This was one of the best experiences I've had on the islands, ever. We go a couple times a year, and the luaus get old. If you've never been to a luau, definitely go, but if you are looking for something different, this is a terrific alternative. It has been a family ranch for generations and the owner gives a terrific lecture about the ranch and their ecological way of ranching before being seated for dinner. Piece of advice - be sure to save room for dessert because the mac pie is out of this world. During dinner a couple performs country/western songs. I don't even like country music, but their performance was a real treat. There was also a little lesson on line dancing. After dinner there are a variety of activities - roping, branding (a piece of wood which is a great keepsake), smore's and star gazing. This is truly a unique experience that should not be missed. I have a 9 year old boy who says this was his favorite part of our trip! We will certainly return next time we are on the island. read more

OK, this is uber touristy. However, they have their shtick down pat and know what they are doing. First you hear the history of Hawaiian cowboys. It was entertaining and good information, but I suspect that this "cowboy" does his act in Wyoming (or some other dude ranch) in the summer and Hawaii in the winter. His western cowboy accent sounded kind of fake to me, but I'm pretty cynical. He and his wife then sing songs and encourage people to dance. The next part is the buffet. I'm a prime rib kind of guy, so I thought it was fantastic and very good quality. There is also chicken, beans, salad, buns, dessert, and the other stuff that you would expect. Included is beer, wine, and bottled water, and soda. The after-dinner entertainment includes roping steers (of of the wooden variety), smores, and the chance to brand a piece of wood. If you look at their website, you will see exactly what you are getting. If that's worth $85 (per adult), go for it. It was included in our Hawaii tour package, so that was fine. If I had to pay $170 per couple, I'm not sure I'd do it. read more

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It's always an incredible experience at kahua ranch, the horses, the cattle the views are incredible and the sunsets are absolutely stunning! read more

We went to the Paniolo BBQ. The ranch and views are beautiful. The food was delicious and staff very welcoming and friendly. I highly recommend it. read more

What a great experience in dinner! It was our first time at the ranch and we were not disappointed. The food provided by Caterer Ted and family was delicious! The history of Cowboys in Hawaii by the Tolands was great as was their singing at the end of our meal! The setting was perfect! read more

Kahua Ranch - Venue - ATV Rentals/Tours Near Me - Waimea, Hawaii

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The food was good not great as in the past, the staff was outstanding, the singing was wonderful, lots of things to keep the kids occupied, definitely will return read more

We had dinner last night at Kahua Ranch hosted by Ted (Eastside SJ ) and his crew. We chose it specifically for our Dad who's a farm boy from the Central Valley/Madera. He's also very picky, he doesn't eat just anybody's food, and he enjoyed the food and the hospitality. Good food + Hospitality + Live Music with a beautiful view! We'll be back, Mahalo read more

On our latest visit to the Big Island, my family attended the Wednesday Night Paniolo BBQ Dinner. We had heard about Kahua Ranch when it was featured on our favorite travel show, Somebody Feed Phil. Every aspect of this event was phenomenal. We sat at communal tables and got to meet some other visitors, which led to great unexpected conversations! We played cornhole and watched a breathtaking sunset. We dined on the freshest, finest BBQ, and saw both Saturn & Jupiter through a microscope as part of the star gazing experience. We made smores & even left with a branded souvenir. Hawaii is known for its beaches and tropical climate, but there is so much more to the Big Island than just that! At the Kahua Ranch, we learned about the history of Hawaiian cowboys and their important contributions to ranch culture. I can't recommend this experience enough. If you're a tourist looking for an authentic Hawaiian experience that also comes with a high quality meal, this is a must for your next visit to the Island! read more

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Our family came for the sunset Paniolo dinner. The ranch location is beautiful and so different from what most would expect in Hawaii. Green pastures and rolling hills everywhere. Staff is really welcoming and happy to answer any questions about the ranch and it's history. The best part may have been after sunset when all the stars came out. read more

An amazing location, Beautiful views of mountains and Ocean. Hawaiian cow boy land. Such a treat with a country feel live music amazing activity for the whole family, from corn hole, star gazing and just talking about the land your on. Amazing food and desert! Even some instructional line dancing to get on ! Wondering experience would ho again read more

I'm a vegan. Well, plant-based. I ball at eating a piece of bloody meat (although I have no judgement on those who love steak). So when our senior class took a trip to the Kahua Ranch last night, I inwardly thought, "Hmmm...really?! Are we just going to see cattle caged up in pens?" In fact, I had a fun time here. A really fun time. First off, the drive to the ranch is wonderfully breathtaking--lovely mountain views and a setting sun made for a Polaris's picturesque setting. We were greeted by an incredibly bubbly woman who showed us where we could play horseshoes, explore the terrain, or pet a horse. So. Cool. And then we gathered together for a talk on how the ranch promotes sustainability, which I appreciated. The only cringe-worthy period was when the man explained how they kill the cattle, but thankfully there were no visuals. I am all for letting animals roam free, and contrary to what I thought I'd see (penned up cows and such), the majority of the herd openly littered the mountain side. And then we had dinner. Garlic mashed potatoes. Baked beans. Salad. Punaluu sweet bread. BBQ chicken, ribs, and steak. I saw that and thought, well, at least I have beans! But then guess what...THEY MADE ONE VEGGIE BURGER FOR ME. YAASSSSS. To end the meal there was a homemade macadamia but pie. Heaven. After the meal there was line dancing, branding, and s'mores making. Also, there was a couple who sang some cowboy inspired songs during the meal. My 2.5 year old son would love this place. I love that their mission is based around sustainability, and that they present this idea in a fun way for us city folk. And making me a special veggie burger? Wow. It was a lovely night, and I will definitely bring my family with me the next time we are on the Big Island! read more

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It's a long way up but a beautiful way. It takes about 30 minutes at least to drive to the ranch from the bottom. It's a bit windy and beware you may come across some roadblocks, horses! Horses who like to meet in the middle of the road and don't move. We were on our way to the ranch for a wedding and couldn't be late since the gates closed at a certain time. Luckily, the guy behind us one how to wrangle the horse to get them out of the way. Along the way there were magnificent views, stubborn horses as previously said, sheep and plenty of cows with some mean RBF haha. This is totally worth the drive up here. On a side note, be careful when you feed the horses grass. Make sure you feed them long pieces. I fed a horse grass that was short and almost lost my finger in the process. It wasn't his fault, he was just hangry. We went to wedding here and it was breathtaking. The rolling hills, the beautiful sunset, the cool weather. It was a perfect backdrop for the rustic wedding. Very shabby chic. Be careful driving down, there's no lights. Luckily, we had no animal roadblocks on the way down. read more

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What a fun experience! The ranch is beautiful with a lovely view of the sunset. We learned some history of cattle and ranching in Hawai'i. The food was delicious and there was plenty of it, prime rib, bbq chicken, mashed potatoes, baked beans, asparagus, salad, Hawaiian sweet rolls, and Macadamia nut pie or brownies for dessert. There was live country music and line dancing, which was fun! It's a nice spot for stargazing and there was a telescope set up to see planets and stars. There were some cowboy activities and we got to brand cedar coasters to bring home for souvenirs. My whole family had a great time! read more

First time here. Attended a company event dinner and everyone was satisfied! Food was delicious, entertainment was great, and activities were amazing!! Definitely recommend this!!! I'm brining my family!! read more

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The worst customer service! My friend had a wedding here and rented the venue. I have never heard of or seen such rude attitudes ! First of all , if u do decide to rent this place out for an event . Every single table had to be put back to the centimeters of where is was EXACtly and u have to take out ur own trash. No big main dumps on this premise for u to put ur garbage , or anyone to do it for u even you are paying big dollars to rent this space out. That's fine I guess TWo- the two rude representatives Amber and Some other lady of the property came to inspect the premises afterward were total u know what's ! So unprofessional and rude. And told us "oh we ll let u know about the walls later " what do u mean!?!! The owner told us we could screw in the decor and now u telling us since there are holes in the wall we might not get the deposit back ?! Wtf Would not recommend renting this venue for events unless u r ok with rude customer service and having people to put away and set up all the tables they had on the area already , I mean if u r paying for all this can't they have the place bare and ready to go?!!! Apparently NOT! And sweeping and mopping the damn place that YOU paid for to use yourself read more

