This dive is a favorite of my father in law. I've gone with him on many occasions, and somehow found myself here most recently with my honey on Valentine's Day after dinner. They always have live music, art for sale on the walls, and characters to talk to at the bar. If you're looking for a drink or an ear day or night, Hanks got you. The bartenders make their drinks generously and the beer selection is "perfectly acceptable" as my father in law would say. read more

Rating: Hank's used to be our go-to "hole-in-the-wall" karaoke spot, but the toxic behavior of the larger Chocolate Chucky-faced bartender who hosts the karaoke nights has completely ruined it. After bringing dozens of friends here over the years, we are officially done. If you visit, be careful: * Unsolicited sexual advances. I'm used to being hit on by bartenders but this guy was way out of his territory. He is gross and constantly had to dodge his unwanted advances especially with his girlfriend working there. Seriously?? Ew. Stage Ego: The host (same heavy set guy) prefers hearing himself sing over managing a fair rotation for the paying customers. * Retaliation & Hostility: After I turned down highly inappropriate personal advances from this bartender, he began actively punishing me--ignoring my orders and burying my karaoke requests at the absolute bottom of the list. * Short-Challenged & Ripped Off: on too many occasions I'd hand him a $20 for a $5 drink then never give me change --continues to serve other customers avoiding eye contact or pretending he doesn't hear me ask for my change. Other times he'd claim I never paid him at all. That was the last straw. A bar is only as good as the people running it. We're tired of the hostility, ego, and financial dishonesty. There are plenty of other great karaoke spots nearby that actually respect their customers--go to those instead. read more

A year late writing this review oops but had to come back to it because this bar was hands down one of my favorite memories from my Honolulu trip in Nov 2023! My friend and I had actually meant to go to The Dragon Upstairs which is the bar upstairs (yeah we missed that in the name... LOL) but we walked into Hanks instead. This place is THE definition of a local dive bar. There was a lovely entertainer singing some hilarious songs on the guitar, the most random, interesting, and hilarious group of locals seated at the bar, someone's dog sleeping in the corner, and of course a fantastic hot bartender that keeps you there and keeps everyone drinking!! We met so many interesting people that night and had a blast. Stayed there way longer than expected and definitely stayed through many more rounds of drinks than expected. But in true dive bar fashion, it didn't break our bank which we loved!! Accidentally stumbling upon Hanks was the best mistake we could have ever made and I can't wait to go back if I'm in Honolulu again! Truly a gem! read more

Hanks Cafe Honolulu - Dive Bars Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

See all

Terrible karaoke, strong drinks, responsive bartender and a fun atmosphere. I'd go again to get trashed. read more

Hanks Cafe Honolulu - Best cats in Hono - Dive Bars Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

See all

One of the day bartenders at hanks. It is a little cal dive bar relaxing where you can come in and have a drink. Emma is pleasant and courteous to customers read more

Hanks Cafe Honolulu - One of the bartenders daytime Emma. Always courteous and pleasant to customer. Has deal with a lot of personalities and does it well. - Dive Bars Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

This place is an amazing bar and I love the small cozy vibe. Jake was more than amazing with being on top of things and keeping up with All the customers. P.S. this place is more than just one little bar it's a revolving door though out the morning and night then the late night LOVE IT HERE! 10 out of 10 recommend read more

Hanks Cafe Honolulu - BMF!! - Dive Bars Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

Great Honolulu bar to "Dive-into"! Very clean, great customer service, and fun vibes. Me and my husband had a few more beers than we planned because it was hard to leave. We ordered their famous homemade Portuguese soup prepared by someone's grandma that was so good and so much better than slightly unfrozen tourist food in Waikīkī. In fact, we were surprised how good it was. Plus guess what? The cost of six beers with soup was a bargain!! read more

Aloha vibes! Talk story and laugh! Share favorite recipes, art contest and many more connections!! read more

See all

Where else can you walk in as.a tourist and walk out a local? Or at least dressed as tourists and finally, 5 hours later, everyone believes you're locals? We went from paying tourist prices for our drinks to having drink tokens piling up like we were in Vegas. A couple of pizzas from our favorite joint down the street and we were in like Flynn. Such a good time with such good people. read more

Great dive bar with AC. The bartender Jake graced us with some free magic tricks. Uncle Kimo is the man read more

Hanks Cafe Honolulu - Bartender Jake - Dive Bars Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

Walked by this place many a times, but felt intimidated somehow. It is an older, smaller dive bar. About a 10 seater bar and about 5 seated small tables. Went to see Carl play his guitar. There is live music on other days, too. Do a Yelp check-in for a $4 shot which happened to be a pineapple-upside down cake shot. It really did taste like one! Friendly bartender, stiff drinks and a good rotation of regulars, younger crowd and drinkers of all types. Pretty art work. read more

See all

Dive, dive, dive. This is the epitome of a dive bar in one of the oldest drinking locations in Hawaii. Don't miss Smith Union Bar around the corner which is where the USS Arizona hung out. read more

Hanks Cafe Honolulu - people sitting at the bar - Dive Bars Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

This is definitely a locals' hangout spot, but for the older crowd (50+). I was surprised to see how many people with walkers and wheelchairs were here, and I definitely felt out of place. Some of the people were very friendly though, and offered to buy us a round of drinks... we also got offered some weed hahaha. The beer and drinks were fairly priced. $5-$7 for the options I got. They don't have as many beer options as I thought, but they did have a couple of canned IPAs which is what I opted for. If you're under 40ish, I wouldn't necessarily recommend this place as your go to spot for the night, but perhaps as a quick stop on the way to another pub :) read more

The owner and bar staff are so incredibly friendly and you can tell this bar cares about the local clientele

Very nice spot to just wind down and have a drink or two.. People are nice and the bartender is excellent!! read more

Hanks Cafe Honolulu - Very nice spot to just wind down and have a drink or two.. People are nice and the bartender is excellent!! - Dive Bars Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

hella good at guessing track events + magic tricks! The bar had such a cool atmosphere, with live music and hospitable staff

Here they celebrate Pride differently. Pride is not only how you identify yourself/ gender/ preference. Pride is how you show love, respect, and honor those around you and yourself by upholding yourself in the utmost family oriented manner. Kū Ha'aheo (stand tall/ stand proud) read more

See all

Came to the Chinatown area on a busy night and this was a welcome spot to duck into. Small dive bar style with stiff drinks and amazing older solo guitarist singer rocking it out. Highlights: - No line or cover like others in the area - Not crowded but fun local crowd - Live music: the older man playing rock hits was wonderful - Cheap strong drinks (like any good dive bar) Lowlights: - Not too Hawaiian if you're looking for that sort of thing - We loved finding this bar amidst the rest of the crowded younger crowd bars. Chill spot for a few drinks if you're in Chinatown. read more

Dive Bar Level Expert. It's old, it's young, it's middle aged. It's fancy, it's casual, it's all things. DYNAMIC AF. & super comfortable. No judgement, no pressure. Just jukebox and drinks. Bonus live music from time to time. EVERYTHING, ANYTHING, OR NOTHING could be going on and it would still pique interest. #divebarkinetings read more

The environment is great The company is good The bartenders are the bomb And the beers are COLD! read more

Hanks cafe is a great bar!!! Jake the bartender really makes it fun on the weekend nights! Ask for the magic tricks!!!!

This past Friday night I was very forcefully told that I had to pay 10.00 cover charge to walk in a ask a friend of mine a question. I was pretty much denied my request for a few minutes to talk to Jeffrey. Now, the place was empty maybe four random people and my friend. I explained to the goon at the door my intentions however he blatantly refused to let me stand by the doorway. He proceeded to get off his stool and forcefully remove me from the public sidewalk. I reminded him that I worked at Hanks as a entertainer for 20 plus years and he knew me, to no avail. He was determined from my view point to pick a fight. A few people I knew showed up to go have a drink and tried to verify my years of service at my hometown establishment, to no avail. I was stifled only because I had brought two of my buddies visiting from Texas with me to show off my beloved Hanks Cafe. My dear friend and number one fan The Librarian a name given to her by a group of regulars that cane to see me perform in the recent past were in disbelief. Needless to say I was humiliated to say the least and none of my friends decided not to patronize our beloved Hanks Cafe. read more

