Outstanding afternoon tea bested only by that of Mugen at the Espacio Waikiki. Note: This is a review of the holiday tea service that bundled a glass of champagne with the standard afternoon tea The champagne can be added for a $64/glass supplement to the regular service. The ambiance, stunning. Tucked within the grand lobby of The Kahala Hotel with its timeless elegance. The service, friendly but professional. The servers know the teas available and can describe their flavors very well. Very good selection of high end teas including one created exclusively for The Kahala to celebrate their 60th anniversary. Each guest selects their own. The thick glass pot retains heat well. Refills of hot water also help. All is not perfect. The food needs work. Savory items are well thought out and flavorful but the exposed bread on both the tomato mozzarella and turkey salad finger sandwiches was dry from the AC. Aside from the excellent scones, sweets are laughable, literally. From crepes so rubbery, cutting it with a fork makes all the crème filling ooze out to a bizarre rubber gelatin haupia in a chocolate tart or a wet (supposedly from the humidity) madeleine. It's fun watching each other's expressions sampling a bite of this and that. All good, no one is hungry after the three scones each and finger sandwiches. A bigger problem, they are taking too many reservations for each seating. They do not have enough towers for the food as a result some guests are being served scones before receiving their tower and plates are overloaded with items barely staying on them. Positives outweigh negatives and when it comes to tea, conversation is more important than food. read more

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Staying at the hotel and wanted to have a nice cocktail on the veranda. It was very disorganized (they gave us the wrong menus). Ordered cocktails and they were horrible. On par with drinks at the comedy club... Not sure if they had a bartender or if it was just someone doing it for the first time. I had maybe 1/4 of the drink (famous award winning mai tai) and broke out in hives, my partner worked hard to finish 1/3 of her drink (Black diamond - which was basically a marg). How can you mess up a marg?? Do not order drinks here. EDIT: Food and beverage called me after my review and was gracious and open to feedback. It sounds like the restaurant is going through a revamp and it was a soft opening for hotel guests and still needs fine tuning. Upgrading experience from 1/5 to 3/5 for post-review conversation with manager read more

"Well, I have lost complete control of my staff. Why did I let George go to that party? I mean, we were having so much fun. We were wining, we were dining, we were dancing..." - Elaine Benes, Seinfeld A very disappointing night is the understatement of 2025, thank goodness it's behind us. We've traveled enough to "roll with it" and pivot. But there's not much runway @10:45 on New Year's Eve. da Scene: several weeks ago I did some research on where to spend NYE in Waikiki and made reservations at the Veranda for 10:45pm. We anticipated having a couple rounds of drinks with appetizers and then a bottle of champagne at midnight. That SO DID NOT HAPPEN. da Grub & Libations: grub... None to speak of! Nevermind that the Kahala Hotel/Veranda website states: "late-night snacks until 11:45" and similarly the Open Table booking stated: "...only the Kahala Favorites menu will be served New Year's Eve". Nope no food available. We had a marginal Rob Roy, glass of Prosecco and pot of tea; pretty SAD. da Service: the Valet crew were GREAT, personable; white glove service!! Everything you expect from the Kahala... but it ended there: Hostess did not appear for close to 5 min. but did give us a choice of back table next to the Christmas Tree where everyone was taking pics or front and center to the performers, which would've been loud. We opt for the back table so we can talk and after a short time the waiter came by; we give him our drink order and he started to clear the plates and service items stating "You won't need these"; I retort "what do you mean?" He hurriedly says "there is no food service, just drinks" turns and walks away while we sit STUNNED looking at each other . A different waitress comes by to confirm our drinks, practically tossing water glasses loudly on to the table, and curtly leaves. They clearly are not regular staff; they just didn't have the level of hospitality training expected at the Kahala. We decided to have our one round of drinks and head back to Embassy Suites on Beachwalk. Never saw the male server again... Took awhile but got the check, paid cash and got the heck outta dere. We grabbed a bottle of champagne at the ABC on Lewers and headed back to the Embassy Suites on Beachwalk to watch the fireworks... Attached are pics of both the hotel website and Open Table details, clearly someone made a decision to change things and we got completely scr@wed! 10 more days left on our trip and we'll enjoy it... good thing we had awesome kim chi and and jap chae in Manoa before heading to the Veranda; but the sting of this one is gonna last, won't be checking out tasting menus or any other dining venues here for awhile. Management... right the ship, word travels fast. read more

The Veranda - Hotel website... NO late-night snacks to be had. - Wine Bars Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

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I came here for afternoon tea, which is offered every Saturday. The service was good--we were seated immediately since we had a reservation, and the staff took the time to introduce us to the different tea options. We visited during the holiday season and really enjoyed the festive décor, which created a lovely and cozy atmosphere and definitely enhanced the overall experience. Afternoon tea is $80 per person and includes your choice of tea (with an extra charge for certain selections), finger sandwiches, scones, and pastries. Unfortunately, nothing really stood out flavor-wise except for the egg salad sandwich with truffle, which was enjoyable. The smoked fish sandwich was overly fishy, and the green tea mille crepe cake was dominated by cream with little to no green tea flavor coming through. I did, however, enjoy the Lā'ie vanilla bean mousse with guava coulis, which was well-balanced and flavorful. For the price, I expected more depth and balance in the flavors, as well as all tea options to be included rather than requiring an upcharge. One positive note is that they offer free self-parking or valet with validation, which is definitely a plus. read more

