I used to go to L&L until I found this place. Great portion sizes full of flavor and quick service.

Picked up lunch on 9/4/2026. Service and atmosphere was average for a takeout restaurant but the food was absolutely terrible. The Chicken Katsu was the most horrible rendition of a popular dish. Chicken was like cardboard, extremely dry and hard like it was last week's leftover just reheated. We tossed it in the trash because even our dogs rejected it. The BBQ Hawaiian Short Ribs were a little better but still very tough like old leather. So very disappointing since I usually love Hawaiian BBQ. It wouldn't have been a big waste of money if my dogs would eat it but they have taste too. Not going to return here ever again! read more

$2.95 for the smallest "side" of macaroni salad. I don't think it could be classified as a side. Very bland. The pork was not seasoned or marinated. Tasted like the coals smell. Awful food read more

A1 Hawaiian BBQ - A "scoop" of macaroni salad at $2.95. - Hawaiian Near Me - Kent, Washington

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Ordered takeout on Sunday. Food is delicious with large portion and fair price. We got 2 combo: #3 Hawaiian BBQ Mix and #24 Kalua Pork and Lau Lau Bombo. Heads-up: Lau Lau Pork (wrapped in taro leave) is an acquired taste if it's your first time trying. read more

A1 Hawaiian BBQ - 3. Hawaiian BBQ Mix - Hawaiian Near Me - Kent, Washington

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My boyfriend and I were in the area and I told him what the food options were and he decided on Hawaiian! I was excited to stop by here too as they offered saimin and I have always wanted to try out saimin from a good Hawaiian spot as first impressions last forever. We entered and there was one person ordering and another person who was picking up their order. They have quite the extensive menu and it seems like the menu is only the one above the counter. My boyfriend got a regular loco moco while I ordered a BBQ chicken saimin and a side of mac salad. We also asked for water cups which they do provide. We did order for dine in but when our food arrived, it arrived in take out containers which I thought was odd but at least you won't have to ever ask them for one, I suppose? I will admit they do offer some pretty big portions for their prices. I think the loco moco container was the biggest take out container that I have ever seen in my entire life. The saimin was also plentiful too, I do wish there was a little more meat as they have a lot of noodles. The broth was also too salty for my taste but I was able to balance it with sips of water, but just a heads up for those trying to watch their sodium intake. The loco moco was pretty good too. The mac salad was decent, I've had better though. We definitely want to try out their other dishes and some desserts! The ambiance for this place is very bare. There wasn't even music playing and it was just the sound of the kitchen fans and conversations. There isn't much decorations but at least the wallpaper was inviting and nice. There are a few tables and chairs on each side of the restaurant. The service was also meh, not really friendly but not unfriendly either. It felt more rushed and the lady didn't ask which side my boyfriend wanted so just heads up to let them know what sides you want when you order a plate. Additionally, they don't check in on you after they drop the order off and you have to throw away your trash. But besides that, a solid Hawaiian food spot overall. read more

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Very generous proportions- If you order mini you get one scoop of each side; regular you get 2 scoops of each side It's more of a cafeteria style restaurant ; order/ pay first and then sit down; choose your own tables. But if you need additional plates, utensils, they will give to you free of charge All the food comes in to go containers regardless of eating in or out The ladies there are kind and flexible when making your own combinations. Husband said the saimin is so so so good, he wouldn't stop talking about how good the broth was! I personally love the mochiko chicken, they use a whole thigh fillet and fry- but the first time I went it was smaller pieces and a bit over fried (crunchy and hard) but this time it was bigger pieces (less batter, light and crisp). This is the only reason I m giving 4 stars instead of 5 since it wasn't consistent But food is good, not as greasy as a Hawaiian chain that is here. Big proportion, everything is tasty and good priced! Highly recommend. read more

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Honestly awesome place :) randomly came across it looking for musubi and there's is A1 highly recommend trying it! Later on tried different options off the menu and genuinely love it and it's so close to my place it's convenient read more

oh man, BBQ chicken, house made macaroni salad (LOVE), Kalula Pork. Staff is friendly and welcoming. Going back for Loco Moco!

I don't see the hype. They cook with vegetable oil which causes heart disease. Also...the lady at the front every time you speak she cuts you off. Every single time. Every interaction awkward. There is tons of flies in the lobby and the front door is broken and slams and won't shut all the way. Which is standard practice when your tables are sticky.....there must be a rule book somewhere that sticky tables and a door that slams or won't close properly is standard practice. read more

Me and my mom ordered the fish and specifically asked for grilled fish and NOT breaded. What'd they give us? Breaded. That fish was 90% bread and maybe 10% fish you could hardly taste it besides the bread. read more

