Ron and Tia are the faces that greet you when you enter this restaurant. It has been described on…read moreYelp as a hole-in-the-wall, and it is in a very good way. There are only two tables here, so dining-in is an option, but we often see people ordering for to-go. We were a hungry party of four, directed here by curiosity and prior eating experience by one of us (shout out to Jaeyeong). Their food offerings are unique and distinctly Samoan! I don't think I had had Samoan food before, and now I am thankful that I have. I got the Poly plate because I can eat-- two entrees, and a choice of rice, taro, and faʻi. I couldn't decide between the three carb options, so Ron gave me a little bit of each which together combined into a proper portion! I got the kale mamoe (lamb curry) and the mulpipi (turkey tails). I love lamb, and I had never seen turkey tails offered anywhere before, so I had to try it. I also got Tia's signature pie (a pineapple peach pie) which was very good, and very sweet! The meat half moon pie is also so good. Honestly, you can't go wrong with the food here. Everything was delicious.

I decided to try Tia's Taste of Samoa. It is situated on North King Street near the Zippy's…read more These hidden local gems can really provide interesting eats. I've never tried Samoan cuisine ( does Palm Corned Beef count? Jk ) and it is similar to Hawaiian. I requested the Regular Plate from the nice employee, a man of few words. I asked a couple of questions...he pointed...it worked. Got the Luau Mamoe as the single entree choice. You then have the option of mac salad or Sapa Sui ( not exactly a traditional dish, I am guessing ). Lastly, there is a choice from banana, rice, or taro. Sapa Sui is simiar to Korean japchae, with cubed pork and frozen mixed vegetables - peas, carrots, and corn. Quite good with a strong soy sauce flavor. Luau Mamoe is like Hawaiian beef/squid luau. Stewed in coconut milk, taro leaves are mixed with New Zealand lamb. Negative: too many bones. Positive: luau leaves are always good. Taro...if I was hungry...could've finished both chunks of steamed taro. It was a lot. Poly Plate offers two entree choices. Street metered parking. Closed on Tuesdays but open the other weekdays from 900a till 600p. Weekend hours are from 900a to 400p.

I love this place. Every time you visit, if you don't want to cook but have a fat wallet, you know…read morewhere to go even early as 8am you get nice hot Poly food fresh and very delicious! Whoever the Chef is, you're doing a great job. So get ready to go and enjoy this Yummylicious hot Polynesian food! MAHALO

The staff here were welcoming and kind to my son and me, who came here looking to experience Samoan…read morecuisine. We left with a locally made coconut drink and a coconut-sauce bread desert. The bread desert was not too expensive either. Alofa!

Having that high rating with over 1500 reviews was certainly intriguing. We're lucky we stayed…read moresuper close and bumped into this Musubi cafe. It's busy since relatively early in the day but ordering process was seamless and they got the order pretty quick. Your number would be called when everything's ready. Their menu was rich that you had tons to pick from. Price was decent for the size as well. Our picks were the salmon ikura and spam shrimp avocado. Both were so good and our highlight would certainly be how they nailed the sauce.

Such a cute cafe! It's very affordable and mainly eat grab and go musubis for snack or breakfast…read more There's plenty of musubi types and they all range from $3-6. My favorites are the avocado/eel-egg and inari (bean curd)-egg Musubi. The teriyaki and black pepper musubis are also delicious. I love that it's made to order so everything you get is fresh and hot! I recommend going in evening because it's less busy. I tried coming back the next morning and the line was out the door. They have a cute speaker system to call out your order number lol. Everyone is so friendly here. I wished I visited this place a lot sooner! It was conveniently located from my hotel and the beach, ~10 min walk.

As part of our recent vacation to Hawai'i, we stopped by Helena's Hawaiian Food to get a taste of…read moretraditional, authentic Hawaiian cuisine. Parking was scarce, but we managed to find a spot nearby in the neighborhood. It was a Saturday around lunchtime, and we were able to be seated immediately. We didn't really know what we were doing with the menu, so our server ordered whatever she thought we would like. She did a great job. We got the Pipikaula short ribs, kalua pig, lomi lomi salmon, poi, mac salad, and fried butterfish collar.  Everything was so good! My favorite two items were the short ribs and the butterfish collar. The short ribs were so meaty with a nice firm texture and had a yummy sweet marinade. The fried butterfish collar was crispy and dripping with buttery goodness.  Trying poi for the first time was such an interesting experience as well. I had always wondered what it tasted like. I had always thought it was going to be like a sweet taro paste dessert, but it's actually more like a starch and serves the same role as rice! Its neutral flavor allows you to pair it with your proteins. It adds a bit of texture and helps you feel full. I was really grateful for finally getting to try it and loved learning something new! I had a great time at Helena's. The food was delicious, and I got to learn more about traditional Hawaiian cuisine. I totally recommend it. Great vibes.

Best place for authentic Hawaiian food for sure. Great service, even if they get tired of repeating…read morethemselves and could write it out, I really appreciate them explaining to newcomers every time what to eat and how to eat it to get that authentic experience. We went with what's recommended for first timers - laulau pork, you eat the leaves everything and it's filling and delicious - short ribs, some might say it's overcooked but I think it's just a different way of cooking and eating it, the pieces were thick and high quality, comes with 4 - Loki salmon, it's cured and this reminds me of ceviche or pico de gallo and salmon, it was flavorful, juicy and refreshing - comes with onions and salt to add to the complexity of the flavors - we ate it with poi, which they use as the starch to replace the rice. It's made of taro, I say give it a try for that unique and authentic experience - coconut jelly was yummy They accept cash and card Limited parking in the front, come in right before 5:30 on a weekday to beat the crowd Small family business vibes The experience lives up to the hype!

