A japanese resturant in the heart of Kalihi. The food was great. I had the grilled Ahi and miso butter fish. Both were very good. Ahi sliced thin with just the right amount of seasoning. My daughter had the samon that she said was great, also sliced thin and also with crispy skin. We also had their shrimp tempura which was also great. Crunchy and fresh. Service was also great. Will be returning when we have a craving for japanese food. read more

Love this place so quaint and great service. Recommend any Japanese food lovers try this restaurant.

I enjoyed the food, the set-up of the tables is a bit weird for me. lol if you go in there you'll see or maybe it's just me. (Too close together) other than that the food was very good. I ordered the (2)choice and got the butterfish and shrimp. I think, I was there with co-workers and we all were eating off each others plates...no I got the fish and tonkatsu...yea that was tasty too. read more

Food is always great, generous portions, reasonable prices. Service is always good. We are always coming here when in the area, on the way to catch a flight, bringing friends from out of town, and of course, family. read more

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Love their dressing that they serve with their side salad on dinners. Their salmon is tasty and not over cooked too. The meal comes with miso soup the side salad and the salmon read more

We found this place years ago here on Yelp but I never had a chance to post a review until now. We were outside of our neighborhood and wanted to eat Japanese food. Like many of us we turn to our trusty Yelp app to find businesses in the area and with great reviews. It brought us to Kikuya so we wanted to try the place. It's a small quaint place, the food is good and service is usually descent. All the times I've been here we're for lunch. Dining during Covid. We went on a weekday for a late lunch. There were 3 other customers the day we went. We sat down and scanned the menu and both ended up getting the Popular Lunch Box. My usual is Miso Butterfish, Sashimi, Shrimp Tempura and all the sides. The portions are just enough for Lunch and the food is tasty. During the Pandemic quite a few Restaurants are using take out and disposable containers which was understandable. Our regular server was there that day but wasn't the one that took care of our table. The downfall this visit was the Korean Lady server that I have never seen before was very impatient in taking our order, clearing our plates when we weren't finished and paying our bill when we were still trying to enjoy the last of our meal. I'll request my regular server on my next visit. read more

Kikuya - Lunch Box with Miso Butterfish, Shrimp Tempura, Sashimi, Salad, Soup, and Sides - Japanese Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

Good overall experience here at Kikuya. Only ordered the grilled salmon with rice. Simple dish but very easy to mess up. Couple places I'll compare Kikuya to. Pioneer Saloon Kikuya Salmon is much better than pioneer saloon grilled salmon. Someone from pioneer needs to go to Kikuya and take some notes. Gyotaku Kikuya has a much better overall teishoku experience. If you have to choose between Gyotaku and Kikuya, choose Kikuya. I would definitely comeback to this place. read more

Kikuya - Grilled Salmon - Japanese Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

my family has been coming to kikuya for years, and they *never* miss! they have the sweetest service and convenient, consistently good take-out. don't know how they do it, but when we get home, our tempura is *always* still crispy! we are customers for life! read more

This hole in the wall restaurant serves authentic Japanese cuisine. You won't be able to see it from the street. It's hidden towards the back end, so I'm sure people find out about it from word of mouth. I've seen postings on my feed and my friends were telling me about it. I can't believe it took me this long to finally check this place out. I absolutely loved it. I ordered the three choice combo dinner. I had the butterfish misoyaki, sashimi, and shrimp & vegetable tempura. The sashimi was the best. It was so fresh and just melted in my mouth. However, the slices of the fish were thin; four slices of ahi and four slices of salmon. The tempura was light and crispy. It came with two pieces of shrimp, green beans, kabocha, and eggplant. The meal came with a green salad, miso soup, tsukemono, and rice. The green salad was huge and the sesame dressing was delicious. The hubby got the two choice combo dinner. He decided on the grilled New York steak and chicken karaage. He said he enjoyed the food but the portions were too small for him. read more

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Food was good for the price. Reasonable with good selections. The service was great no complaints read more

Disappointed I even have to give this place one star to leave a review. Without asking me to move out of her way or say excuse me, waitress put her hand on my back and pushed me. What a kind way to treat customers! read more

