My husband and I shared: - Turkey, Cranberry, and Cream…read moreCheese Popover Sandwich - Pastrami Popover Sandwich - Ube Donut - Lilikoi Butter Mochi Both sandwiches were fantastic. I love popovers and it's such a great idea to turn them into a sandwich. I think I had a slight preference for the turkey one, but you can't go wrong with either. The desserts were a little disappointing. The donut was dry and the butter mochi was just ok. If you're in Hilo, come here for lunch!

Wow! So good! Something interesting about Hawaii is they don't care for too much about the…read moreaesthetic and interior design. Upon walking in, you see a mom and pops with a weird table layout of their baked goods. But actually eating it is such a different story! Great value for lots of yummy breakfast

Big Island Bakehouse is a can't miss when visiting Big Island! We made it over to this place on our…read moresecond to last day and we were greeted with so much cheer and the friendly staff gave recommendations and helped guide our choices. We tried the Bomboloni and Nutella Coconut croissant during our initial visit. The Bomboloni reminds me of a malasada but I enjoyed the creamy filling of this so much more. We ended up going back on our last day and tried some of the savory options - the goat cheese pesto croissant and then sausage roll were standouts for us. Enjoyed this place so much we hardly took pictures, but everyone should add this as a stop especially if visiting Volcano National Park!

Open only 3 days a week, this has become one of my favorite stops on the way to Volcano (from…read moreHilo). In fact, except Madam Pele does NOT necessarily keep to the same schedule as the bakery, would try to time my Volcano drives to coincide with Friday, Saturday, or Sunday! Hahah. Today got a sampling of Mediterranean scones (savory with olives and delicious seasonings), croissants, danish, and my favorite... the ube cruffin. Holy Moly Batman... that one item was worth the drive alone! Since there really wasn't any real estate in our tummies, we split everything 3 ways... over the course of the next few hours. Two weeks later, still thinking about that ube cruffin! Would definitely do a repeat on that as well as the Medeterranean scones while trying other items. And as the nice couple infront of us in line mentioned, will have to return for the sister deli across the parking lot. Heard it was featured in Guy Hagi's food vlog. And if its good enough for Guy Hagi its where I want to be my next mealtime!

New owners just took over and they are the best! So kind and friendly! One of the best Açaí…read morebowls I've had! So fresh and delicious!!! Highly, highly recommend!!! You will not be disappointed!!!

Ice cream was great as expected which this place is known for. I prefer the ube one…read more The staff was really nice and she helped adjust a coffee that we ordered. I'd recommend getting coffee elsewhere- the cold brew is a bit watered down. Small seating inside but super close to other stores so a great stop after a meal!

Amazing mochi donuts, my fav is the taro Haupia…read more Also, the guava cream cheese turnover is so good! Love that this little bakery is so close to home.

From the moment we walked in, everyone was kind and welcoming. All of the baked goods looked…read moreextremely fresh and inviting. We tried pineapple cream cheese croissants, raspberry Danish, stone cookies, butter rolls and all were delicious. We will always stop on our way to or from Volcano National Park. Mahalo!

Came as a party of 2 at noon on a Sunday, and we were seated right away! The ambiance definitely…read moregives a nice island sports bar vibe. Only street parking is available. There was also live music with a lady playing guitar solo and singing! Service was amazing! We never had to wait long to order/get the bill. We were most impressed by the fact that the waitress made sure to split our Hilo local plate into two plates to make it much easier to share! We almost thought we had received two orders because of how well-plated they were. - Poke tower (8/10): Solid choice for an appetizer! There were ample portions of poke, and the flavors were nice. Not a super stand out dish though. - Hilo local plate (9.5/10): If you want to taste a wide range of Hawaiian cuisine in one dish, I would highly recommend getting this one! The Kalbi ribs were sooo good! They were juicy, tender, and bursting with flavor. The Kalua pork was pretty good, and both meats paired well with the rice which had an interesting savory haupia sauce drizzled on it. The mango chili slaw and pineapple salsa added a nice tang to balance everything out. - Triple lilikoi pie (5/10): Wayyy too sweet and sugary for our liking, and you can barely taste the lilikoi flavor. We ended up just picking at the graham cracker crust and couldn't finish the rest. It seemed like one of those desserts that are premade unfortunately, and we wish we hadn't ordered this dessert.

We chose Pineapples Island Fresh Cuisine because it's one of the highest-rated sit-down spots in…read moreHilo, but it ended up being just okayyyy. The menu felt very "meh"...nothing particularly exciting or memorable. The cocktails looked great in photos, so we ordered the piña colada flight, but it tasted like there was little to no rum in it. Pretty presentation, but very mediocre overall. Food was just okay. The burger wasn't bad, but definitely not anything special. The fried shrimp dish was disappointing and lacked flavor. The big letdown was the ambiance. We were seated facing the street and parking lot the entire time ...no view...., just sad street. Overall, it didn't live up to the hype. Not terrible, but definitely not worth going out of your way for. The staff were all very nice though. Service friendly.