After coming back from my trip in Hawaii last month, I've been craving LOCO MOCO ever since! I stopped by AI Hawaiian BBQ and got their loco Moco (and for some reason asked them to sun rice with broccoli lol), as well as the Teriyaki Chicken rice bowl! The loco moco patty was a bit thin for my preference, but other wise, I'd was tender and flavourful! The chicken teriyaki was very well done as well! The chicken skin was the perfect crisp and the inside was juicy. There was enough rice in the bowl that I split it and put some into the loco moco box (since I ordered broccoli instead of rice lol). We ordered a side of mac salad even though each plate comes with a side of it already! (You can choose two of anything and the rice counts as one of them). The mac salad is one of the eBay I've had! It was creamy but not too heavy. The service was exceptional as well! The restaurant was very spacious with abundant seating. I loved how they created a huge space in the middle so the restaurant doesn't feel so crowded. This is the perfect place to come for a quick bite! The pricing is fair too-- was only $26 before tips for two people and it was very filling. read more

A1 Hawaiian BBQ - Hawaiian Near Me - Kent, Washington

*upadate* they have definitely changed owners or cooks or something because the only thing that remains the same as my review from a year ago are the portion sizes. That is still the same. But the flavor, the quality, are different now. We ordered our usual order of mochiko, garlic chicken, and katsu and the flavors were missing. Mochiko didn't really taste how it should and the breading/coating also seemed a bit different/lacking. The garlic chicken just tasted like regular grilled chicken with a side of garlic sauce. The katsu fillets are so thin and tiny although the katsu crust is still okay. Not sure we'll be back. read more

Food was really, great. We order Hawaiian BBQ Mix and chicken fried rice. Would Defiantly come back and try some of the other food in their menu. The place is small and can blend with other businesses around them. Customer service was amazing and super sweet folks. read more

A1 Hawaiian BBQ - 3. Hawaiian BBQ Mix and chicken fried rice - Hawaiian Near Me - Kent, Washington

I order here every other month or so but it seems like the owners and/or chefs have changed. I didn't recognize the staff and they were not friendly . The woman at the front was deep in conversation with the chefs in another language & just stared at me until I said I had a to go order. She pointed at it & said nothing. The Mac salad had more mayonnaise than usual with a weird taste - couldn't figure out what it was. Broccoli served with my beef was practically raw, cooked it again at home & I also discovered a long piece of hair in it. Like 6- 8 inches long - how do you miss that?! Probably won't be back. read more

Bad staff they just yell the hole time I was at there. The food was barely Hawaiian BBQ it was just garbage. There were little kids everywhere some were screaming. ONE STAR read more

We came in on a Sunday a few hours before their scheduled closing time, but could tell the workers were already prepping for the closing down so asked first if they were accepting orders still. The employees were both very cordial and stopped working right away to help us. The food was good and decent sized portions. I really enjoyed the macaroni salad. I think maybe Hawaiian food may not be my thing, as I grew up in a household that was low-salt and it seems like that Hawaiian food might be a little salty for my tastes. Bring on the malasadas though!!! read more

Just went in and got #1 with short ribs... huge portion an it was amazing lol I'm in disbelief I feel like I found a restaurant gem of a lifetime. read more

BBQ Sampler plate, chicken had the skin on it, and lots of fat, beef was nothing but fat, Mac salad was sour. Seemed to take awhile to get my take out order.Wont eat there again. read more

I've ordered from here before. I don't know what's changed. New owners. New cooks...I don't know but, the change was fo da bettah. Howzit, island fam?! Go try dis one. Broke da mouth Ono. Bllalah kine portions. Even the Mac salad reminded me of Rainbow Drive-in from da Hana-bada days! read more

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Food here is always good. Would be 5 stars except the last time I ordered a to go order they gave half my order to an Uber East's driver and I had to sit and wait for them to recook half the order while the other half got cold. No comps... read more

The food was delicious the wait time was not to long also service was good I will be eating there again in the near future.

A1 has been open for a minute now along Kent Kangley. Its more a 3.5 Star for food and ambiance but as a local from hawaii with not a lot of choices for nearby hawaiian food, A1 will have to do. I always get da musubi trio which you can pick spam, katsu, bbq chicken or portuguese sausage. Kalua and cabbage was good, not amazing, but enough to satisfy and affordable wit da mini plate at about $10. Lots of menu choices and friendly service. Wish they had some hawaiian cake slices too. Think about it A1... ok? Menu feels very much like L&L. There. I said it. But go try and see whatchu think. Support local read more

A1 Hawaiian BBQ - Musubi trio - Hawaiian Near Me - Kent, Washington

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Just a great reliable meal Everytime ! Friendly service. This kind of good takes the kitchen a minute to get out the pass so I always call my order in whether I eat in or take out. I really like this better than the L And L locations locally and only better sometimes at certain Hawaii locations. Bruh from Kent can make brok da mouth grinds. read more

Great hidden gem! The food was amazing, the service was extremely fast, and there was plenty of seating. I'm not sure what I expected but was pleasantly surprised because I walked out full and very satisfied. Even though we ate inside, we were given "to go" boxes for our food. I looked around to see if maybe we forgot to say we were eating inside but nope! Everyone had to go boxes. Which, if you think about it, when you get so much food don't you ask for a box for the leftovers? This saved us time for sure. Yes, we'll be back. I want to try EVERYTHING on the menu (see pic). read more

