I walked past this hole-in-the-wall corner spot near Chinatown for literal decades and never…read morethought much of it. It's wedged between the always-busy Royal Kitchen (known for their manapuas) and faces Izumo Taishakyo and Lum Sai Ho Tong, with a few yards of sidewalk in between that's usually occupied by crackheads nodding off or lighting up crystal methamphetamine. Honestly, that probably kept me from ever walking in over the years. Then Kukui Cafe popped up on my Yelp feed. I didn't even register the name -- I just saw the food photos. Beef brisket and wontons? Get in my mouth. I stopped by over the weekend to find out if it lived up to the pictures. The place is small and surprisingly clean, and the staff greeted me right away. I'd read other reviews mentioning the noise, and yeah -- it's loud. Cantonese and Taishanese conversations hit serious decibels, with a couple of guys in the back corner adding some colorful profanity for good measure. Everyone seemed to know each other; it had that unmistakable "regulars" energy that told me this place was legit. I figured out pretty quickly that the noise wasn't really about volume of people -- it's the concrete walls and tight square footage bouncing every sound around the room. Didn't bother me. It's part of the charm. Two massive split AC units kept the whole place ice cold despite the chaos. Service was fast -- drinks came out within minutes of ordering. While we waited for food, a homeless man walked in holding a huge scooping net, the kind you'd see someone hauling a giant salmon out of an Alaskan river with. He said something to the owner, who looked confused, so he repeated himself. I eavesdropped and burst out laughing once I understood: he'd caught a freshwater red-eared slider turtle -- about the length of an iPad -- out of Nu'uanu Stream, which runs right alongside the restaurant, and was trying to sell it to them. The owners just shook their heads, and the man left with his net and his turtle in under a minute. You can't make this stuff up. Shortly after, the food arrived. Heads up: paper plates only. But the food itself was excellent and well-seasoned -- the standout was the ten wonton and brisket dish without noodles for $20. Genuinely delicious. There's a parking lot in the rear with what I believe is one free hour. Look for the Sun Yat-Sen Cultural Center at 135 N. Kukui St -- the driveway entrance is just to the left of it. Customers were walking through the kitchen and into the main dining area so there must be an entrance from the garage. Cash only. Would I go back? Absolutely, without a doubt.

Ordered the Singapore noodles here and it was solid! Nice amount of curry flavor and the right…read moreamount of meat and veggies. Tasted authentic and could taste the wok heat. This place has been around for a while, and I believe ownership has changed since then but it's great to see this place still going strong. They have traditional Hong Kong breakfast as well. Need to try their milk tea next time! Check it out in Chinatown, across the river from the Japanese temple.

First time here. Ordered the lu rou fan (braised beef on rice), omelette with pork floss, and the…read morechicken wings (med spice). Everything was extremely tasty and we felt the prices were reasonable. My only complaint - I wish the braised beef was served with larger chunks of meat rather than being chopped small. Also, seems like the meat was pan fried after braising so it was alot drier than I am used to with this dish. The omelette was a nice combination of textures and flavors, filled with pork floss and cucumbers. The wings were crunchy and dusted with their chili powder mix. The medium spice level was not very spicy for me (my sister said it had some kick), so if you like spicy, I'd ask them for their hottest level. There is ample parking in the back and the workers were nice. The restaurant is simple but the decor pleasant. They also serve a very wide selection of milk tea and toppings.

I love Leilani Taiwanese Kitchen! They have everything I want in casual Taiwanese fare: tantalizing…read morevariety of milk teas, all the small plates, sundry meats on a stick, light fry everything (tofu, chicken, wings, onion rings!), but also rice and noodle comfort food. It's light and airy inside, and the manager or proprietor clearly has dealt with people who cannot navigate menus with pictures and words. I eventually settled on the brown sugar black milk tea, lamb skewer, popcorn chicken, and pork chop. Someone pointed out the popcorn chicken could use stronger seasoning: 100%. Note that the passion fruit and lychee green teas, pudding black milk tea, and strawberry fresh milk tea were devastatingly tempting; it's not often you find so {{elegant}} a list, but they will have to wait a return trip. Unfortunately what I did not love was the parking situation (not walkable), so the return will wait.

