Wonderful service! We had our food within 10 minutes after ordering.The spicy garlic shrimp is amazing and honestly my new favorite thing about Honolulu. I also recommend getting the pineapple iced tea with it. So yummy! read more

Sam's Kitchen - Spicy garlic shrimp - Food Stands Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

Have perfectly seasoned ahi tuna and their shrimp is SOO bomb. Highly recommend! My friend and I went in the early afternoon and there wasn't that long of a line and the wait was 10-15 mins read more

Sam's Kitchen - Ahi poke - Food Stands Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

See all

Came here at night because there's limited places open after a certain time and asked to use the bathroom when I first arrived because a bird pooped on me in front of their building at the tree when I was reading their menu so I wanted to wash it off and there was no where else open and my hotel was a 15 min walk away. The lady rudely said no that it's for customers only without even asking if I was there to purchase a meal, so I had to walk all the way back to my hotel to clean up and came back and went right next door to Aloha melt and purchased a dinner because the lady here pre assumed I wasn't even purchasing something from her which I felt was rude and judgmental. read more

Nice cozy place near Waikiki to grab a quick bite or something "to go" for the hotel. Be sure to check in before placing your order so you can get a glass of pineapple tea for free! It's sort of hidden but just look for a currency exchange and you're near the vicinity. I placed an order for garlic steak and spicy poke to go; both were very tasty although portions were a little smaller than I liked (still filling though). I particularly enjoyed the garlic steak with rice, it was sizzling and hot off the grill! I will definitely stop by again for dinner tonight, or at least before he head back home. read more

See all

Great hole in the wall place. You could easily walk past this place, but I wouldn't. Was able to get a free pineapple ice tea drink which was good! Ordered the spicy garlic shrimp, regular garlic shrimp, garlic chicken, garlic beef, and tuna poke. Everything was delicious! My one complaint is that they don't understand what "medium rare" means because I was still given a medium steak. What surprised me the most was how the chicken was cooked perfectly-- not dry at all. Would I come back? Yes! read more

Saw the reviews and decide to give this place a shot. My wife and I got there and was greeted by a nice white guy that is explaining the menu. The place is literally a mom and pop joint that is outdoor. The menu was easy to understand so we got the spicy poke tuna bowl, garlic shrimp plate, and the garlic chicken. The wait to get the food is pretty long and I see why. They only have 2 people working ..One taking the order and one cooking. As for the food..The poke tuna was not that good. It didn't taste fresh at all. The garlic chicken is just literally garlic and chicken.. no flavor what so ever.. and the only thing that was decent there were the garlic shrimp. Still no where comparable to the garlic shrimp trucks in North shore . I would not come back here again. read more

Just great food. No messing around. Spicy garlic shrimp is extremely good; fair warning though - it is pretty spicy. The fresh Ahi Tuna poke is OUTSTANDING. The sauce tossed over the tuna is so flavorful and goes well with rice. Everything is so fresh here. Finally, they are so friendly here. Just amazing service. There's nothing negative or even constructive to say. It is one of the best restaurant experiences I've ever had. Please give this place a try. read more

Great food at a good price. Close to Waikiki hotels. We had garlic shrimp, definitely garlicky but sautéed nicely so it wasn't too sharp. Teriyaki chicken was good but not saucy, so you might have to ask for more if you like it that way. read more

Most amazing spicy shrimp I've had!!! Best flavors cooked perfectly. I've gone to Giovanni's shrimp truck which is supposed to be the best but in my opinion this place is way better! read more

Sam's Kitchen - Best spicy shrimp - Food Stands Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

Hubby & I went there the other day for the first time and I had the small beef bowl while my hubby had the shrimp garlic plate. At first I thought that the garlic shrimp was a bit strong but it was really good! My beef bowl was reasonably priced [$5 for a small] and it was awesome and managed to fill me up. Our first experience was so good that we went back again last night for dinner. I've decided to try something different like the garlic steak plate. Was ono!!!! Looks like a hole in the wall place among the other hole in the wall places on that same street but this place was the busiest! And I understood why! Highly recommened! :-) read more

See all

They no longer have vegan options unless you get the white rice and crispy tofu. No sauce. They said none of the sauces are vegan.

this place is so good. such a great place that isn't on the strip, tastes so good. not only is the food good but the scenery is awesome with surfboards overhead. everything everyone ordered was great!! read more

Sam's Kitchen - shrip with the pineapple sause and fries - Food Stands Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

This is one of my favorite hole in the wall places slightly away from all the annoying tourist but just close enough to all the major hotels in the area. Had the spicy poke bowl today. Wow, what a kick! I could taste a hint if horseradish. Just enough to clear my sinuses, but not enough to make me cry like a baby! Onions were just right. (Just saying because I had Poke somewhere else today and they onions were overpowering) The Curry Udon. Yellow curry just perpetrates the noodles with flavor. It comes with about 3 oz of grilled chicken to make it more filling. This is an excellent lunch dish for just over $7. I recommend a side of rice with it if you need more substance. The rice goes great with the curry broth. Hmmm, Yummy in my tummy!!! I will be back again and again! Broke the bank by $17.28 includes a water bottle plus tip. read more

