The Best Restaurants In Honolulu

Helena’s isn’t much of a secret anymore. The parking is horrible, the hours are limited, and it’s usually pretty busy. We’ll suffer through it all, because this is our favorite spot on the island for Hawaiian food. Part of the appeal is its legacy—Helena’s has been around since 1946—but we keep coming back for the still-excellent pipikaula short ribs, which get dried above the stove before they’re fried. Order one of the sets, so you get all the fixings with your meal: rice or poi, lomi salmon, a side of salt and raw onions, and haupia to finish.

You could easily go to a different izakaya every day of the week in Honolulu, but here’s why you should prioritize Gaku. They do the classics well, like a dashimaki tamago, and they also add some twists to homemade tofu in the form of ikura and shoyu jelly. Even though it’s a casual spot with fish drying on bamboo racks, meals can get expensive fast, but it’s all worth it. Reservations are a must—Gaku opened almost 20 years ago, and it’s still the place for a nice dinner out and all types of special occasions.

The Pig and the Lady was one of the first on the island to serve the now-iconic ph​​ở french dip, and while you’ll find a few other versions around, this is still the best. While the sandwich is only available for lunch, it’s worth stopping by for a midday meal powered by this braised brisket-stuffed creation that’s spiked with a Thai basil chimichurri and comes with a side of phở broth for dipping. This is also one of our favorite group dinner spots, and not just because of the loud industrial dining room and The Big Trouble in Little China-themed bathroom. Vietnamese and other Southeast Asian ingredients collide in dishes like baked escargot in a seafood curry sauce and pork collar with vadouvan curried lentils. Always save room for the soft serve swirl, which constantly features different flavors.

OK, we’ll get this out of the way: Tonkatsu Tamafuji is almost impossible to get into, with reservations booked five months out. Who’d have thought fried pork would cause such a frenzy? If you happen to get in, you’ll understand the hype. Every detail is carefully considered—the housemade panko creates a light, crisp crust around each pork cutlet, and the cabbage is so finely shredded it’s downright ethereal. Pork tonkatsu is the draw, but the fried oysters are also excellent. And if you’re unwilling to plan your life around getting a reservation, know that the takeout tonkatsu is surprisingly good, as the fried pork keeps its crispness. 

Fete is one of the few restaurants on Oahu that’s open from lunch through dinner and is truly excellent for all meals. Given its small, Brooklyn-meets-Hawai‘i-meets-French bistro space, we prefer it for date nights and small groups, though. And it’s vital you listen carefully to the long list of specials, which usually highlight a local fish and whatever the chef’s been obsessed with recently. That’s including, but not limited to, pork chops from pigs raised at Kualoa Ranch (a.k.a. the set of movies like Jurassic Park and Jumanji). The core menu features great dishes like carbonara with Portuguese sausage and a Korean fried chicken sandwich, and you’ll definitely want to stick around for the housemade Rocky Road ice cream.

Mitch’s is a prerequisite when leaving or arriving in Honolulu—or both. It’s in a warehouse-looking location just a few blocks from the airport runways, and serves sushi with fresh seafood from around the world, like the usual ahi, hamachi, and salmon suspects, as well as specialties like engawa and kinmedai. It’s also famous for anything lobster—the Van Van that’s topped with mayo and broiled, or sashimi that comes with a miso soup made from lobster’s head. You may see locals roll in with flip-flops and a cooler of beer, but know you’re likely to spend just as much at this casual spot as any fancy sushi restaurant. The quality you’re getting is absolutely worth it, though.

Inaba’s original location on King Street specializes in soba noodles—you can get it topped with uni and ikura or duck. However, it’s also one of the best places in town for tempura and sushi. The tempura batter is practically greaseless, and the sushi features fabulously fresh seafood like scallops and tuna. They also recently brought back Japanese breakfast on the weekends, so it’s a good place for a solo morning meal or casual dinner. Especially since the space, which is decked out in blond wood and shoji screens, is so cozy.

You’re in Hawai‘i, which means you’ve probably got poke on your mind. There are plenty of great places in Honolulu, but head to Maguro Brothers for a simple version that highlights fresh fish tossed to order with minimal seasonings of limu and salt or shoyu and onion. While you can expect a consistent line in Waikīkī after they open in the late afternoon, the Chinatown location is less busy, stays open until the early afternoon, and rounds out the slim menu of poke and chirashi with grilled hamachi kama and ahi belly.

