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KoKo Cabana

4.1 (400 reviews)
Closed • 11:00 am - 8:00 pm
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KoKo Cabana Photos

Business Info

KOKO CABANA ATMOSPHERE

What's the vibe?
Casual
Touristy
Moderate noise
Good for groups

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Recommended Reviews - KoKo Cabana

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Stash of deodorant because it's so hot the poor employees brining this to work or it'll smell like the YMCA
Timmy T.

The flies are everywhere running this restaurant. Your food comes with 3 flies on plate and 20 in the air. the doors are propped wide open letting out all the cool air. It's so hot and there's so many bugs you'll wonder if the feeling down your crack is sweat or a bug. The poor employees are so drenched in sweat they have a stash of deodorant and gold bond in the bathroom (dear owner don't get mad at them for this, it's your fault it's so hot) close the doors and kill the bugs.

Burger
Gina A.

Right on the beach on Ocean Drive. Has some picnic tables with live music in the front. An indoor seating area, an outdoor seating area on a deck, and a small 8 person outdoor bar. Directly on the beach so I'd sit outside can see/hear all the beach things. They are connected to the fishing pier. Sat in outdoor bar as wait for table was an hour plus. This place gets super busy. Ordered two drinks - Cadillac Margarita and a strawberry jalapeño margarita. Both just okay. They do have several cocktails on their menu, as well as several frozen drinks. Ordered a burger and fries and an Island Bowl with tuna. Burger was super fantastic! Great flavor. Fries missed the mark. The Island Bowl is beautiful, but lacked flavor. Overall, a good experience. The employees are super friendly and attentive. I would go again just for the convenience of their location.

Southwest burger and fries
Maria S.

What a difference a few years makes! Koko Cabana has always had excellent service and a stellar location, but I had been disappointed with the quality of the foodstuffs and libations. While I cannot speak for improved libations this time around, since I only drank water, the food is greatly improved. Lunching with a group of friends to celebrate a birthday, each and every one of us thoroughly enjoyed our meals. There are limited gluten free options - salads and bowls, primarily - but those options are delicious. I loved the island bowl with poke tuna, rice, edamame, pineapple salsa, kimchi cucumbers, wasabi and pickled ginger. The portions are ample enough to share, if desired. Other standout dishes include the shrimp quesadilla and the Southwest burger and fries. Service remains a cut above, and it's hard to beat the views.

Tuna poke Bowl
Cam A.

Solid place to eat if you're in the Southport / Oak Island area. The seafood tasted fresh. We did not make a reservation but they were able to see us as a party of three however, the place was about 85 to 90% packed so I would suggest the reservation. Our waitress was very personable. She told us the specials of the day and also gave us some of her personal recommendations. Overall, the food was delicious. I would give it an 8 out of 10. The scallops were my favorite. Coconut shrimp had a great texture. Definitely didn't taste frozen

Wall art outside bar
Lisa B.

Fabulous beach spot for lunch or dinner. We were on the island for a vacation getaway from TN. I ordered the tuna bowl and it was incredibly fresh! It had ginger-glazed tuna, edamame, kimchi cucumbers, pickled onions, and more over a bed of white rice. My husband ordered the fish sandwich and the fish was larger than the bun! It came out hot and tasty! Thank you for the excellent food, great service and fun location! We'll definitely be back. Kudos to you.

Island Bowl with Grilled Chicken -- yum yum yum
Angie C.

This was our first visit to Oak Island and the day we arrived, we stumbled upon KoKo Cabana hungry and parched after a long drive. There was indoor and outdoor seating, and it was busy on an early Saturday evening a bit before sunset. We asked for a table outside and were immediately seated. Service was prompt, our server was friendly and efficient. We sat on the rail overlooking the beach and pier, and it was a gorgeous evening. I ordered the Island Bowl with Grilled Chicken, and it was scrumptious! So flavorful and vibrant that my mouth was twitching with excitement with each bite. My husband enjoyed the Fish Tacos and announced they were some of the best he'd ever had. Drinks were refilled promptly, the bar was lively and we had a fabulous evening. Highly recommend if you're in Oak Island.

Mariah E.

We went for the margarita pitcher but also got chips and salsa and queso! We then added on the shrimp! The spicy shrimp was delicious!! Friendly service and such a good vibe!

Carrie V.

We were looking for a casual lunch spot with a beach view and found KoKo Cabana. We can definitely see why they have good reviews! There were open seats at the bar so we sat with a view of the pier which was fun. The other patrons were friendly, the service was good and the food was even better than expected. My coconut shrimp tacos were outstanding. We will definitely be back!

Island Bowl with shrimp
Christine M.

My favorite restaurant on OKI! I always get the island bowl with shrimp and sub the sesame ginger glaze for firecracker sauce. This dish is so unique and fresh and a very large portion size! While I get the same thing every time my husband likes to try out their seasonal specials and they have always been delicious as well. The restaurant itself couldn't be in a more perfect location right on the ocean with beautiful views. 10/10 recommend eating here!

Beautiful indoor view of ocean! Friendly wait staff. Pink lemonade was great!

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2 months ago

It was all great!!!! The food and the service was excellent!!!! The servers were friendly and attentive and the food was just as good!!!

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3 months ago

May have been an off day, but our drinks were room temperature at best and the tuna was unfortunately overcooked.

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5 months ago

The best vibes on Oak Island : ) delicious food, great cocktails, friendly service - all while looking at the ocean

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Ask the Community - KoKo Cabana

Kid friendly?! Like a kid's menu etc?

Definitely kid friendly. Lots of families. Don't remember seeing a kids menu, but they are very accommodating.

Are dogs allowed on the back patio where the outdoor bar is?

I think only service dogs

Hours opened now?

They are closed for a while, doing renovations.

Went there today for lunch they were closed , so disappointed, how come?

It's the off season. Lots of restaurants are only open certain days and usually one shift. Kai Joe's is owned by the same people. Great lunch.

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Kai Joe's - Inside of the Long Beach burrito with shrimp

Kai Joe's

3.9(287 reviews)
2.0 mi
•$$

I kept seeing this place pop up on my feeds while staying on Oak Island, so I ordered from there my…read morelast night. It was about a 15 minute wait from when I ordered online to when it would be ready (right amount of time for me to drive over). It was piping hot and ready for pick up. The avocado bites, something I'd never seen before, were delicious and the sauce that came with them was the perfect topping. They give you a big serving! I also got the chicken Big Mama, and it's definitely a good serving size with lots packed into it. I will be going back next time I visit.

Great place for a tasty quick meal on OKI! Literally a taco shack, but really the only place for…read morethis kind of cuisine on the island itself. The ordering process is a lot like a food truck. Order at the window, get a buzzer, it goes off and you pick up your order. There are a few covered picnic tables where you can eat, or you can go somewhere else to enjoy. We got an order of loaded tots and the buffalo cauliflower. The tots were DEFINITELY loaded. So much potato cheesy goodness. There was a ton of ground beef on top as well, however, the meat had very little in the way of seasoning. It was almost like a chopped up hamburger. Something to make it more like taco meat or give it some spice would have been welcome. The buffalo cauliflower on the other hand was perfect. Just the right amount of breading and zing from the buffalo sauce, tender cauliflower inside. Could not have been better. Overall, very pleased with this group snack. We didn't get any tacos, next time we will to give a more thorough review but this definitely satisfied our snacky cravings!

Photos
Kai Joe's - Menu Board

Menu Board

Kai Joe's - Special of the day - blackened shrimp quesadilla

Special of the day - blackened shrimp quesadilla

Kai Joe's - Proceed with Tacos.

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Proceed with Tacos.