This is one of the most beautiful wedding venues one could imagine. The ranch is gorgeous with healthy horses and cattle and the views of the ocean from above the clouds are amazing. The covered eating area lets you enjoy the view and the dance floor in the barn keeps it from getting too loud. read more

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Amazing delicious food kind friendly people. Beautiful drive up with wonderful views. Plenty do do after dinner spotless facility and well organized! read more

Kahua Ranch - ATV Rentals/Tours Near Me - Waimea, Hawaii

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Great place to take the family. I brought my three children, four-year-old daughter, and two 20 month old twin boys. The children were free to run around the ranch and the staff were great at keeping them busy. I want to give a great big shout out to Sue! My daughter loved her and she took extra special time to make sure my daughter had an amazing time on the ranch. They were very informative about ranch and cattle. I think I'd like to go back to do the ATV tour. I also want to say that the dinner was better than I could've imagined! Thank you for a wonderful and memorable evening! read more

We attended there Wed night cowboy style luau. we were greeted by Big John as we stepped off the bus, along with other ranch ataff. Beer-wine and soft drinks flow through dinner. Big John speaks to everyone about the ranch. He is awesome! once you step inside for dinner seating your view is spectacular, the ranch is breathtaking, the sunset is beautiful and we had a clear Sar so view of Maui. Dinner consisted of Steaks, BBQ chicken, mashed potatoes, BBQ beans, Corn, Salad and rolls. Dessert is macadamia nut pie, similiar to pecan pie. wasn't a fan of the pie and wished they had another option. BUT... dinner was excellent. There was a couple is played music (country of course) dancing etc. After dinner they showed you how to do roping and let you try if you wanted, they also had an area of roasting marshmallows and making smores, they give you a keepsake of a price of wood with their name on it and you get to brand it. lastly they bring out a spectacular viewing telescope and we were able to see the moon and it's crators. Climbed back on the bus and dropped off at our resorts. Truly a beautiful evening. Next trip gonna plan for a day of horseback riding. Thank you to you all at the reach! !!! read more

During an island orientation at our condo welcoming, a rep for "The Ranch" sold us on spending a Wednesday evening with Sue, "Big" John and the rest of the folks at Kahua Ranch. It was a fantastic experience. We opted to drive, from Kona. We decided to make a day out of it, exploring the north side of the big island, then make our way to the ranch for dinner. The drive was long, and slow. In hindsight I think it would have been neat to take the bus from our condo, but live and learn. Once at the ranch, you are transported to this beautiful oasis high in the hills. The beautiful country landscape, rolling hills, and meadows overlooking the pacific... hard to describe how magnificent just the scenery is. The Evening at the Ranch begins with your host, "Big John" giving a brief history lesson of the working cattle ranch. Next you enter into the dining room, taking a seat, family style, waiting your tables turn to enter into the barn for a fantastic spread of true down home country cooking. Salad, baked beans, mashed potatoes, corn, BBQ chicken, and of course steak. (NY Strip) The meal was fabulous, everything tasted homemade, and the steak was cooked to perfection. Lightly seasoned, salt and pepper, grilled perfectly- either Rare, medium, or well. I had rare, my kids had medium, both were flavorful, Rare more so, obviously. There were also assorted dinner rolls, including Hawaiian sweet rolls. Dessert featured macadamia nut pie. The pie was good, reminiscent of a sweet potato pie in texture, but very, very sweet- a little too sweet for my personal liking, but tasty nonetheless. After dinner, there was line dancing, followed by your choice, as all the activities were happening simultaneously- branding a cedar shingle with the Ranch logo; s'more making, and learning to rope. The staff was wonderful, engaging, and informative. They all made you feel welcome, and at home. If we make our way back to the big island, our Wednesday dinner will be a no brainer, and we will be back at the ranch. read more

It is impossible to reach out to those guys. I left couple of messages, called a lot-nothing. You should be more responsive to your clients

