Eating In Oahu on the Cheap: 10+ Restaurants and Food Truck Reviews

You are traveling to Oahu and you want to eat at some good but cheap restaurants? Well you are doing exactly what I did when I researched restaurants and food trucks (food trucks are abundant and good) in Oahu by looking at various bloggers, vloggers and periodicals (some of them we found while on the island through Google maps). Come along with me as I count down the top 10 restaurants and food trucks we visited on Oahu.

The Video Review

#12 McDonalds – Maybe it was COVID, but the 1/2 hour wait for eating dinner in Waikiki? No thanks. There was nothing special about the restaurant either, just a standard McDonalds that you will see in any state in the mainland.

#11, North Shore Shrimp Truck. Now I know what you’re thinking, you should have gone to Giovanni’s, and maybe we should have. When researching the North Shore, there were tons of Garlic Shrimp food truck restaurants to choose from. And after a day of snorkeling at three tables, we ended up going to the most convenient one which was the North Shore Shrimp Truck right across the street. So is Giovanni’s better than this one? I don’t know, but I will tell you that the best Garlic Shrimp I’ve had in Hawaii is in Kauai. But there was a redeeming quality with the North Shore Shrimp Truck in that their lemon shrimp dish was still quite tasty. And right next to the North Shore Shrimp truck was…

#10, North Shore Fish Tacos. We tried both at the same time. The fish taco and shrimp taco I tried there were both good, but they certainly weren’t the best fish or shrimp tacos I’ve had. In fact, the chain restaurant Rubio’s has better shrimp tacos that what I ate in the North Shore and that’s saying something, cause as a general rule, I avoid eating at chain restaurants since they just aren’t as good as a well run mom and pop shop.

#9 Jejubing. Not your standard Hawaii shaved ice, but I’ve had worse. The shaved ice we had included and almond powder on the top with red bean. Similar to the shaved ice you would get in a Korean or Taiwanese shaved ice stand. The ice was nice and soft which is something you need to have for shaved ice. The smoothies were you standard smoothies you could get anywhere, no special flavors to write home about. But if you’re looking for shaved ice and happen to be in the area, then this place will do the trick.

#9b Waiola Shave Ice. In the mood for shaved Ice and are willing to drive and hopefully find some parking nearby? Then Waiola Shave Ice will serve you well. With both Hawaiian style and Taiwanese style shaved ice, you can satisfy whichever style of shaved ice you are in the mood for. This isn’t a place I would go out of my way to visit, but if it’s on the way to your next stop, it’s certainly worth trying.

#8 Costco. (the food court?) NO not the extremely busy food court, but going inside and buying some fruit, muffins, bagels or other breakfast foods. Great way to get a meal in the morning without needing to wait for restaurants to open so you can get an early jump on the touristy locations. If you don’t know already, many restaurants in Hawaii don’t open until 10 am and some even close as early as 3 pm and other do both. So if you’re not in Waikiki, planning ahead for eating at a restaurant is a must.

#7 Earl. Their sandwiches weren’t something we couldn’t get on the mainland, but combining it with the bring your own dinner cruise we took made it very enjoyable and memorable. The special that I got wasn’t that good, but it was spicy like I like. Just goes to show that the adage of avoiding the specials at a restaurant is true. The Bahn Mi sandwich itself was quite good though and we all loved their version of the French dip sandwich with the tender beef and the standard au jus. Like I was saying, their sandwiches weren’t anything to write home about, but they weren’t awful either. If you’re in the area and are in the mood for a sandwich, stopping at Earl isn’t a terrible idea.

#6 Leonard’s. Do you like donuts sprinkled with sugar filled or unfilled with a sweet flavorful cream? Then a stop at Leonard’s Bakery is a stop you should make. We liked the custard and macadamia nut filled the best. They were sweet and better than most donuts, but be warned, the line to get them is always quite long and the parking is a pain. You could also walk from your hotel in Waikiki (about 1.5 – 2 miles) if you don’t mind taking a little morning stroll.

#5 Mei Sum Chinese Dim Sum. If you know your dim sum, then this restaurant is better than average. Now while we didn’t get there early enough to have the rolling carts of food, we were able to order our dim sum straight from the kitchen. The only problem with arriving after 2 pm was that we weren’t able to get the milk buns that my son really likes as they had run out so we got the steamed custard buns instead. Of the items we ordered, the bean curd roll and the mixed vegetables with fresh garlic were excellent to taste and the other items we ordered were good as well. Overall if you are looking for a good dim sum place without the large crowd and long wait, then Mei Sum is a solid option. While this restaurant was right in the heart of Chinatown, the next one is actually in a mall

#4 Lahaina Chicken Company. That’s right, a food court restaurant in the mall is this high on the list with it’s reasonably priced prime rib and chicken. The roasted chicken was very tasty, better than the rotisserie chicken in Costco, nice and juicy and well worth the price especially when we paired it with the prime rib. The prime rib was succulent and juicy as a prime rib should be. Paired with it’s au jus and horse radish there is no reason to go to an expensive steak house when you can get a similar high quality taste for a much cheaper price.

#3 Teddy’s Big Burgers though it’s a chain in Hawaii, that doesn’t mean you should skip this place. The Hawaiian burger with its pineapple and teriyaki sauce ticked my tastebuds and brought me a delightfully sweet yet savory burger. The mushroom, swiss burger, which is one of my favorites didn’t disappoint as the melted cheese worked magically with the mushrooms for a juicy, tasty treat. Even if you are going for a vegetarian burger, that had to be one of the best vegetarian burgers I’ve eaten anywhere. So if you are in the mood for a good hamburger, Teddy’s Big Burgers is the place you should stop at.

#2 Fresh Catch. Now I generally stay away from places Guy FIeri visited on Diners Drive-ins and Dives, since I have often found those places over crowded because of the show and the quality is not worth the wait, but we didn’t have to wait long here. Really loved the seared Ahi salad. The tuna was well prepared and the sauce added the extra delight that you want in a salad. The Poke bowl we got here was also quite the flavor train that we were hoping for. The smoked plate had lots of smoked meat, but it was a little too greasy for my tastes. Overall the flavor was great with its smoky yet sweet flavors. Of the dishes I had, I certainly will go for the seared ahi salad.

#1 serving local Hawaiian food it’s Waiahole Poi Factory. This was absolutely the best food I had in Hawaii. Think of the food you had at your luau but taken to the highest level. The various versions of the shredded pork and the beef stew like dishes were juicy and full of flavor. This place was certainly worth the trip, but it’s also an out of the way place. If you are planning to visit the Kualoa Ranch for that Jurassic Park adventure, or planning to drive along the east shore, make sure to stop by this small take-out only restaurant and go to one of the nearby parks by the shore so that you can eat some of the tastiest local food in Hawaii. It sure beats the pants off of that luau you are going to attend.

Restaurants Visited: