Average food, high prices, indifferent service. Recent evening meal. We ordered 3 items. The vegetables were overcooked. The curry shrimp were pasty and the soup was pretty tasteless. We don't plan to return. read more

OMG...Yi Sing is such an amazing restaurant! I would've never tried it if not for the Hawaiian Tourist on YouTube. We tried it once and went back to celebrate my birthday! My husband and I shared the Curry Crab...simply amazing and soooooo delicious! Garlic Prawn and Chowfun added to the whole experience! Finished up with the cutest milk tea ever! We'll be back Yi Sing...thank you for your efficient and friendly service! read more

Food is mediocre and service left a lot to be said. They tell customers to leave because they do not order enough, that's very disrespectful . They don't know how many potential customers they lost. read more

From start to finish, this seemingly, hole-in-the-wall restaurant, did not disappoint. Outstanding service, and even better food! Our experience was a good one. Definitely need to return. read more

Yi Xin Cafe - Table as full as our stomachs got! - Hong Kong Style Cafe Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

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Everything we had was pretty good! I had a reservation for 2 and got seated right away. You can BYOB! The crab was a bit pricey & I've had better. It was okay though & cooked perfectly. Not overcooked. The pork cheek was surprisingly delightful with the sauce & lettuce. The green beans were nice & crispy with a lot of flavor. The beef chow fun was just alright. All in all servers were attentive & food came out quick. It's a casual place to eat at. No need to dress fancy. It's pretty well lit. There weren't too many tables & I'm not sure how a big group could sit. I would like to bring the rest of the family one day. read more

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Yi Xin Cafe serves up bold and flavorful singaporean dishes. From omelets, to rice bowls, and fried chicken, each dish has a unique flavor identity and texture while enjoying how fresh tasting it is. A must try and a good place for groups. read more

4.5/5 This restaurant is pretty spacious and the interior is nice and open. The service here is quick and the staff is super friendly. We got to try most of their menu as we went as a large party. The Hong Kong Milk Tea w/ the Ice Bear was alright, definitely good for just the photo op. The Beef Omelette on Rice, Sizzling Beef, and Beef Flat Rice noodles were definitely the favorite. The wonton soup and chicken wings were alright. We also tried the baked spaghetti which was interesting. Would definitely return! read more

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Finally and my besties know... Having a Elite Event to see the Manoa Valley's Play Once Upon One Noddah Time at Kaimuki High School Auditorium and though this would be a great place to have dinner prior to the performance. Arriving early we had no problem with getting seated though Yi Xin Cafe is Hong Kong style dishes which includes spaghetti is something fun and different from the other usual dishes. Speaking of different I already knew my bestie would enjoy what I've been waiting for is the frozen bear drinks, and of course we both got it iced lemon tea for me iced milk, tea for her and as it arrived we both were just so excited how cute it was...cheers! As we took a bunch of pics of our cuties here comes our dinner Baked Meat Sauce Spaghetti for me and Tonkatsu Omelette on rice for her, as there are a lot of dishes with shrimp I'm delighted to find a bunch of dishes I'm still able to enjoy and being a tonkatsu lover my bestie just loved hers. Soft scrambled eggs of rice with a giant piece of tonkatsu drizzled in sauce was a heavenly dish that had her defeated not being able to finish it all. My spaghetti came baked and under all that cheesiness is a meat sauce that's a touch sweeter than I'm used to but it was a nice and saucy, the next time I could use some hot sauce maybe but I thoroughly enjoyed the dish. Where is that was at the front of the restaurant right beside the air conditioning vent so I was very cold as my friend didn't feel a thing. The ambience here is nice and casual. There's a service was very friendly and always kept checking up on us. This is such a cute café Which offers fun and yummy dishes. Thank you! read more

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We ordered the chicken wings with salted egg yolk sauce, it doesn't sound good however it was hands down delicious. I would definitely recommend this dish. The pot of lemon grass chicken, no thank you. Too much soy sauce, and way too many tiny chicken bones, I could barely taste the lemon grass. The beef fried rice was tasty, it's not the golden color as pictured on the menu, much darker when the brought it out. Friendly service. read more

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Service was great. The workers were attentive but not overbearing. The food was spectacular and came out so fresh! The crab curry is definitely worth the hype and I love that they give you gloves. I'll be coming back here whenever I'm visiting! read more

5 stars for the food alone! It's small and the staff is hustling but the food is outstanding. I wish we would have found this spot sooner! Would definitely recommend and return next time we are in Hawaii read more

Yi Xin Cafe - Milk tea with a frozen bear - Hong Kong Style Cafe Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

Tried this place for the first time and was not bad, although not great. That may be due to my different taste & preference. Example, for dumplings, I preferred thinner and a chewy wrapping. More importantly, contents must at least include fresh shrimp. As for beef, tender, flavorful, and not overcooked (too well done) are key factors to my liking, although not necessarily for others. Next visit, will try different dishes to see how they measure up to its many competitors. read more

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Place is very clean! Saw a YouTube video featuring this restaurant and my own personal experience TOTALLY lived up to the hype of all the food! Can't wait to go again and try some of the same things, but explore more new items as well. The Curry Crab was good; the flat bread that came with it went well with it; curry wasn't too spicy and it was nice and creamy--took home the leftover to pour over a rice dish. The salted egg yolk fried chicken--will order more next time. Chow Fun noodles with beef and sizzling beef was so delicious as well! Will be back for sure. And the Milk Tea with Teddy Bear was cute. I enjoyed the Lemonade Tea more since it was just the right amount of sweet and so refreshing to clean the palate between each dish! Service was great too! read more

Yi Xin Cafe - Curry Crab - Hong Kong Style Cafe Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

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Yi Xin Cafe is a great new place in Kapahulu. Our group was particularly excited about ordering drinks with the cute frozen bear. Me personally I was there for the food. We ordered the following dishes: Salted egg yolk fried chicken wings (4/5) this dish was served hot, crispy, and fresh. My family just loved this dish. Looking back we should've ordered 2 of this dish as there were 6 wings for 5 people. I think everyone wanted more than 1 wing. Stir fried ong choi (5/5) this dish was tasty and cooked perfectly. The ong choi was fresh and still crunchy. The garlic and chili were just the right amount and I could've eaten the entire dish myself. Beef chow fun (3/5) this dish was just ok. I liked that it came out hot and fresh. Sizzling beef (3/5) an exciting dish because it is served piping hot and bubbling on the cast iron plate. The taste was decent and the best part was it was extremely hot. Milk tea (4/5) served with & without frozen bear, this Hong Kong milk tea was not too sweet and had a good tea taste. Service was very friendly and efficient. The people that work here were so nice and welcoming. Because we came on a weekday for lunch, it wasn't too crowded. But I can see this place being crazy on a weekend. I really liked this restaurant and will definitely return the next time I'm home. LOCATION: 4/5 FOOD: 4/5 SERVICE: 4/5 VALUE: 4/5 AMBIANCE: 3/5 PET FRIENDLY: no CLEANLINESS: 4/5 PARKING: 4/5 read more

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Yi Xin is wild on weekends-located in Market City center with limited parking. Would recommend a slower weekday evening. Reservations unless you like to live on the edge. The restaurant has gone viral due to YT foodie spotlighting. The bear tea is cute but the bear is an ice cube, folks. Ok. It's a cute mascot and girls carry their teddy bears into the restaurant for kicks. Food was ok-mapo tofu watery with little flavor, bitter melon with beef could have had a bit more melon and a better grade of beef and tenderloin with black pepper was not bad but could have used less tenderizer. The touted duck egg chicken wings were interesting but not stellar...If you're going to be a hot restaurant- give us Chinese food that wows us. Of note:It's really loud when crowded - don't go on first anythings here. Can't talk. When we ordered a bear ice tea, it never arrived. So, we had to remind the server. read more

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Yi Xin Cafe is located at Market City at the intersection of Kapahulu Avenue and Kapi'olani Blvd. by Foodland. They serve tasty Hong Kong, Singapore, Thai and Malaysian dishes. While their menu is limited, they serve dishes that are not found at a typical Chinese restaurant. The prices are reasonable and our service was good. There is parking in front of the restaurant and on the backside by Ben Franklin and Fujioka's Wine. ***** Highly Recommended ***** Dish Ratings & Recommended Order: Fried chicken wings shrimp paste = A Thai style pork cheeks = A Hong Kong style garlic fried prawns =A Sizzling beef with black bean sauce =A Ong Choy with shrimp paste = B Malaysian beef fried rice = B https://yelp.to/GY9JZyfoiA https://marketcityhawaii.com/yi-xin-cafe/ read more