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Swaying palms, Hawaiian sands, rolling pacific waves and dolphin views. Pretty sure there isn't any more that vacation me needs. Oh, a glass of wine. But I have now remedied that. Ahhhh. This lovely lobby area restaurant at the Kahala is dreamy and delicious all at once. Fresh fish and fresh air. Now maybe I just need a second glass of wine..... read more

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We arrived at The Veranda with a group of 20 for a birthday party happy hour. The reservations were made well in advance and the food was all pre-ordered. Everyone had a wonderful time; the setting was beautiful, and the overall event was quite memorable. The kitchen and food service were excellent, the many dishes came out at a nice pace and the food was delicious. An awkward part of the evening was the table arrangement. I was one of the first to arrive and found that the tables reserved for the party were all spread out as individual separate tables. We mentioned that we wanted to sit together, but they said they weren't able to push tables together. So, we sat in a different table to wait and see. Eventually the staff pushed a few tables together, but not all of them. As guests arrived, they quickly filled the one large table and then started adding chairs to squeeze in more people. The staff eventually made the table longer, and then longer again. I thought that was pretty awkward and not what you'd expect for such an elegant setting. Another awkward part of the evening is that both times when I was ready to order a drink, I had to walk to our server while she was standing in the kitchen talking. I swear I wasn't being impatient. She had already walked through the room several times and clearly gave the impression she was not going to come to our table to take our order. And in fact, for the rest of the evening, she never did ask me if I wanted anything. I think she is actually an experienced waitress, and maybe that evening somebody else was supposed to wait tables and she only going to serve the large party. However, my friend and I were part of the large party and we said so, we just happened to be the first to arrive. read more

The Veranda - Mermaid mule and Lychee spritz cocktails - Wine Bars Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

Afternoon Tea at The Veranda was a high tea experience at a 5* hotel. Only offered on Saturday afternoons, it is a nice get away from the city and enjoy the ocean views at Kahala. As expected, customer service was spectacular. You are allowed to choose 2 custom blend teas per person; they provide dry leaves for you to sample and smell before choosing. The plated desserts and savories were okay, definitely better than most in terms of flavor profile and balancing. The waiter will take a beautiful picture for you on your phone, which was a nice memorabilia of your time here. You will be full after this high tea experience, as I ended up taking items home because there was so much. I think the price point of $80 plus service charge was high for what you get. The teas are nice but nothing above what you can get from a tea shop and I have similar sentiments about the plated finger foods. I don't regret going to this experience, but as someone who have gone to other high teas, it would be a place you would go once but not return for. I'm interested in dining in though and trying things from the restaurant instead. read more

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Took my mother and brother there to listen to John Valentine, one of my mother's long time favorite Hawaiian Singers: *Cool venue, very airy and open *In the evenings, I recommend a light jacket as because the Veranda is an open space, that space acts like a wind tunnel. The Veranda could also be used for wind surfing, NASA Astronaut Training, Space X training. *Food is only average - I would recommend pupus (Kahala's signature musubi). I would not recommend the $54 Truffle Fries - very greasy and just a poorly designed dish as they shave black truffles over a mountain of french fries. When the fries cool down...ugh. *Seafood tower is way overpriced - crab legs and cooked shrimp is more fitting for a Red Lobster than a 5 star hotel. However, the service was 5 plus stars! Very attentive and all of the servers provide exceptional service as they never walk the floor without picking up a used dish, filling water, changing napkins. read more

Our waitress was very pleasant and she was attentive. Nice outdoor setting at the Kahala Hotel Breezy but at the same time, humidity also hit. What do we expect from our beautiful Hawaii weather? Food was meh. The mini sandwiches were not flavorful, the bread were a little dry. I think the best part of the food was the scone. Everything else was okay. It was a bit overpriced for what you get but hey, we are here for experience. If I could remember correctly, I think it was 11 items plus tea for $80 plus tax and tip. There were six of us so 20% tip was automatically added. They have many selections of teas, I picked the Sencha which is actually delicious. I love green tea. read more

The Veranda - Food selection - Wine Bars Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

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First time having high tea at the veranda. You are in an open restaurant so keep that mind if it's a hot and humid day. Luckily we had a nice breeze. High tea was $80 per person but keep in mind they charge you $80 for no shows. Service was very good and they explained the teas and food well. There was a combo of savory finger foods and sweets. I've done high teas overseas and I was a bit disappointed with the savory food. The truffle egg sandwiches were good but we had leftovers of the tuna that no one took home. Probably the scones were the best with the different fillings. The deserts were good with a nice variety but extremely sweet. We had lots to take home since they still provided us the food and tea for the no show. The experience itself was very nice because I came here with friends for a special occasion but I probably would not come back for high tea. I buy a lot of teas traveling the world for work. Although I'm not a tea connoisseur, I just couldn't tell how the tea at the Veranda was better than others I've had. I've been to the Plumeria Beach house for breakfast at the hotel and that was nice with yummy food. I'll stick to that. read more

