Hawaii Restaurants

The one constant in Honolulu Burger Co.’s burgers is the beef—it comes from free-range cows that feed on the grasses of Hawaii. From this base sprouts a dozen specialty burgers that pair everything from blue cheese and bacon to kim chee and teriyaki sauce. If you’re feeling creative, you can create your own burger by mixing and matching from the eatery’s selection of toppings and spreads, which includes homemade sauces and dressings and local produce whenever possible. Hefty burgers and sandwiches piled high with pastrami share menu space with rice dishes, house-made fries, milk shakes, and veggie burgers made from whole portobello mushrooms.

Dedicated to upholding traditional Indian recipes, Monsoon India's new management has designed a fresh menu of authentic fare such as coconut curries, house-made paneer, and juicy kebabs. Lentils, chickpeas, and eggplant anchor a large selection of vegetarian entrees, and chefs also simmer chicken, lamb, and shrimp in spiced curries. Traditional clay tandoor ovens remain ablaze through business hours, infusing heat into breads, meats, and snowmen that like to spend the summer as a cloud of steam. As soon as dishes are plated, servers whisk them to tables amid the melodies of traditional Indian music.

For more than 30 years, the chefs at Lung Fung Chinese Restaurant have been bringing China’s freshest, most vibrant flavors to the stomachs of Oahu residents. General manager Eddie Ma regularly updates the menu with popular Hongkongese and Chinese dishes that he learns about during his travels to those countries. He's fully integrated these new, inventive dishes with time-honored classics to create a seamless and hearty menu of traditional chop suey dishes, savory noodle soups, and seafood-based specialties. The restaurant’s banquet menu, meanwhile, accommodates customers planning large events, such as company lunches or clown-college reunions.

Behind Tokoname's dark-wood storefront and rustic carved sign, chefs craft of authentic Japanese fare by the light of hanging lanterns. Sushi standards such as ahi tuna nigiri and shrimp tempura share table space with more exotic seasonal items, including abalone and monkfish liver. Patrons can also opt to wash down meals with a round of sake cocktails or a beer tower for the table. During lunches at the Manoa location, chefs also drizzle juicy burgers in soy-sauce-based Wafu dressing and homemade teriyaki sauce, as well as constructing traditional bento boxes.

The sunlight bathed, palm-fortified fairways of the beautifully landscaped Kaanapali Golf Course wend around the slatted windows of Paradise Grill, filling each portal with greenery backed by sunsets and rolling ocean. It's a stunning venue in which to enjoy some casual island culture. A high-vaulted diagonal ceiling stretches overhead, lending the eatery a modern feel. The first-floor bar boasts 11 flat-screen TVs and a quieter, second-floor dining room is where guests slice into ocean-fresh fish or pull gooey slices of handmade Round Table pizzas. The chefs whip up breakfast, lunch, dinner, and late-night meals affectionately called Buenas Noshes.