Cancel

    Open app

    Search

    Ai Pono Café

    3.3 (527 reviews)
    ModerateHawaiian
    Closed 11:30 am - 9:00 pm

    Order Ai Pono Café Takeout or Delivery

    Ai Pono Café Photos

    Business Info

    AI PONO CAFÉ ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Casual
    Trendy
    Moderate noise
    Dogs allowed

    You might also consider

    More like Ai Pono Café

    Recommended Reviews - Ai Pono Café

    Your trust is our priority, so businesses can't pay to alter or remove their reviews. Learn more about reviews.
    Yelp app icon
    Browse more easily on the app
    Review Feed Illustration

    Reviews With Photos

    Korean chicken, meat Jim, Kalei plate $25....generous
    Debra N.

    Ai Pono is at the Durango Casino food court...not to miss! It has a mixture of Japanese, Korean, Hawaiian flavors in whatever choice. I had this melody of mixed flavors and too huge to finish...something to share which I ended up doing! "Korean Zombi" Korean rib Korean Crispy Chicken Meat Jun Kim Chee Bean Sprouts Mac Salad Rice This Korean plate is the ultimate and huge! Chicken was tasty with crispy texture...love the crunch. The ribs are like Bulbogi, but thick...heavenly, side dishes helped with spice level...meat Jun was mild and good sauce accompanying it. I'll be sharing this huge plate...Ciao!

    Korean Short Rib
    Joleen D.

    Stopped by Ai Pono Cafe at Durango Casino to grab some takeout, and I'm really glad I did. Really nice casual atmosphere, and everything on the menu looked so good it was hard to choose. The staff was super nice and took the time to help me decide, which I really appreciated. Great service and great food, definitely a spot I'll be coming back to.

    Marina H.

    Located inside the Durango Casino food hall.. it's a cute little spot to eat. Service was great, our cashier was very patient while we decided what to order and she gave recommendations and pointed out the daily specials.. we settled for Da Roots and my boyfriend got the Prime Rib locomoco. The portion size of the locomoco was descent but under all the gravy, was a lot of rice. The prime rib flavor was good, however the meat itself was not as tender as I'd like it. Da Roots was pretty good however portion size was on the skimpier side. For the price we paid, you think you would get a little bit more, however, keep in mind, it is inside of a hotel so the price will be higher. The wasabi on that abi was .. perfectly cooked ahi!!

    Loco moco
    Sary O.

    I'm a big fan of loco moco, and this one was decent.. just not the best I've had. Out of all the loco mocos I've tried, only one really stood out, and that was in San Diego (sadly that restaurant isn't open anymore). I did love the deep, dark, thick gravy here, but it could've used a bit more flavor. The eggs was perfectly cooked with yolk running. My family ordered different foods from the menu and thought their food was pretty good. The search continues.. I'm still on the hunt for that perfect loco moco!

    Crackhead "Crackhead" Chicken
    Jacob A.

    Poke bowl is amazing got heat to it but still worth the wait,crackhead chicken is what my fiancé got she enjoyed it said has a sweetness she wasn't expecting but it's still good highly recommend this place if you stay at Durango casino

    Meaning of Pono, which is in their name, which they DO NOT LIVE UP TO

    came here for food. everything says it closes at 9pm. I walk in. bald/short haired cook guy at the flat top said closed. as i was walking out, the younger guy at the door was trying to close it, i asked "closed? everything says you close at 9pm." his response was "we close about 25 minutes early now." I mentioned "not too good when you guys gotta pay rent, that you close early." he said he was a cook too and could make my order, but I declined. The other cook spoke already. as someone born and raised in Hawaii, who visits Durango Casino a lot, this WAS my go to. Not anymore. No Aloha, nothing. "We closed" yup. my wallet will now be "closed" to Ai Pono Cafe from now on, and all those who come visit me on the 9th Island will never be eating here as well, if I have a say in it. worst thing for a business to do, close early with no notice, treat customers like we are gonna inconvenience them if we order before they're closing time. while writing this, standing in front of the establishment, two couples and a family of three were also turned away, and it's still not 9pm just don't come here. The Aloha Spirit doesn't exist for a restaurant claiming "Hawai'i Street Food" Pono means "excellence, integrity, balance, harmony, righteousness and doing things the right way" obviously they should change their name.

    Outside looking in
    Eugene B.

    3 stars for now. I was there with some friends who had a late night crave for "plate lunches". From what I saw, mix plate looked good. There are community table seating along with some bar stool seating and a few tables in the back. There's also a section for some Ai Pono merch. What really caught my eye from afar was the beautiful printed images of a few local Hawaiian musicians. Don Ho caught my attention first. Then Gabby Pahinui.

    Fries
    Angela L.