What a delightful experience we had here. It starts with the beautiful drive up the Kohala Coast and our surprise that this is truly a working family ranch with a long and storied history, a property loved by its owners and those who work there. We have travelled all over the world, experiencing hundreds of similar dinners and shows, yet I believe Kahua Ranch is the best overall experience. They do literally everything right, from the warm greeting upon arrival by host Raymond, to the best food I have experienced at such a large gathering. These types of events we've been to elsewhere usually have overcooked meats and vegetables, watery mashed potatoes, not-crisp iceberg lettuce and tasteless dressings, completed by frozen desserts. The opposite is true here and the price includes an open bar featuring quality Kona Brewing company draft beer and fine Robert Mondavi wines. The steak is served with a choice of three levels of doneness and it is high quality, tasty grass fed beef, and they will take your order for ranch raised beef to take home for your freezer if you live here on the Big Island. The chicken is moist and tender. The dressings must be home made, as the oil and balsamic vinegar is one of the best we've ever tasted. The lettuce is a mix of organic greens that was super fresh. The mashed potatoes were superb. The best part of all was the macadamia nut pie, that was similar to a rich pecan pie without the pecans. The crust was crunchy, not soggy. The musical entertainment and service and participation activities like roping, line dancing and wood plank souvenir branding were all good clean family fun. The sunset and view of the ocean is one-of-a-kind spell binding, and it alone is worth the trip and the price. Beyond the ranch itself and its historic location in paradise, the real secret here is the management. I don't know if it is Raymond, or the Richards family that owns the place, or the servers or entertainers, but someone creates this show and keeps it going and will result in me and my family coming back and everyone who asks me what to do in Hawaii, recommending Kahua Ranch without reservation. Speaking of reservations, when we called to make our reservations for four, we were saddened to learn that they were sold out. We put our name on the waiting list and, to our pleasure, we were called the day of the event and informed that there had been a cancellation. We were in luck and we had an amazing evening. My sister uses a wheel chair and Raymond and the servers made sure she felt welcome and able to enjoy everything. This is a very accessible experience for the disabled and people of all ages and capabilities. We will be back, that's for sure. We love this place and the people who make this great experience that is genuine and full of real hospitality and Aloha. Jim Cason Kailua Kona, Hawaii read more

Kahua Ranch also has something I've been tickled to refer to as a Hawaiian ho-down. They have a ranch bbq with great steak, chicken, and fixins, beer, wine, and soft drinks, and macadamia pie for dessert. The live entertainment was great and involved the audience quite a bit. Other activities included branding practice, s'mores, a horse and big old pet pig that you could feed and interact with. Roping practice rounds out the evening nicely, guided by the John, the owner's son, and a big, loud, nice guy. Everyone was friendly, helpful, and seemed happy to be there. We drove, after exploring the north end of the island, but most people took the bus right from their resorts. Highly recommended, good food, lots of information about Hawaiian Cowboy, or Paniolos, and how they made their place in Hawaiian history. read more

We had such a great time at this sunset dinner! The views were unbelievable, the staff was amazing, and the food was delicious! Thank you so much to the staff for making this such a special day for me and my family. read more

We were sold on this event by some salespeople as a much better alternative to a Luau. Being stupid tourists, we believed them and bought it. We were completely open to the whole event and had zero expectations after paying over $400 for four people. The drive was long and pretty windy, but its fine for me. The view at the ranch is nice but so is most of the island. We were told by salespeople that the food was spectacular and offered steaks from the ranch itself. We were also told that their were "many real" ranch activities and animals. ALL LIES! Where do i start? First, the "owner" family and host, Sue are pleasant and good at giving the pitch on the sustainable and family business stories. I have no idea if they are all true, but not impt enough for me to explore it. Second, there were zero animals for us to see or experience anything about ranch life, other than 2 little tiny pocket dogs that ran around. There is a somewhat humorous speech by the son of the owner for about 10 minutes. Then, its time for dinner. How can i describe the actual taste and my feelings about the food? HORRIFIC! how can they screw up dark meat chicken and ribs? seriously? i have tasted better hospital and airplane food than what i had. it was simply disgusting. There was some version of a salad, runny salty boxed mashed potatoes, canned beans, sweet rolls, super dry dark meat chicken and even scarier ribs that tasted similar to dinosaur meat. we polished off the awesome dinner with super scary sweet mass produced macadamia pie . wow! i threw away my food after tasting each item and starved until i got back to my hotel. Each activity after dinner was more cheesy than the other. there was line dancing with 2 "interesting" singers. there was roping with 2 wood saw horses for over 80 people. there was "branding" on a piece of wood from a propane burner. there were dsmores also from propane burner. the only redemption of the night or less "cheesy" event was an engineer, his wife and a high power telescope to see the stars. The family running and making money on the event seemed nice enough, but stop overselling this event as if this was somehow a "ranch" experience and the dinner was actually, NOT great, just decent would have suffice. the dinner was NOT great, or decent or close to being edible. please stop hyping up and overselling the event and disappointing unsuspecting stupid tourists that just wants to have a bit of fun or experience something slightly authentic on their vacations. read more