See all

I love this place. Local, friendly, and tasty. A definite must try when in town!! The food is amazing and tasty and the pineapple ice tea is refreshing!! read more

Sam's Kitchen - Food Stands Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

This place is super overrated. I ended up coming here several times because it was close to my hostel, but otherwise I wouldn't have gone a second time. The garlic shrimp was super greasy with microwaved frozen veggies on the side. The salad was wilted. Poke bowl is plain as helllll. The spicy poke bowl is a slight upgrade, but still, eh. Definitely not the place for poke. All dishes had WAY too much rice! I ended up throwing the rest out. read more

Sam's Kitchen - Sam's kitchen! - Food Stands Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

See all

This place is awesome. A little backstory: We tried ordering garlic shrimp at several places around the Waikiki area to be repeatedly disappointed. Desperate, we even rented a car to drive up to North Shore to try out Giovanni's - the truck closed early that day without notice, so we got garlic shrimp at one of the other still open trucks in the area - meh. We came back to the Waikiki area and decided to give it one more shot and went to Sam's Kitchen. O. M. G. Best shrimp ever! What totally sets this place apart is the fact that the shrimp is peeled (tail on) so all that delicious garlicky sauce soaks right into the juicy shrimps itself unlike other places where all the sauce gets lost once you either peel the shell or get tired biting through it. Comparable prices to other places as well - $14 per shrimp plate. We got both the garlic shrimp and spicy garlic shrimp and the spicy garlic shrimp was definitely the best!!!! It's a bit more saucey making it a perfect compliment to the surrounding rice. read more

Food is absolutely disgusting. Chicken dripping in old oil, with sauce put on top. Terrible quality could not eat any of the chicken.

We were on a hunt for the best garlic shrimp in Oahu. Sam's kitchen was just a short walk from our hotel. Honestly, we were disappointed by the raving reviews of this place. The portions are small to say the least...I ordered the spicy garlic shrimp and the steak. The steak had a weird tasting sauce on it. Kinda sour and garlicky...we were still hungry after eating here and went to search for another place to eat. read more

Sam's Kitchen - Food Stands Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

See all

After reading all the great reviews I was excited to get my hands on some garlic shrimp at Sam's. My husband and I ventured over there for dinner ordering garlic shrimp and garlic chicken. The food came out quickly and we dove in. Of the two, the shrimp was definitely better. The chicken was a little dry and just not real exciting. The shrimp was good but kinda like the chicken nothing about it really stood out to me. We both felt like the dishes could have used something else like a sauce to round it out. Without sauce the rice was just plain and didn't really do much for the dish. The meal then stayed with us for the rest of the night in the form of garlic burps. Good thing we both ate it so we could be stinky together. read more

Food was delicious! Service was great. Will be coming back here every time I visit Hawaii :)

The pineapple drink was delicious. Pretty sweet, but after walking around all day it is the refreshing drink I needed. The food on the other hand was okay. I enjoyed it, but I wouldn't say it was delicious and that I need to go back for it. I had the shrimp and chicken plate with poke. read more

Sam's Kitchen - Food Stands Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

Hospitality is 110%. Walked by as they were closing but they still to me and my gf's order. The chicken was amazing with the Mayo and hot sauce they put on it. Super moist, tender and juicy even for chicken! Anyone visiting must try this spot. read more

Very nice service a friendly gentlemen very helpful and patient. I ordered the plate with raw ahi tuna and a side of cooked ahi tuna so good very flavorful(freshly caught super fresh) I highly recommend this place, the sides were amazing as well made perfectly and very big portions. I'm happy with this place will definitely come back next trip!! read more

Absolutely fabulous. I had the garlic shrimp and my brother had the curry chicken, we both got rice and it blew us away. We were walking around and stumbled on this place, the staff are super welcoming and funny. Good food, nice portions, and cute little dining area with cool lights and music. Great place to end our stay as we ate here on our last night in town. read more

I was skeptical at first because of the location but this place is amazing! It was a three-minute walk from where I was staying, and I went there TWICE when I was in Hawaii. It's a little hole in the wall place LITERALLY. The service was amazing, and the food too. The spicy garlic shrimp was to die for, I still randomly crave it. I thought the portions were small at first, but it's very filling. The guy ringing us out gave us $1 off our pineapple ice tea, which I also thought was delicious. I liked how he put a slice on pineapple in it. It was a little pricey, but I wasn't shocked since we were in a touristy area. Also, I was like who cares I'm on vacation. read more

Sam's Kitchen - Spicy garlic shrimp w/ white rice + pineapple ice tea - Food Stands Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

See all

Super casual place. Eat outdoors and byob. Service is great. Proteins are delicious with an option of add on flavors.