The Veranda - Wine Bars Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

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High Tea on the veranda is one of my grandmas favorite activities. There have been a few more 'high tea' options popping up around Oahu but nothing compares to the experience at the Kahala Veranda. It's a flat rate - The tea selection is excellent. We love the preparation of the assortment of treats they provide as well. The only issue my grandma has with the food is that there are not enough vegetarian options (she prefers it all vegetarian). But we adjusted, she had all the veggies and I ate the items with meat. Our favorite pastries they offer are the eclairs! The ambiance is relaxing. The high ceilings and open space are very welcoming to sit back and relax in the lounge chairs. Afterwards, we always go for a walk to see the fish pond, dolphins, and orchid wall. It's a very pleasant experience. read more

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This is a beautiful restaurant. The Afternoon tea seats 4, I made a reservation for 8 and was told we would be at two different tables. I was pleasantly surprised to see one big table instead. Everything was so nicely decorated. Our server had us smell all of the teas. This was a nice touch, but there's about 12 different teas and I had no idea what I was really smelling. The tea I got was really good and I liked the sugar sticks, that's a cute idea. My tea cup was a bit dirty, I don't know if it was stained or dirty but I did get another one so check your cups. The food came and I just want to preface this with saying, I've been to a lot of Afternoon teas and also hosted my own. This was average at best. The bread for most sandwiches were dry or stale, the fillings didn't do the classics or unique selections any favors, it just was mediocre. The scones and palmiers were good, but really who could mess up a scone! The desserts were ok at best. Also, I wish tea restaurants would start giving multiple plates; one for the sandwiches and one for the sweets. This place is charging $80 for tea, it's unfortunate that they aren't doing any better than the place charging $30. A bit of a letdown, but the place was again very beautiful. read more

The Veranda - Wine Bars Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

If you like high tea, check this place out. It's a little tricky since it's only certain days of the week that you can reserve. The open air concept gives a nice ambience where you are in an open air environment and feel like you're part of a beach resort. It gives a very relaxed vibe, yet still high class. The only slight issue is that guests can walk through your eating space which is a little off. Food was delicious and delicate and taste as good as it looks. The teas are original in the sense that you can't just get them anywhere, although a few other local spots have similar style/themed teas. The service was excellent and with a small dining room, they're quite attentive. Pro tip: after you finish, you should take a walk to help digest by walking around the property. Nice views and the cool breeze is a nice way to end the day. If you are near or want to be near Kahala, a place to check out. read more

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It was my anniversary so I ordered a glass of Drappier Champagne ($26) and the Caviar Service For Two ($185). There's a symbiotic relationship between Champagne and Caviar and I love both! I followed that up with another glass of Drappier, then the Venison Ragout over pappardelle ($30) with a glass of Hands of Time from Stag's Leap ($26). Wow, this was delicious and one of the best dishes I've had at The Veranda. Johnny Valentine was singing and playing guitar. Live music is one of the reasons I keep coming back to The Veranda. He's great! Profiteroles ($15) and coffee ($6) completed my meal. The recipe for profiteroles changed in the past year ... now, it's two cream-filled balls that look like gin dui / andagi and a scoop of ice cream. I think I prefer the ice-cream filled puff pastry with chocolate sauce of years past. This was an expensive meal ($399); ironically, it's usually my most expensive meal at The Kahala each year. It's my "need" for caviar! read more

The food is great. Everything about is perfect for including the ambience. The only thing that could improve is the service since it's a bit slow but overall it's worth a try! read more

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We question the auto-gratuity on a large party. We had a table of 7, split into 3 separate tabs. Upon receiving the bill, we were hit with a 19% auto-gratuity added to the tab. While the food and beverages were fantastic, the service wasn't exemplary, largely because the servers seemed overwhelmed. Regardless, our tip should be based on the quality of service, thereby motivating the server to be more attentive. After all, "TIP' is an acronym for "To Ensure Promptness," and our server had no extra incentive to do so, because he knew he was getting tipped 19% regardless. It stands to reason that tips should be at the discretion of the customer -- especially when a large party is already spending hundreds of dollars -- and it states on the receipt that "a tip would be greatly appreciated." read more

The Veranda - Receipt - Wine Bars Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

We met a wonderful gal who served our dinner at the Veranda. Very bright and knowledgeable about the menu. We tried the Ahi Poke Musubi and I was determined to make it at home when I return. Thank you for the recommendation, Ms. Celiz! The Auction Seafood Tower (sm) is enough to feed the two of us. It is accompanied by an array of enticing sauces. Overall, we truly enjoyed dining at the Veranda during our short stay. read more

