Nadine C.

Lunch in Honolulu, Hawaii... I had tried to dine here in the past, but didn't have a reserve, so... This time, I called about half an hour before I could get to i-naba Hanalei'i... And got in! Yay! Thank you! I remembered that there was a small, free parking lot behind the building. There's also metered street parking. Located across the street from Washington Intermediate School, this restaurant is divided into two sections: sushi on the left and teppanyaki on the right. We chose Teppanyaki. We had the cozy, clean Teppanyaki room to ourselves. There were only counter seats. The chef did minimal conversation and was efficient, skillful, and courteous. It was fun to watch the chef prepare the food! I coughed a bit when he was cleaning the grill as we were eating. However, the food was beautifully presented and tasted great. We ordered the US Prime Tenderloin Steak. It came with a nice broth, delicious stir-fried veggies, and fluffy, fresh steamed rice. The steak was tender and sliced thin. We could change it up with the homemade ponzu sauce, side of Wasabi, ume, and salt. When I return, I'd like to try the sushi room!

Irene M.

The privacy was epic... Plan B isn't always a negative direction as the original was an unexpected fail checking out the availability with lunch at I-naba Hanalei'i worked out perfectly with a call prior to arrival. Finding them on busy South King Street can be the biggest challenge especially if you're driving but they're located right across Washington Middle School basketball court so keep to your left and you'll probably see the Y. NAKAMURA BUILDING before the restaurant sign and right below that building sign is the driveway which will take you to the back of the restaurant where there are a few parking available. Cute brickwork is where the restaurant is at and once you enter it transport you to a Japanese villa with sliding doors and we decided on the teppanyaki dining where we saw our setting already place and ready for our arrival is quite impressive. With menu in hand I decided on the US Prime Tenderloin Steak which is 1/4lb and all teishoku is served with salad, rice and miso soup. With the chef working silently his magic placing our salad, sauces and water while he cooks our veggies that accompany our steak dining like this is a nice quite space where it's not all noisy and with a full restaurant filled with others is quite refreshing and a nice break for some quite time is something that I'm not used to. Thank you Nadine C for the suggestion as I've seen this place driving by countless times but never imagine the magic behind these unassuming doors is a magical place that givings dining a new experience for me. Thank you!

Chris Y.

Just to clarify, there's two sides to i-naba Hanalei'i, with one side being the omakase sushi side, and the other side is the teppanyaki side. Make sure when you make your reservation to know which side you are reserving for. It's a bit further away from the touristy areas of Waikiki, and you have to either drive out yourself, or take a rideshare to get there as it's on a random street in a more local area around Waikiki. It's certainly mostly just smaller businesses around here, and not going to be your typical tourist area. Both rooms aren't going to be very big, for the omakase side, nor for the teppanyaki side. However, the omakase side is definitely smaller than the teppanyaki side. If you're planning to do the omakase sushi side with a large group, make sure it's not more than 6 as it'll start getting too crowded in there after that. We arrived at the spot for lunch this day. There's very few parking spots in the back behind the building where they have their own private lot, and there's also street parking along the road. I won't speak too much about the experience, as I feel this is one of those that's better experienced yourself, but all I want to say is that this was probably one of my favorite meals during the entire trip. The sushi chef we had today was very friendly, and also greatly catered to our appetites. Just like many chefs in Japan that offers an omakase dining experience, they are attentive to watch their diners, and adjusting and matching the various portions of our food that day. The chef will also listen to specific dietary needs when asked, and will find ways to provide a way for certain adjustments in the food. Things such as adjusting portion sizes for some of the fish, adjusting the ingredients in certain courses, and other considerations that comes from an attentive sushi chef when serving guests. Much like their teppanyaki counter-part next door, the experience was part of the meal. The portions here, particularly for the price, was a great value. Even though omakase is usually very expensive, at i-naba this was not an issue. There was a great variety of food offered as well, and all of which were fresh, tasted great, and by the time the meal was done we were all fully satisfied, pun intended. If you feel like a nice sushi experience down in Waikiki, but want something a bit more lowkey than the busiest area, I recommend dropping by here. It is a bit of a drive out, but totally worth it for the omakase experience here.

The best omakase I've ever had. Thank you Teru. It was one of the highlight of our wakiki trip.

Sheila K.

We do an annual sushi dinner for my husband's birthday and Chef Kakazu made this one unforgettable! We had his full attention in this intimate 7 seat coHe provided us with such carefully prepared delights! This was definitely TOP TIER omakase! Good value for Hawai'i and definitely our favorite place so far! Rivals Japan dining experiences! Everything was so fresh and the Chef was so gentle and kind and GENEROUS! We will be back to celebrate our sons' birthdays later this month! Recommending to our friends.

Daniel C.

