Since early December 2019, I started hearing rumblings about this East Coast-style Italian restaurant in Kapolei Commons called "Mad Bene". Um, through my limited East Coast life experiences, I understood that "Mad Bene" is slang for "really good". But, wait, I questioned whether or not Kapolei on O'ahu's West Coast WOULD actually have a really good Italian restaurant. I made a dinner reservation through the SevenRooms reservations platform to celebrate my husband's birthday and anxiously waited for the day to come. We drove out to Kapolei Commons and readily located the Mad Bene as it is in the space of the former Eating House 1849, next door to DB Grill. Walking into Mad Bene, its dark wood furniture and blue banquettes with chandeliers for lighting is a stark change from the casual "rustic and rural" decor of Eating House. Mad Bene's glistening full bar and talented mixologist are welcoming sights and one can pull up a seat for potent drinks and delicious appetizers/entrées without a dining reservation. However, if you're planning to have dinner, I'd strongly recommend that you make a reservation. Our server, Natalee, was friendly, cheery and efficient. She provided us descriptions to some of the menu items as well as some background about this restaurant. It's owned by the local restaurant group behind Café Duck Butt and DB Grill. What caught my interest is that the chef here, Bao Tran, is a New Yorker and former executive chef at Michael Mina's The Street food hall. Also, they make fresh pasta and pizza dough from scratch. All cocktails are priced at $12 a piece and we started with a Mezzodi Negroni and a MB Old Fashioned. We placed our dinner orders while sipping on our cocktails. FOOD: -Fritto Misto: This appetizer was a heaping mound of crisp fried tempura battered spinach, kale, onion, red bell peppers, calamari, smelt and shrimp. Served with ramekins of tartar and marinara. Great for sharing and whetting your appetite. $15 -Caesar Salad: Another huge platter that is perfect to share. Mad Bene's version of this classic salad was a mélange of local baby gem lettuce instead of typical Romaine lettuce with anchovies and croutons. It was dressed lightly and topped with Parmigiano Reggiano shavings. $13 -Fettuccine Scampi: Broiled Kauai shrimp atop and mixed in with garlic butter sauced al dente fettuccine. The generous pasta portion was just right for an individual serving. The shrimp was tender and the entire dish was flavorful. $20 -Tako (octopus) Rigatoni: Red wine braised octopus, soffritto, brown butter panko. The tomato based sauce was savory and clung to every nook and cranny of the pasta tubes. However, the sauce flavor and pasta texture was very good, I was disappointed with this dish as I expected octopus slices or chunks or even a octopus tentacle but there was NONE. Even a diner next to us ordered this dish also and was disappointed as well. $18 DESSERT: We chose the Luxardo cherry gelato. The gelato was a perfect finish to our meal. 2 huge scoops of creamy, smooth with full-cherry flavor gelato were served. WHY NOT FIVE-STARS WORTHY? Although, I think due to the newness of this business, our salad was delivered to us BEFORE our appetizer. We were still sipping on our cocktails. So, we notified Nathalee right away who quickly apologized and went back into the kitchen to check on the status of our Fritto Misto. Within 5 minutes, we had these 2 huge plates on our table. We felt rushed to eat our Fritto Misto to enjoy its fresh from the fryer goodness. Meanwhile, our salad started to warm to room temperature. As we were munching on Fritto Misto , we notified Natalee to ask the kitchen to hold off on our entrées because we hadn't started on our Caesar salad. Then, all of a sudden a server came to deliver our entrées. We had barely enough time to start to eat our salad. I wanted to refuse or send the entrées back but my good hearted husband accepted them. Natalee came by and noticed our crowded table and apologized again. At this rate, all of our food came to our table within 20 minutes! Hrumph! So much for a relaxing celebration that would've been over in less time than our drive from from town. The couple next to us even said this was surprising to see so much food on the table in such a short time. As it turned out, the couple had ordered the same entrées as us and ended up waiting over 20 minutes for their food. So we believe that we received their order in error. Finally, I had notified via online reservation that we were there to celebrate my husband's birthday but no acknowledgement came from either the hostesses or server. read more