We enjoy coming to the Veranda. It was our first time back since pre-COVID. We love the ambiance, the live music, the drink selection, and the good food! It always gives us a great night out! read more

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If you need help finding a venue to celebrate something special, look no further. Such a classy place with incredible ocean views! Their lanai overlooks the dolphin swim area, the hotel pool, and breathtaking beachfront. On June 23rd last year, I had a near-death experience. Stuff like that makes you open your eyes and see what truly matters. That learning experience I encountered is reason enough to celebrate life. So thank you everyone at Veranda for making my celebration today a memorable one! The food was delicious, the service was fantastic, and the atmosphere was so peaceful and relaxing. We loved the cool breeze and sitting on the lanai, just admiring the many shades of beautiful blue ocean. The lobster eggs Benedict was such a treat! Generous sized lobster and perfectly poached eggs on top of a taro muffin. The hollandaise sauce had a hint of tropical citrus, what a lovely local flavor! We also had the mochi waffles. Loved the outer crunch and fluffy insides! This was perfect with butter and powdered sugar, didn't even need the syrup. Thank you again, this meal was delightful! read more

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We were greeted by a cordial hostess and felt comfortable and welcomed. A harried waitress approached us with the tea selection strongly suggesting the house blend. Both of us passed on it and wanted another choice and again was given another suggestion, allowing us to smell the fragrance. At that point I felt a little pressure to choose the second suggestion because I felt that the waitress was a little pushy and wanted a choice made quickly. I would have preferred that we were asked about our tea preferences and then the waitress could suggest from the teas in the box. I have a feeling that she didn't understand the nuances of the different teas. We anticipated a relaxing afternoon sipping tea and munching leisurely , but that was not the case. There was a lot of actively with staff members setting up a buffet station on the lanai, walking hurriedly past our table , opening and closing the sliding doors. The breeze was refreshing but so strong at times that it blew out hair. As for the food, all tasty but The scones were not warm, the whole wheat finger sandwich bread had a dry crumb from being made too far in advance. The sandwich with tomato and cheese had no flavor, needing possibly a pesto. Because we were in the path of a strong breeze, our tea pot cooled rapidly. Wanting a refill of hot water, there was no one I could ask. I finally flagged down a passing staff member helping with the lanai buffet and asked him to notify our waitress that we needed service. It was at least, 10 minutes before the waitress arrived to our table when I could ask for a hot water refill. During our whole time there, we were never offered ice water refill also. Service was definitely lacking. read more

I had the $50 Classic Tea Service with a few of the other female Yelpers. My experience here was a good one. The food was good and so was the service. It came with the tea of your choice: Kahala Signature Blend, Singbulli Estate Darjeeling, Earl Grey, English Breakfast, Jasmine Pearls, Formosa Oolong, Sencha, White Rose, Sunny Meadow, Vanilla Roobois, Chamomile. I ordered the White Rose, but was disappointed. It didn't have a rose scent or flavor. There were seven of us dining, so we each ordered a different tea to sample. I liked the Sunny Meadow the best out of the seven that we tried. There were four sweet treats: Passion Fruit Raspberry Tart, Toasted Coconut Macaroon, Vanilla Pate A Choux, Chocolate Decadence Cake. This also came with scones with clotted cream and preserves. There were also four savory sandwiches: Provence Style Roast Chicken Tea Sandwich, Herbed Radish & Cucumber Tea Sandwich, Proscuitto Parmesan Aioli & Arugula Sandwich, Smoked Salmon On Pumpernickel Tea Sandwich. I'm a savory person, so I liked the sandwiches more than the sweets. The price was steep for 10 pieces of finger food and tea. I did leave full, but was expecting a little more food. However, I get it. You're paying for the ambiance, service, and location; which was all great. read more

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$50 for Classic Tea Service at The Veranda inside of the Kahala Resort & Hotel. Ahh, the Kahala. Its exclusive setting and luxurious amenities always makes it a treat to visit. Folks, this is what you're paying for. The ambiance. The name. The chance to rub elbows with the rich and famous. Or simply, the opportunity to raise your pinkies up like royalty over a cup of tea and a few nibbles of crust-free, bite-sized sandwiches and scones. Overall, it just didn't satisfy my appetite. The tea service was just not quite worth the $50 price tag, considering the additional service charge plus automatic gratuity of 18%, since our party was more than 6 people. I couldn't help to compare it to the Afternoon Tea & Lunch service I experienced at Vintage Cave Cafe in Ala Moana Center for $18. Now that was an excellent value! The tea selection here at the Veranda offered a nice variety of 11 options. So, between our party of 7, I think we were able to try six different flavors. Where I believe the tea service felt short was in the offerings of the Savory selections. There were four teeny tiny sandwiches that left us wanting more. It was such a tease! Wish they were more substantial! Instead, we only had the Sweet Treats remaining on the tiered platter which were actually large in comparison to the sandwiches. I ended up packing all of the sweets to go, and honestly, craving for a McDonald's cheeseburger. I will say the reusable tote they packed my goodies in was very nice though. Thank you! If I were to come back, I'd put my money towards the Light Lunch Menu and an umbrella cocktail from 2:00pm - 5:30pm. read more