I just had the best time at this Western styled dinner show I've had in a long time!! I highly recommend you see this hidden gem!! Sue Foat is the hostess/owner and she and her staff do an incredible job of entertaining their guests. There is country music, line dancing, a beer drinking horse, a game of horse shoes, and that's before dinner. After dinner there is learning to lasso, branding, making s'mores and star gazing through a high powered telescope!! There is a magnificent view of the coastline before dark. For dinner we had a choice of steak or chicken, side dishes and desert, which was all really good. As I said before, you've got to go to this dinner theater! It is one stop you don't want to miss!! read more

Ok, so who would even think of a cattle ranch while in Hawaii right? Well by the greatest experience is at the Kahua Ranch!! Hospitality beyond belief, amazing food, singing, dancing, story telling, history, star gazing, branding, s'mores, roping, live entertainment and a gift shop!! The place is incredible!! Sue is the perfect hostess!! Calls to make sure all is prepared for your visit, always available for any question or accommodation, quite a looker and boy can she put on a show!! Her Shaka song is the best!! She recognizes birthdays, anniversaries and any other special occasions!! John gives an amazing take on the history as well as present day activity of the ranch!! Beautiful scenery and one of the best sunsets you will ever experience!! If you don't believe me, just come next September. We will be there again like we have every time we visit for the last 6 years!! They truly have, and share, the aloha spirit!! read more

Had heard great things about the ranch and was really looking forward to something different from the usual luau stuff. We had a rental car so we drove ourselves up to the ranch. What a great drive and as we keep climbing the view just kept getting better and better. Made it to the ranch with time to spare before sunset and got an chance to look around. Quite a spread. The view from the ranch of the sunset was just incredible! You could see a long way down the west side of the Big Island. The ranch hands had a nice fire going where all could stay warm as the sun went down. The hosts John & Sue were great. John told us all about history of the ranch and talked about it's current operations. Before long it was time for dinner. Served buffet style, there was plenty for everyone. Seconds, no problem. No one went away hungry. Sue was MC for the night and kept things quite entertaining and fun. After dinner John demonstrated calf roping on wooden figures making it look oh so easy. Then it was everyone else's turn. It was a laugh a minute. Definitely recommend the night at the ranch as a must take. Family fun for all! read more

The Sunset Dinner at the ranch was so much fun. After many years of lovely luau's elsewhere, this paniolo experience was terrific. Great food, country music and line dancing and lots of cowboy activities. My branded shingle is proudly on my wall back here on the mainland. Oh, when you sign up for the event, pay the little bit extra for the round trip transportation...that way you can enjoy your wine and beer and get back safely. read more

I recently had my wedding at Kahua Ranch and had an amazing experience. This is a working Ranch and the booking for the ranch is handled by Swept Away Events. You can not get a more beautiful venue!! We had a Saturday evening wedding and had the ceremony timing was planned where our wedding photos would be taken at sunset. There is an expanse of beautiful green pastures with a view of the ocean. Overhead are blue skies with clouds that jet but overhead. We did get sprinkled on a little bit during our photos but it was very light and passed by quickly. We held our ceremony in front of a gorgeous tree with white orchid leis hanging from the branches. For our cocktail hour we had corn hole, giant jenga, and horseshoes set up on the side lawn. Our reception was held on the deck and our wedding rental company (Hawaii Island Events) set up our tables, lighting, and decor. It was beautiful. My guests loved the site. keep in mind this is a ranch... it is rustic... but that is part of the charm! read more