Hanks Cafe Honolulu - Johnny and Amiee - Dive Bars Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

Friendly bar that feels larger than it is. I love Hank's artistic adornments for sale. I stopped in for a quick drink during a Kuma Kahua play intermission and was dismayed by the paultry whiskey pour. $10 for a tiny splash of Jamesons in a "dive bar." I'm sure you can do better than that. read more

Jake was an amazing bartender. I do NOT drink vodka. yet, he has made my new favorite drink (bartender special with vodka). Definitely visit him. read more

Came by Hanks for the first time, Jake took care and did a little magic for me and my girl. This bar also has great dj's upstairs. We're definitely coming back for it all especially Jake's attentiveness to the customer. 5/5. read more

I've recently been to the Bellagio Hotel in Las Vegas, the City Center in the Las Vegas after their 11 BILLION dollar price tag and only gave them a few stars...but this dive bar in the middle-of-nowhere-Chinatown-Oahu gets a five-star?? Hmmmm - curious, given the fact this bar is several things you don't associate with a five star rating but rather a one or two star rating (meaning - bad...it sucks...never come back): 1) no parking. street or municipal lots all the way, baby 2) ambiance - in the middle of Chinatown...drug dealers, crack addicts, prostitutes and other people asking you for money. 3) small tiny bar - I counted six people at the bar, and about five in the live band :-) 4) rats the size of cats...OK i never really SAW them with my own eyes but I know the rats in Chinatown are the size of Chihuahuas. Ok, so why the five stars when its obvious there's no parking, the ambience is a tiny dive bar in the middle of the red-light district, its small and there are seen (or unseen) sizes of rats the size of cats? Here's the pros: 1) the BEST fun I've ever had on a Tuesday night!! My friends took me to Mei Sum for dinner earlier and we stumbled across this place for some drinks and entertainment. Live band was there to play tunes as diverse as...uh....Pink Floyd to Santana. I read other reviews and it seems the music venue changes, but the band that night was GREAT! 2) Comfy atmosphere. I was singing at the top of my lungs with the band in the small, tiny bar and didn't get weird looks or invitations to fight...and I am a really bad singer. 3) steeeep drinks. Hold onto your hats! I could only drink one and a half drinks. I must admit, prior to this we were at a dim sum restaurant and I had a few glasses of wine and one of their cocktails...the second one was too much, so it went to a band member who was taking a break from playing. He jokingly accused me of trying to get him drunk but I wonder if there was some truth to that, especially since he seemed to feeling no pain, whatsoever. 4) relatively cheap drinks - I don't know the actual price of the drinks since I handed my friend a $20 and it seemed to go a long way, including tip for the band members! The decor is pure kitsch, with half-mannequin legs coming out of the walls clad in skimpy fishnets and tons of beer labels affixed to a ridiculously-high ceiling. We asked how the beer labels got up there, way up, so high but we never got an answer...we were just told it got up there "somehow". I have heard of Hank's for many years but never had the pleasure of coming to this historical land mark of Hawaii until we stumbled upon it somehow... So glad we did. It took me over ten years to get here and I wish I found it sooner. It's one of Oahu's best, most treasured hidden gems. read more

Hanks Cafe Honolulu - Hank's -outside - Mar. 31. 2010 - Dive Bars Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

Best Dive Bar in Chinatown!! Jake the bartender rocks, super friendly energy and lots of fun read more

Hanks Cafe Honolulu - Dive Bars Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

Came to Honolulu before and the second time ended up stumbling across "Hanks" and had the best time!! Highly recommended when visiting Honolulu, Hawaii!! The best bar on the island for sure!! If you find yourself in Honolulu then swing by and you will not regret it!! read more

Hanks Cafe Honolulu - Highly recommended when visiting Honolulu, Hawaii - Dive Bars Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