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Good place for nice ambiance, drinks, hor d'ouevres and live music sometimes. Appropriate covid measures were followed. They had valet service for the hotel. There's indoor and outdoor seating. Got the Brussel sprouts, bruschetta, salmon and the bucatini. Everything was pretty good, nothing extraordinary. Cocktails are pretty good too. Nothing in the menu for kids. Overall average experience, not truly worth the money. You can go check out the dolphins during the day time. read more

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AFTERNOON TEA AT KAHALA MANDARIN's, THE VERANDA Ever since MW Restaurant ceased to offer their popular afternoon tea service, I'd been searching in earnest for it's replacement. I attended or planned more than several parties there of different sizes and never felt disappointed but then for some reason, I didn't go as often. So I am ruined and it's all my fault :( Now that this very special tea is gone, I realize exactly how my expectations were enlightened by a such a simple thing as a delightful MW afternoon tea. MW's version of afternoon tea was to tantalize tease and fill not just my tummy but also my eyes. Every detail was meticulously cared for with tender love. Tastes of the different items were unique. You never knew exactly how fascinated you would feel until the morsel hit your tongue. The total number of morsels were so pleasingly filling that you left entirely satisfied and mesmerized. It was an event one should not have missed. Well, sometimes life brings you change that you just cannot fathom. That's what I felt when perusing the various reviews and photos other Yeeps had taken the time to document just how different this Veranda tea had become. The price increased significantly, portions got smaller, and the number of sandwiches reduced. I thought there must be a good reason for the changes and that somehow it all worked out in the end. I told myself to give it a try. What a mistake. There are many tea flavor choices. Scott our server we discovered was very knowledgeable about the various tea combinations and flavors. I was so impressed! I settled on a scrumptious vanilla tea that was so good I just wanted to keep drinking it. The hot water poured into my teapot was always the perfect temperature. And Scott's service and the staff who assisted his efforts rivaled the best. Our tea service included sweet and savory food bites however there just were so many sweets both at top of the tiered rack (scones) and below our sandwiches (chocolates, cookies) that I just ended up not eating most of them. As for the sandwiches, all 4 per person put together could have made one regular sized sandwich :( And for sure, it took meticulous care to fill these sandwiches with the thinnest of every ingredient possible. Having hardly anything to taste is the reason I gave this tea 1 star. My tummy was not happy and my eyes finally witnessed what I saw in those sad Yelp photos. Finally, cost of this tea service was $50 plus tax and an automatic 18% tip for our party of 7, a step up from the $40 it once was that had once earned this tea higher 4- and even 5-star ratings. Those reviews that elevated this tea should be removed! I somehow fooled myself to believe the additional $10 was really going to provide more, that the 4 sandwiches we each got would really be much more than the equivalent of ONE usual-sized sandwich. Dainty and feminine - or not - afternoon teas are supposed to be, I don't believe the intention of a tea is just to eat bread when there are sandwich fillings involved. I was not as disappointed in this tea as I was in the decision to make it this way. Especially more so when our tiered tray plus tea was $50 per person which came to $200 for 4 tea services on our half of the table. For that amount, I would have been better served by ONE very expensive $20 plate lunch and lots of cash to spare!! And so you see, this is why the former MW Restaurant afternoon tea has forever ruined my idea of what a delightful afternoon tea should be. Next time I should be more careful to be at the MW tea every single Sunday or at least once a month! Even more importantly, in the future I need to believe Yelp reviews! They exist for good reason! :P read more

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We dined at The Veranda twice during our stay. The first time, we had afternoon tea. Since it was October and in honor of breast cancer awareness month, they had special "pink-themed" cakes (Raspberry Macarons, Guava Red Velvet Cupcakes, Pink Truffles, White Chocolate Tartlettes) paired with their DELICIOUS tea sandwiches (PROVENCE STYLE ROAST CHICKEN, PROSCUITTO, PARMESAN AIOLI & ARUGULA, HERBED RADISH CUCUMBER RADISH, SMOKED SALMON ON PUMPERNICKEL). For tea, I tried the Kahala Signature tea (black tea blended with lemon peel, lemon myrtle, dried fruit, hibiscus, and marigold petals) and I hated it. The guy working was really understanding and swapped it out for me. I'm sure the signature tea is fine, but I'm generally a more herbal/black tea person. The second time we came, we enjoyed a light dinner and the live music (pianist). We had shrimp cocktail - standard, no complaints as well as the Ahi Dip was SO tasty because of the AMAZING house made furikake rice crackers! read more

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We love this place. Been going for years. Wonderful service. Food quality is very good. Why cut the menu in half? Ridiculous. Obviously Mgmt want guests to go to full service restaurants, so they made eating at The Veranda less attractive. People are drawn to the ambience of the place, plus music, great service and decent food. The music hours are limited, the place closes early and now food selection is incredibly limited. It boggles the mind that Hotel Mgmt actively seeks to make one of their venues less attractive. Congrats. You did it. By the way, the two 25+yr old speakers at The Veranda (only one of which works) need to be replaced. read more

