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Don The Beachcomber

3.5 (461 reviews)
ModerateBars, New American
Open 6:30 am - 8:30 pm

Don The Beachcomber Photos

DON THE BEACHCOMBER ATMOSPHERE

What's the vibe?
Touristy
Live music
Moderate noise
Happy hour specials

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Recommended Reviews - Don The Beachcomber

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Piña Colada
Tony P.

This restaurant is at the Royal Kona Resort. It's a bit old school and has some construction going on in one of the towers but didn't affect our lunch. The view from the patio is spectacular so you must sit towards the water. The piña colada was good and so was the Caesar salad, but nothing extraordinary. The fish was good but the batter was a bit oily. The sweet potato fries were tasty. The best was the prime rib bahn mi. The large bun was fresh along with the prime rib and topped off well with the pho juice as dipping sauce. The service was fine. Nothing special. I know it is a bit difficult trying to find staff but the restaurant was fully staffed just not above expectations. The total came out to $59 for the meal which is not bad. I would recommend for the views and prime rib bahn mi. Enjoy.

Mud pie.  It was fine.  Stick to the mai tais.
Craig W.

You come here for two things: the view and the mai tais. If you're coming for any other reason: fail. You're probably going to wait for a table with a good view so be prepared. We waited, and waited, and ended up getting the BEST table in the restaurant, front and center to the water. And yes, it's worth the wsit. The food is average. We ordered nachos and coconut shrimp. Nothing wrong with either dish and nothing great, either. We also tried the mud pie. It was fine. I've had better. I was skeptical of the mai tai tasters (flight) but it was TERRIFIC. You get four different mai tais and, I have to say, the Green Flash variety was a standout. Service was friendly and efficient, especially for a place that was so swamped. If you go at night, depending on the day of the week, you might get to sneak a peek at a luau in action across the way. Great views and great mai tais. You're on your own after that.

Looks better than it was. Frozen solid. Go to Basik Cafe, 1min away instead.
Andrea A.

Over a week, we ate 3 meals here (b,l,d), but only because we had a resort credit that was only good for food and drinks. If I had to do over, I'd have spent it all on drinks...The view is lovely. The food is not. Breakfast: 1 star. On their menu, you can buy a HALF papaya for $7. That means a 'whole' papaya (nothing done to it) is $14. For context, the lovely market across the street sells them for $1 each. Ya. Assuming you have money to burn, and decide to come here anyway, you don't have to worry about wasting it on espresso drinks with your breakfast, they don't have them. Out of a notably uninspired menu, we went for the açaí bowl and the standard eggs,sausage,toast, and rice. Açaí bowl was $16 and ROCK HARD. go across the street to Basik Cafe and enjoy any of their sinfully delicious açaí bowls instead: cheaper, bigger, fresher, more toppings. The 'Royal Sunrise' (ie eggs and toast) was fine I guess, other than it was $16, and the fried rice never saw a wok in its life. I'm depressed remembering this meal. Lunch: 4 stars. Fish tacos (3) are fresh but forgettable at $19. The burger and fries are pretty good. Burger well cooked, nice brioche bun, guacamole, cheddar and bacon, and crispy fries. But, $18 - cost of that view. I would never pay this out of pocket (go to Island Ono Loa Grill, a 3-min walk away - awesome and affordable burgers). The winner of the entire menu though, and the singular reason for that 4th star is the Bahn Mi Pho Dip. Great crispy/fluffy baguette with really flavorful thinly sliced prime rib, and pickled carrot and daikon, then served with a pho broth to dip. It's a good size for sharing, which also helps offset that $19. I'd get this (and only this) menu item again. Dinner: Back down to 2 stars. 'Ultimate Royal Poke Bowl' - a $28 train wreck, not the least of which was because there was maybe a 1/4 lb serving of poke, but it was hard to even find it under the gloopy dual sauces. Poke nachos in comparison were still way too sauce-laden for my liking (sriracha Mayo, and a sweet eel sauce) but the wonton chips were crispy and ironically there was about twice as much poke, although that's still not saying much at $18. Far better value was the ahi sashimi, which was thick cut and very fresh, though I'm still not 100% convinced over the pairing of truffle oil and tuna. $70 for dinner pre-tip with no drinks and we went up to the hotel room and ate bananas afterwards. I did enjoy their lava flow (piña colada with a fruit purée of your choice), but at $12/drink plus tax and tip... Service is good once you get it. Oddly there is no hostess, so at dinner, we were one of 6 parties standing around awkwardly while waitresses zipped past us repeatedly, not a one of them ever stopping, smiling, commenting, even looking at you...it feels like there is some secret protocol no one has told you about. Friendly once they decide to eventually acknowledge your existence and seat you.

mai tai tasters
Kristina T.