Went here on the recommendation of someone and it did not disappoint! Pineapple iced tea was fantastic! We had the spicy garlic beef over mesclun greens as well as the shrimp with teriyaki. Hubby loved the shrimp and the steak was tasty and cooked exactly to my order. Will definitely come again and would highly recommend Sam's!. read more

My fiancée and I had the steak and rice. One Garlic steak and the other teriyaki. The meat was so tender and cooked to perfection! Don't let the location fool, you it was amazing! read more

We ordered the spicy and regular garlic steak. The steak was slightly over cooked and chewy, but the garlic sauce was amazing for both the dishes. And the iced tea was definitely one of the best I've had, and I lived in the South. read more

We came here during our recent trip to Honolulu. We were walking around exploring Waikiki and wanted to stop for dinner. I found Sam's Kitchen while searching trough yelp and found that it had pretty great reviews and decided to check it out! It was down an alley and had several tables to sit at. The restaurant has an interesting vibe is is pretty much just open. When we approached the restaurant the man at the front counter called out to us to come in and he would help us order! He was very personable and friendly. The menu here is super simple! You have a choice between shrimp, chicken, beef, and a fresh fish with your choice of seasonings. We had the Spicy Garlic Shrimp and Spicy Garlic Chicken. Each meal also comes with potato salad, green salad, and rice. You get a good amount of food with each plate and the spicy seasoning was delicious! read more

Spicy garlic shrimp plate was small. For $15, you get 8 shrimp and rice. At the north shore, you get 12 shrimp with rice for the same price and better flavor. This gets a 2/5 The regular garlic shrimp was good. I'd give it a 3.5/5 The teriyaki chicken was good. A little overcooked and dry but the flavor was great. This plate gets a 3.5/5 Food came fast and parking is a PITA. read more

We were just walking by and This person just greeted us and asked us if we want to eat anything. We told him we just had dinner somewhere else and he replied. It's fine no harm in learning about food. You gave insight into his menu and how we can customize it. Next day we had a dinner here and it was amazing. We had Chicken teriyaki platter and it was delicious. Host was nice and very cheerful. Food was undoubtedly worth the money. Would definitely recommend. read more

Even the side salad was amazing!! The garlic shrimp. No words. 10/10 recommend. The portions are huge, you can definitely share a plate.

The service was very nice and willing to help with the menu choices. The beef was tender garlicky and very buttery. The poke was seasoned very well , you can taste the onion and soy sauce as well as the fresh firm tender ahi laying on a bed of baby spinach. The portions are very generous def more than one person can eat. With all that savory goodness, wash it all down with a cold sip of guava juice. read more

Sam's Kitchen - Garlic beef with poke bowl - Food Stands Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

See all

Best Teriyaki Garlic Shrimp I have ever had! Accompany with Macaroni Salad My husband and I got hungry around 10pm and pretty much everything else in Waikiki (restaurant wise) is closed by that time. He decided to other to-go and WOW Best decision! Affordable and delicious above all else. I don't normally eat shrimp because some restaurant don't clean them properly or de-vein the shrimp, is which a BIG NO NO; Sam's Kitchen clearly knows how to do it the right way! Perfectly clean shrimp and flavorful. 100% recommend read more

Small little place with outdoor seating. I ordered the seafood bento box with ahi poke, spicy mayo shrimp, salmon roe, seaweed salad, and rice. I LOVEEEEEEEE ITTTT.. I had to come back a few days later just to get it again. read more

Sam's Kitchen - Food Stands Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

Amazing shrimp, steak, chicken and fish plates! Spicy and great value for the money. Will come again! read more

Sam's Kitchen - Menus - Food Stands Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

I could easily eat at Sam's once a week if I could. I usually get the spicy garlic shrimp, but added garlic steak to my order this time. They have a really good plantation iced tea that is free if you check in! read more

Sam's Kitchen - Food Stands Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

Ordered spicy garlic shrimp. Absolutely amazing. And the owner was so nice and accommodating. read more

Sam's Kitchen - Spicy garlic shrimp and pineapple tea :) - Food Stands Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

This was the first spot we ate at after landing on the island, we liked it so much we came back another two times. I ordered the Teri Moco and really enjoyed the fully-seasoned meat patty, the egg on top is cooked over easy, of course... I would've liked my eggs less runny but it appears most Hawaiian places cook their eggs this way by default without giving you an option- no biggie. The curry udon w/ chicken was good too. Another time we tried their garlic shrimp and boy, was it soft and PERFECT!! Not an overabundance of garlic but actually pretty subtle. The first time we arrived at Sam's, it had already started raining, we quickly found refuge under a sturdy wood-like umbrella, the guy working at Sam's threw in free drinks because of the rain, it was a gesture of appreciation for coming out in the wet weather ..thought that was an extremely nice gesture and left a lasting impression on me. Rain or no rain, the music is always playing and there's always a happy vibe here. Sam's instantly became our go-to place! What makes this place even cooler is the fact that the two people working behind the counter are also from San Diego :) read more

See all