Simply perfect. Let me count the ways I love this spot! I love that it's just open and relaxing. I can see the sun setting, order a great drink for pau hana, and some neat menu items not typically on menus all while listening to Johnny Valentine. Who could ask for more?! Deviled eggs are amazing, tako sargot is like eating the smell of the ocean. Gwen was awesome. Valet parking was awesome. Feels like a world away here. Like a slow, perfect paradise within a paradise. read more

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Great afternoon tea. We were so fortunate to have a day with perfect weather. We arrived a little early so we were able to enjoy the view of the ocean and the dolphin cove from the balcony. You start off with a perfectly appointed room with exquisitely set tables. We were given a choice of sofas and chairs for a party of three. Staff was gracious and welcoming from the start. Loved the sharing of small samples of tea to enhance the selection process. Staff was knowledgable and friendly. They accommodated my daughter-in-law who preferred cold milk tea. There was a wedding shower going on while we were there and a family with a little elementary-school-aged girl; so they can handle a variety of guests. The tables are separate enough so you can enjoy a nice private conversation. Price is not going to be the least expensive you'll find but if you want a first class experience with an excellent selection of food and teas this place doesn't disappoint. Much more food than I've had at other restaurants. We packed most of our sweets to take home. In parting, staff invited us to spend more time on the property - beach and dolphin cove. Valet parking is validated and always very efficient. read more

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Afternoon Tea at the Kahala Hotel & Resort in Honolulu... In the first place... What is a Veranda??? It's a porch... a lanai (in Hawaiian language)... a covered area outside and attached to a house. So, I shouldn't have been surprised that we had Afternoon Tea in an open air setting. However, on a humid day in June at 2pm, it's a bit warm. My friends and I arrived early and I chose a seat closest to the air conditioned lobby, facing the ocean. The staff kept the glass door to the "outside" seating open so there was a cross breeze. We agreed that it's better to have our napkins blowing around in the soft wind as opposed to a stagnant heated environment. I laughed as a bird walked under our table and between my friend's feet... yeah... haha! The good thing about the parking here is that four hours are free with validation. Instead of paying $48, we pushed the button on the machine at the exit and the gate lifted to let us out of the garage. We were lucky to get one of the limited stalls there. If we had come later, we would have had to use the valet. It's still free, but I'd rather not let a stranger drive my car and have to tip him/her... Scott was our patient and organized server. He answered every question that the seven of us threw at him. He explained that we could split the bill with three credit cards. He described the different Tea Services, their options, and the flavors of each tea. Good job! Other reviews mentioned that the quantity didn't seem to match the $50 price tag (plus tax and 18 percent gratuity) for the Classic Tea Service. It came with two scones (cranberry and chocolate), four sandwiches (salmon, chicken, prosciutto, and cucumber), four sweets (cream puff, chocolate cake, raspberry passionfruit tart, and coconut macaroon), and a refillable pot of tea. (I got the Kahala Signature Blend which was on the tart side. It was recommended to not add milk because it would curdle. I added one packet of brown sugar to each cup of tea.) I thought that the quantity was satisfactory! I even took leftovers home in a cute turquoise colored bag! I liked everything - the dishes, the presentation, and the variety! For example, I enjoyed the caramelized, slightly crisp layer on top of the moist scones! I appreciated the toasted bread that the salmon and prosciutto covered. The crust of the lilikoi tart was delicate and not soggy! The coconut macaroon wasn't too sweet! Yum! If I were in the area again, maybe I'd get something off of the lunch menu or have some appetizers there. The Afternoon Tea could be a repeat for me if I had the same fun company and great conversation again! read more

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I love coming here for afternoon tea when I meet up with friends. For two reasons: 1. The View: the patio seating is a fabulous experience. You get to see the ocean and dolphins at the same time. 2. It's in a quiet area at the end of Kahala Ave. no hustle and bustle of tourists. It kind of feels like I'm on a mini vacation for a couple hours. I just find it very peaceful. This is the first time we ordered one Classic Tea Service for two people. It was the perfect amount. I know myself I prefer the savory over the desserts. So this time I asked for extra sandwiches instead of two desserts. The Classic Tea Service includes two scones, four savory sandwiches, four desserts. So for ours I asked if I could change my have to two extra sandwiches instead of the desserts and they said they could. Just the right amount of food. Thanks for a great experience every time I come in!! read more

The Veranda - 1 Classic Tea Service for one and shared it. - Wine Bars Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