Cute little bakery with lots of sweet treats. Went to Short n Sweet on a rainy Hilo day, so the…read moreshop was empty and there were lots of pastry options available. The shop keeper was friendly and patient as I browsed the pastry case. I've always been curious about the Dubai chocolate bar, so I decided to splurge and give it a try. Very pricey at $16 for a 4-5" bar, but it was worth it to try it once. The chocolate was smooth and high quality, the pistachio cream was sweet with a hint of pistachio flavor, and the kataifi was pleasantly crunchy. I would have loved more pistachio flavor, but it was a nice little chocolate treat. Looking forward to trying more things from Short n Sweet in the future. Will definitely be back when I want to treat myself to a gourmet dessert. :)

Right when you walk in, you're greeted by a beautiful display case of goods. To the left are…read moreshelves of refrigerated goods, followed shelves of non-refrigerated goods. The sweets are always really good. The crème brûlée is definitely our favorite dessert here! It's light and creamy and just overall delicious! We come here every time we visit and try to get something different but we always seem to revert back to the creme brulee. The staff there has always been really nice. We seem to always get the same lady every time we go and I feel terrible that I haven't gotten her name by now

Way bigger than the downtown location, plus they have a selection of Two Ladies mochi just like…read moredowntown. Checkout was a little backed up but not bad. Plenty parking. Big selection. Decent prices. Everything you need in a market. Also got some perfectly yellow local bananas - back on Oahu, it seems like all the apple bananas are greener-than-green and take 10+ days to ripen. We were able to tear into these in the car!

Whenever we are in Hilo, this is a must! Fresh seafood, hot foods and their bakery? Omg!!! Plus…read morethey have the best local cookies (Kelly Boy) . This is a great omiyagi to bring back home for your special friends and family. Staff is super nice too!

I planned for my husband and I to grab a quick bite at Cafe 100 before leaving Hilo. With more than…read more2000 reviews on Google and 30 varieties of loco moco, it was hard to ignore. Cafe 100 is a casual, local spot with window (staff) or kiosk (automated) ordering and plenty of semi-outdoor seating (i.e., you are technically inside and covered, but you can still feel the heat from outside). I will admit the menu felt a bit overwhelming at first glance because there are so many options available, but we visited on a weekday when it was not busy, so we were able to take our time deciding. Anticipating larger portions, we decided to share a mixed type loco moco plate along with a drink. That turned out to be a great call, as the portion was more than enough for the two of us, especially since we would not easily be able to take leftovers with us. This is casual, familiar comfort food done well. No complaints here, and I have already recommended Cafe 100 to a few friends :)

Made a day trip from Oʻahu to the Big Island and had to stop at Cafe 100 -- home of the original…read moreloco moco. As a born-and-raised local, rice, gravy, and eggs will win me over every time, and I really wanted to love this place for the history alone. I'll be honest though -- the hype set the bar high, and I left a little let down. The regular loco moco was just okay. The hamburger patty tasted pre-made or frozen, though the gravy was solid (thank goodness). The beef stew also tasted pre-made and was lighter on the tomato flavor than I prefer. I ordered the steak as well (around $30), and it came out very well done. On the positive side, they offer a ton of plate lunch options, the space is extremely well kept for a local diner, and there's plenty of parking. It's covered outdoor seating only, but it's comfortable and clean. What surprised me most was the lack of visible history. I expected to see more storytelling about the loco moco origins -- photos, signage, staff sharing pride in it -- something that really leaned into that legacy. It felt a little missing. Still glad I tried it for the experience, but for me, it didn't quite live up to the legendary reputation.

12 hours in Hilo: Stop #1 Hilo Lunch Shop. Traveling with family for a cousin's funeral in Hilo…read more After landing at the airport and picking up the rental car, our first stop was to Hilo Lunch Shop- an okazuya. Just about a block north of the airport complex on Kalanikoa Street, there was a good amount of parking on a Saturday. HLS is hugely popular, usually the line snakes out of the building on work days. Today the line still stretched out in a lazy C to the second door into the shop. Shuffling through the line, I had a lot of time to check out the food. Struck by how reasonable the prices were. Got up to the head of the line and ordered. Paid and went outside to enjoy my food. Saw that the reason for good prices is that some of the portions like the spam musubi were for a half a musubi. But my eyes were bigger than my opu, and I had a lot to take as leftovers anyway. HLS's food is tasty and reasonable. How great is it to see another old-time okayzuya continue to survive! Will repeat whenever my travels bring me back to Hilo, and highly recommend!

Hilo Lunch Shop is an great choice if you're looking an Okazuya near the airport…read more Like any Okazuya the earlier you go the more food/choices there are available. I've been here a lot of times and enjoyed the variety of food that I've eaten from here. There is a very good selection of different dishes and the service is just as great as well. I'm glad that they make Maki Sushi rolls here. There are some hit and misses on some dishes, but overall Ono and will satisfy your cravings. 4 Stars..

Sweet Cane is a health-conscious, organic, farm-to-table cafe, offering sandwiches, fresh…read morejuices/smoothies, and vibrant acai bowls. My favorite items are the acai and pitaya bowl as they are loaded with fresh banana, granola, coconut flakes. I also chose to get the omega add on for bee pollen, honey, chia, and hemp seeds for extra fiber! I am so happy to see that their bowls are still amazing as always. Highly recommend their fruit juices and bowls for nature's dessert to give you a boost for the day.

No one at the counter to take our order-- for a while. The only tables available still had crumbs…read moreon them from the last customers, so we cleaned the table so we could sit down. There was a large pile of dirty dishes stacked up in the area where folks are supposed to place used plates, etc. They probably need more staff or this might just be their vibe. I had a spicy kalo burger for $20. The bun on the bottom was toasted (great) but the bun on top was not toasted and was crumbling apart as I ate it. The pumpkin soup with roasted pumpkin seed garnish was delicious, and inspired me to make my own kabocha stew at home. The food is tasty. The cleanliness could use some improvement especially given the prices. All that being said, it is a popular spot. The parking lot was full. The employees looked busy. Just be forewarned that service levels & cleanliness may fluctuate.