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This restaurant offers good Hawaiian BBQ for a great price. I had the Hawaiian BBQ chicken plate and it did not disappoint. I recommend getting the "mini" plate because it's basically a regular sized plate and you would get a good deal out of it. The Hawaiian BBQ chicken was very tasty and savory. The chicken katsu was also great too, as it was tender and crispy. The service was okay. The server took our orders. We had some questions but it wasn't fully answered. The food took a bit of time to make but not too long. The ambiance was okay. It's a restaurant where you want to quickly eat your food and then get out. Nothing special about the place on that spectrum. read more

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What a wonderful addition to this plaza! After grocery shopping at TJ the other day, we had dinner here and loved the food! We got the seafood/meat combo and the other meat combo. We loved every item on both combos! The vibe is pretty cool and chill. It's a cool place to just grab good food. read more

A1 Hawaiian BBQ - Hawaiian Near Me - Kent, Washington

Decent Hawaiian food. Not bad but also not great. It's convenient and close to home. Service was quick when we ordered thru the Yelp app which uses GrubHub. The inside is your typical lunch spot cafe style restaurant nothing fancy about it. I would return if I'm craving for Hawaiian food and didn't want to drive far to get it. read more

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Food was really good! You get a lot and it actually tastes good. Glad they have one near us. Very convenient. Server was super nice and friendly.. Ambience was relax. Place is very simple, They have a few tables for you seat at. Good for take out! Highly recommended... read more

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Tried the fried garlic chicken. It didn't feel like there was much chicken, mostly skin and it had 0 garlic taste

We ordered the large low carb plate to share between 2 people and it was plentiful. Added sides of rice and Mac salad. The meats were marinaded so well it packed a mouthful of flavor. All the protein goes so well with white rice. Mac salad was delicious, was seasoned well and creamy. Def one of the better ones I've tried out here. read more

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Really glad there's a great Hawaiian bbq place nearby! I have been here a few times since their grand opening and am always amazed by their food. I honestly thought their food quality are way better than L&L. Here are my thoughts on the food that I ordered: Spam musubi trio- As soon as I saw this on the menu, I immediately have to order it. You can't go wrong with trying a variety of masubi, just saying.. The order comes with katsu, spam and bbq chicken. I thought they all tasted fantastic but I like the spam one the best. Aloha saimin- I really love this dish because it has a fried egg on top of my noodles! There's bbq chicken and noodles which made the broth very flavorful. One of the best saimin noodles I've had compare to the ones from Hawaii. Bento plate- This mixed plate consist of bbq beef and chicken, katsu, and fried fish with a side of Mac salad and rice. If you had a zip pack before, then you know what I'm talking about. I like the fact that you get to try a variety of their offering in one plate. Everything tasted so good! I couldn't finish everything in one setting so I had to save it on another day. Overall, the name did live to the hype! It is my new go-to Hawaiian restaurant. Give this place a try and you won't regret it! read more

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The easiest way to judge a Hawaiian place is by their Mac salad, and this place's Mac salad has the strangest aftertaste. It reminds me of how well-water tastes. The meat is extremely gristly and I would overall call this place average. The spam musubi is good. read more

One of my favorite quick bites in Kent. The BBQ combo packs flavor in every bite! The service is efficient and there is typically plenty of space for dining in. read more

My Husband is obsessed with Spam Musubi. Every time I shop at Trader Joe's, I always stop at A1 Hawaiian too for a snacky snack. He considers this musubi 8.5/10. So of course I always buy him 1 or 9 of em. Haha. read more

Service was great. Quick and friendly. I had spam w/ saimin and it was good. Cant really go wrong w/ it. I liked that they had side kimchi I could eat along with it. That way I can get my dose of veggies and probiotics. :) Malasadas tasted like it was fried in oil with mushrooms? I think they can do some work by adding some Hawaiian music and possibly some decor to give that Aloha vibe. read more

I tried the Lau Lau and Kalua pork plate. It was overcooked and very dry. Not happy with my purchase. I probably won't order that again. The other food items are pretty good. read more

DO NOT waste your time! We drove all the way from Federal Way in search of what we thought was Hawaiian food. Right off the bat we noticed it was an all Korean owned and operated. Right there and then we should have left. Not a single real Hawaiian or islander there. This was not necessarily the determining factor but more so was the disgusting food they tried to pass off as Hawaiian. Their short ribs looked like not only the cheapest cut of meat you can find but also so genetically modified that I have never seen a short rib look so big. As someone whose choice of dish this is on the island as well as here locally, I was outraged. The food was very cheap quality of meat for the price and lacked any real islander flavor. I was absolutely disgusted and unable to request anything else as the whole place was just terrible! Do not waste your time or money here. $60 down the drain on food that was tossed in the trash. You're better off flushing your money down the toilet! read more

Love the fact that they have a low carb option on the menu with extra meat it's a little out of the way for me, but it's worth the drive

Call for a pick up order and they are always out of noodles and rice. Doesn't matter if you call when they open or mid day always out. How are you still in business? read more

The food is fresh, hot, and fast. The service was good and the restaurant was clean and happy. A feeling of Hawaii without the island. All around, good experience! read more

A1 Hawaiian BBQ - The menu is pretty good... - Hawaiian Near Me - Kent, Washington

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