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    Koolau Drive Inn

    4.0 (149 reviews)
    Closed 10:00 am - 8:00 pm

    Koolau Drive Inn Photos

    KOOLAU DRIVE INN ATMOSPHERE

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

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    Recommended Reviews - Koolau Drive Inn

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    Reviews With Photos

    Most beautiful strip mall view ever!
    Dennis R.

    Tried this place last time I was in Oahu, and it was so amazing that I knew I had to come back! Both times I had the kalua pig and lau lau combo, and both times it was SO GOOD! Both dishes were tender, moist, and bursting with flavor! I'm back home in CA daydreaming about this dish right now, lol! Customer service is quick and friendly, and honestly, this strip mall has to have one of the most gorgeous strip mall views anywhere on earth! I'll make sure to visit again next time I'm in Oahu!

    Curry pork katsu
    Karen M.

    We stopped for lunch during a visit to Byodo-In temple. The menu offers a large variety of options so there is something for everyone. We went with a curry pork katsu platter and a mixed grill platter. The katsu was a bit too crunchy for our taste but the curry sauce was good. The mixed grill platter was very good with a generous amount of meat. Service was friendly and efficient and there were plenty of clean tables to dine-in.

    Storefront
    Nadine C.

    Takeout Dinner from. Kaneohe, O'ahu, Hawaii... Realizing that I didn't really eat breakfast or lunch, I decided that I should get some dinner. I wanted to go somewhere different, but not too far away... How about Ko'olau Drive Inn at Ko'olau Center? Ko'olau Center is across the highway from Valley of The Temples. Ko'olau Drive Inn is across the parking lot from McDonald's and the (closed) Ko'olau Theater. The shared parking was easy because Subway, Times Coffee Shop, and Temple Valley Chinese Restaurant were closed already. That's why everyone was at Ko'olau Drive Inn! The staff were efficient and cleared the crowd quickly! There were enough tables and chairs for customers to sit and wait. Most people did takeout like me - even though the place was bright and clean! I got the Hamburger Steak plate and Shrimp Broccoli with noodles. The three hamburger patties were homemade. I could taste the seasoning in the hamburger and found some gristle... LOL! I liked the gravy and mushy rice since I was so hungry! Even the Mac salad was okay! The shrimp broccoli was pretty good because of the garlic flavor and thinly sliced carrots and onion. The broccoli was not raw, and it wasn't well done, but just right! I was too full to finish the noodles! I'll return when I'm starving again!

    Found a bug in the mac salad!
    Doug Y.

    The mochiko chicken is very good. If you're familiar with chicken karage it tastes very similar. They give a lot and def can make 2 meals of it. I wouldn't eat it all the time bc its greasy. Nice stop after the. Byodo Temple and I don't think a lot of people know about it. Found a bug in my mac salad! I'll give them a pass this time but that wasn't sightly.

    Menu
    Katalina T.

    I've been coming here for years they only got better and the place looks amazing! The service is quick and the foods so yummy!

    Tammy A.

    Omg CHECK THIS PLACE OUT! Spotless little family run place! Everything was prepared fresh and you could taste it in the food. We got mochiko chicken, shrimp and broccoli noodle plate, miso ramen and cheeseburger and wrinkles fries for my picky son. Hahaha Generous portions and everything was mouth watering! In a little unassuming strip mall across from the beautiful Byodo In temple. Go see them... you won't regret it!

    BBQ short rib plate, chicken and katsu combo, healthy garlic shrimp, chicken teriyaki plate
    vivian l.

    Perfect place to grab lunch after stopping by Byodo-In Temple! Their menu is extensive and the service is very friendly. Portions are super satisfying and for a great price. The short ribs were flavorful and tender. The healthy garlic shrimp came with more than enough salad, and the pink dressing they provide is tangy, sweet, creamy, and tasty! The shrimp itself was perfectly cooked, garlicky, and not too oily. Teriyaki chicken was also tender and flavorful. The katsu chicken had a nice crust on it and was very juicy.

    Fried chicken wings

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    5 months ago

    Delicious and yummy food. I got the BBQ mix, the chicken was very delicious as well as the mac salad.

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    1 month ago

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    2 months ago

    Wonderful and welcoming service! Delicious food. I loved the kalua pork and cabbage. Even our picky eaters were happy!

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    1 year ago

    The food here is always delicious and the service is quick and friendly! So many choices and all are delicious!

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    7 months ago

    Business owner information

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    Tony N.

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    1 year ago

    Great food and service! Been a customer for almost 20 years and never disappointed in the food.

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    8 months ago

    Mochiko chicken all French fries! Almost every week! Our go to - friendly service always!

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    1 year ago

    Clean restaurant with friendly staff. The mochiko chicken is my favorite as well as the spicy chicken wings and garlic ahi!

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    4 years ago

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    1 year ago

    Fast food service. For a drive in it was pretty nice. The food was reasonably good as well.

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    1 year ago

    Great food and awesome service.Very clean atmosphere and you don't mind waiting on the food.

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    Page 1 of 4

    Ask the Community - Koolau Drive Inn

    Google maps shows this place is permanently closed is it true?

    They are temporarily closed after a car drove through the front entrance on 1/13/2020. Once they are able to get things inline and repaired hopefully they will reopen soon afterwards.

    View All 2 Questions

    Review Highlights - Koolau Drive Inn

    Their mochiko chicken and chicken katsu are well done with a tasty crispy exterior, not too oily or soggy.

    Mentioned in 15 reviews

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    Adela’s Country Eatery - #1 "Best Restaurant in Hawai`i" USA Today 2024 Readers' Choice Awards

    Adela’s Country Eatery

    4.8(3.8k reviews)
    2.0 mi
    $$
    Locally sourced ingredients
    Locally owned & operated

    This was probably my favorite meal during my whole trip. I'm writing this review late, and can tell…read moreyou that even though it's been a year, I still think about the food we got from here, more than I'd like to admit. Adela's is a small, take-out order only place, but extremely busy. We phoned in the order ahead of time and the wait time was about 45 mins. We got the Sweet Potato Noodles with Garlic Butter and Lechon. Gracious, it was delicious. Worth every penny. The lechon was crispy, tender, and flavorful. The noodles had the perfect texture and paired flawlessly with the garlic butter. We also got Okinawan Sweet Potato Poi Bread, but this unfortunately was blown out of the water by the noodles. I would not order the bread again, but would instead order 2 plates of food for myself, diets be damned. Easiest 5/5 of my life.

    Knowing this place from my friend and she insisted that I should definitely give it a try…read more Fortunately she suggested me to call and pre-order to avoid long wait. They indeed seemed to be very popular as I could see how busy the place was when we picked up ours. It's also a to-go concept only so we enjoyed our pasta at the bench right next to the venue. The pasta was organic and all homemade from peculiar natural ingredients including moringa, taro, sweet potato, bread fruit, avocado, and local saimin. The one serving us was so nice and attentive, which indeed seemed to be needed here given how rich selections they offered. You got the option to pick your own choice of pasta, sauce, and protein or went for their combo. We opted for the latter as we got their Lechon Malunggay Pasta, which was Moringa pasta with roasted pork belly. Portion was HUGEEE and certainly shareable unless your appetite was so big. Meat to pasta ratio was also super general. The pork was cooked to perfection with flawlessly crispy skin yet juicy meat. The pasta came in just the right texture and was already flavorful on its own. You could pick spiciness level for which we took mild and we thought we should've gone for spicy. We also got Ube cheesecake for dessert that was also gigantic LOL. We finished it finally after multiple servings and it was still so good despite kept in fridge overnight. Dense yet not overwhelming and the ube flavor was so strong and I could tell it used real ube. This place was seriously MUST GO!

    Photos
    Adela’s Country Eatery - Beautiful Taro pasta with Lechon and Portabella Mushrooms

    Beautiful Taro pasta with Lechon and Portabella Mushrooms

    Adela’s Country Eatery - We're so grateful to share that we've been named #7 on @Yelp's 2024 Top 100 Places to Eat in the US! Mahalo for all your love and support!

    We're so grateful to share that we've been named #7 on @Yelp's 2024 Top 100 Places to Eat in the US! Mahalo for all your love and support!

    Adela’s Country Eatery - Fresh handmade Ulu and Moringa pasta

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    Fresh handmade Ulu and Moringa pasta

    Waiahole Poi Factory - Fresh, hand pounded poi, traditional staple of the Hawaiian people

    Waiahole Poi Factory

    4.5(1.6k reviews)
    3.4 mi
    $$

    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!

    Photos
    Waiahole Poi Factory
    Waiahole Poi Factory - Amazing food. Ho'io salad is a must. Fresh poi is tops. You can't go wrong at Waiahole Poi Factory.