Been eyeing this place for a while but always ended up eating at other places. This has the feeling of a nice quiet old timey japanese restaurant. The food portions are really good for the price. I was really disappointed especially after the good reviews i read. The salad dressing had no flavor and the salad was so wet that the dressing couldn't even hang onto the lettuce. The server seemed really angry with us - we would ask her a question and she would just look at us. It was also strange they seated us next to a large party when there were alot of other tables available. The katsu was good. The tempura was mediocre - it did not have a nice crunch to it and the sauce was bland. The sushi rice was to cold and the fish was fresh-ish but it was very firm. It did not have that nice melt in your mouth quality of good fish. The cost of the sushi for the quality - you are better off eating some place else. All in all it is a nice place for a simple quiet Japanese dinner. Not sure i would be back - if in the area i think there are better places to try and eat. Went at about 5:45 on a weekday and we were seated right away. Parking is limited. read more

Went during lunch time. Got seated right away. Food came out fast. The bento boxes are a great deal and always ono. Comes with miso soup rice salad and your choice of two proteins. Would recommend! read more

Fresh n lite tempura, everything savory. My husband likes all u can eat buffet so we know we r gunna pay more to satisfy him. I eat "like a bird" but Happy Bird"here n we all know that "If Mama bird ain't happy---ain't no body gunna b happy" read more

This was the first time going to try this restaurant it cozy able to handle 1 group of 10 they have tables for 4 and 6 but larger group will have to go towards the back of the restaurant. Parking is ok but shared by lots of other restaurants. The food was ok nothing that would make you say I need to go back. The shrimp tempura was their best out of the food ordered The shio salmon was ok but had better at other restaurant was very thinly sliced even though 3 pieces the Tsukamoto was not that great The teriyaki meat was little chewy and the Ahi steak was a little tangy so it was not fresh which left a bite in your mouth Not that good for young children that need to move around due to the limited area which is constantly being use by the wait staff. Bathrooms are clean and well kept. Staff are very busy not the most friendly. read more

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Located in Kalihi, in back of the New Diners. A hidden gem for Japanese cuisine. I would have never found this place, until a good friend recommended this place. It's tucked in with many other restaurants, parking is tight at times, but so far, we've been lucky to have found parking every time we come. Small restaurant with its own little sushi section. Very clean and cozy. Casual atmosphere, staff is very accommodating and friendly. Menu has your typical items that won't disappoint. I ordered steamed fish, it was perfectly cooked, not over cooked but just right. Of course I ordered my side a shrimp tempura. Shrimp tempura had a light coating and waS fried crispy, perfecto! Pork tonkatsu was another delite? So moist on the inside with a crunchy exterior. Oh, the buttah fish was another winnah! So flaky and moist with just the right flavoring, so good with your hot steaming white rice. Most complete meals come with your standard miso soup and salad. Hot tea anyone? They also serve beer!! Yay! Been coming her for a very long time, although haven't been here in a while. Whenever my friends and I crave Japanese cuisine, that is affordable and a place to just chill, this is the place. read more

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The food is consistently good and the service is friendly. I like how they have a restroom in the restaurant. Parking can be a little tight but it's worth it. read more

Best Tekka Maki in a hole in the wall sushi bar!! more fish than rice! the way it should be!!

Tough rating.... Nice menu with many offerings, but shrimp tempura was manini, nothing special. The butterfish was quite good, nice grill to it and not over marinated. The green salad was refreshing and the dressing one of the best but the side pickles were lacking in flavor and size - again, manini. The sashimi was fresh and bright red, but - yups, you guessed it. Manini. I was hungry after the combo dinner and felt jilted, like only getting one scoop of ice cream in a sundae! The place is fairly nice inside which is juxtaposed to the area outside. Artistic surroundings - and I mean not the good kind, it was sketchy, and not the drawing kind. Maybe we will be back, but not with so many other Japanese restaurants to visit. read more