    Ate here tonight for the second time. I LOVE Hawaiian food and I eat it as much as possible to take me back to the island. I was disappointed our last visit, but I'm glad we gave it another try. Aside from the rice being extra crispy, EVERYTHING was delicious! The Crackhead chicken and Muay Thai shrimp was the bomb! I could eat that everyday. My husband loved his loco moco. The staff were very friendly. Definitely give this place a try!

    Side dishes given, Kim Chi,pickled cucumbers and sprouts
    KevinCindy M.

    Me and my wife decided to stop on in at Durango casino for this restaurant. So glad we did this place is so inviting with the island vibes and music. The servers were amazing and helpful. I ordered the Da Chef special that had beef, fish, Mac salad, and delicious Poke. Don't get me wrong it was all delicious. The wife had egg rolls, steamed rice and macaroni salad. The only thing I wish this place had was chicken breast as a substitute for the people who don't eat dark meat. Overall this place is inexpensive for the amount of food you get and the flavors of the island are on point.

    Da Chef

    I ordered a to go food. The service is fast. Food taste good. The beef is only little bit. It is kinda expensive. Typical Hawaiian food

    Black Magic Bahn "Fuckin" Mi
    Christian V.

    After passing by the store front for so long we finally decided to come in, immediately fell in love with the vibe of the restaurant inside and the really cool t shirts! The staff is really nice and the dude that took our order was helpful recommending his top hits and what was most popular. We decided to get the bahn mi and da Korean zombie plate along with a Portuguese sausage masubi to wet our whistles. Again the service here is excellent and fast...... butttttt I was disappointed to say the food didn't stand up to match the vibe. The bahn mi felt like it was missing something that traditional bahn mi sandwiches usually have. Given that this isn't traditional Vietnamese bahn mi sandwich territory I hoped it would somewhat give that flavor. The bun was soggy immediately and the meat was overpowering all the tie in ingredients like the pickled cucumbers and cilantro. I was hoping for that same crunch I normally get. The zombie plate was packed & beautifully presented but the meat jun didn't have much flavor and was soggy. The short rib was very flavorful and cooked well. the chicken was delicious and perfectly seasoned with a kick of flavor! I would have just ordered the chicken for that flavor. Kimchi had the same taste as pre packaged grocery store kimchi. Mac salad was not the best I've tried but not bad either. The masubi was good and had no complaints. The pickled mango lemonade was pretty sweet I added some water and then it was perfect and refreshing. I really wanted to love this spot but it fell short to so many other smaller mom and pops around the area.

    Rainier F.

    We are big fans of the Durango Casino food hall, Eat your heart out. Every time we are in town, we try to eat at a new spot at the food hall. The latest restaurant we tried is Ai Pono Cafe which is a Hawaiian street food spot located at the Durango Casino food hall. We arrived for late dinner on a Saturday night due to our late flight arrival. Thank god the cafe closed at 11:00pm. The casino has a large parking lot all around so parking is always easy and accessible. The cafe has its' own dining space with a few picnic tables inside. We chose to eat in the food hall tables area as friends in our party grabbed other food. We ordered the Crackhead Chicken, Ahi Poke Bowl, 2 Spamusubis, and the Dirty licking Korean Chicken. Everything was delicious. My Crackhead Chicken was so flavorful and tasty. The portions was big which is always a plus. The staff was very friendly and helpful with the menu. Overall we enjoyed our experience at Ai Pono Cafe. I've been wanting to try this spot since the last time we were at Durango Casino. Glad we got to finally try it.

    Restaurant
    Cristina G.

    We went to the Durango food court for dinner and came upon this Hawaiian Cafe towards the back side. The restaurant is clean & very stylishly decorated. It's a casual restaurant where the menu rotates on a screen above the cashier. So be patient when reading it because they don't have a written menu. We ordered the poké bowl with tuna which comes with seaweed salad and crab salad on top of a bed of rice. The tuna was fresh and the crab salad was delicious. The teriyaki chicken bowl was bread chicken breast glazed with this fabulous teriyaki sauce on top of a bed of rice. After ordering you can pick your seat at clean picnic tables until your order is called. The food was very good but I wished there was more. Go Try It!