Open for brunch and dinner, Nami Kaze’s menu falls somewhere between intriguing and overwhelming, with things like a chili garlic shrimp caesar and a teriyaki ahi burger on the breakfast menu. Even the straightforward-sounding omelet comes out as a not-at-all-straightforward chawanmushi topped with mentaiko. Embrace some surprises and you’ll end up with a table of delightful options like the must-order honey walnut shrimp waffle, a.k.a. the best waffle pairing since fried chicken. Dinner focuses more on izakaya-style small plates like cold-smoked tomatoes with tofu and hamachi crudo. The restaurant is right by Honolulu’s commercial fishing pier, and the industrial exterior gives way to a big space filled with plenty of tables and booths. It’s a perfect place for group dinners, and also casual enough that you can sit at the bar and watch some sports on the TVs.

Mud Hen Water serves a modern Hawaiian menu for dinner, though brunch is where it really shines. That’s thanks to the airy, light-filled dining room, paved in reclaimed wood, and its patio decorated with colorful murals. Get some sourdough banana pancakes, pork sisig made with pig’s head, and fresh fish and luau, which consists of taro leaf cooked down in coconut milk until it’s almost the consistency of pudding.

You’d think in a city with year-round warm weather there’d be more great places to eat outside, however, they’re surprisingly scarce. That fact makes Olay’s all the more beloved, as it’s one of our favorites for outdoor dining. Even amongst groups celebrating special occasions, it’s generally calm in the courtyard garden, lush with palms and a koi pond. We love digging into a whole fried fish that’s doused with a cilantro and lime sauce, sharing some Lao sausage studded with chunks of juicy fat, and having our minds blown by the textural contrasts in the crispy rice salad tangy with fermented pork sausage. Plus, it’s BYOB, so pick up some beer from one of the Kaka‘ako breweries nearby, like Hana Koa.

Though Honolulu is warm, our soup game is strong. If you need proof, just visit Pate—yes, they have beef phở, but they specialize in southern Vietnamese hu tieu. Customize your bowl with toppings, type of noodles, and whether you want it dry or in soup. Our favorite order maximizes all the combinations: half thin rice noodle, half egg noodle topped with a combination of seafood and pork, and broth on the side. Also on the menu: a hearty bun bo hue, stocked with beef shank, pork hock, and pork blood, and a fantastically strong Vietnamese coffee. Just know it’s a tiny spot, so if you arrive at peak dinner hours or on a cold (for Honolulu) night, you’ll have to wait for one of the five tables.

There are many worthwhile Korean BBQ and yakiniku places around Honolulu at a range of price levels—everyone has their favorite, and Korea House is ours. It hits the perfect middle ground: casual and equally good for two people as it is for groups. Everything here is consistently well-executed, including the plentiful and frequently changing banchan and, of course, good quality meats. Get the beef combination, which includes kalbi and tongue, and can easily feed three ravenous people. This is also one of our favorite places for cold noodles in an icy broth, with bottles of vinegar and mustard on the side to slap your senses awake from a warm weather stupor. 

Honolulu is awash with skewer spots. Seriously, you can find everything from omakase yakitori to northern Chinese seasoned meat on sticks. Aburiya, which you’ll definitely need a reservation for, is clearly one of the best. That’s partly due to the expertly charcoal-grilled meats like shio koji-marinated pork belly and beef tongue, but also because the seemingly unassuming small plates are particular standouts. We’re talking about potato salad sprinkled with “chicken dust” that tastes like if you mixed bouillon cubes with the pulverized crumbs at the bottom of your potato chips bag. The place is small and friendly, decorated with watercolor drawings of its dishes, and there’s a view of the chef grilling skewers over charcoal. Afterwards, pop into Cha to Gelato Zen, a serene tea room next door that churns out excellent matcha and black sesame gelato.

There are a ton of excellent omakase options in Honolulu. Sushi ii, which is tucked away in a strip mall, is one of the few that also offers creative cooked dishes. Alongside impeccable sushi like dashi-marinated fish roe, golden eye snapper from Japan, and local, live baby abalone, you can also order things like the ikura pan, a perfect mashup of salmon roe and creme fraiche slathered on a King’s Hawaiian roll. You definitely need to make a reservation, so aim to get a seat at the sushi bar, where you can joke around with sushi chefs as they skillfully slice thick pieces of akamutsu.

