One of my favorite things about vacation has to be the food. I love exploring new tastes, cuisines, and dishes (even while being an incredibly particular eater). I researched lots of Oahu restaurants prior to our trip; we tried some and found plenty on our own.
Given where Turtle Bay is, you have to drive at least 20 minutes in either direction to reach the closest off-property restaurant. We did order room service twice and also bought snacks at Target to have some food in the room. If you’re planning to spend more time on property or to save money, there are two grocery stores about 15-20 minutes away (both are Foodlands) where you can stock up on more reasonably priced food options. Here’s what we ate and the Oahu restaurants we tried; I’ve included links where possible.
Friday
Breakfast – Lulu’s Waikiki
Lulu’s was one of the Oahu restaurants I found ahead time and was excited to try. I had probably the most delicious stuffed French toast I’ve ever eaten (it had cream cheese, pineapples, and bananas) while Mac had a dawn patrol omelette with Portuguese sausage and lots of veggies. We topped it off with mimosas and an incredible beach view. We had a bit of a wait to place our orders, but the food and drinks came out pretty quickly once we ordered. Overall, a filling and tasty breakfast for a reasonable price.
Snack – The Dole Plantation
We stopped at the Dole Plantation after a morning exploring in Honolulu. We had to try an authentic Dole Whip, and it did not disappoint.
Dinner – The Point (on property at Turtle Bay)
We weren’t super hungry for dinner and wandered down to the pool area for a few drinks. We enjoyed the very strong Mai Tais (which were $16 each) and shared an order of short rib nachos while enjoying the sunset. The food and service were solid, even if the bill was almost $60.
Saturday
Breakfast – Kula Grille Buffet
Turtle Bay has a program where you can opt to have housekeeping come every three days instead of every day. If you do this the day you check in, you will receive a voucher for a buy-one-get-one-free breakfast buffet. We used our voucher this morning, and I don’t think we would’ve eaten here without the voucher because the buffet is around $36 per person.
Lunch / dinner – Teddy’s Better Burgers
We headed into Haleiwa for a late lunch. We (I) wanted to explore the town, and I found Teddy’s Better Burgers online ahead of time. Mac ate a fried buffalo chicken sandwich with onion rings, and I had a bacon cheeseburger with tots. The food was good, but it’s a made-to-order place so it takes a bit longer than your standard counter service burger joint.
Dessert – Matsumoto’s shave ice
This is the place to get shave ice, so I made Mac stand in line for 20 or so minutes to try it. We split the small rainbow (strawberry, pineapple, and lemon. It was a tasty treat to end the day.
Sunday
Breakfast – Restaurant 604
We didn’t get advance tickets for Pearl Harbor, so I managed to snag the first available next-day tickets for Sunday morning. We weren’t sure of parking and lines, so we headed to Honolulu on the early side to pick up our tickets early. Restaurant 604 is across the parking lot from the main Pearl Harbor entrance. We made a reservation for when they opened at 9:30, but it wasn’t necessary for that early on a Sunday morning. If you are visiting or local, this is a place that you should not miss. I had a mimosa trio: I thought it was going to be a triple-flavored mimosa, but it was three, separate, full-sized mimosas (orange, guava, and pineapple). For $8. Definitely the best deal of the trip. I had poi pancakes with guava butter which were tasty if a bit dense. Mac had a kalua pork benedict with a mason jar mimosa. Restaurant 604 was a great, unexpected Oahu restaurant find that we enjoyed.
Dinner – room service pizza
Monday
Breakfast – Cinnamon’s at Ilikai
We again drove to Honolulu early; this time for a Ducky tour. The Ducky tour picks up at the Ilikai Hotel, so we grabbed breakfast in one of the hotel restaurants. I had a basil pesto frittata (which I ordered even though I don’t like pesto. It was good.), while Mac had the special of the day, a chicken caprese frittata. We tried four mimosa flavors: strawberry guava, mango, lilokai (passion fruit), and plain strawberry.
Dinner – L&L Barbeque
We drove up the other side of the island because of traffic. The town approaching Turtle Bay from that direction is Laie. There’s a shopping center right on the highway which has a bunch of places to eat. Our original plan was to eat at a sandwich shop, but we got there during the 4 pm – 5 pm hour when they were closed. Next door was L&L Barbeque, a Hawaiian barbeque place that does not involve barbeque sauce. Mac had a chicken bowl with veggies and rice, and I had a barbeque chicken plate with mac salad and rice. The mac salad was pretty delicious (I didn’t really eat the rice).
Dessert – Angel’s Ice Cream
I posted this on Instagram stories, but I will tell this story forever. We grabbed ice cream after dinner and sat at one of the outdoor tables. Hawaii has a feral chicken problem, and there was a crew of three chickens pecking about this seating area. Mac’s ice cream cone broke, so he tossed a piece to one of the chickens hanging around us. It grabbed the cone and ran away with its friends chasing it. After it ate the cone, it came back over for more. It seemed curious, so I started to reach out to it. I pulled my hand back because I didn’t want to get pecked. Mac puts his hand out, and this chicken legitimately bit hit. Like he had a mark on his finger. I’m still laughing about it.
Tuesday
Lunch / dinner – Spaghettini
We went kayaking Tuesday morning and didn’t eat a full breakfast. Mac loves Italian food, so I found an Italian place in Haleiwa. We headed over there and were surprised to find that it was a walk-up window. We ordered mozzarella sticks, ravioli with Bolognese sauce, and a slice of pepperoni pizza. It was a nice carby meal to fill us up after a morning out on the water.
Wednesday
Breakfast – Hukilau Café
Apparently, this restaurant is in 50 First Dates. I haven’t seen that movie in any sort of recent memory, but all the Yelp reviews assured me it was the same place. This is a little hole-in-the-wall breakfast and lunch place that seats about 25 people total in a neighborhood in Laie. It’s cash only and you get your own water, so you know the food will be great. I tried the macadamia nut pancakes (a short stack of two dinner-plate sized cakes), while Mac had the loco moco, a Hawaiian breakfast of eggs, rice, and hamburger patties with a gravy-ish topping. He also had potatoes on the side. This was was my second favorite breakfast.
Dinner – Ali’i Luau
I’m going to share our full experience at the Polynesian Cultural Center in a post about what we did, and the luau was the food part of that evening. The Ali’i Luau is a buffet with green salad, mac and potato salad, chicken, kalua pork, beef, rice, and an assortment of desserts. The food was good if not overwhelming.
Thursday
Breakfast – Dat Cajun Guy
We left on Thursday, and we grabbed breakfast in Haleiwa on our way to the airport. Dat Cajun Guy is a food-truck-turned-restaurant owned by a New Orleans native (he’s a nice guy). As a person who has spent the majority of my life in the South, I have to say he makes a good biscuit. Mac and I both tried the breakfast biscuits with bacon and cheese (mine with scrambled eggs, his over medium). The beignet bites are an absolute must-try. Amazing, delicious, and as good as those at Café du Monde.
What Oahu restaurants would you recommend?
Catch up on our trip to Hawaii: We booked our vacation through Costco Travel | Honolulu Zoo and the Waikiki Aquarium | The Dole Plantation | Pearl Harbor | Cruising with Hawaii Duck Tours | Iolani Palace | Hiking through Waimea Valley | Kayaking with Turtles in Kawela Bay | The Polynesian Cultural Center