    Amazing food. Ho'io salad is a must. Fresh poi is tops. You can't go wrong at Waiahole Poi Factory.

    Waiahole Poi Factory - The Ohana at Waiahole Poi Factory with members of One Groove.

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    The Ohana at Waiahole Poi Factory with members of One Groove.

    Haleiwa Joe's At Haiku Gardens - Prime Rib ($52.95) - Medium Rare!

    Haleiwa Joe's At Haiku Gardens

    4.1(3.2k reviews)
    1.7 mi
    $$$

    The service was standout, I feel bad that I do not remember her name as she went above and beyond…read morein her service. We went for dinner after Kualoa Ranch, on our way back to Honolulu. They do have a large parking lot. They don't do reservations. But this is less of a problem here then other places. We were not lucky with the weather, if it was good, the ground are beautiful gardens. They do have one of the best waiting areas I've ever seen, as well as a bar area, to wait in, so you are not hovering over others as they eat. You can also order drinks and apps in the area. Their mango margarita was standout, "it tastes just like a mango!" The restaurant appears to be arranged so that most tables have some of a view of their open patio. Even with the rain, it was lovely, and they lit touches as it grew dark. The menu is the right size, I think a more focused menu lends to better food. We had difficulty deciding as everything sounded great. We started with their poke, very good, and nicely presented. I had the grilled fish, which was great, and my friends had two very different steaks. One got the prime rib, and it was on theme for our dinosaur tour at the ranch. It arrived as big as her head, all three of us could have enjoyed it. Great experience and I hope to return without the side of rain.

    Honestly, the food was not good and I'm genuinely sad I spent the time and money here. I wouldn't…read morerecommend it. Service was okay! We did a walk-in and the wait was a little over an hour, which sucked, but it wasn't as bad since we sat in the lounge area, ordered apps, and our server there was super nice and attentive. Once we got seated, our server was kind, just a bit quiet/reserved. Only got talkative when he as trying to upsell the dessert. The food though... very mid. I asked for medium rare and got a steak that was clearly undercooked--cold in the center and no flavor at all. We had waited so long I figured I'd just take it back to my room and cook it more myself. I literally had to dip it into my husband's chicken plate sauce just to get some taste. For apps, we got the spicy poke, ceviche, and garlic bread. The "spicy" poke wasn't spicy, and the ceviche had basically no flavor. Garlic bread was okay, and the house bread was warm and soft, but everything else just felt really underwhelming. I didn't even wanna bother order dessert because I couldn't take being disappointed again. Nothing was nasty, just no flavor AT ALL and nothing stood out. You're mostly paying for the view. It's cute, but unless you make a reservation and go just for that, I'd save your time and money. Don't be like me and spend almost 200$ for food with no flavor.

    Photos
    Haleiwa Joe's At Haiku Gardens - Interior

    Interior

    Haleiwa Joe's At Haiku Gardens - Paradise pie

    Paradise pie

    Haleiwa Joe's At Haiku Gardens - House Sald

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    House Sald

    Masa & Joyce Okazuya - Okinawa maki (note the ginger)

    Masa & Joyce Okazuya

    4.1(382 reviews)
    3.0 mi
    $$

    No frills, no place to dine in, no rhyme or reason, but damn this place is it!…read moreHand rolls, poke, goodies to snack on, to bring to work, to gift, anyone would be thankful for these beautiful morsels of yumminess. Spicy ahi bowl (which you can also get by the pound) with a hit of spice, wasabi hand roll and a portion of poi and I was in lala land, Add in great customer service, and easygoing vibes, definitely will be by every time I am in the area. Definitely recommend to locals and travelers alike. Support this beautiful mom and pop eatery,

    A local okazuya gem on the Eastside or Oahu in Kaneohe, this place is filled with all the comfort…read moreokazuya foods you know and love. Usually when I'm in the area I'll give em a quick stop just for some of my okazu favorites like their homemade hash and ahi patties, vegetable tempura, teri hamburger, and crab cream croquettes. I usually get some musubis or hand rolls for the road also just for good measure. They also do local plate lunches like chicken katsu, garlic and teri chicken, or if you're in the mood for a hawaiian plate with lau lau and kalua pig, they do that too, per order. They're located in a small parking lot off Kam Hwy in Kaneohe, shared with Kin Wah and Aloha gas station. The shop itself is pretty small too but as soon as you walk in someone is ready to help and assist you with your order. They give mom and pop store vibes with their friendly service and counter ordering system. Theyre a little bit on the pricier side but with inflation being what it is nowadays what can you do? If you find yourself on the East side and are looking a quick, ready-to-go bite option give em a go.

