Kai Bakery** – (North Shore) known for the snow puffs, but also super fresh lilikoi butter in the refrigerated section; most stores sell shelf-stable lilikoi butter
• **Leonard’s Bakery** – MALASADAS!!!! Suuper famous for malasadas. Try the Li Hing malasadas.
• **Liliha Bakery** – best known for their coco cream puffs (which I think is just okay) and sweet bread French toast; open 24 hr. What I actually recommend getting here are the chiffon cakes and filled malasadas (lilikoi malasada is a good one).
• **Otto Cake** – known for their cheesecakes, different flavors everyday
• BRUG Bakery – famous Japanese/Hokkaido bakery
• Kamehameha Bakery – known for poi donuts
• Hokulani Bake Shop – known for their cupcakes

Other Desserts/Snacks

• **Matcha Cafe MAIKO** – delicious matcha ice cream treats. We’ve got this in SF now too, but if you’ve never had it, you must!
• **Holy Cow** – delicious Korean corndogs. Multiple locations.
• **North Shore Goodies** – (North Shore) famous for their coconut peanut butter, but the lilikoi butter is also amazing here
• Bubbies – ICE CREAM MOCHI of all flavors! Sooo good. My favorites are lilikoi (passion fruit), lychee, peppermint, and sakura (basically like vanilla bean). It looks like all the brick & mortar stores are closed now, so you’ll have to find this in grocery stores. You can find it in the mainland too now, so don’t go out of your way.
• Uncle Tetsu – fluffy Japanese cheesecake, in Waikiki’s Royal Hawaiian Village. Best cheesecake you’ll ever have in your life.
• MoDo – mochi donuts inside Mitsuwa. Get it fresh.
• MochiDo – new mochi donut joint
• The Alley – well known boba chain from Taiwan, it’s all over the world and in California now so don’t go out of your way, but if you’re craving boba and are at Ala Moana…
• **Cowcow’s Tea** – delicious purple rice yogurt boba drinks, I got mine with dalgona
• **Hana Tea** – super hyped up brown sugar milk boba trend, cheese foam trend
• The Alley Restaurant – famous for their lemon crunch cake
• **Diamond Head Market & Grill** – lemon crunch cake, Diamond Head torte, muffin scones
• **Nisshodo Candy Store** – super fresh mochi
• Fujiya – another popular mochi store, also known for rice crackers, and senbei (tea crackers)
• **Happy Hearts Mochi** – has the kind of mochi with real fruit inside
• Izu’s Mochi – Kaka’ako’s farmer’s market. Gorgeous mochi, I haven’t tried it yet, but I want to!
• Lawson Station Waikiki – related to the convenience store in Japan, but much smaller. Get the Dole Whip here.

Best Burgers

• **Kua’aina Sandwich** – original location North Shore. Definitely get the Avocado Burger.
• Mahaloha Burger – loco moco burger, teri burger
• Teddy’s Burgers – a local favorite for teri burgers, tons of locations
• W&M Burger – also known for teri burgers

Best Brunches

TBH, I don’t get brunch often since we get free hotel breakfast (#GlobalistLife) 😄 so most of these I have not been to but are on my bookmark list.

• **Café Kaila** – everything is good here!
• **Koko Head Cafe** – on the pricey side but unique and delicious fusion dishes…fusion done right for sure.
• Scratch Kitchen – I haven’t been here yet, but it looks really unique, similar to Koko Head Cafe (though on the pricey side)
• **Creampot** – famous for souffle pancakes before souffle pancakes were famous
• Sweet E’s Cafe – I haven’t been here yet, but check out the reviews!!
• Hula Grill – haven’t been here yet
• Overeasy – in Kailua, haven’t been here yet
• Restaurant 604 – near Pearl Harbor, haven’t been here yet but crazy number of reviews
• Bills – famous Australian brunch chain in Waikiki
• Boots and Kimo Homestyle Kitchen – known for banana macadamia nut pancakes
• Waioli Kitchen & Bake Shop – short rib loco moco, banana mac nut pancakes

Best Korean Food

Most of the good places are on Keeaumoku (aka “Koreamoku”). Make sure you try meat jun while you’re in Hawaii – it’s like really thin bulgogi meat sandwiched within egg, and it only exists in Hawaii.