Authentic Hong Kong style cafe food serving dishes from the land to the sea. Their foods are big…read morein portion and reasonably priced. They serve from cafe style comfort food to fresh seafoods. They also cook your freshly bought seafood for a small up charge too ! This is different than their next door neighbor where they also cook your seafood. This is more authentic Hong Kong Chinese style seafood where you can do it steamed or you can tried their typhoon harbor style seafood where it's crispy seasoned then fried. Super friendly service let support local goods ! Plenty shared tables at food court indoor or outdoor seating available too.

***4.5 STARS*** I'm…read moreslacking. As the "Unofficial Mayor of Chinatown" I am aware of changes in the area I grew up in. Although I've moved away many years ago, I can still be found in the area every weekends as I do my weekly shopping. Step in Hong Kong Island Cafe (HKIC), which opened in Fall 2025. They are located on the Mauka end of Maunakea Marketplace serving authentic Cantonese food and drinks. My colleague mentioned HKIC to me as her mother operates one of the food stalls inside Maunakea Marketplace. In looking them up I'm sure late in the game as Auntie (aka Nadine C.) has already made her appearance here and wrote a positive experience. This past weekend during my usual shopping, I bumped into my colleague at Maunakea Marketplace so I walked over to join her at HKIC. Upon arrival I saw their extensive digital menu with some hand written signs and some food photos posted. I had already picked up that day's breakfast and lunch ingredients that day and was soon to head over to my part time job. My eyes landed on the chiller of bottled and canned drinks, along with house made desserts. I was very tempted to try either their cheesecakes or the durian cake roll but already had snacks so I ended up just getting their iced Hong Kong milk tea and requested 50% sugar when asked how sweet I wanted. My drink was immediately assembled after ordering and my waiting time was minimal. After taking the obligatory photo I took a sip. My iced milk tea was not bad but not as good as my go to place. Service was above average with cheerful staff (perhaps husband and wife team). I did take a glimpse of their food pics and they look promising. The fried shrimp, beef chow funn, won tons, braised beef brisket and beef tendon, and sweet and sour pork all look promising. I need to drag my family here to sample an array of dishes. The setbacks of this food stall are: communal seating, undesirable and sketchy foot traffic and the parking woes in Chinatown. Overall, a pleasant first experience but I'll have to return and try more of their offerings. I just hope there will be air conditioning (sometimes it's out of order) and no sketchy people around as sometimes they approach you for money and/or food. 2026 #55

Food: simple but absolutely deeelicious!! You choose a base (salad, rice, or noodle), your protein…read more(chicken, pork, tofu, wonton), and sauce. My go-to order is a salad with chicken thigh and saam sauce. (The secret must have is the homemade spicy sauce by the utensils!!!! So so yummy and addicting. I hope the owner bottles it up for sale soon!) Service: Everything is cooked and assembled by the owner, so be patient! Usually there will be a line by 12 so I recommend getting there at 11:30 to skip the line. Owner is very friendly and hard working. Ambience: Downtown food court vibe. There's a seating area adjacent to the store front next to cafe alala where you can grab a drink. Parking: It's located in TOPA tower, there's parking in the building (not sure how much) and street parking. You can also park across the street next to aloha tower.

I am in the area a lot and never knew there were so many restaurants in this building. There's…read morereally no sign from the outside that there are several restaurants inside so I wasn't even sure if I was in the right place. I had heard about this sort of build your bowl concept at Sabal and was intrigued, especially since they have tofu as a protein option. A lot of times vegetarians struggle to find a complete meal. Overall it is was good, the tofu actually had flavor! A lot of places that offer tofu just give plain unflavored tofu which isn't very good. I'm not sure if it was meant to be served hot or cold or was kind of in between? But the mix was really nice and the price is very reasonable. I added the hot sauce they had sitting out and it gave it a nice kick. My order was ready in less than 5 minutes and there's a nice common seating area next to the restaurant. Also several other coffee and drink options nearby that I want to come back and check out.

Located in the lanai food court in Ala Moana next to Macys, HiTEA is a great spot for boba tea,…read moresmoothies, or juices. They also serve food, but their drink menu boasts about 50-60 different drink options varying in fresh fruit or powder flavored varieties. I had the taro coconut milk tea on this occasion with boba. Boba, jelly, bubbles, and other chewy add ins cost a little extra in addition to your drink, but each concoction costs between $7-9. The service is quick (I think I only waited five minutes for a made to order drink) and the counter no frills, just the way we like a fast food establishment to be. Definitely competitive with the sharetea that operates a few feet away!

