I just finished a Yelp event nearby (she wasnt able to go) and we are starving, so we finally…read moredecided to check this place off our bookmark. Highway Inn is known for traditional Hawaiian food, but we ended up trying some of the local-style twists. The kalua pig quesadilla was really good, and the tacos were solid too. The surprise for me was the chicken from the kids menu. I ordered it anyway, and honestly, no regrets. It was juicy, flavorful, and better than a lot of regular chicken plates I've had. The Kaka'ako location is clean and modern, service was quick, and it was exactly what we needed after a long event. We would definitely come back to try more. The on-site music artist was good.

It was easily my favorite meal of this trip! I was on my way somewhere else after my Pilates class,…read morebut for some mysterious reason I decided to reroute my Uber to Highway Inn at the last minute. I'm so glad I did! A draft beer, butterfish, some poi, and lomi lomi hit the spot! I left whatever was in the gravy boat untouched as it had beef in it. But pretty much everything else made it down the hatch with some breaks from being so full because it was all so delish! Service was so aloha lovely! Five stars. And I just love the community that's established here with all locals. I'm thinking Highway Inn will be a must stop for all my future Oahu stays! And yes, I can confidently say it's greater than the other well known authentic Hawaiian institution on the island. By leaps and bounds.

Love the drive-in vibes. Parking lot is small but we got lucky with a spot and also got lucky with…read morea bench table. Not a long wait for food. The four of us shared the loco moco plate, boneless chicken with gravy plate, and the BBQ beef plate. Food was good and hearty. My favorite was the loco moco plate. Boneless chicken had some pieces that were on the pink-ish side and the breading was a little soggy and didn't stick to the chicken that well. BBQ beef plate was good but nothing mindblowing. Some beef slices were dry. Mac salad was good. Overall good place for a cozy classic Hawaiian meal.

In the land where everything is at least $100 for our family of four, it was nice to find a…read moredelicious place that seems to cater to the everyman. For us, the star of the show was the garlic chicken plate. You really can't go wrong with deep frying sweet soy sauce marinated chicken. The mix plate with gravy was also delicious served with beef short rib, fried boneless chicken and mahi mahi. You'll leave full without worrying about the dreaded credit card bill at the end of the month.

OMG! This was a dining experience! So, the restaurant was closing so my friend said we should eat…read morethere! I didn't know that the servings were group sized!! I found so many things that looked great on the menu, to include fried gizzards, boneless Kal Bi ribs, fully loaded fried rice, Mac salad and other stuff I can't recall! So the TWO of us ordered way too much! We tried to eat as much as we could and ended up taking the rest home! Everything we ordered was delicious, so we knew we were going to eat good leftovers! The restaurant was a great place to go with a group to eat and watch sports! Our Waitress (I have to remember to get names) was a track star, she was running to and from several tables of groups to deliver food! I will go again if they reopen!

If you're visiting Hawaii with a big group, 100% recommend taking them here…read more We initially were a party of 16, and showed up without a reservation at 6pm on a Saturday. The staff was super nice about it and was able to accommodate us, with only a small request that we be out by 8pm since there was another big party with a reservation coming in. Absolutely reasonable. They sat us right away at three large tables, which gave us plenty of space for food and didn't force us to sit super close together. Menus, waters, plates, napkins, and forks were all brought out immediately, and our waiter was quick to take our order. We started with the prix fixe menu for 8-10 guests and were going to add other items à la carte, but a handful of our group accidentally went to the other Side Street location (make sure your group is all on the same page), so what we ordered ended up being more than enough. We left stuffed and with 5 boxes of food still. Edamame was nice and steamy, and large enough to easily pop the beans out with your mouth. Wish there was a bit more salt though. The farmer's salad had everything going on from citrusy to salty to crispy. Avocado had a little bit of oxidation but the capers, dressing and potato curls provided plenty of reasons to overlook it. The fried rice came in a hefty portion, with sizable pieces of bacon and sausage. The chicken I didn't realize was boneless based on the shape of the deep fry, but it was nice to freely bite into it without worrying about hitting anything with my teeth. Probably a bit too much on fried bits but still good. Pork chops had a better meat to crisp ratio in my opinion, as well as juiciness. They even came with ketchup on the side, which I love as a pairing but don't see much of at restaurants. My favorite meat item was definitely the sizzling boneless kalbi. The presentation on the sizzling plate with a side of kimchi was spectacular, and the meat was full of flavor. We also ordered yakisoba, which wasn't part of the prix fixe. Tasted good but nothing past standard expectations. We let the waiter know we had a 30th birthday at the table, and they brought a couple scoops of vanilla ice cream with a candle, and did a decent job getting the whole room to participate in the singing. It could also be the type of crowd this place attracts, since it seemed that everyone was so friendly and approachable. Thanks to the quick and consistent service, we were out in a little over an hour with no complaints.