    Da "Stockton" Slap

    See all

    4 months ago

    Helpful 1
    Thanks 1
    Love this 1
    Oh no 3

    4 months ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 2

    7 months ago

    Helpful 3
    Thanks 2
    Love this 3
    Oh no 2

    8 months ago

    Helpful 1
    Thanks 0
    Love this 1
    Oh no 3

    4 months ago

    Helpful 1
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 2

    8 months ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 3

    1 month ago

    Helpful 4
    Thanks 1
    Love this 1
    Oh no 0

    9 months ago

    Helpful 3
    Thanks 2
    Love this 3
    Oh no 0
    Photo of Jacob A.
    421
    28
    9

    1 month ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 1

    9 days ago

    Helpful 2
    Thanks 1
    Love this 1
    Oh no 0
    Photo of ken c.
    2
    44
    43

    1 month ago

    Helpful 2
    Thanks 2
    Love this 3
    Oh no 1

    10 months ago

    Helpful 1
    Thanks 1
    Love this 1
    Oh no 0

    10 months ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    14 days ago

    Helpful 2
    Thanks 1
    Love this 1
    Oh no 0

    6 months ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 2
    Photo of S C.
    0
    45
    74

    22 days ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 0

    1 year ago

    Helpful 1
    Thanks 1
    Love this 1
    Oh no 0

    1 year ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 2

    8 months ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 3

    1 year ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 2

    9 months ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 3

    1 year ago

    Helpful 7
    Thanks 3
    Love this 2
    Oh no 0

    9 months ago

    Helpful 2
    Thanks 2
    Love this 2
    Oh no 0

    1 year ago

    Helpful 8
    Thanks 3
    Love this 3
    Oh no 0

    11 months ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 2

    11 months ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 2

    2 years ago

    Helpful 1
    Thanks 0
    Love this 1
    Oh no 3

    1 year ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 1
    Oh no 3

    6 months ago

    Helpful 3
    Thanks 2
    Love this 3
    Oh no 0
    Photo of Jen C.
    236
    1133
    2860

    7 months ago

    Helpful 2
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 2

    1 year ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 2

    1 year ago

    Helpful 1
    Thanks 1
    Love this 2
    Oh no 0

    2 months ago

    My god the tuna, the guava spicy chicken oh lord have mercy on my soul was out of this world, we loved it so much!

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 2

    10 months ago

    Helpful 4
    Thanks 3
    Love this 4
    Oh no 0

    1 year ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 2

    6 months ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 2

    2 years ago

    Helpful 5
    Thanks 3
    Love this 2
    Oh no 2

    1 year ago

    Helpful 4
    Thanks 3
    Love this 6
    Oh no 1
    Photo of Steve D.
    108
    48
    31

    4 months ago

    Helpful 0
    Thanks 0
    Love this 0
    Oh no 3

    1 year ago

    Helpful 3
    Thanks 1
    Love this 1
    Oh no 0

    Page 1 of 14

    Ask the Community - Ai Pono Café

    Is the oxtail curry on the menu every friday?

    Yes, Friday and Saturday starting 6pm.

    Is the fish organic? Or wild caught…

    I don't know.

    Is the Mac salad vegetarian?

    It has mayo

    Im calling to order for pick up and no answer?

    It's because they're busy helping people in line. I wouldn't expect phone orders for a few months.

    Is it busy right now?

    Yes long line

    Don’t See Your Question? Ask Away!

    You might also consider

    Verify this business for free

    People searched for Hawaiian 21,537 times last month within 15 miles of this business.

    Verify this business

    Pacific Island Taste

    Pacific Island Taste

    4.6
    (826 reviews)
    9.3 mi
    $$

    When I sent a picture of this place to my friends and said I was in Hawaii, they actually believed…read moreme. That is how authentic P.I.T. is! What a treasure Las Vegas has in this place. You can tell this is family owned and run, with a lot of passion and hard work put into the place. The owner is lovely and brews a mean cup of delicious Kona coffee. They do get busy (was here on a Saturday at 11 am and it was packed) and make stuff to order, so be prepared for Island Time when you dine here. Even the musubi and coffee are made to order. My only quibble was that I paid for a custard filled malasada and since they don't give it to you right then and there if you are dining in with other dishes, they let me know later they actually had run out. But they are that good. Otherwise all the food was delicious and brought my husband and I back to our last vacation there. The live music made the time fly. I recommended this place to my friends immediately. Free and plenty parking in front.

    This place is a bit off the strip. It's in a little strip mall but is a huge location. I came on a…read moreweekday so there was lots of parking. The folks serving were nice. Auntie kept coming by to check in on us. You order at a walk up counter and they bring your food to you. They have a pretty extensive menu, making it hard to choose what to enjoy! We landed on poke nachos and a mochiko chicken/kalbi combo with fried saimin. Be sure to note that ADD fried saimin doesn't mean add. It substituted my rice but it's actually fine cuz who needs all that carbs anyway. The chicken was battered and fried well! The kalbi had a great marinade. The saimin had good flavor. The wontons for the poke were crispy. The fish tasted fresh. Only hope was for more fish and avocado on the nachos. Overall, ono grinds! Go try..