We stumbled upon Hank's while trying to go to the business next door to it. Came in to ask about why it wasn't open yet, but ended up staying because of the friendly & welcoming bartender and patrons. The atmosphere is nice. The ambiance isn't too loud. My friends and I were on vacation and this place felt like home, everyone was so kind and made us feel like locals. We only ordered "moscow mules", and I put that in quotes because it was vodka + 7up, which tasted strong but still easy to drink. So not sure how other drinks are like. Anyway, loved this place! Hope to come back in the future :). read more

My boyfriend and I walked into Hanks on a whim and I was so glad we did. It has a lot of character and characters to watch! The place is a bit of a dive bar with not many seating options but it was fun to hang out and all the people were friendly and there to socialize and have fun. I would come back for sure! read more

Hanks Cafe Honolulu - Dive Bars Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

Wasn't now but a couple months ago, an old lady was staffing and she was the only one there around midnight. This lady was kind and very friendly, I think her name was Angela. She was already telling me that other people had called out and that she had to come in and close by herself. It seemed like she was in pain and then some older homeless looking guy came in and made a huge mess in the restroom. Not only was she tending to my friend and I but she was also cleaning up the bathroom which was a horrendous sight. I came back today and heard she didn't work there anymore because of the treatment from the manager, whoever owns this place needs a fucking reality check. Treat people better bro, and have some consideration. 0 stars because of your treatment towards the elderly. read more

Thank you Jake! The best bartender I've ever had. He was nice and friendly and accommodated my friends and I.

Jake is such a sweetheart. He makes you feel so welcome. He never forgets a customer! He always remembers my tonic water one squeeze of lime is my favorite. Definitely recommend. Good spot for a drink. read more

Real nice and divey. The other night there was a guy with a guitar and a lady busting out with some 80s bangers. A bar after my own heart. I got a deschutes fresh squeezed IPA which I suspect isn't ordered much since it's "best by" date was a month ago but whatever. You don't go to a place like Hanks for freshness. read more

Their house night has such great funk house! Love this spot. DJ was fantastic and bartenders are friendly

The Dragon Upstairs' house night is Awesome! Highly recommend. The Ambiance is on point. Drinks are good too....

Awesome dive bar! Right near the hustle and bustle of Hotel Street but they have friendly bartenders and chill local people. We went to downtown for First Friday, but as soon as we saw the lines for the bars we decided to go to The Dragon Upstairs. They were super crowded and the room felt like a sweat lodge. We decided to go downstairs to Hanks, where neither of us had been to before. BEST DECISION EVER! As soon as we walked inside we saw open tables, some older locals, and cute dive decor. We tried their pineapple upside down cake shots which were AMAZING. The bartender also made us off menu cocktails and these bright red shots that tasted like fruit punch. I wish they had a bigger beer selection though. They only had bud light on tap, so I settled for a bottle of Deschutes Fresh Squeezed. The bartender was very friendly and even came from behind the bar when he had free moments to clear our empty glasses and refill our water. I don't remember his name, but he worked tonight (5/3/19). The guy playing music tonight was awesome too! He had mad acoustic guitar skills and played a lot of classic rock like Hotel California. After playing, he mingled and talked to all the customers. He immediately noticed that I wasn't a regular there and took the time to get to know me and even bought me a drink! If you need a break from the hustle and bustle of the bars on hotel street, walk over to Hanks! They're great. Definitely coming back again for more pineapple upside down cake shots, friendly service, and good music! read more

Emma number 1 best best bartender at hanks cafe come down and visit Emma at hanks cafe have fun a a good time happy Friday

Jake is the best side of the ala wai I've ever seen !!! I'm having so much fun with him and he's the best magician on island I've ever seen.

I have been going to Hanks for decades but yesterday, Sunday, April 25, 2021 at about 2:00 pm was a new day. First of all, none of the old crew bartenders are there after COVID. Secondly, the bar is packed and of course no one had a mask on. New guy bartender tells me he doesn't like my clear face mask that BTW covers my nose and mouth. They lost a customer for life unless I can raise management for an opinion. Too bad. So inconsistent and bullheaded to refuse me a beer and not a soul in the joint has a mask to their faces. Give me a break. read more