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Seriously, I think people are coming here for the honey bear Hong Kong milk tea. Milk tea is good but eating the honey bear was a challenge. My husband was pretty disappointed with the Won ton min though. This used to be our go to place for Won ton min when it was Anytime Cafe. On the positive note, beef chow fun and beef sizzling dish were excellent. We came here for lunch and this place was packed. I am telling you people are coming here for the honey bear drink. Good service. I will come here again for beef chow fun and sizzling beef again. read more

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Went with another couple and finally got to try the curry crab. Delicious sauce but the crab is not pre-cracked and we would not get again because of the effort and mess involved in eating it. Honey walnut shrimp was fresh and delicious and we tried Hong Kong Pork Chop Tomato rice which I often make. Would get those dishes again and next time we will try the shrimp curry rice plates to get that delicious curry. Ingredients are fresh and the service was better this time as this cute tall young man was very sweet and attentive. The others still treated us old-timers with disdain. read more

With quite a few Chinese restaurants closing in the past few years, quite a few have opened up as well. However, the ones that are closed were your Cantonese family style restaurants, and it seems like all the new/newer places lean towards Hong Kong style. Let's welcome Yi Xin Cafe! Not only serving Hong Kong Style dishes, but also Singaporean and Malaysian as well, which is all basically a melting pot of cuisines. Yi Xin Cafe has taken over the same spot as Anytime Cafe in the Market City Shopping Center--at the corner, towards where Walgreens and Fun Factory used to be. There's (tight) parking in front, and another level of parking down the ramp to Ben Franklin. Inside is quite clean and spacious. It does give me Fun Station vibes just a couple of doors down. We started with the Ong Choy with Shrimp Paste. Grandma always says you can tell how fresh and how well it's cooked based on how long the ong Choy stays green. Well, this passed the test, and it was quite delicious as well with solid shrimp paste flavor that did not overpower the dish. Next was the Salted Egg Yolk Chicken Wings. Outside was nice and crispy, but there was barely any salted egg flavor, and to add on, the inside meat had no flavor or taste. I was curious what presentation of Thai Style Pork Cheeks I would receive because the Yelp photos vary so much! Thankfully, I received one that was somewhat close to the menu photo. The pork cheek was juicy and tender. What put it over the top was the amazing char. The accompanying peanut sauce was tasty and balanced out the richness of the cheek. Next was the Hong Kong Style Garlic Stir Fried Prawns. This was very good. Shrimp was cooked very well. Firm bite with a soft shell with loads of fried garlic goodness, and a nice hint of spice from the jalapeños and dried chili pepper. The fermented black bean added a nice earthy and savory flavor. Definitely a winner! Lastly was the Beef Chow Fun. What restaurant does NOT have this dish? This had good wok heat! The chow fun was soft and tasty. It was a touch on the oily side, but most are anyway. The dish was a little short on the beef, and it was on the thicker (less tender) side. Still an overall good Beef Chow Fun. Overall, I'm an instant fan of Yi Xin Cafe after this meal. I enjoyed the atmosphere of this place as it feels bright and upbeat. The food is excellent with a nice variety of Hong Kong and Southeast Asian dishes and flavors. Service was good. Servers were friendly and attentive. Though, I found it weird why we were brought plates with JUST a fork, and had to ask for chopsticks. I noticed it wasn't just our table. Will definitely return to try more things! read more

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The food was good. It's not spicy, though. The milk tea was not as strong as I liked. The bear did not melt faster than our time eating. Do not just drop the bear in. Drink a bit first, or it overflows. The honey walnut shrimp wasn't good. Tortilla chips with it was weird. Not sweet enough. The omelette was very good. They did a great job on it. Sizzling beef was my favourite. Veggies were cooked! Pig cheeks were much better than I thought. The sauce is spicy. I didn't care for shrimp chips. The service was attentive, but for some reason, they forgot about what we ordered. There were a lot of Chinese speakers there. It wasn't busy at 6pm on a Wednesday, but by 6:30 it was busy. Before it was crowded, I liked the music. read more

