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Island Style Grindz

4.8 (64 reviews)
ModerateFood Trucks
Closed 7:00 am - 1:00 pm
Updated a few days ago

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Huli chicken, panko crusted mahi with a sweet chili aioli, potato mac salad

Chased down this food truck at the Paniolo Festival yesterday. Festival was awesome! I had the garlic ahi, panko mahi and purple sweet potato salad, husband had the mahi and Huli chicken with potato mac salad. OMG - it was all absolutely amazing!! I'd give the food a sixth star here if I could. The cook on the fish was perfect, the rice was cooked perfectly, and the salads were so tasty. The wasabi drizzle on the ahi took it over the top and the sweet chili aioli for the mahi was the bomb! I'd go completely out of my way to eat this food again. If you go and see a long line, trust me it is so worth it!

Menu as of 4/10/21 in Hilo. Special changes weekly!
Jessica S.

I've been following their IG for a while but was only recently able to try their food when they came down to Hilo! It's located in the parking lot of S. Tokunaga Store in Hilo usually on Saturdays. There's front and back parking on the rocks that won't ever be an issue. Probably the only issue is if you come a little too late and they run out of food LOL. If you follow their Instagram, they'll state where they'll be from Wednesday-Saturday. The Saturday I went, they had the miso butterfish special! I was actually debating on getting that but when I got to the window, they had just ran out saaaad. But it's okay! I got their Kalbi and Korean fried chicken plate while my friend got their Shaq Attaq (same thing but also with panko shrimp). We also got their spicy poke fries that came with a mix of sweet potato and crinkle fries. The Kalbi and Korean fried chicken were both very flavorful! Kalbi was tender and juicy, but we felt that there was more bone than meat. The Korean fried chicken, tho, was amazing! Really crispy and was sweetish. Loved the flavor! The poke fries were delicious! Not as fresh as I hoped, but we might have accidentally left the poke fries untouched a little too long because the fish was a bit cooked when we finally got to it saaaad. But nevertheless yummy especially with the additional aioli on the fries. This place runs out of food quick which definitely means they're delicious! They ran out of butterfish by 11:15am (opens at 10:30am). Crazy! Definitely recommend if you're in Kona, Kohala, Hilo, or Waimea on the dates they're operating. P.S. follow their Instagram (@islandstylegrindz_) for updates on their operation dates and specials!

Mandy D.

Did it again!! The best poke nachos, ahi burger, spicy ahi and hibachi chicken...OMG! This is by far the best thing that ever happened during COVID. Mahalo for the Local Island Style Grindz!

Brittany D.

Always drive past this wagon when it's outside of tokunagaz but always was busy with something else to stop and try this place. This time we did! We ordered their famous spicy poke nachos and it was soooo delicious! I've tried a lot of poke nachos, but omg!!!! Island Style Grindz version literally "OUT-BEATS" any other poke nachos! Love love love it!! Can't wait til their next time in Hilo!

Spicy poke nachos
Justin K.

Local favorite with poke nachos, poke bombs and yummy cheeseburger Fries were delicious as well Owner surprised us with a couple of California style ahi poke bombs as well Will definitely be back

Mandy Lee H.

Updated review - - They've changed their name and brought their business on the road! They're now a food truck business and service different areas including Waimea, Waikoloa, and Kona. Find them in Kona on Thursdays and Fridays in the HPM parking lot. They open at 11 and close when pau. Now Kona customers don't have to drive out to Kawaihae for awesome poke nachos! Yay!! Original review - - Tried the poke nachos and poke bombs for the first time. SO GOOD! The fish was fresh and the sauce went so well with everything. The poke nachos had fresh poke, mayo sauce, homemade guacamole, shoyu, tomatoes, onions & other deliciousness over won ton chips. There's an open seating area and the staff was also very friendly and helpful. Definitely coming back again!

Poke nachos
Cody W.

Nice find! They have limited open hours so double check before you go. We were lucky to have been given a strong recommendation for this poke spot by the zip lining tour company down the road after our ride. We were planning on stopping at Sushi Rock, but the guides swore by the fresh poke here (and better prices) so we gave it a shot and weren't disappointed. Fresh fish and unique spin on the "nachos" with the fried wonton strips. We also tried the daily special (Korean kalbi shortribs with a fried ahi filet and Mac salad), which was super tasty and filling for only $13. Nice staff and the owner checked in with us to make sure we enjoyed, which is always appreciated. We'll be back to try again

Poke nachos!

Best food on the island! I was super excited to come here after finding them on Yelp, and following them on Instagram and I was not disappointed. The service was fast, and the workers are very friendly. The poke nachos were the best thing I've eaten on the big island! So fresh and the portions here are so big. For the amount they charge and the amount they give, you can tell they care about their customers and love what they do. Whenever I'm back on the island I will definitely come back. This place blew all the poke shops out of the water!

Poke Nachos plate
Tasha M.

Tried this place out a couple weeks ago and loved it! They're located in Kohala Town Center. The staff was very friendly and the food was awesome. Their Poke Nachos were delicious and their presentation was cute. They come in different sizes: mini, plate and small pan. Their portions are great; My 2 sisters and I shared a plate and there was definitely enough to go around. Everything worked so well together in this dish. The ahi was good, the won ton chips were light and crispy and I loved how they dressed it with homemade guacamole and spicy mayo!