Always fast friendly service, call ahead walked over from work and was ready to go! First time…read morehaving the salt and pepper pork chops. Hit the spot!!

Sandy's Cafe in Chinese Cultural Plaza is the epitome of HK lunch cafes, with mouth watering,…read moretender char siu, and iconic crispy roast duck. Their roast duck is one of the best available in Oahu. I knocked off a star though because 2 years ago, I felt that the recipe was less oily and was much better, rivaling some places in Richmond/ Vancouver BC, Canada which is also known to have solid HK cafes outside of the home country. I miss how they've made it in the past, and wish they would revert back to how it was before... but regardless, a solid pick and a place I will probably still continue to frequent in the future.

Came here again. Fast service like always. I got the roast duck and char sui over rice. They were…read moreboth very flavorful. My only gripe is there weren't any burnt and fatty pieces of char sui which was what I was craving for. Look at my last review for more details!

Found another gem in Chinatown like Lams kitchen. For the people that like spicy, this is an…read moreawesome bowl of goodness. I've never had laksa before and I have no idea if this authentic but I know good when I taste good! Tasty, spicy broth that will leave you asking for another napkin so you can wipe your face from the heat! Lots of beef - not so much tendon as tasty chunks of seasoned beef! Choice of noodle type; I got look funn. The coconut and curry infused broth was delicious!!!!! Service was really good and I found the place clean! Mostly Chinese in there in the morning drinking coffee and eating that ovaltine toast. I would say this place is excellent and tasty! One of my favorites now!!!!

Been wanting to try HK Cafe for the longest time! It didn't disappoint, but it didn't exceed…read moreexpectations. Located along Maunakea St, in the previous Happy Garden dim sum spot. Inside is bright and surprisingly spacious. A big difference from before. Started with the Minced Beef Steamed Flour Roll, which was very good. Soft, tender beef, thin rice roll, and flavorful sauce. You won't find these "messy/not quite neatly rolled" style look funn at many places! I like it! The Preserved Chinese Sausage and Meat Clay Pot Rice was pretty good. Nicely prepared rice that was soft and fluffy that crisped up very nicely from the pot. The Lap cheong and lap yuk were good. Lap yuk was sliced on the thin side to be able to appreciate it. Sausage was the usual brand. The most important ingredient is the sauce, and it was excellent! Good balance of savory with enough sweet to balance out the meat and to flavor the rice. Note: these take 25-35 minutes to make. The Curry Laksa with Beef Tendon and Brisket Noodle Soup was good. Tasty and tender brisket and tendon. The laksa broth was flavorful with nice hints of lemongrass, ginger, and other spices. The coconut milk and the spice didn't quite come through leaving the broth not as creamy or silky, or spicy as I would have liked. Still good overall though. Noodles prepared well and the lemon added a nice acidity that goes well with everything. The Hong Kong Style Milk Tea and Coffee mix was all right. The tea was on the strong side which masked the coffee. Overall, a decent meal at HK Cafe. Food was good. Service was good. Reasonable prices. I'll come back to try more things!

Went here today and it was amazing! We got the steamed char siu bao, siu mai, deep fried taro, and…read morelook fun. It was the first time I tried deep fried taro, and oh my goodness. It's a light crispy on the outside and the inside just melts in your mouth. It was all super delicious. The restaurant is pretty clean. They also had some bug catchers along the window next to the door, since they seem to sneak in easily. I appreciated seeing that! The staff was pretty nice as well. We got seated right away. A previous table left before we came in and the server who was seating us cleaned it up real fast for us. With everything going on in the restaurant, they were on it! There's parking stalls right in front of the restaurant, which is always good too if you can get a stall. Lots of families were in as well having a nice Saturday lunch. It all felt so comforting in there. I will definitely come back again! If you're coming to Chinatown/Downtown or are walking around in the area, I suggest giving them a try!

One of the dim sum places that's been around for a long time. It's dated inside but it's less dirty…read morethan many restaurants in Chinatown at least. It's located on nuuanu tucked a little to the back of a small courtyard. You'll see the sign before you see the storefront. Dim sum was pretty good overall. Wouldn't say it's amazing but every item I got was pleasant at least. Hot and flavorful. Prices were steeper than I thought. The regular item is $6.35 each and the higher tier ones are $8.35! I like how it's not as crowded as the bigger dim sum spot on king and Maunakea so there was no wait. Would come back if I feel like dim sum and is around the area again.