    Photos
    Masa & Joyce Okazuya - Counter #1 of goodies

    Counter #1 of goodies

    Masa & Joyce Okazuya - Corned beef and potato croquette

    Corned beef and potato croquette

    Masa & Joyce Okazuya - Okinawa maki

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    Okinawa maki

    Whiskey Smoke 808 - My delicious mix plate

    Whiskey Smoke 808

    4.4(478 reviews)
    2.1 mi
    $$

    What's up 808 and visitors to the 808,…read more This BBQ is excellent plus, we enjoy our experience at Whiskey Smoke 808. Literally we ate everything on our plates with that in mind, we almost ate up our plate as well. The customer service was fantastic. Excellent plus they cater to our needs and then also some dietary restrictions that were easily adjusted. I ended up ordering the beautiful pulled pork nachos, which were fantastic made with an excellent brilliant taste and cheese sauce, which they make on site themselves and also utilizes it in the macaroni and cheese. I was more than pleased with this restaurant. Highly recommend it and will definitely be coming back again when we visit the 808. The environment gives classic barbecue restaurant lots of good art on the wall lots of good high-quality vibes thank you guys so much and really appreciate what you're doing.

    The owners are horrible humans. I pulled into the parking…read morelot on a Monday and as I was pulling in, saw that they were closed. Bummer. So go to leave and the owner is there in his big white diesel truck blocking the 1 way to leave. So I give a Lil tap of the horn to let him know I'm there. I attempt to then turn around to go backwards out of the 1 way and it was not safe, so I come back through and am waiting behind the truck again. Another man comes out and says, "he's waiting for someone," okay, I respond with a smile, can he pull up so I can leave? Kid relays the message. Owner aggressively slamms on gas spinning out the tires. As I'm pulling through, the kid scolds, "this isn't a roundabout. " I said yea, I'm a customer. I thought you were open. He goes well "We aren't so leave" motioning with his arm. I guess the bummer part, is I really like this place. The food is good. But I won't help companies who are shit to others.

    Photos
    Whiskey Smoke 808 - Inside

    Inside

    Whiskey Smoke 808 - The best Garlic Parmesan Steak Fries and Brisket Sandwich I've ever had.

    The best Garlic Parmesan Steak Fries and Brisket Sandwich I've ever had.

    Whiskey Smoke 808 - "The Menu"

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    "The Menu"

    Uncle Glenn's Hawaiian Food - chicken long rice, squid luau, kalua pork, lomi salmon and rice

    Uncle Glenn's Hawaiian Food

    4.8(90 reviews)
    1.9 mi

    1-The Food & Prices is the most Amazing, Ono Bento's and Plates that no one can Conpare in all 8…read moreIslands right now, Shoyu ir Spicey POKE-Broke the Mouth, Garlic Chicken-Crunchy with Taste, Pasteles Stew-Stir it up, Squid Luau & Chicken LONG Rice-Taste Buds Happy, Think Hawaiian Food and will be waiting, but Hurry sells out fast. 2-Drink Prices Amazing no one can touch this Bar at all, it us such an Ohana Style place you will be Amazed. 3-Hawaiian Music, be ready Kahiau & Friends got it all ready to sing along or do some Hula, because that's what they offer you be Eating, Drinking and Singing from start to end and be satisfied for the evening and gotta return next week. Get Ready RELAX and Evening with Friends and Ohana that makes you Laugh, SIGN and want to Dance, jist have your dancing Shoes Ready, Wednesday is Totally Recommended. When you leave you feel Like you haven't paid the Bill for the night l, compare to other places you know how much it cost you.

    Another great meal at Uncle Glens!…read more They have the best lunch deal on Wednesday for Hawaiian food! We love the laulau and squid luau are hands down a family favorite! You can't beat the prices and the food is great! Only disappointing item they ran out of chili pepper water! Pastele stew - hands down yummy No worries we'll be back for more.

    Photos
    Uncle Glenn's Hawaiian Food - They're now in the old BeachHouse location

    They're now in the old BeachHouse location

    Uncle Glenn's Hawaiian Food - Combo bento - kalua pig and squid luau

    Combo bento - kalua pig and squid luau

    Uncle Glenn's Hawaiian Food - A stage for live music!

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    A stage for live music!

    Koolau Drive Inn - burgers - Updated May 2026

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