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Lunch today... very good! The pork cheek was delicious, flavorful with just the right amount of fat. Salted egg chicken wings were crispy and tasty as was the garlic shrimp.service was excellent. When I asked for a refill on the tea, I made as told they charge $1 but hot water was complimentary, hummmm read more

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Sat down for a friend dinner at Yi Xin with 8 others. We were sat at the back of the rectangular oblong restaurant, near the restrooms, past the kitchen. Starting with two orders of the special salted yolk chix wings, we were pleasantly surprised how juicy, plump and tasty the wings were. It's no wonder they're a favorite. Not many more seconds from that, another order of the pork cheeks came. We wrapped the juicy glazed pork pieces in the lettuce. Like rapid fire, the bittermelon and veges, eggplant and long beans, sizzling beef with black bean sauce, and chow fun with black bean sauce came. The protein dishes were next to~ salt and pepper prawns, and salt and pepper pork chops, and walnut shrimp with potato chips. Service was great at the beginning and then the restaurant started to fill up the the waiters honn read more

This is my daughter favorite restaurant. she really loves the spaghetti and Yuntun beef noodle . my favorite food is the crab . I really love it read more

Yi Xin Cafe - Yuntun beef noodle - Hong Kong Style Cafe Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

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I saw this place everywhere on social media while planning my trip to Hawaii and knew I just had to try it. I came with a large party of 9 which was perfect to try everything on the menu. The Masala Curry Flavor French Fries were addicting, and we couldn't help but keep grabbing for more. My favorite item on the menu were the Salted Egg Yolk Chicken Wings. They were perfectly crispy and had so much flavor. This is a must have for me if I ever come back to visit. I honestly could have eaten the whole plate by myself and would have been fine with just that. The HK Style Iced Milk Tea w/ Frozen Bear has a good tea flavor and is not too sweet. The taste most definitely holds up to its looks. The only downside of the bear is that it doesn't melt down that well. By the time we left the restaurant, 3/4 of the bear was still remaining, but it is still most definitely worth the try. The staff were so nice and very accommodating to the cranky babies in our party. It was an overall great experience coming to dine here. read more

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We were looking for a new place we haven't tried yet. Thanks to all our Yelp friends with great reviews, we decided to give it a try. It is located in the Market City Shopping Center, a restaurant formally known as Anytime Cafe. Waitress Yvonne greeted us and took us to our table. The ambiance was modern, clean, and with an Asia decor. She informed us of the best sellers in the menu and told us it was South Asian Infusion. Food: 4/5-Salted Egg Yolk Chicken Wings. It was different than your regular buffalo wing. It had more of a powdery crispy outside and yet mushy on the inside. It was an acquired taste, and to me, it was just okay. But I think I like the more traditional way. 4/5-Baked pork chops with tomato sauce, cheese, green peppers, and onions. Pork chops were slightly dry, but the sauce made it work. It was flavorful. 5/5-Beef Chow Funn was my fav. It was more on the chinese style, which was very good and tasty. Perfect texture and well balanced with all the ingredients. 5/5-The Star of the show, HK Style Iced Lemon Tea with frozen ice tea bear. It was a little on the sweet side, which balanced the taste buds of the food. An incredible presentation and creative idea. After we ordered it, other people were asking and ordering it too, lol. I would love to come back and try their shrimp dishes and other unique items. Great experience! read more

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The Salted Egg Yolk Chicken Wings are an absolute MUST!! All the dishes ordered was great and a hit with my party, but the salted egg yolk chicken wings won! I could eat two orders by myself, it was just that good! read more