Shoyu poke, poi and haupia are included in the Hawaiian plate (along with kalua pork, lomi salmon and rice)
Melana Y.

Poke. Heavenly, tender, fresh caught poke. Best of the best. I ordered the Hawaiian plate on special and it was enough for two people if you are looking for some light meals (maybe add an extra scoop of rice.) To me, the shoyu poke was definitely the star of the show. This is a cute hole in the wall that is very popular with the locals, very authentic and true to the island flavor. I watched some bewildered tourists approach the ordering window maybe not knowing what to expect, so I would recommend that if you are new to poke, maybe sample and see what you like, it can be an acquired taste for some!

Maryam D.

Best food we had on our week long trip to big island. Had their poke nachos and poke bombs. Drove an hour to get to them and ate the food in the car because it was raining and it was still amazing. Really friendly staff too.

Shoyu poke bombs
Fiona F.

Delicious food!!!! I could literally eat their poke bombs every single day for the rest of my life. We tried both the shoyu and California style, but the california was my favorite. The fish melts in your mouth like butter. I also had the poke nachos that were delicious and full of flavor. You can see the workers making your food in the front window and can tell that they put a lot of effort into their food which is probably why it tasted so good! To find out where they're going to be I recommend checking their Facebook or Instagram page, they update it frequently. If you can find them go there since this was probably one of my favorite meals that I have had on the island!

Fish tacos

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Some of the best kalbi I've had and the poke nachos were absolutely delicious. I will definitely go back again!

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6 years ago

Your food is good but what's on your menu and special we also spread the word to my ohana about your truck wagon

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Ask the Community - Island Style Grindz

Where are you going to be today?

Aloha Yuriko! Sorry for the late reply. We are closed until next. We are spending the holidays with our kids. We appreciate your interest in Island Style Grindz and we hope you have a Happy New Year!

Don’t See Your Question? Ask Away!

Review Highlights - Island Style Grindz

The "chip" parts are fried taro wontons with super fresh fish and great flavors.

Mentioned in 9 reviews

Read more highlights

GJ's Huli Chicken - Huli Huli Chicken

GJ's Huli Chicken

4.8(113 reviews)
1.3 km
$$

Worth the drive over to Waimea! Follow the cloud of smoke past the main part of town. Huge BBQ pits…read moreset up with chicken pork and beef bbq cooking. We shared the 3 meat plate and still had leftovers. It looked and smelled so good we grabbed a blanket and ate on the grassy area next to the parking lot. The chicken was super juicy, pork bbq wasn't too fatty, beef rib was huge and meaty. We loved everything dipped in the chili water sauce! Also got the pancit and a couple packs of suman (rice cakes wrapped in banana leaves) They reminded us of the suman in the Philippines - so yummy! Service was friendly and efficient. Super busy with cars coming in and out of the parking area next to the pits and ordering tent.

This place was busy so we decided to give it a try. On the plus side, the chicken was a generous…read moreportion, between the two of us we couldn't eat an entire half chicken. The sauce was tasty, though didn't have any of the pineapple flavor that some Huli Huli chicken has and overall the meat was a bit bland. If you just get a half chicken, they put it in a plastic bag so very hard to eat, especially since it is piping hot. Hot food in a plastic bag is also not a good idea as the plasticizers can leach into the food and none of us need more microplastics in our food! If you can plan ahead, bring your own plate and a knife and fork instead. You will also need to take it somewhere to eat if you want to site down, or like we and many others did, eat it off of your tailgate or hood of your car.

Photos
GJ's Huli Chicken
GJ's Huli Chicken - A big chicken leg

A big chicken leg

GJ's Huli Chicken - August 26, 2023: they weren't here

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August 26, 2023: they weren't here

Fatboy Kitchen

Fatboy Kitchen

5.0(5 reviews)
0.7 km

We had hired Fatboy Kitchen to cater for our wedding and we were blessed by their authentic…read moreFilipino cuisine, innovation of local ingredients, organization, professionalism, communication, and intentionality of their service. Before our wedding, Mark and his wife took an opportunity to make it a point to get to know us. In that meeting we learned not only about the experience and skills they possessed, but the authenticity of their hearts to truly serve us. On the day of, they were warriors championing through the Hilo rain (surprise, surprise it rained in a hilo wedding), cooking, moving things around, and presenting everything to perfection. Before we could even thank them for their service, they had already left, ensuring the attention stayed on us on our wedding day. I would recommend their catering service to anyone and just incase you were wondering, yes their food was KILLAHZ.

Had Fatboy Kitchen catering for our wedding reception in Kona and it was a hit! Mark and his team…read morewere so easy to work with. I had been planning this destination wedding from California and it was not easy choosing vendors blindly without ever trying the food! But the food looked great on their IG page and after communicating with Mark, he definitely knew what he was doing. He gave me some recommendations since I wanted a Hawaiian-Filipino theme. The bbq skewers, bistek, pancit, macaroni salad + poke station and more was all soooo good. They were still good the next day after being slightly hungover. Mahalo to Mark and his team! I recommend their catering to anyone.

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Fatboy Kitchen
Fatboy Kitchen
Fatboy Kitchen

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Island Style Grindz - foodtrucks - Updated May 2026

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