Hawaii

Best Places To Eat In Oahu: Local Favorites

Out of all the Hawaiian islands, Oahu has the best food, hands down, because it’s truly a melting pot of authentic Hawaiian food with other Asian cuisines. From Hawaiian to Japanese and Korean, you can find so many amazing dishes in Hawaii ranging from local food trucks to sit down dining.

Best Places To Eat In Oahu: Local Favorites

The following list is not exhaustive but I can vouch for every dish because I tried it myself. Some I ate more than once, it’s THAT good! Here is my list of what to eat in Oahu, best local secrets. 

When ordering, refer to each restaurant’s website or IG page to decide which of their specialty you’d like to try. I promise, you can’t go wrong with the following 14 local spots. Are you ready? 🙂 

Best Places To Eat In Oahu: Local Favorites

Best foods in Honolulu

1) Marugame Udon / @marugame_udon

1104 Fort St Mall Honolulu, HI 96813

Sure they have Marugame Udon in Southern California but the one in Hawaii hits different. Be sure to add their spam musubi and tempuras to your udon of choice. Their matcha latte is really good too.

Best Places To Eat In Oahu

2) Izakaya Torae Torae 

1111 McCully St Honolulu, HI 96826

This small izakaya has good food, good drinks and an extensive happy hour menu from 10 pm.

Izakaya Torae Torae 

3) Tonkatsu Ginza Bairin / @tonkatsu_ginza_bairin

255 Beach Walk Honolulu, HI 96815

Hands down, the best tonkatsu in town. I LOVE tonkatsu and this place is one of my favorites. I’ll let the photos speak for themselves. Be sure to try their tonkatsu sandwiches and kids’ menu too. 

Tonkatsu Ginza Bairin Tonkatsu sandwiches | Best Places To Eat In Oahu tonkatsu kids menu

beer shots

4) Sura hawaii @sura_hawaii

1726 Kapiolani Blvd Ste 101 Honolulu, HI 96814

If you like Korean BBQ, Sura is a good choice! All you can eat meats, sides and cool authentic Korean vibes.

Sura hawaii bbq | Best Places To Eat In Oahu

5) Bogarts cafe @bogartscafe

3045 Monsarrat Ave Ste 9 Honolulu, HI 96815

Bogarts cafe | Best Places To Eat In Oahu

Bogarts is SO good, we ate there about 3 times for breakfast. I loved their kimchi fried rice, loco moco, pancakes (banana and mango), acai bowl and migas. I highly recommend this place for authentic Hawaiian cuisine.

Bogarts cafe food

6) Leonard’s bakery /@leonardsbakeryhawaii

933 Kapahulu Ave Honolulu, HI 96816

where to eat in Honolulu

The best malasadas in town! You HAVE to try this when in Hawaii. The custard ones are delicious too. 

7) Zippy’s  / @zippys

4134 Waialae Ave Honolulu, HI 96816

Not pictured because I forgot to take a photo but I love their oxtail soup. It’s fast-food that’s delicious!

8) Izakaya Naru / @izakaya.naru

2700 S King St D-104 Honolulu, HI 96826

We really enjoyed Izakaya Naru. Good food, nice intimate atmosphere and you can try a variety of Japanese dishes. 

Izakaya Naru 

9) Ono seafood  / @ono.seafood

747 Kapahulu Ave Honolulu, HI 96816

Again forgot to get a photo because I was too excited to eat but Ono has amazing poke bowls!

Foodland, which is Hawaii’s local grocery store, has delicious poke bowls and you can pick up and eat it at the beach. It’s the best meal ever! 

Best foods in North Shore

10) Giovanni’s Shrimp Truck (Haleiwa)/ @giovannisshrimptruck

66-472 Kamehameha Hwy Haleiwa, HI 96712

An oldie but a goodie, there are many shrimp trucks in town but Giovanni’s remains to be our favorite due to nostalgia. We’ve been coming here since the kids were little. I love mixing their garlic butter shrimp with the spicier cajun shrimp. Yum! 

Best foods in North Shore

11) Kula shave ice, north shore (Haleiwa)/ @kulashaveicens

66-320 Kamehameha Hwy Haleiwa, HI 96712

We discovered Kula shave ice by accident and it’s so good! I tried Kula Rainbow, Sunset and Classic and they are all good. They only use fresh ingredients instead of artificial syrup and you can add mochi or haupia to your shave ice. There are more well known shave ice places at North Shore which we tried before but I really like Kula the best! 

Kula shave ice, north shore

Best foods in Kaneohe

12) Poi Factory (Kaneohe) @waiaholepoifactory

48-140 Kamehameha Hwy Kaneohe, HI 96744

Best foods in Kaneohe

This was one of the best authentic dish I tried in Hawaii. We tried Hawaiian food like Laulau and Squid Lu’au. The best part was their dessert called Sweet Lady of Waiahole (Warm kulolo topped with haupia ice cream). It’s delicious and not too sweet. I want to return just to eat this again. LOL.

 Laulau and Squid Lu'au. Warm kulolo topped with haupia ice cream

13) Huli huli chicken (Kaneohe)

49-132 Kamehameha Hwy / Kaneohe, HI 96744

Huli huli chicken is a Hawaiian dish that consists of marinated chicken that’s grilled and basted with sauce. It’s delicious and you have to try this dish when visiting. 

Huli huli chicken | Best Places To Eat In Oahu

What to eat in Kailua

14) Rai Rai Ramen@rairairamenhawaii

124 Oneawa St Kailua, HI 96734

The best ramen by Lanikai beach. We eat here for lunch, use the restroom (lanikai beach doesn’t have a restroom) and get ready for a fun-filled beach day! I love their seafood ramen and fried rice. Try their homemade hot sauce too, it’s delicious!

What to eat in Kailua

Have you tried any of these dishes? What’s your favorite? What did I miss? Please leave your comments below!

Oahu food guide

 

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