I wanted to come to this cafe after seeing a few of my Yelp buddies - Da FAMOUS Auntie Nadine C., Bruddah Daniel C., Jo Y., Li Y., & Kristina C. & Lori L. all post their wonderful reviews & pics. What Cafe am I talkin' about??? "Yi Xin Cafe" of course, and don't ask me how to pronounce the business name cuz I would probably butcher it! Lol! Located at the Market City Shopping center, you can find this little café just next door to the famous Cafe Kalia. Yi Xin Cafe took over the old spot where Anytime Cafe used to be. The menu here basically features Chinese food, yet there are other food items on the menu that I wouldn't consider Chinese food (just check out my menu pics). What drew me here was not the cutesy frozen bear drink, but the Frrrrrrried Chicken wings with shrimp paste (which I ended up not getting) Buwahahahahahaha! So many delicious looking items, but only one stomach so I guess I'll have to come back another time to try more items. I came here with my friend on a Saturday morning & we ordered the following items - 1. Salted Egg Yolk Chicken Wings 2. Shrimp WonTon Egg Noodles in Soup 3. Beef Chow Funn What can I say about the grub? The Salted Egg Yolk Wings was interesting. The wings had good texture, and the salted egg yolk was pored over the wings. I would say it's best to eat it hot, as the sauce can make the wings soggy if you let it sit too long. I ordered the Beef Chow Funn, and I must say it was the highlight meal of the day! The noodle had the nice "wok hei" flavor, and although I don't eat red meat anymore, I just picked out the beef from my dish, as my friend was the lucky recipient of the beef! Lol! My friend had ordered the Shrimp Wonton. She said it was just "okay", and also agreed with me that the Beef Chow Funn was the highlight meal. Service here was kinda spotty, but of course they were pretty busy on a Saturday late morning/early afternoon. The restaurant decor was cozy, and although the restaurant wasn't that big, the crowd that was waiting outside for a seat in the restaurant was minimal. Food was pretty good, but service could use some improvement. Overall a solid "4"! read more

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Free parking, delicious food, fun drinks, and great service is how I would describe this place! After reading so many reviews I thought to take a drive to market city to try something new. On a Friday night, there was a short wait but hostess was very nice explaining that it would not take long. She was right and we were seated quickly. First thing I did notice was the cleanliness of the restaurant! The menu was easy to read and the waiter came by to ask if we had questions and mentioned customer favorites. We ordered the milk tea with the frozen bear. Super cute when it came and we plopped it into the cups where it bobbed up and down. Foods arrived quickly. The running flavor on all dishes was the curry Malaysian smell and taste. The chicken wings we ordered was crispy and fresh! The fries were addicting. Sizzling beef reminded me of a bell pepper onion dish I have had. Fried rice was good and complemented our Ong Choy. Curry with the potatoes had a homey feel. Everything was delicious! I really enjoyed the milk tea with a kissing head. Will definitely return! read more

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There is so many tasty foods at this restaurant. I went here for my friend's birthday and ordered a some dishes, it wasn't a lot but trust you will get so full from those tasty foods. Definitely will come back again and also the staffs are super friendly and attentive. read more

Yi Xin Cafe is a very nice place to get some good Malaysian/Hong Kong/ Singaporean food with friends or family with good service. My Gf and I came here today on a Sunday afternoon after we saw posts about their bear ice cube tea drinks. (pics below) but we did not know that their food was gonna be the best part of the experience we had there. We ordered the rice omelet tonkatsu and the Malaysian fried rice, they give big portions so those two plates were more then enough for the two of us. The fried rice was so good and flavorful and the rice omelet tonkatsu was even better. Now for the reason we came, the bear ice cube teas were great. You can either get a lemon ice tea or a milk ice tea, and they are served in a glass mason jar mug with the ice cube bear on top. These drinks are not just for looks, they tasted awesome too! Overall the experience was good, the service was fast and it wasn't that packed inside. The only down side is trying to find parking out front. But there was plenty of parking in the back! Until next time! read more

Yi Xin Cafe - Milk tea near ice cube, lemon tea bear ice cube - Hong Kong Style Cafe Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

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It's a sunny Saturday and we're on a mission to find a new lunch spot! Got our pedicure appt in town so decided to go Market City Shopping Center since there's lots of good food options!! Hot Pot... Pho... South Asian Fushion?! Let's gooooo! And there's that cute Bear iced tea I want to try! ;) Thanks to our Yelp friends for posting!! This newly renovated cafe took over Anytime Cafe. Clean tables. We were greeted & seated quickly by Yvonne, who was very kind and helpful with the menu. She took our order and mentioned this was Hong Kong Style dishes. I asked if we can do no MSG and she said she can request "no additional MSG" - that's fine. They had 2 types of chicken wings. Fried Chicken Wings with Shrimp Paste or Salted Egg Yolk? Yvonne suggested we try Salted Egg Yolk Chicken Wings: Presentation is nice, but unusual chicken wings. I took one bite: it's more of a powdery egg flavor since they ground the egg yolk. Reuben liked it, but next time will try the other *Chef Special: Fried Chicken Wings with Shrimp paste. Read a Yelper's Review about the Baked Pork Chop with tomato sauce, cheese, and rice being good so had to try! It also came with green bell peppers and onions. Very good flavors. Pork chop was cooked well. I thought the cheese would be too much, but portions were enough. Beef Chow Funn: very good stir fry noodles with classic soy sauce and some bean spouts! Reuben's fave! HK Style Lemon Tea with Frozen Bear! Adorable presentation with slices of lemon! The Ice cube Bear is made of Tea! Refreshing flavors! Subtle sweet tea and lemon. A must-try! We took home leftovers but it's all best eaten right away! Forgot to take pic of their other Special Menu on the table but it was unique fusion curries and fried rice. Next time! read more