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Looking for high noon tea. "Meal between lunch and dinner" As you pull into the Kahala Hotel there is a nice big open turn around area but just drive straight to the valet. We are always greeted with Aloha and a great smile from the valet. The tables are located on the veranda over looking picturesque ocean views. Usually nice and breezy. Tables have some sofas but most are a wide comfortable wicker chair with pillows for comfort. You get exactly what afternoon tea is here for a good price. "Afternoon tea is a light meal composed of three course of tea sandwiches and savories, followed by scones with clotted cream and jam, and ending with sweet pastries. Everything is bite-sized." Oh and I don't know what kind of jam it was but I couldn't stop eating it. Maybe lilikoi? My favorite tea is the whit peach and African tea. Nice flavors. Classic tea $35 per person Another tea package $55 per person (more food) read more

The Veranda - Wine Bars Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

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Went on a staycation this past weekend, stayed at the Kahala. Didnt really want to go into waikiki at the moment so we just dined at one of the restaurants at the hotel. The Veranda was the only restaurant that we never tried yet at the Kahala. We rsvp'd early for friday night because they had live music. It was vey relaxing! The food was good as well, everything tasted fresh. The drinks were blended well, and the beers were nice and cold! read more

The Veranda - Wine Bars Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

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The Veranda at the Kahala is swanky place to spend an evening. We sipped a nice selection of cocktails and savored several shared plates including the venison tartare, truffled deviled eggs, the charcuterie and cheese board, and the seafood tower. All this we enjoyed with impeccable service (thank you Les!) and while listening to the sounds of the best kept secret in Hawaii, Johnny Valentine! I really enjoyed his range that included Kalapana, Carole King, John Cruz, Bruno Mars, Tom Jones, and Prince! read more

The Veranda - Wine Bars Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

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Regardless that I'm not really a "tea person," this tea room really surprised me with the experience I had for afternoon tea. A friend and I were wanting to plan an upscale lady's afternoon out, and she suggested The Veranda as our spot. I arrived early because after 3 years I still can't accurately anticipate traffic patterns, so I gave my keys to the valet and made my way to the overlook. From the entryway, you can see the dolphin area, the sea turtle exhibit, and the entire beachfront. Quite lovely. Once my friend arrived, we were the first ones to the tea area so we had our pick of the seating options. We chose the one directly in the middle looking out towards the beach, but still inside to keep us slightly protected from the weather. We opted for the mid level Classic tea, which was 4 sandwiches and 4 desserts each, along with scones and tea ($50/pp). The tea itself was lovely, lots of different ones to choose from for every palate but we both ordered the White Rose which was delicious. The scones came with clotted creme and a ginger fruit spread which was very nice. For sandwiches, we mostly favored the chicken salad one, and for desserts we both raved over the creme puff. Service was fine, we did have to flag down our server a few times for more hot water which was a little lagging, and she didn't know the menu at all despite telling us she had been working there a long time. Overall, lovely afternoon experience for those looking for something out of the ordinary and outside the hustle and bustle of downtown. read more

The Veranda - Tea room all to ourselves - Wine Bars Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

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I came to the Kahala Hotel with a friend to enjoy their tea service. I have very mixed feelings about the Veranda tea experience..... First of all, the service is impeccable and the setting is very relaxing. We get 4 hours of free parking with validation, so we also had time to walk around the beautiful grounds of the hotel and see the salt water ponds and the dolphins. The tea I chose was the lilikoi cacao, which I enjoyed so much that I purchased a canister from the gift shop so I could enjoy it at home. Ok, here comes the part I didn't like.... the actual food served was a disappointment to me. The sandwiches had very nice, tasty ingredients but the bread was a bit stale, as if it wasn't very fresh. It was dry and I didn't enjoy the texture. The scones were also dry and we received 2 tiny scones and 1 palmier, and another pastry. The scones were dry and definitely not freshly baked. I wish they'd only served scones instead of additional sweets, since they had a complete tier of desserts. The sweet desserts were ok, not exceptional. They were fine and not dry like everything else, but I feel that there were too many sweets and not enough savory items to balance our tea experience. Right now tea is prepaid only, 60.00 per person plus a 20.00 service fee. That is well over a 20% tip but we also have no choice in that *shrug*. Overall, we had a nice experience but the food definitely could have been better. I did love the tea, but would I go back solely for that? I don't think so. read more

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A lovely experience, the food left me wanting. Overall, the sandwiches were pretty flavorless. I would say the curried chicken was the best of the savory. The eclair, crepe cake were top of the desserts. Scones w lemon curd and clotted creme were yummy. Staff was great. The ambiance was open air and chandeliers. Great conversation at a leisurely pace.....don't come hungry or you will have to eat right after lol! read more