Nico’s Pier 38 and Fish Market are two operations in one. During the day, the fish market makes some of the freshest sashimi platters and poke, plus an array of smoked fish, which might include monchong or opah, and our favorite slice of pumpkin crunch cake. Dinner means live music, surf and turf featuring fat, luscious deep water shrimp, and seating by the water—sounds like a typical evening in Honolulu, except this isn’t Waikiki, but the industrial harbor, right next to the fish auction. If you have to pick only one experience, prioritize the fish market—there’s basically no better beach or hiking snack.

Come here for a selection of comfort food from Hawaii’s plantation era, when laborers from around the world brought with them a taste of home. You’ll find Puerto Rican pastele, Japanese mochiko chicken, and Filipino pork adobo, alongside Hawaiian classics of lau lau, kalua pig, and fresh poke. While they only do takeout, the food holds up well enough to take your spread to the nearby Honolulu Stadium park.

Join the surfers and construction workers refueling at this general store. Fort Ruger Market dates back to 1942, although the food has never been as good as it is now. You don’t have to choose between the Rugerlicious poke made up of fresh ahi mixed with taegu, or the crispy-skinned lechon: get them both on top of rice for the ultimate bowl. And while you’re there, grab some dried ahi, a tub of smoked ahi, and a paper bag of boiled peanuts by the cash register for all-day snacking. Then, bring your haul for a picnic at the nearby Diamond Head lookout.

Yes, Mariposa is a restaurant in Neiman Marcus. However, it’s also a popular lunch spot among locals who make a ritual out of the complimentary popovers, lobster club, and Ala Moana Beach Park views. A beloved chef recently took over the kitchen, and the food’s never been better, specifically the kiawe smoked pork chop and pan-seared salmon ochazuke with risotto that’s finished with green tea. Come for the sunset lounge menu, Thursday through Saturday, when you can have that same salmon ochazuke, along with the garlic chicken sliders stuffed with mac salad that’s basically a plate lunch in sandwich form. Good luck eating it neatly under the cathedral ceilings and palm fans in the elegant open-air dining room.

A bowling alley might not be where you’d expect to find fantastic oxtail soup and some of the crispiest and juiciest fried chicken in Hawai‘i. And yet, that’s exactly what you’ll get at Aiea Bowl. Alongside those two essentials, prioritize dessert, especially the lemon crunch cake—we often stop by just for the soft fluffy cake layered with lemon and toffee bits. You don’t have to bowl to eat here, but given that you’re in a bowling alley, this place is great for groups. Plus, then you can order more cake.

Zippy’s is a local chain with more than 20 locations across the state, but it’s way better than what you’ll normally find from a fast food spot. Everyone has their go-to Zippy’s order, whether that’s the famous chili with rice or a Zip Pac, a bento with teriyaki beef, Spam, fried chicken, and a fried fish filet. Ours is the saimin noodle soup with griddled cornbread—make sure to specify griddled, as this gives the airy cake a crisp crust. While most Zippy’s locations have cozy booth seating, it also makes for great takeout if you’re exploring and driving around the island.

Locals will debate their favorite shave ice stand for hours. Right now, nobody can beat Chillest. It’s a pop-up that’s only open Saturdays at Fishcake in Kaka‘ako and Sundays at Island Boy in Kaimukī, and it’s absolutely worth chasing down. Heaps of shaved ice are doused with classic Hawai‘i flavors like liliko‘i and lychee, as well as housemade syrups of strawberry milk, kinako latte, and haupia. The housemade flavors aren’t as artificial as other spots around town and the ice texture is especially fine.

While Pipeline is a relative newcomer, their fluffy malasadas instantly became a favorite—they’re right up there with popular spot Leonard’s Bakery. They come fried to order (get them with a dusting of puckery-sweet li hing powder) and are best if you eat them right away (though, unlike most other malasadas, are still good the next day). The grab-and-go spot also offers baked goods like pumpkin crunch and lilikoi bars, as well as ice cream, including a signature malafrozada flavor, studded with malasada chunks.