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You must try this amazing restaurant! 1. Food is always fresh and full of flavors - flavors from different parts of Asia. ( like a. mini vacation for your taste buds) 2. Service is always friendly and on point. 3. Ambiance is always clean and bright. This place is one of my favorite. I definitely feel that every bite was made with lots of love and care. Our favorite item to order - pork cheek with thai sauce - salted duck egg chicken wings - curry chicken ( this is not your ordinary curry) - wonton Definitely will be back! read more

Kaimuki has discovered Yi Xin Cafe. Its succinct menu features Hongkongese favorites such as seasoned Dungeons crab, stir fry beef spaghetti, and beef omelettes. There was a short wait when we arrived and all the people wanting to try the new restaurant kept every table full through 8 pm. Drinks and food come out in any order they are prepared. The Salted Egg Wings were crispy and brushed in an egg yoke oil. The Hong Kong Beef Curry is full of potatoes and has a mild, coconut curry sauce. The Baked Pork Chop tastes like tomato soup and Mexican cheese blend. The full dinning room vibrates with voices. Service is quick and the owners are very friendly. They are a welcome addition to Market City. read more

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Very solid and classic/authentic Cantonese style dishes. Even the pics of Hong Kong districts in the restaurant makes me think back on my last visit many years ago. The portions are decent and the prices reasonable for today's high inflation. Some highlights: Pork cheek - easily favorite dish. Pork is sliced very thin but yet not dry. The sauce is excellent with a subtle Kaffir lime flavor. Must order. Fried Shrimp - big shrimps and well seasoned... Actually a little on the salty side. Crispy and came out hot... Love the slices of jalapeno peppers black beans. Service is excellent and there is no need to speak Cantonese. The servers will explain everything well. The restaurant is nice and clean and parking is good. The reason why not 5 stars is because the dishes are a tad too salty and not real bargains. read more

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Lunch in Kaimuki, Honolulu, Hawaii... To get to the point, I saw a cute picture of the Frozen Bear on Social Media and I wanted one! The Frozen Bear comes with the HK style Iced Lemon Tea and also the HK style Iced Milk Tea. I ordered the Iced Lemon Tea... And I was so happy! The Hong Kong Style Iced Lemon Tea was served in a Mason Jar mug and included four slices of fresh lemon! It tasted great - not too sweet and not too tart! I maneuvered the bear into the mug from its lounging position on the rim of the mug. If I submerged him, the mug would have overflowed! The bear didn't melt down by the time I was ready to leave (even though I chipped away at it with my straw to make it slushy), so, I asked for a takeout cup. No problem! I also got a Shrimp WonTon Egg Noodles in Soup (wonton min). There were six dumplings - each filled with shrimp and minced (not ground) pork! Interesting! The noodles were slightly softer than usual, but nicely thin and chewy enough. The Choi sum (vegetables) were not mushy nor too crunchy, but just right! Everything was in place for a Five Star Experience: 1. Free shared parking at Market City Shopping Center 2. Convenient restroom 3. Efficient service - the servers checked on me several times 4. Air conditioning 5. Clean, bright environment Other reviews noted that Yi Xin Cafe took the place of Anytime Cafe, next to E.A.R.L. Kaimuki and Cafe Kaila. Another fact is that this establishment is related to Sing Ma Tei at Ala Moana Center. I visited a little after opening time (10:30am) and got a seat right away. Soon after, every seat was filled! I want to return soon and try other dishes. The fragrance of the sizzling platter from the table next to me was delicious!!! read more