I go here to buy cheap beef by the case. They also have prepared food and other items to purchase…read more Parking can be a little rough to find. Employees are friendly and helpful.

Best convenience store on the island. Samoan food was on point. Definitely worth a stop if you're…read morein the area.

Great experience upon entering the store, the cashier was very friendly and helpful when I asked…read morequestions about items I didn't see out anymore, even the guy and lady that was in the back was helpful. I was able to get my corn beef. All The food i got was delicious and tasty and I will definitely come back again.

Food is good and hot. Go early! Vaifala was too sweet. It's a bit pricey. Palusami, taro and…read morebanana cooked just right.

I like this place better than the old Dot's that was in the corner a while back. Its much more…read moreorganized and all in stainless food warmers. Corned beef and cabbage, palusami (luau leaves with coconut milk and onions. Looks like a little laulau), taro, banana and fe'e (squid w/coconut milk and onions) just permeates the air when you walk in. Being able to free range in here is a bad idea if your familiar with the food. The plate starts to get heavy, you run out of space on the plate and theres still other stuff to get. If its not that, its the sticker shock when you pay for your stuff. Single items like the palusami and food by the pound like the poke and the fe'e has its own price while the others in the warmer get weighed together. So when it gets rung up and $27.00 and some change later, you learn to get one staple and two main and get out. Apparently, I still haven't learned that. The food here is obviously expensive. It is definitely worth the price though. The plate I made could feed three people easy and no I didnt eat it all, lots were taken home with me. The workers here are really nice and helpful. The parking is small but never did I have a problem getting one. The stalls are angled down towards the stream so if you reverse or pull straight in, it would be wise to use your parking brake just so you know your car will be there when you come out and not in the stream.

Only been here a handful of times over the years. There's lots of little markets within a block of…read morethis place so it does have lots of competition, but I like coming here when I'm waiting for the bus to get a snack. There's a lot to choose from in the hot food section as well as plenty pastry like goodies at the front. I got some bwiro here once, assuming it was the sweet kind you get at keemems. Turned out it was the straight up kind without any sugar, so that was a bit surprising and disappointing but I guess that's my bad.. the downside to this place are it's prices! Ughhh man that's probably why I'm so butt hurt about the bwiro - it cost $8 and I couldn't even eat it! Dang it. I would recommend this place to fellow bus riders and for snacks when you got some $$ to spend - just make sure you know what you're buying ;)

No idea why but my wife was absolutely set on trying out Poi while we are here visiting. Everyone…read morewe asked Reccommended the Waiahole Poi Factory and I would certainly agree with them! We pulled up and were greeted by the cashier who was friendly and answered lol of our questions. We decided on a combo of Kalua Pig and Laulau along with Poi. First off, turns out that I do not care for Poi! This restaurant cooks it well and it is absolutely not their fault but what a boring food! The Pork was outstanding and the Taro Leaves on the Laulau were outstanding. We also had the Ho'io Salad which was a great addition with outstanding flavor. We finished with the dessert Sweet Lady of Waiahole which was super tasty and not to be missed. There is decent parking and several picnic tables outside. I thought the entire experience was super fun, you just may want to swap your Poi for Rice. :)

Finally got to try this place after visiting the island so many times! My husband and I shared a…read morelunch plate with the beef stew and kalua pork, and everything was so flavorful and satisfying. We also tried their famous "Sweet Lady of Waiahole," which definitely lived up to the hype--so delicious. There's convenient parking available, plus seating if you want to stay and enjoy your meal. Really glad we stopped by!

We heard about the Rainbow Drive In from a tour guide and decided to stop in to give it a try…read more When we arrived there was a crowd but the lines truly did move very quickly and there is a great amount of seating. The amazing lady at the counter was kind and so remarkably quick with her duties. She rang up everything and delivered the food with lightning speed. We split a Boneless Chicken plate and it was plenty for two people. The chicken was tender and well seasoned and the Mac Salad and Rice complimented it well. We did get the gravy on the side. :) In reading the reviews I see a lot of differing opinions. Take this amazing spot for what it is. Good food at a good value in a good spot. Get in here and enjoy!

Really want to like it as it's our first stop for the trip, but the Mix Plate with Gravy we got…read morejust didn't suit my liking. It came with 2 scoops of rice, your choice of mac salad or coleslaw, BBQ beef, boneless chicken and fried mahi mahi. The decent one on the plate was prolly the beef but the chicken and fish were bit bland. The gravy sauce also seemed lumpy. The portion was filling but I might not be a fan of the taste. The outdoor dining space also had weird smell occasionally. Appreciate the servers though who were all attentive and moving super quickly.

Best dinning experience yet! Food was amazing, loved the music.... but our server Honu was…read morefantastic! Very kind and knowledgeable. He went above and beyond. Thank you very much! He needs a raise!

Great food and great service. Love coming here every year for my small family gatheringread more