I-NABA Hanalei'i Honolulu is across from Washington Middle School and has a private lot in the back of the building. It's free parking but if it's full then there is street metered parking on King St. When you enter, sushi is on the left and teppanyaki is on the right. This review is for their sushi option. It's been around for the past 8 months. The sushi counter seating sits 7 people and is a cozy atmosphere. They immediately bring out water and offer green tea. There is a drink menu for alcoholic and nonalcoholic drinks as well. You can't do sushi without alcohol so of course I had to order a High Ball to start followed by lots of sake. We did the omakase option and added on items after to fill our sushi craving. The omakase came with Chutoro, Tai, Shima-Aji, Maguro, Shiba, Aji, Ikura, Blue Fin Tuna Roll and Miso Soup. We added on Uni and Barracuda after the omakase course. Everything was fresh and quite good. The service was great and they even walked us out to thank us for coming. Our sushi chef mentioned that they have been very busy after the social media post. A friend of mine couldn't get reservations when she was on Oahu for a few hours and she called ahead of time to try get a seating but was unsuccessful so reservations are highly recommended. Great sushi option on King St!

Mayumi C.

Dropped by for lunch: we were the only guests in the restaurant. We had beef Katsu and hamburg steak lunch (both $35). Both come with salad, donabe rice, miso soup, and pickles. Foods are tasty and the chef cooked two hamburgs in front of us. Donabe rice (no longer offers garlic rice) is rice cooked with Japanese earthenware pot: it was tasty. Although the chef asked us if we wanted the second serving and we said no at that time, he took the pot back to the kitchen. Well, in Japan, a good kappo restaurant makes onigiri (rice balls) with the left over donabe rice because that donabe pot is cooked for the guests: but this chef didn't even offer that. Moreover when we finished the lunch, he raised the volume of music and offered the tea later. It was as if he wanted us to leave as soon as we finished the lunch. It was a disappointment even though the foods were good. Gochiso-sama.

Verna A.

Me and my friend just walked in. We didn't have a reservation and they were kind enough to let us in and sit on the sushi side. Their lunch menu is a great deal! $42/person for 10 sushi and miso soup. I definitely think it is worth it! Also it was delicious!! The chef didn't speak fluent English and that was okay! He was kind enough to try tell us what kind of finish we were eating. He even had a paper that showed it in English if you are curious on what kind of fish you are eating. The ambiance was nice! It was just me and my friend for a while but as we finished our course, a couple came in and the chef started to help them. I highly recommend coming here for lunch. I look forward on eating on the other side of the restaurant next time. :)

Mika O.

This hidden gem is located near the original i-naba on King street. We have been here twice for lunch. They have two different concepts - a small sushi bar and a teppanyaki section. My parents heard of these amazing lunch specials and we had to try them both! The teppanyaki lunch specials are three set choices - gyu katsu, hamburger steak, or a teppanyaki meat set. Super affordable and the quality is great. I think I would recommend going for the teppanyaki meal. Portion is a bit on the smaller side but it is a great deal for lunch. The other concept is their sushi bar, where they have a $40 omakase lunch special. You get 10 nigiri, a hosomaki roll, and miso soup for only $40! Each fish is cut in front of you by their sushi chef. There's great variety and a steal for what you get. We went for a birthday and they even brought out complimentary yuzu dessert for us. Since there are only about 7-8 seats at the bar, it is really cozy inside and the service is good. They also do have dinner meals which are pricier and would be good for a special occasion. We have yet to try, but would highly recommend their lunch sets/specials!

Jerry E.

Had a good experience for a price. Not very impressed with the lady chef's skill because our lobsters were over cooked, too hard and dry, not mentioning overpriced set dinner when compared with their competitors; oh, the servers weren't around most of the time, thus, our drinks weren't timely replenished. Perhaps, that is one of the reasons that we were the only customers occupied one of the two tables in the restaurant; however, steaks wise, they were superb, even for regular, not wagyu steaks. Notwithstanding what I commented about a few flaws, it is still one nice eatery to check it out.

Christine B.

I came for the first time to try this new sushi restaurant. I walked in without reservation and chef Yoshitaka "Maru" Hoshimaru he greeted me and seated around the small sushi counter. The place is small but very authentic Japanese. The fish is very fresh direct from Japan. There is a set menu of Omakase, one is $100 and another $120. The fish was very fresh and savory, it melted in your mouth without any soya without dipping. Chef Maru served different kind of fish in hisOmakase menu. This is family owned restaurants in Japan, LA and it has been in Honolulu for 3 months. Quality food is worth a visit. Best to make reservation.

Jack C.

We were recommended this place for their lunch Omakase and so we booked a couple weeks in advance for our trip to Oahu. When booking I made sure to tell the person on the phone that we have a infant with us and if it was okay, they were totally fine with it. On to the experience.. In total the experience was about 90 minutes The chef shared what was being offered which was the lunch Omakase and shared a menu of beverages which included all sorts of Sake, Sake flights, beer and standard beverages. Each of the 10 pieces that came out were legit and I kept thinking, all of this for $42? This price point just blew my mind. The ginger was fresh and was never empty. The ginger had a hint of vinegar which was different but in a good way. The miso soup was packed with flavor and included a shrimp head. The six piece toro sushi roll was also a good addition to complete the meal. All in all the experience was great! The 10 piece Omakase, miso soup and 6 piece toro sushi roll was a STEAL at $42! I would highly recommend this place!

Rise D.

Five stars for the lunch omakase! Super delicious high quality sushi experience. It felt like I was in Japan again. Very relaxing and quiet with a few seats at the sushi bar. The sushi chef provided a written English translation of what we were eating. He was kind and professional. I can't wait to go back again!