Loco Jo's Grill - Asian bowl with shrimp added

Loco Jo's Grill

4.2(243 reviews)
3.8 mi
•$$

Only an alignment of the proper elements can create the perfect gem. Such has happened @ Loco Jo's…read moreand these words are most appropriately chosen. People, passions, skills and caring are artfully combined at this outstanding intimate, charming and embracing gem of a Craft Bar and neighborhood fine dining experience! From reading/sampling the (creative does not do it justice) beverage menu, a diverse, succinct and dazzling offering of culinary knockouts (we sampled three) and the gracious hosts, we were... overwhelmed. We live in Tucson AZ and have frankly traveled in most states in this great country and journeyed to scores of nations across the globe. RARELY have we found a place that genuinely earns A BEST of THE BEST of Local Kudos. Loco Jo's does that and even more! But be advised, if you are looking for "same ole same ole" or "just like we had at ________" please do not seek it out. One final note, we really scoped out the room, tables and barstools. We were amongst folks who really were equally as discerning! Thank you Nikki & Chuck!

Wife and I had a quick trip to Southport. Chose Loco Jo's for our dining experience. It's a nice…read moreplace on the Main Street with its own parking area in a strip mall. Outdoor seating is available. Small tables inside and bar seating that was full. It seems the bar is a big hit. After reviewing the liquor menu, I see why. Some really good ones available. We were seated near the entrance at a small table. The server brought us water and took our orders after a few minutes. We ordered beef dumplings as an appetizer and we both ordered blackened ahi tuna tacos medium rare. The tacos come with chips and salsa. Our appetizer arrived fairly quickly and was great. As we were finishing our appetizer, our tacos arrived. From first glance they looked really good. Then everything kind fell after that. The flour taco shells were cold and looked store bought. The cheese was also similar to the store bought shredded Mexican blend. The sauce tasted like mayonnaise and ketchup mixed together. They use way too much purple cabbage with a nice portion of ahi tuna. The taste was ok. The cold shell and cheese kind of stole the flavor from the tuna. The salsa provided had a strange smoky almost chipotle flavor. I think. It left a strange aftertaste. We wanted to give this place a try. Not sure we'll be back. Our server was good. She was attentive and smiled. We still have her a cash tip that was pretty good. The restaurant has a great vibe and has a lot of regular customers, as evidenced by everyone greeting each other as they entered. Overall, I think three stars is fair. I recommend giving it a try, but not for tacos.

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Loco Jo's Grill - Appetizers

Appetizers

Loco Jo's Grill - Blackened ahi tuna tacos medium rare with too much cabbage.

Blackened ahi tuna tacos medium rare with too much cabbage.

Loco Jo's Grill - Baja shrimp taco

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Baja shrimp taco

Mini Jalapeno Mexican Restaurant - Fresh guacamole

Mini Jalapeno Mexican Restaurant

4.0(131 reviews)
10.8 mi

Bland .. Tex Mex .. I went in to order a to-go I usually…read moreget a kids meal Taco rice and beans . They did not have that ?? Wild they had a kids Taco and Burrito I said loose the burrito and just adds rice and beans . Umm she she charged me 15.00 bucks for a combination that just looked exactly like a kids meal to me . Bland like all of it , may be they have to make it that way for the masses ?? Only thing g with any flavor was the salsa and hot salsa ! Ya the chips tasted not fresh or warm or salted . I am from California so maybe my expectations were too high . If you are o to bland Tex Mex hurry over !

Every time we drive by this place we always notice all the cars in the parking lot, even during…read moreoff-season at the beach. Now we know why!! We stopped in for lunch on a Friday afternoon. The complimentary chips were warm and fresh, the house made salsa was addictively good. We all had to force ourselves to not fill up on just the chips! We ordered the large guacamole - it was HUGE! The 3 of us couldn't finish it. I could have canceled my lunch and been happy with chips and guacamole as my main meal! Our group ordered the: Carne asada - ribeye steak served with rice, beans, salad & tortillas Carnitas - pork with rice, beans, guacamole & salad The Burro Colorado - is pork filled tortilla covered with ranchero sauce, served with rice and beans Everything was excellent, including the service. Our server kept the chips flowing and our drinks filled. It's no wonder this place is always busy!!

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Mini Jalapeno Mexican Restaurant
Mini Jalapeno Mexican Restaurant - Chicken fajitas

Chicken fajitas

Mini Jalapeno Mexican Restaurant - Frozen Mango Margarita

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Frozen Mango Margarita

KoKo Cabana - burgers - Updated October 2026

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