Going to Aulani -- Let's list places to eat

[surfer_ed]

Minus the fact there is no food, I think the Star Lite Hui is as good for entertainment value. I have not done Paradise Cove but have done Germaine's twice over the years. The luau at Poly is better in my opinion. I am tempted by PC but really not sure a Luau is worth it.

 

[SingingMom]

Paradise Cove is very convenient - a pleasant evening walk from Aulani, which was our reason for choosing it, since we didn't rent a car. I'm glad we went, as I'm not sure we will return to Hawaii. But, it was on the schmaltzy side. ;-). Take small bills with you - you'll want to tip the artisans who help with making leis, wreaths, etc.

 

[WDW_Diane]

We went to the Paradise Cove luau in June 2013. It was not the best luau we have ever been to....that was on Maui. We felt that the Paradise Cove luau was not worth the price, the pre show activities were good, but the food was ...meh.... And the seating plan not good. They pack waaaay too many people in there. I recommend going to the Polynesian Cultural Center on the north part of the island. We wish we had done their luau after being there all day. True, it is run the the Mormon church and doesn't serve alcohol, but we were on a family vacation and were driving all the way back to the SW side, so that would have been fine. The watered down drinks at Paradise Cove were nothing special.

 

[Girimama33]

My cousin took us to a place in Chinatown (close to Aloha Tower in Honolulu) called Lucky Belly. It is a saimen restaurant and was so delicious. My whole family still dream about the pupus and the noddle bowls. I want to go back to Oahu now just to go there again.

 

[nemofans]

I am trying to decide on Ama Ama or Roy's for a nice adult dinner w/o the kids. Which would you recommend?

 

[rsjj]

I am trying to decide on Ama Ama or Roy's for a nice adult dinner w/o the kids. Which would you recommend?

I'd say ama ama...only b/c I'm in so cal, and there are several Roy's around. But if you do end up at Roy's, you'll have to try their misoyaki butterfish! Melt in your mouth good!!!

 

[SingingMom]

I am trying to decide on Ama Ama or Roy's for a nice adult dinner w/o the kids. Which would you recommend?

Definitely Ama Ama! We took dd for her 21st birthday. Beautiful view and atmosphere. The chautebriand was excellent!

 

[SevenWonkas]

Never been to Ama Ama, but Roy's is excellent! We sat outside on the golf course, and it was lovely. Very low key, and the food was excellently prepared. If I remember correctly, you get complimentary edamame.

 

[hopey1kenobi]

Hi,

I know this would involve a drive, but can anyone comment on either of the Haliewa Joe restaurants? Their prime rib sounds amazing and looking at photos of their Kaneohe location it looks as though it's in a very pretty location (we are thinking of going when we visit the Kualoa Ranch).

Many thanks for any thoughts

I know you posted this way back in February, but Haleiwa Joe's in Kaneohe is very, very good & worth the trip. We live in Kailua, & HJ is a regular date night destination for the hubs & I. They don't take reservations though, so either get there right when they open at 5 or 5:30 or wait until after 8-8:30 to avoid an hour+ wait. The prime rib is good, but the daily fish special is always delicious. The Rock Shrimp Haiku is very tasty too. My favorite drink is the Li Hing Mui Margarita. Have a great trip!

 

[goterps1986]

bump. going in two weeks

 

[pepperandchips]

Reviving this thread because it is just so awesome! Can anyone recommend a place for dim sum?

 

[Maavernon]

We loved the food at Ohana at the Poly. Are there any restaurants near Aulani or at Aulani that have similar food to Ohana?

 

[Vernie822]

I am trying to decide on Ama Ama or Roy's for a nice adult dinner w/o the kids. Which would you recommend?

We did both on our honeymoon. Different experiences, but I really enjoyed them both. I have photos from both in the TR in my signature. I ordered differently at each so it's hard to compare. We did steak at ama ama and I had seafood at Roy's. Both were wonderful, though.

 

[CT15]

We just returned from 11 days at Aulani. Here's a random list of some of my favorites.

North Shore: Giovanni's Shrimp truck, Woody's corn on the cob and Ted's bakery (loved the mini chocolate chip macadamian nut cookies)
Matsumoto's shaved ice, too.

We ate appetizers for dinner off The Olelo Room menu while listening to the live music. Loved the nightly live music in a beautiful setting! Ama Ama was our favorite on-site restaurant for a nice sit down meal.

Try a Tropical Ginger Lemonade if you've never had one. YUM!

The Swap meet at Aloha Stadium is every Saturday, Sunday and Wednesday. It's a great place to shop for souvenirs including locally made items.

Electric Beach is a great place to snorkel. The power from the electric company heats the water offshore and attracts all types of fish, eels, sea turtles, etc . . .

Spend an afternoon at the spa and relax in the hydrotherapy garden. Heaven!

Food:

Ko'Olina BBQ across the street from Aulani was good. We liked the BBQ chicken best.

ABC market had good panini sandwiches and other easy lunch options. Portions were large so we shared.

Just Tacos-- food was not great (I'm from Texas so it takes good Mexican food to impress me) but their tequila selection was extensive and the margaritas are worth a try.

Roy's-- good fixed price option

Brick Oven Pizza in Kapolei

Safeway in Kapolei was super expensive ($7 for a box of cereal). Walmart has better prices for basic grocery items. Buy what you can there then splurge on the other stuff at Safeway.

If you geocache, take time to geocache in Oahu. There are some amazing places to discover.

Aloha!

Do you happen to know if liquor and wine prices in the stores are the same as the mainland or more $$?

 

[TagsMissy]

Figured I'd revive this as we're heading back in a couple of weeks and so any new ideas of places will be great. Are there any new restaurants that people recommend?

 

[pepperandchips]

Figured I'd revive this as we're heading back in a couple of weeks and so any new ideas of places will be great. Are there any new restaurants that people recommend?

Not new, but the two oldies we really enjoyed were Haleiwa Joe's (location at Haiku) for brunch and the Kona Brewing at the Koko Marina. The brunch at Haleiwa Joe's was reasonably priced and included all you can eat prime rib(!!!), made to order omelettes, a nice salad bar, Kalua pork, seafood, and more plus all the typical breakfast stuff. We loved it! The Kona brewery was better for beer than food but we still very much enjoyed our dinner. Huge portion of Kalua pork nachos and 8 beers on tap that are not available anywhere near us (plus 8 more taps of their more widely distributed stuff). Of course I have to mention the Beach House in Haleiwa - we went in with pretty high expectations and they were surpassed! So very good. Great now I'm hungry and ready to go back

 

[NancyDVC]

Don't forget the Aulani board here on the DIS Boards. They have lots of great posts. We enjoyed the Highway Inn which was recommended by several cast memebrs.
Ask the cast members at Aulani especially if you want to try some local non-tourist places.