Ono Hawaiian Kau Kau...don't forget to stop by for some ono lau lau n Kailua pig with da poi and…read moreHaupia...

This place is an Oahu staple for a reason. There's usually a line and cars parked along the road,…read morebut the food is worth it.Just be there early to beat the crowd. The combo plate with kalua pig and laulau is my go-to, and the hand-pounded poi tastes fresh and real, nothing like the store-bought kind. The mountain backdrop makes the whole meal even better. Do not leave without trying the Sweet Lady of Waiahole. Warm kulolo with cold haupia ice cream is unreal.Simple setup, great food, and still feels like old Hawaii. ps. I didn't get the other Pic cause it was eaten.

Tried Kehau's Kitchen and really liked it. The place has a chill local feel and everyone there was…read moresuper friendly. It felt more like a neighborhood spot than a touristy restaurant, which I appreciated. We had the poke nachos, ribs, and laulau. The poke nachos were really good and probably my favorite thing we ordered. Fresh poke with crispy chips and a good mix of flavors. The ribs were tender and flavorful, and the laulau tasted homemade and comforting. Portions were solid too. Service was great the whole time. Staff was welcoming, food came out fast, and overall it was just a good experience. Would definitely come back next time I'm in Honolulu.

Mixed bag at this restaurant. My real rating would be 3.5 stars if we could give half stars…read more I had tried calling before we came in to be sure they were open but no answer. Took a chance any way. Server greets everyone who comes in. Too much work for only one server, hard to get taken care of. More than half the tables were full even before 5pm on a Saturday, and there's a steady take out business, too. Looked at the online menu since the server didn't bring us a menu and we were waiting, but it doesn't list the squid luau combo so we had to wait for the server to take our order. She did take care of us before the walk ins that were ordering take out, and we appreciated that. However, turned out squid luau combo wasn't listed online because they were out. Boo. So hubby and I ordered the laulau combo consisting of a nice sized laulau that was tasty, with a nice ratio of pork to leaves, very large scoop of rice, some lomi salmon that was mostly onions that were quite strong and bitter and almost no salmon, pulehu chicken, which was tasty and had a nice char, and haupia, which was good. So food was fifty/fifty. Hubby ordered a coke, which was bottled Mexican (means real cane sugar) which was yummy. They serve Mexican food so I guess they have other Mexican sodas, but I didn't bother to check the menu. We had to ask for water three times because the server was so busy. We had a lot left over since the portions are big. Not sure if we will be back, though. While the server was nice and trying hard to take care of everyone, having to wait to order (another family even came up to ask is they could order after waiting for awhile) and then having to ask for water three times is a turn off for us. Also - no squid luau where's Hawaiian food is served was a major let down for me.