• **Million Restaurant** – open late, has really good dolsot bibimbap and meat jun
• **O’Kims** – more of a fusion Korean restaurant, but very good
• **Soon’s Drive-In** – best known for their meat jun and fried mandoo (dumplings)
• Sura – great AYCE Korean BBQ
• Don e Don – Korean BBQ lunch place (kitchen-prepared, not grill-it-yourself)
• Choi’s Kitchen – small mom and pop Korean plate lunch place in Waikiki
• So Gong Dong – soondubu soft tofu soup and meat jun joint
• Kyung’s Seafood – sashimi, meat jun, bbq chicken
• Gina’s BBQ – Korean BBQ lunch plates, meat jun
• Young’s Kalbee – Korean BBQ lunch plates, meat jun
• Gen – AYCE Korean BBQ chain, it’s good but skip if you have this where you’re from already
• Gyu-kaku – AYCE Korean BBQ chain, it’s good but skip if you have this where you’re from already
• Ireh – meat jun, kimchi fried rice, fried mandoo
• Spoon Korean Kitchen – meat jun, ddeokbokki, naengmyun, and other Korean comfort foods

Best Chinese Food

Honestly, if you’re from California or New York, don’t focus on Chinese food in Hawaii, except for manapuas, which is more of a Hawaii thing.

• **Sweet Home Café** – Taiwanese hot pot with free shave ice at the end, super well known, get there early, it’s SO GOOD. Closed for COVID-19 but reopening?
• **Royal Kitchen** – dim sum and amazing baked char siu manapua
• Mian – great Sichuan noodles at reasonable prices
• Chengdu Taste – toothpick lamb
• **Youpo Noodles** – stall at Kaka’ako Farmer’s Market that sells amazing biang biang noodles, sells out by 11 am (it’s expensive though)
• Xi’an Taste – known for the pork hamburger (rou jia mo)
• Hot Pot Heaven – alternative for Sweet Home Cafe
• Hawaii Pot Shabushabu House – this is more like fushion hotpot than Japanese, but I’ll put it in this section. AYCE individual hot pots with conveyer belt for ingredients.
• Fook Lam – dim sum
• Jade Dynasty Seafood Restaurant – dim sum
• Mei Sum – dim sum
• Legend Seafood Restaurant – grumpy dim sum
• Lucky Belly – Asian fusion but mostly Chinese

Best Vietnamese Food

Again, don’t expect much if you’re from the Bay Area, except for The Pig & The Lady.

• Pho To-Chau – in Chinatown, the pho is actually authentic and good. And reasonably priced. They used to have soup nazi-style service, but the last few times I’ve been have been much better. This used to be the best, but everyone now goes to…
• ***The Pig & The Lady*** (and associated shops) – in Chinatown, make a reservation. This place is very popular now and regularly changes their menu. It’s on the pricey side.
• ***Piggy Smalls*** – sister restaurant to The Pig & The Lady, also a bit on the pricey side but worth it
• Aloha Vietnamese Foods – reasonably priced pho and bun bo hue
• Ha Long Pho – haven’t been here in years but it was great and looks like it’s still going strong.

Bars/Lounges

This isn’t really updated anymore except to remove everything that closed.

• **Bar 35** (Downtown) – really good pizza & beer
• **Uncle Bo’s Pupu Bar & Grill** (Kapahulu)
• Mai Tai Bar (Ala Moana Mall) – pretty popular for locals with live entertainment most nights
• Manifest (Downtown)
• Formaggio (Downtown) – wine bar
• Café Duck Butt (near Ward Center) – Korean bar food (kinda expensive), has private room karaoke too
• Karaoke Hut – private room karaoke, kind of run down, but best selection of songs
• Blue Ribbon Bar & Grill – a more swanky bar, with both public and private room karaoke
• Genius Lounge – house sake $5 (6-8 pm)
• Yard House (Waikiki) – don’t they have these everywhere?
• Duke’s (Waikiki)

Nightlife

I’ve deleted this section. I’m too old for this.

Hyatt Regency vs. Hyatt Centric

I’m going to make this a new post. Ok, post is up now.