Had a great experience with our server Jon. Not only did he help us with our beer selection, but…read morehe helped this tourist group navigate the vulcano must sees and hike, full experience. We had the macadamia nut crusted fish with fries. The crust had a crispy crust and our friends said it was delicious. We had the penne pesto pasta and added some grilled shrimp, added price. The shrimp were (thumbs up) dollar size. The pesto pasta sauce had a great flavor, but it was very watery. Would have loved for those flavor to shine a bit more. Overall we had a great time, with good food and a great server. Definitely recommend

In past years when I did the circle island tours we always came here for lunch and it was always…read moregreat, so when I planned a family trip I reserved dinner here as I knew we'd have a good view of Kilauea. The food was good overall - but you are paying touristy prices. Things my party tried: - Kona kampachi and lobster - this was my pick and it was great! The fish was perfectly cooked and loved the sauce. They include ginger and Japanese pickled veggies, which I love, but it may not be everyone's cup of tea. The lobster tail half was also a good size and hit the spot. My only gripe was I didn't have a small lobster fork, so had to dig into the lobster with my fingers. - my BiL devoured the rib eye and said it was good. - my brother really enjoyed the stuffed chicken. It was my second option.. and I won't lie it looked really good. - my SIL for the pesto pasta and added steak. The pasta was meh, but the steak was great. - the kids menu were hits. The mahi mahi comes with fruit, but the hot dog doesn't. It was just odd that fruit wasn't available for all kids menu options. - shrimp scampi pizza was pretty good. Nice flavors. All in all a great family dinner spot with great views. The staff was really friendly too! Would I come back - definitely!

Great views of the volcano…read more The taste of Hawaii menu is loaded with food and is great to share amongst a small family. Friendly staff, good food, but the view is what I'll be writing home about.

DISHONEST PEOPLE! Unfortunately there's not much as for choices for eating when visiting the…read moreVolcano. Unfortunately this restaurant decides to be dishonest with its customers in not only providing mini portions at high prices, which I consciously decided to accept, but the menu clearly states for 8+ people there is a 20% mandatory tip. Our party of 7 was charged their fee and when paying amd decoding on a tip my wife saw the fee already on the receipt (which they didn't even tell us, asking for a tip as well) I asked why and they just said "because you have more people". I don't mind paying a tip, but don't eat here if you dont want to support dishonest people.

I absolutely loved staying at Kilauea Lodge for my recent trip to Hawaii. The facilities are…read morewonderful, and include easy parking close to the rooms, spacious rooms and bathrooms, a cozy gas fireplace, air conditioning, incredibly comfortable beds, wonderful showers, a hot tub, and a gazebo. The staff are also very friendly and made the trip easy. They provided recommendations and even helped us when our tire pressure was low. Thanks, Rachel and George! The location is unbeatable - it's about 10 minutes to the park, allowing you to easily beat crowds, make it to last minute eruptions, or optimize hikes based on weather. It's an easy 40 minute drive to Hilo also, if you want to check it out.

Our respite stay after a full day of chasing Volcano Craters and remote petroglyphs…read more Ten minutes from the park exit, just had dinner in the park. Works out great , self check in. Old fashioned but just right for the Area.

On our last few trips to Hilo, we stayed at the Hilo Hawaiian Hotel and haven't been disappointed…read more For convenience, the hotel has two restaurants in the lobby. Wai Oli is also two businesses in one - it serves as a morning/brunch cafe for coffee and pastries, then transforms into a casual evening restaurant for dinner as well as live music and a bar space. On our first night we were too tired to go out in the rain, so we tried the Red Rice with Chamorro spices and sauces, and a Club sandwich with fries. The food is excellent, prices about what you'd expect in a hotel. The tap list is also pretty good with macro lagers and locally brewed selections from Big Island Brewhaus and Hilo Brewing Co among others. Service is good, with friendly servers. The view is also excellent with clear views of Hilo Bay right outside. They also have outdoor tables on the lanai.

Great restaurant bar to grab a bite and a beer at. They now have live music everyday.read more

Showed up Friday afternoon to a gathering of a bunch of angry white dudes that for the entire time…read moreit took me to finish a drink complained about illegal border crossing, fentanyl and justifiable wars etc. I eventually just put my ear buds in. The drink and service were fine but Friday must be a hangout for people to air their grievances with life.

First, it's hard to find. But after being there I think they want it that way. The karaoke DJ…read morefavored the locals, the tourists barely got to sing, I felt like this was a locals only bar, tourists are welcome to buy drinks, but don't expect to sing at this karaoke bar. It's too bad too, because the vibe was good, and it was 40% tourist. Not like it was 100% locals juicing the vibe. I felt like the 40% tourists were more electric than the locals, but the locals got to sing 90% of the songs. Bottom line, if it wasn't for a good bartender would give a lower rating. The guy running the karaoke at this karaoke bar favors the regulars, which I understand, but it also means tourists feel unappreciated and left out. If you want to sing, stay out. If you want to hear locals sing this is your place. For example, one local lady sang 5 times in 2 hours, I put in 2 requests and got to sing 1. So if you want to hear other people sing and get treated like an unwanted tourist, this is the place for you.