If you think 5,400 reviews are lying, let this one be the reason you make sure to visit this local…read morebusiness when you're in Honolulu. It was love at first bite for me with musubi and onigiri, so when I saw a spot dedicated to this deliciousness you better believe I made a point to go there! I ran even faster when StaciLei, Yelp Hawaii's amazing Community Manager, told me it's a must and gave me her list of greatest hits and must not miss items as a guide! Now I've had a lot of these in my life, and I must say, Iyasume are easily the best. See musubi and onigiri have humble origins as a quickly made homespun snack or on the go lunch, and when you spot them in the convenience environment they're often a giant ball of rice with a tinge of protein or seasoning for flavor. At Iyasume, these are culinary adventures, stacked with ingredients, all in handheld form, and the variety they offer is IMPRESSIVE! Of course musubi starts with the classic, SPAM. I had to order the kimchi + spam, shiso + spam, and unagi + tamago + spam, all of which were awesome (even the next day!). Onigiri here are actually layered with ingredients, so you get them in every bite, unlike the convenience store versions! They have a HUGE menu, and I went with spicy mentaiko and salmon, spicy mentaiko and ikura, ikura and salmon, and tuna mayo curry, all of which were great. I LOVE that they make these to order. You can see the line in the back hard at work, and they're very fast. You're sure to encounter a line when you arrive, but don't be scared, it moves quickly. I only had to wait about 5 minutes for mine to come up! Well worth it. Reasonably priced. Very filling. A taste of Hawaii and Japan in one place that'll have everyone smiling!

Friend recommended this spot and I'm grateful she did. There were so many fresh and interesting…read moremusubis to choose from. I bought kimchi spam, eel spam, inari spam, and a furikake rice ball. Didn't really interact with staff as they didn't offer to help while I viewed the items and I selected my items fairly quickly. I found purchasing four musubis very affortable. Finding parking was tough and expensive in the area. Not the restaurant's fault and probably drivers are not the bulk of their business.

***4.5 stars***…read more Fresh delicious poke. Pay by weight. We ordered 2 bowls with spicy ahi, wasabi ahi, spicy salmon, and salmon poke. Our favorites were the spicy salmon and salmon poke. Very flavorful, saucy, and tender. Service is extremely friendly. More of a grab-and-go shop. Would come back!

My favorite poke place in Oahu! They have multiple locations and I'm always getting the same stuff…read moreeach time. I like the Spicy Ahi Katsu and the Fireball and Firecracker poke. Any of their poke that is spicy, I get. This place is a personal favorite of mine because of the Fireball and Firecracker... spice is life! This is definitely a place that I recommend to people who are going to Oahu for their first time. The ladies who work at this location are a hoot. They're so chill, funny, patient, and hard workers. They let you sample and make sure you get your food. This place sees consistent business, we were there eating our food and always saw customers coming in and coming out. This location isn't really a 'sit-down' place but you can nibble on your poke for a minute before you take off. Inside is small, but clean, and you'll find a picture of Guy Fieri on the wall. The parking is not the easiest so pray for parking before you come :)

I loved it here. Truly a hole in the wall. Parking is really tough so street parking is usually…read moregonna be the norm unless you get lucky in their tiny shared parking lot. The guava bar was delicious and flavorful and just crumbles in your mouth! Definitely one of the better guava bars I've tried. Love how crumbly it is. The salmon belly was delicious OMFG. It looks so simple and straightforward but that sht is so flavorful. It is crispy and yet soft on the inside. The salmon belly is cut into bite-sized pieces so I didn't have to worry about using a knife to cut it. I usually try salmon belly where it is usually seasoned lightly to bring out the natural flavor of the salmon, but Guava Smoked's salmon belly is just grilled in a way that makes the salmon sweet/crispy and still get traces of the salmon taste as well. It's definitely not your traditional Japanese-style way of cooking salmon belly but really just their own. I'd go back and get this again. Another thing too. I'd get this with beer. This would hit very hard with alcohol but because I don't drink I need a kombucha. The grilled salmon belly would go perfect with it. Cheers! Uncle was very helpful and kind when serving and if you dine-in he brings it to your table.

Ordered the loco moco spicy and my husband ordered the mixed plate both with kimchi. Gravy wasn't…read morewhat I expected... country gravy as a loco moco just isn't my style. The patty its self was okay. Nothing super special. Unfortunately no spiciness in this dish. And the kimchi was more on the sweet side rather than the fermented spicy. Tried to add their chili pepper water but again I was left without the fiery kick in my mouth. Definitely has a strong garlicky taste though. Service is quick. But came on a Monday before dinner time so it was slow. Lots of seating and open air flow. Direct parking is limited but street parking is available.