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My wife, an inveterate Hong Konger, and I have a very tough palate to please when it comes to HK or HK adjacent cuisines. When you've dined in HK for most of your life, your expectations get a little bent out of shape, and the restaurants that claim to be "authentic HK" get as much skepticism as "authentic NY Pizza" might get from an NYC native. Cooking authentic HK or GZ requires the skills, the supply chain, and the gumption. Whether this makes the full marks may of course be a matter of nuanced opinion, but it's inarguable that this place makes a splash in the HNL Chinese food scene with a powerful entry with fresh flavours, a youthful staff, energetic owners, and vibrant decor. The wallpaper recalls the HK subway system and the dishes draw liberally from HK-Western foods that graced the creative entrepreneurial restaurant scene from the 50s-2000s that made HK an east meets west collision with so much to offer. If you're going to come, get a crab - we've tried 3: The Egg Yolk, Singaporean Chili crab, and the "Hidden Harbor" "Bei Fung Tong" style. The first and 3rd are definitely great. Comparing this to true SG Crab - you'll not be perfectly happy - but it's the best SG Chili Crab in HNL that I can find. I'll be back. Maybe we'll see you? Ciao! read more

Food - Excellent Chinese restaurant in town. Good variety of dish options but not crazy overwhelmingly so. The curry crab was good but quite messy and a bit expensive. The shrimp fried rice with salty egg was fantastic! Also the chicken wings, sizzling beef, and green beans were yum! The beef chow fun and the won ton noodle soup were just alright. Service - The servers were on top of things and the food came out pretty quickly. The customer service was good. Ambiance - It is in a strip mall so parking wasn't too difficult to find. The restaurant itself is pretty new with a medium sized area to eat indoors. We were a group of 7 and they had a space for us immediately, but it was full after that point. The bathrooms were not the cleanest but it was almost closing time, so you get a break there. read more

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Where anytime cafe used to be is now Yi Xin Cafe! They have a lot of parking and it's very easy to spot. We got lucky last night, and we didn't have to wait! ***What we ordered **Honey Kong Lemon Tea (9/10) ~ Decent flavors from the black tea and lemon. Love that it's not overly sweet, but it was pretty good! **Sizzling beef with black bean sauce (5/10) ~ It was a little tough and there wasn't much flavor from the black bean sauce. Was a little oily, but not too bad. Definitely could be better though. **Beef Omelet on Rice (5/10) ~ Fried rice didn't have much flavor and everything tasted somewhat separate. This was really oily I would not get this again. **Beef Chow Funn (8/10) ~ Had a really good smokeyness from the wok. It added another dimension to the dish. Although it was a little oily, but it was still really good. Overall, I highly suggest the Lemon and beef chow funn! Everything else was eh. Service wasn't really the best too. Not too sure if I'd come again. read more

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Food was pretty good here! We tried a couple dishes among the 6 of us. The menu wasn't big so it wasn't much of a choice dilemma haha. The tastiest things we've tasted was the pork neck, and the egg yolk chicken wings, must order! The wonton noodles could be better. The noodles weren't chewy enough, and the wontons weren't that flavorful with the skin to filling ratio a bit off. The spicy fried rice was very underwhelming. Not spicy enough and not enough flavor or wok hei (charred flavor). Overall great experience. Would like to come back to try their curry crab! read more

Yi Xin Cafe - Delicious pork neck - Hong Kong Style Cafe Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

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I was hesitant to share this review because I wanted to keep the secret to myself...it was really that good!! The restaurant is kept nice and clean. The staff are all friendly made sure to regularly check up on us. The overall winner was the food! We had a pretty big group so we decided to try a bunch more of different dishes. We ordered Masala Curry Fries, Thai Style Pork Cheek, Salted Egg Yolk Chicken Wings, Beef Chow Fun, Shrimp Wonton Egg Noodles In Soup, Fried Green Beans, Malaysian Beef Fried Rice, Sizzling Beef w/ Black Bean Sauce, Hong Kong Style Garlic Stir Fried Prawns, and Beef w/ Bitter Melon. Everything was delicious! My favorites would have to be the Salted Egg Yolk Chicken Wings and the Garlic Prawns! Packed with so much flavor! We also enjoyed the HK Style Iced Lemon Tea w/ Frozen Bear and the HK Style Milk Tea w/ Frozen Bear. So cute and refreshing. I really enjoyed the lemon tea. I'll definitely be back! read more

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