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I've seen Kikuya from the outside over the years, I've heard good things about them from friends, but for one reason or another I never had the pleasure to dine here. We had just arrived back from a week in the Midwest and were just craving some good Japanese food. We happened to be in the Kalihi area, a Yelp search reminded me that Kikuya was a 5 minute drive away. We called to see if there was a wait..they said for two people we should be able to walk in..glad we decided to try it out. Food: Very extensive menu that can satisfy almost any craving. I was pretty hungry so went with the three item combo dinner for less than $20. I had a difficult time narrowing my choice to three but went with my three favorites of Shrimp Tempura, Tonkatsu, and Sashimi. Bonus that they had beer, sake and shochu on the menu..score! Tempura was battered and fried expertly, the Tonkatsu was moist and tender, the Sashimi was also fresh and 6 nice sized slices. The food really hit the spot especially paired with a nice cold Aasahi. Service: Great service, walked in an they asked if we were the ones that called. Seated right away, it was about 6 pm on a Saturday evening so I believe every other table was taken. Our server was friendly and efficient. Food came out quickly and everything prepared perfectly. Atmosphere: Not a large space with several tables (no booths). There was a sushi counter but it didn't look like there was room to sit there. It's not new or modern or trendy but a comfortable neighborhood restaurant. Value: Excellent value in my opinion. Large menu where every budget could probably find something to enjoy. I think my three combo meal was around $18.95 or so. and they did not skimp on portion size. Overall: Can one really call a restaurant that has 151 yelp reviews with an average of four stars? I suppose so, not easily seen from the street, you'd have to intend to eat at Kikuya unless you happen to be in the parking lot that serves on of the other businesses. We are definitely returning in the future to try some of their other menu items! read more

Kikuya - Theee item combo dinner is so worth it - Japanese Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

So glad we checked out this hole in the wall!! We came here looking for a sushi spot in the area around home. Tonight, we ordered the 3 choice set with misoyaki butterfish, chicken karaage and tonkatsu along with their house special Kikuya Roll. We each received miso soup along with the traditional sides of edamame and pickled cabbage. The meal set included a side salad with a delicious and generous serving of dressing. The pork tenderloin was so soft but crispy! And the miso butterfish was perfectly broiled. The chicken karaage was alright but we both enjoyed. The star of the meal is the KIKUYA ROLL! Oven baked California roll with scallops and unagi sauce on top. It was so creamy and flavorful and a MUST try. They served our meal so quick we received the food before we finished our first beers! Definitely worth returning for and I can't wait to try the rest of the menu. read more

Kikuya - Tonkatsu, misoyaki butterfish, chicken karaage - Japanese Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

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Love the food here and the devices is exceptional all the staff are very friendly and the lunchbox special is so delicious and very affordable! I will usually pick up a whole bunch of bentos for my office celebrations or pot luck read more

Never knew this place existed. Learned they have been here in Kalihi for 14 years. Reasonable prices and quality food. My husband and I both ordered the Teishoku, it came with miso soup, tsukemono and a tossed green salad included in the Teishoku price of 3 choices for $20. Tempura was fried to order, generous portion of fresh, cold sashimi on a bed of shredded daikon, and a generous portion of chicken karaage. My Hubby had the grilled ahi that he said was juicy and flavorful and the Teri beef. Tea was brought to the table automatically and it's the real Japanese tea, Gen Mai Cha. Everything was Oishi! Service was great too! Parking is right out front! Great experience! read more

The shrimp tempura chef that was there tonight must've either just started today and had training on da job or was breaking in his new Secret Santa deep fryer he won from last years Xmas party. OILIEST I've ever had in my many years of having the best creation of Japanese cooks discovered by dropping a bucket of shrimp in batter that fell into oil. Came out super fast but waaay too oily so all I tasted was crunchy oil batter with a hint of shrimp. I wanted to go home and change oil in my car. Then WD-40 all my locks and lube my motorcycle. But I sold it last year so instead just did my chainsaw. Luckily they had lots of hot tea to wash down all the hot petroleum my hot fiancee and I ingested. Sashimi was aight. "Kikuya special baked sushi" was.. um.. don't order it. Waitresses were nice which kinda balanced out da blank faced "I had enough of this job" sushi chef or janitor who didn't greet us when we walked in even though he's standing near door and first person you see when you enter. Instead I tried to cheer him up with the happiest IRASSHAI! I culd muster but it didn't work. Anyway if you ever feeling like you need some good shrimp tempura from some local non Waikiki place, as Viggo said in GI Jane: SEEK LIFE ELSEWHERE!! Cause it's not at this hole in da mall read more