This is a truly magical place. The view was spectacular. We sat under the canopy but looked…read morestraight out on to the Pacific. Tiki torches and all. The food was tremendous. The service was fantastic. I highly recommend it.

Ordered take out here recently by placing the order directly at the bar around 7:30pm on a weekday…read more Even though the restaurant was empty the food still took about 25-30 minutes. I did, however, order an old fashioned to enjoy while I waited. It was well-made and the bartender was not shy about the bourbon pour. For the food/appetizers, we ordered nachos, which were great. The light and crispy chips tasted house-made and reminded me of the Taco Light shells back in the day at TB. The hurricane tots were a hit with a generous amount of furikake tots! $18 for the kids grilled fish, rice, and steamed vegetables was a bit steep for the small piece we received but they said it was tasty. Overall, you're paying resort prices here but it's not outrageous. If you're looking for a drink or some apps in the evening, check out Luana Lounge. They are open til 11pm.

Great service. Great food. Nice people. Easy to get to and friendly staff. Menu has a great…read morevariety. Drinks are the best

I wish I could update this in a good way, but they haven't improved since they lost one of their…read morechefs. Took my sister and brother in-law this time. They were highly disappointed, as their second visit, and first was dismal as well. I wish I could report a better experience, but this was the last time, and our family is not going back again. What a shame, as the servers are So nice! I wonder how many people say nothing, because the servers are very nice, but they just won't be back.

Amazing views! Casual place to hang out, bring your own meal to sit there or purchase at the…read morelounge. Live music in the evenings.

Friendly vibe. Convenient for guests…read more A couple of Mai Tais and or house wine and or domestic beer is included as part of the daily resort fee that Hilton charges for a stay at this property. Relaxed vibe in the lobby with low key and pleasant entertainment on the Friday evening that I was there. Service was fast, friendly and efficient.

If youre staying at the Hilton, dont pass up the opportunity to enjoy the many offerings here…read more Open air windows and pleasant music greet you in the am for strong complimentary coffee and breakfast offerings. Try the spam musubi, especially if you have that resort credit. Evenings great local Hawaiian music and hula dancers entertain you while you enjoy their special island breeze cocktail. Our party of 4 finally decided to just eat dinner there on a Friday night .. place was packed, but food came out pretty quick. We were all surprised how good it was (Im sober so can't blame that). Prices reasonable service friendly. Margherita flat bread, Kailua pork w cabbage and the pulled pork were scarfed quickly. Entertainment was fabulous on Friday. I recommend this place for casual meal and drinks.

I had The Hidden Nene bookmarked when I was planning out my trip to Hilo and I couldn't be happier…read morewith my experience at the speakeasy. My wife and I stopped by for pre-dinner drinks and we absolutely loved the drinks that we were able to try out. I started out with a cocktail called the "Spam Dram", a crispy Spam fat-washed barrel-proof bourbon, combined with seared Spam and nori syrup and topped off with a spam musubi garnish. As one might guess, this drink was presented in a spam musubi tin, and atop the bed of crushed ice was an *entire* spam musubi. The drink was a perfect representation of spam musubi in a glass -- sweet, savory, and full of umami. Props to whichever bartender put together this creative drink. The next drink I ordered was the "Smoky Bear", another bourbon based cocktail. This one had bird's eye chili essence in it, and was much closer than your traditional Old Fashioned, except it had an incredible amount of smokiness and a punch of heat to it as well. If you enjoy stiff drinks with complexity, look no further than this cocktail. While we were seated at the bar, we overheard somebody close to us mentioning a password special that had been posted on the Instagram page of The Hidden Nene. We checked their latest story posted two hours earlier and the password special for the day was a "fizz me baby one more time", a strawberry and yuzu gin fizz. My wife ordered this cocktail as her second drink and loved how refreshing the drink tasted. Overall, if you consider yourself a cocktail connoisseur, you owe it to yourself to check out The Hidden Nene if you're in Hilo.

The coastal town of Hilo hides the fantastic speakeasy, The Hidden Nēnē. Head down the stairs by…read morethe green door, and it becomes less hidden, and you can see the sign for the basement level bar. The underground space is low green lighting, a long bar, and green velvet bar chairs. We went during the day, so they were not busy, and were able to sit at the bar. The service was quick, relaxed, and friendly. The cocktails are upscale priced, but well made. They do offer a full food menu, we did not order any food on our visit.