    Photos
    Sofa inside
    Sofa inside
    Garlic chicken
    Garlic chicken
    Front of Pacific Island Taste

    See all

    Front of Pacific Island Taste
    Matiki Island BBQ

    Matiki Island BBQ

    4.2
    (681 reviews)
    10.5 mi
    $$

    Found Matiki Island BBQ on social while scrolling one night. The reasonably priced Hawaiian food…read morealong with their huge beef ribs caught my attention. I took a couple of months before I was able to make it here. But the wait was worth the squeeze. The quality of the beef was delicious and better than my normal go to Hawaiian food. The rice was perfectly cooked and their mac/potato salad was amazing.

    Sometimes social influencers work against you. If they didnt praise this place so much, my…read moredisappointment would not weigh so heavy. I was thoroughly unimpressed and my belief in these influences has worn thin. I came here for their famous beef ribs and Mac spam. Firstly, they did not have their famous ribs and from other reviews its been 2 weeks since they've had it. Fine, im not really OK with that but it is what it is bc the business cant control stock and where they have to buy it from. I got a steak and galbi plate that tasted burnt, flavorless and most of all, unlike all the videos I saw, it did NOT come "packed". Im glad it didn't anyways bc i did not enjoy the food. I also got the mac spam and a double spam misubi. Sooooooo much rice and the double spam really equals to one regular spam size at other hawaiian places. The Mac spam was very bland and both the spams not worth its price. The inside was hot and looked old. The music was cool and the cashier, a young woman, looked severely depressed and unenthusiastic. I didn't like the vibe, the cashier was unfriendly, and it was not worth the wait. I give honest reviews. I dont get paid and dont make exaggerated videos.

    Photos
    Dining area
    Dining area
    Beef Rib Plate w/2 scoop of Mac Salad
    Beef Rib Plate w/2 scoop of Mac Salad
    Drink choice

    See all

    Drink choice
    Lefty-J's Island Favorites

    Lefty-J's Island Favorites

    4.7
    (1.4k reviews)
    8.7 mi
    $$

    I knew nothing about this place...was blown away after my 1st experience…read more This place was chosen by one of my good buddies. He usually never misses when it comes to doing recon on places to try. Huge, huge shout out to Aaron for going above + beyond. He runs the front counter & did not hesitate to answer any + all questions. He's really passionate about the quality of food that is served here. He went into interesting detail about how the meats are marinaded in-house. I particularly appreciated that he personally came to our table several times to make sure everything was ok & how we liked the food. If the owners are reading this, please give Aaron a raise. Personally, he is the biggest reason that my group & I had such a lovely experience. Lefty-J's Island Favorites was no exception. I'm glad I let him choose our lunch option for the day. FOOD #19 - Famous Five Star - 9.1 / 10 A combo platter featuring Kalbi Short Ribs, Ribeye Teriyaki Beef, & Chicken Katsu, & Teriyaki Chicken. The Kalbi Short Ribs were impressively meaty. Usually, other Hawaiian places serve fattier ribs with scant meat. The ones here were decently substantial & decently trimmed of unnecessary fat. The sauce is thick, savory, with just the right amount of body + sweetness. The Ribeye Teriyaki Beef is similar but in the form of the best cut on meat. No bones, no necessary fat. It's everything I think of when I think "premium beef". I could eat an entire Family Size bowl of this stuff + steamed white rice. Again, the exact same teriyaki sauce is miles above any other Hawaiian place because its thick, umami, & not-too-sweet. The Chicken Katsu is thick + generous in portion. In fact, this plate was a decent portion to satisfy me & my buddy for a few hours before our epic dinner at The Golden Steer. The macaroni salad was refreshing, medium-bodied, & not too creamy. The macaroni noodles were not-too mushy. The salad itself was noticeably less sweet compared to that at other Hawaiian restaurants. The teriyaki chicken was lean & not fatty. Again, the same sauce really carries this protein to a higher level of other Hawaiian restaurants' teriyaki chicken. Like I said, the owners here are putting in a lot of work to make their offerings miles above what other Hawaiian places do. Hot Dog Masubi - 7.5 / 10 Granted, I'm more of a Spam Masubi kind-of-guy, this was still a refreshing take on a Hawaiian classic. The peculiar redness of the hot dog links is oddly satisfying. A pretty big size for a snack. Rice was well cooked. Seaweed had a nice chew.

    So Ono! Loved this spot, the fried chicken did not disappoint! It was fried to perfection, really…read morenice crunchy batter, then dipped in a garlic, sweet soy that made it soooo delicious. The teriyaki chicken was charred and sweet, savory, and tender. Overall, this spot hits on all the marks, great food, fair prices, friendly service, and convenient location.

    Photos
    Menu
    Menu
    Regular size kalbi rib plate
    Regular size kalbi rib plate
    Robust Garlic Chicken combo with Ribeye Teriyaki Beef ($20.95)

    See all

    Robust Garlic Chicken combo with Ribeye Teriyaki Beef ($20.95)

    Ai Pono Café - hawaiian - Updated August 2026

    Loading...
    Loading...
    Loading...