Kizuna had an hour wait so we came here instead. Chirashi sushi with saba and scallop nigiri sushi on the side at Kikuya in Kalihi. The place is kind of a dive atmosphere but the food once it comes is great! The servers are very good. The timing is an issue though some stuff (sadly wife's butterfish that was hot but no longer) came out 20min before the rest of our order. Cold foods excellent and I thought the miso soup was excellent! read more

Kikuya - Chirashi plus saba and scallop nigiri - Japanese Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

Great Japanese food. For the area, I originally thought the price was a little on the high side but you definitely get your money's worth. There was more than enough food to get filled. The food tasted great and the service was excellent. I prefer to go here instead of many of the other popular Japanese restaurants. I will absolutely be returning to try more of their menu! read more

A place I wouldn't know about if it weren't for yelp and I'm so glad I do! I came here for lunch with a friend and saw they have lunch specials. Their lunch box is $14 and it comes with two choices and salad and miso soup. I chose my two choices as sashimi and butterfish! Both were very yummy. The sashimi came with both ahi and salmon. My friend got butterfish and chicken teriyaki! The lunch box also comes with shrimp tempura. I also got the scallop handroll because of a review on yelp and wow it was amazing! The scallops were overfilled and I craved it since there is no more readily available scallops anymore at other places. You just have to ask for the handroll instead of their nigiri! I'm excited to come back here with other people for other lunch dates! read more

Kikuya - lunch box ($13.95) - Japanese Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

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Had a late family dinner here - the food and service was pretty good, not to mention the new location is especially welcoming. I enjoyed the tempura saimin. We also had the butterfish and teriyaki sticks. This place is consistently ono! read more

Kikuya - Saimin - Japanese Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

We as a family have been going to Kikuya's for over 15 years and we love going there as well. The whole vibe and atmosphere brings our family together, enjoying everyone's company. The food is absolutely Onolicious! I just had the Miso Butterfish, Sashimi and Vegetable Tempura for lunch. My goodness and what a deal too. The price is so reasonable we can't wait to take our Family again. Mahalo to the Kikuya Ohana - Kris and Lucia! Bento Box, Green Salad, Miso Butterfish, Vegetable Tempura, and Sashimi are my favorite for a lunch box... Then my dinner box is usually filled with Miso Butterfish, Chicken Katsu & Sashimi... Please support our local restaurants... We do and we want other locals who live on the island continue to come back like us... Aloha, The Suyat-Okamoto Ohana read more

Kikuya - Lunch - Rice, Miso Soup, Miso Butterfish, Sashimi and Vegetable Tempura and toss green salad... - Japanese Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

Heard about a gem from a friend so we tried! Where have we been all this time! $15.95 for a 2 choice combo- Ahi Katsu and Sashimi, miso soup , generous green salad, tsukemono, rice, tea. We also had a combo with Miso butterfish and shrimp tempura w/ mix veg (2 shrimp, 2 string bean, Kabocha, eggplant). Fast friendly service. Their menu includes assorted sushi, donburi, Udon, etc. we didn't have dessert but various flavors of ice cream were available. Tip: Don't be turned off by the location or the outside of the building. Nothing fancy. Shhh.... best kept secret. read more

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Great place. Pretty big. Go early if you eating lunch. There's a line to get in. Food was great!!

When I win the lottery I'm going to have Kikuya set up shop in my kitchen so I can eat that every day. My fiancé and I are addicted to their food, it's like a drug we need badly so we come here for our fix every week. $11.95 goes a long way here during lunch. You'll get two entree choices, miso soup, salad, tsukemono, rice, a shrimp tempura and hot tea for a lunch combo. Stay for dinner and tack on four more dollars and get larger entree portions. I've had the entire entree menu and the only dish to stay away from is the ahi steak. It's like all the yummy ingredients were rationed out for their other dishes, so there was none left over for the ahi. Butterfish Misoyaki, New York steak ( only during dinner) and the sashimi are winners! There are only 11 or 12 tables so come towards the end of the lunch rush, 1 or 1:30 ish, if you don't want to wait, if not you may have to consider one of the other restaurants in the plaza. Parking can get tricky for dinner as its gobbled up by the bar crowd of the area. If you're in Kalihi check Kikuya out, it looks like a ghetto area but their food will surprise you! read more

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Great place for butterfish Miyosaki! The combo deal is such a great deal! I got the butterfish Miyosaki and Sashimi. The food was delicious and came with miso soup and a salad. The only thing though is that we dined in the back and the ac was blowing pretty hard on us. So it was really cold. However the aunties were super nice and I would definitely come back! Parking is also really easy and conveniently located right in front. Lot's of available stalls since there's a couple restaurants nearby. read more

Kikuya - Japanese Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

Excellent quality Japanese restaurant in Kalihi. Located next to the Post office on King Street across from Han Yang. Small hole in the wall place but it's clean and has tables to sit down and enjoy your lunch or dinner. Pretty extensive menu and will have something for everyone. The fish is fresh and the prices are affordable. I recently ordered tenzaru soba and it was really good. The noodles were perfectly cooked and slightly chilled and tasty with the right amount of texture. The tempura that came with it was good as well but it was average I thought there was too much batter on and it was a little oily. For 11.95 I wasn't complaining it was really good. My co worker ordered the Chirashi and he gobbled it up. Fish was very generous and fresh. The food came out quickly. Great place for work lunch or casual date in Kalihi. read more

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We found this hidden gem by recommendation of our Uber driver and we were so happy we found it! Family owned and it's been open for many years. The food was delicious and portions were great for the price. If you want real delicious Japanese food with out the fufu of some of the other tourist traps, give this family owned restaurant a visit you won't be disappointed. We truly enjoy it! YUMMY read more

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We like the food at Kikuya. Parking lot was busy due to many businesses in the area. We did takeout and noticed that the restaurant is small. read more

This place has been here for over a decade now. The food here is comfort style food to me. Always order a combo meal. That's the best deal and you get soo much that comes with the combo. Here's the basics to the combo... each comes with rice, miso soup, pickled vegetables, salad with dressing and your choice of main dishes. Recommend the butter fish, saba, shrimp & veg tempura, tonkatsu, chicken katsu and the grilled steak. Get'um at once or try a couple here and there. They also do sushi to order but haven't done that here. Mainly only get the combos. Sushi I can get from Gaku or Nobu... at Kikuya, they serve water and hot tea as complimentary also. The help here is very friendly and are very willing to please, so be nice and you'll be rewarded. The place is a little small... has about 6 bar seats and a dozen tables inside and a about 4 tables (as what I could see) outside. The little strip mall off of King and Waiakamilo, is where this place is located and has other venues to dine at, but choose Kikuya... you'll enjoy your time here. Grind On! Pau! read more

Kikuya - My favorite page to order from... - Japanese Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

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Decided to give this place a try based on the reviews, but I was not impressed with the food here at all. The Misoyaki Butterfish were two thin slices that tasted watery and bland. The fried chicken wings were also small and dry, and the tempura batter wasn't crunchy. The steak was ok but it didn't have much flavor. I didn't get to try the sashimi or sushi (I am guessing this is where the good reviews come from?), but based on the food I probably won't be back. I expect good food all around in Japanese joints and the food really sucked - cheap both in price and quality. read more

Kikuya - Misoyaki Butterfish...not good - Japanese Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

The food was so tasty and the prices were reasonable. I am going back again. The lunch boxes are my favorite. The service was so fast and friendly that I left a big tip. I would highly recommend this place. read more

Our favorite Japanese spot in kalihi! We come here atleast every month...sometimes twice a month. The food is bomb. Very tasty! Portions are a good amount for the price. Customer service and staff is always sweet and gives great service. Overall it's always satisfying coming here. Parking is okay. It can get busy and it is shared with several other little restaurants. But to us it's worth the wait. read more