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Continuing with my quest to try all the Tea services on Oahu...next was the Veranda at the Kahala Hilton. Valet or self park avail. Tea is served to the right of lobby entrance. Ppl do walk through which is a bit different. Maybe rope off for more tranquility? Nevertheless, it was still very nice. Sage green Wedgewood china and a nice selection of teas. Was hoping to try the healthy caffeine free mamaki but it was not avail. We tried the Hukilau & the Lilikoi cacao. Hukilau had a fruity essence heightened with the slightest touch of milk & sugar ( a few swirls of their pretty sugar stick did the trick) I don't usually add milk or sugar but this was nice. The Lilikoi cacao had a nice chocolate fragrance yet you don't really taste the chocolate so it doesn't interfere with your savory bites or desserts. BTW they DO sell these two flavors of tea in their gift shop ($36USD) which I did pick up so my tea loving GF could try some too. The 2nd cannister is for me so I can recreate this lovely tea at home! Maybe when I bake my scones! Savory bites included: egg salad w/radish & caviar, smoked fish baguette, curried chicken & Green apples, Cucumber, dill, wth whipped butter. The sweets included: asstd scones, pot De Creme, choc. Eclair, green tea mille crepe, Madeleine, coconut palmier. Tea was very nice, pots kept filled and hot. Such a relaxing, pampering day to de-stress your mind, play tourist and enjoy the beautiful day! So lucky to live in Hawaii! Trying to enjoy more of this lovely island! A Rainbow slice of anniversary cake! How sweet! Planning to return for brunch at Plumeria Cafe, dinner or Sun brunch at Hokus restaurant and maybe some small plates on the balcony outside the Veranda ( overlooking the dolphins). Isn't that a great way to unwind at the end of a day? Took a walk after the tea. Tour the beautiful grounds, watched them care and feed the cute dolphins, pics by the waterfall...nice! read more

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Just a quick update here, FPO and I went back to The Veranda for her birthday. We wanted good food and live music in a laid back atmosphere on a Friday night. We mostly got what what we were after. We were still walking through the entrance when we were spotted by Cenisaliza, our server from our last visit and she greeted us like a long lost old friends. For us The Veranda is for special occasions. Our previous visit was six months earlier and Cenisaliza remembered us well enough to speak to what we ate the last time we were there. That's when you know you've found something special. We stuck to pupu style again with the Ahi Dip and Poke Musubi but added the Wafu Style New York Striploin (served family style for sharing) along with a bottle of wine. The food and wine were exquisite. The service unparalleled. What we heard of the music was as nice as we remembered. I mentioned earlier that we mostly got what we wanted. This is because this particular Friday was the Friday the 13th of that massive rain storm and flash flood that wreaked havoc on East Oahu. For safety's sake the live music was cancelled and we made it an early evening. read more

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"Every nation in creation has its favourite drink France is famous for its wine, it's beer in Germany Turkey has its coffee and they serve it blacker than ink Russians go for vodka and England loves its tea Oh, the factories may be roaring With a boom-a-lacka, zoom-a-lacka, wee But there isn't any roar when the clock strikes four Everything stops for tea It's a very good English custom Though the weather be cold or hot When you need a little pick-up, you'll find a little tea cup Will always hit the spot" -"Everything Stops For Tea"- Composed by Sigler, Goodheart and Hoffman, 1935 Recently, we were invited to celebrate 2 special friends' birthdays at The Kahala's The Veranda. The Veranda is located just off to the right of the lobby and features a contemporary alfresco lounge space. The Kahala (formerly The Kahala Hilton and Kahala Mandarin) holds many special memories for my husband and I so we jumped at the opportunity of sharing in the festivities. The coordinator of our group sent out menus for the Afternoon Tea Service, directions to the hotel and self or valet parking options. Parking is fully validated but with valet service, don't forget to tip. We all arrived early enough to enjoy the beautiful Hawaiian weather and outdoor alfresco dining views overlooking Kahala's famous beach, pool and Dolphin Lagoon. We had previously perused the menu at home and had decided upon tea service like everyone else BUT when our server gave us the menu, we noticed lunch service. Our eyes shifted off from getting an elegant spread of savories and sweets with hot tea to a B.L.A.T. Club sandwich. May I say, "everything tastes better with bacon" as both my husband and I ordered this sandwich. The sandwich was freshly made and filled with crisp thick-cut slices of bacon, lettuce, avocado and tomato. To make a more colorful presentation, veggie chips were served instead of fries or chips. Although the sandwich was delicious, it was so filling that we both couldn't finish our sandwiches. Meanwhile, our table mates were enjoying their Afternoon Tea service as the conversations flowed. Time sped by as we didn't realize that we had stayed for several hours. Service was impeccable as one should expect at The Kahala but was not snobbish. There is a comforting and casual feeling yet somewhat posh "living room" ambiance in The Veranda. We enjoyed our afternoon with good friends in this cool, contemporary and elegant tropical beach resort'. We'll be back for more! read more

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We've been here over five times and love this place but I'm always so relaxed when I get home I never get around to writing a review! Sorry, Veranda! Went with friends for a birthday, and were seated on the lanai which was nice and cool on a humid day. We all chose tea, and the Classic tea service (savories and sweets, $60). Love that the tea china is Wedgewood, bringing an elegant authenticity to the service. Every time we come the food is a little different but always tasty. This time we got tea sandwiches and deviled eggs, in addition to scones with clotted cream and lemon curd, my favorites! Also a LOT of sweets, which we tried but couldn't finish. Our hot was filled often, as well as our water glasses. So delicious and decadent! We'll be back. Valet parking is validated, tip only. read more

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