The Royal Kona Resort has a great location. The resort is as close to the ocean as it gets, and its food and beverage outlets have an amazing oceanfront view. The view cannot be beat. The ambiance is great too. One of its outlets is Don's Mai Tai Bar, a tiki bar that serves the original mai tai as well as a lot of its variations and other tasty tropical cocktails. The drinks are great. The food is good. However, the service is generally terrible. I have been to the mai tai bar three times. The first time was okay until it came time for the check. It was a slow Sunday afternoon. I was in a party of four, and we asked to have the check split. Our server, Courtney, glared at us, did not say a word, walked away, and did bother to come back to our table until she saw that we had put only one card down. The second time, I came around opening time with my friend and sat at the bar. Our bartender was great, and I regret that I do not remember his name. He was very friendly and engaging, and my friend and I had a good time chatting with him. The third time was not a good experience. I was in a party of three, and it was a busy weekday evening. Our server told us that he would seat us after cleaning our table. We had seen him wiping down other tables and actually cleaning them. For ours, he simply removed the dirty dishes and utensils. We had to ask him to clean the table. Also, my friend had ordered a flight, and her tasting glasses were dirty. As well, the bar had made substitutions to her tasters without telling her. The substitution was not a big deal, but confusion could have been avoided if she had been told that she would be drinking something different from what she had ordered. A plus side though was that the server replaced one of my tasting glasses that I had accidentally knocked over, but the overall service was slow and lacking attention to details. This place has so much potential. The location and menu are great, but the service could use a lot of work. I am not sure I want to go back here again considering that I had only one positive experience out of three visits.

Jesse R.

Best fish and chips anywhere to go along with the best and of course original mai tai .... The view is also breathtaking especially if you get a outdoor outer table!

Buffalo fries
Stephanie S.

Since this is the home of the original Mai tai, we had to stop here! The drinks were good and happy hour goes until 6pm! We shared the Buffalo fries which were tasty! Definitely a good stop with beautiful views!

Dinner with a view
Michael T.

This is another place like a scene from a movie. It is hard to explain how epic the location is, given that it is literally built right on the oceanfront probably 10 feet from where the waves are breaking against the lava flows from ancient times. If you arrive at the right time you can witness an epic sunset as well as an incredible ocean view of tropical waters that cannot be seen anywhere else on the planet Earth. Enjoy the azure blue waters over a cold brew or mixed drink while you reflect on how awesome life can be. Plus this is the actual birthplace of the Mai Tai so you are in good hands when it comes to deciding upon what to drink. They also happen to have what I consider to be an excellent selection of beers on tap and you cannot go wrong with just about anything you might choose. Food wise, everything on the menu I tried was excellent, from the bucket of shrimp to the barbecue ribs, to the prime rib. During happy hour, you can find many excellent deals on choices of foods and drinks that will be sure to hit the spot. Overall, I would definitely recommend Don the Beachcomber as a legitimate historical monument as well as a legitimate food establishment worthy of any foodie's exploration. It is both a bar and a restaurant and a bar. If you come here, you will understand the foregoing sentence. Five solid stars of awesomeness!

Home of the Mai Tai
Helene S.

Home of the Original Mai Tai Great place to watch the sunset. So many people will be lined up along the wall as the sun dips into the ocean. Perfect way to end a perfect day in Kona. Fun retro 70s architecture gives a groovy vibe. Mahalo!

Elizabeth H.

We came here to grab a quick drink after a day of activities. We of course tried the Mai Tais. Unfortunately we didn't think any of the drinks we got were very good. The views were amazing, service was so friendly and attentive. Just kind of touristy and weak flavorless drinks.

Wifey
Bob M.

Original MaiTai's, then a MaiTai flight, and dinner as the sun went down. It's all good now. The Kalua pork Bánh mì was excellent.

Mai Tai sampler

Have wanted to check this tiki bar out after reading about it in Smugglers Cove. So many choices! Can't go wrong with all the samplers offered-and the atmosphere on the beach can't be beat! Update: after checking out the menus up and down Alii drive we decided to come back to this amazing restaurant for the culmination of our trip- my husbands birthday dinner. Unfortunately we learned the menus posted online are not up to date. When we shared this info with the restaurant manager we were scolded for looking at the wrong websites. In a world post Covid I would expect tourists would be welcomed with open arms rather than the brutal reception we experienced. Buyer beware- it's a great place for drinks and appetizers but if your looking for a special occasion dinner experience this is not the place.

View from the table!

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6 months ago

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1 year ago

Used to b place to go. Serious lack of caring. Over 20 years. Can't even ask for a manager without complaining. Terrible.

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10 months ago

Don's is open! It's lovely! Hard to beat the ocean front! The drinks are great. I had the Pama!

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5 years ago

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3 years ago

It's really open even though yelp said closed. Had great view of sunset. Try the seafood corn chowder. You won't regret.

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Page 1 of 12

Ask the Community - Don The Beachcomber

Can yelp please fix this? The restaurant isn't closed?

Aloha! Don's the Beachcomber is closed. We expanded our mai tai bar to include the restaurant - called Don's Mai Tai Bar & Restaurant. Don's Mai Tai Bar & Restaurant is open daily.

Is Don's closed temporarily? If so, will it be opening soon? One of the reasons we wanted to stay at the Royal Kona was because there is a Don the Beachcomber on the property.

Don's the Beachcomber is closed still is as of July 2021.

Don’t See Your Question? Ask Away!

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Don The Beachcomber - bars - Updated May 2026

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