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Mad Bene pizza for the win! Lots of places claim to have good pizza on Oʻahu but Mad Bene is the only one I have been to that actually does. It is really nice to have a thin crust with the "correct chew" and pepperoni that isn't heartburn flavor again. read more

#14 for 2020 Attempted to call this restaurant in the evening and make reservations. Worker who answered the call politely informed me they don't take reservations by phone and easiest way is to make reservations online at madbene.com. Thanked the worker. Selected time and reserved for four people online. Fast and efficient. Received email confirmation immediately and once more before the day. Ensure everyone in your party is present. Otherwise, you will have to wait to be seated. When my husband ordered bread, we're informed the restaurant is out of bread. Chef plans to remove it off the menu. I'm thinking are you serious? Server encouraged, persuaded us to order Garlic Six Ways Pizza as there's mostly bread and cheese. Very considerate of Server to ask us if we want Garlic Six Ways Pizza to arrive before our Salad. We said, "Yes." This one has a thin crust and cheesy. Easily passes for an appetizer rather than a meal. Everyone else genuinely enjoyed this pizza except for me. Nature of the garlic leaves a layer of oil on top that I'm not fond of. Couldn't taste much garlic. Pizza slices were huge. First time, I ate a slice, I folded my pizza over and ate it like a sandwich because big slice just hungover. I know it appears and sounds ghetto. Decided to cut slices in half again for everyone else to enjoy. Highlight of dinner was light, fresh ingredients and tasty Caesar Salad. They make their Caesar dressing in house. Fresh Anchovies, lemon and capers makes a huge difference in taste. My husband inquired if they offer sweet iced tea even though we didn't see any on the menu. They do have a bar. Our server accommodated his request and did great with refills along with asking us how we're doing periodically. Uni Spaghettini was one of their two special pastas served this evening. Uni Spaghettini consisted of finely minced sea urchin with roe from sea urchin that is made into a sauce. Yummy! Light tasting. Yet, pricey. Why not we only live once. Go for the uncommon. read more

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Great fresh pizza, tasty pasta. We only got take out so can't say much about ambiance but we plan to return soon!

My 3rd time eating here. First time for Lunch. We were able to double portion the Pappardelle Bolognese. Sadly, according to our waitress, they are currently not including Focaccia bread due to lack of Pastry Chef. My husband and I shared the pasta and a Ceasar Salad. I got my son a kid's pepperoni pizza. We realized its the same size as their normal pizzas. You can definitely order a kids pizza and have 2-3 kids share. My parents got the Mad Garlic Pizza and added an egg on top. Imagine super garlicky bread. The smell hits you before you bite in. Would highly recommend adding the egg as it helps dull the garlic a bit. read more

Finally, some decent Italian food can be found on Oahu! I had high expectations for this place, and this place exceeded them! Maybe I have low standards since lately the only Italian-like places I go to nowadays are Old Spaghetti Factory and .. well, Old Spaghetti Factory! But seriously, I was impressed with the food we shared family style - pappardelle bolognese, fusulli pesto, spaghetti w/meatballs, NYC pizza, and the crispy potatoes. Got kids? No problem - they have options for kids - just ask b/c it's not printed on the menu. Reservations are A MUST, and your entire party must be present to be seated. read more

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Another one of those restaurants I've had in my bookmarks for a verrrry long time (only because I always go to Sushi Bay LOL). Finally made a trip to Kapolei to try this restaurant for lunch with a couple of friends! It's located in between DB Grill and La Tour Cafe where the Regal Cinemas are located on the left side of the Kapolei Commons. There's a parking lot with ample parking. They had a lunch special with an appetizer, entree, and a free lemonade with different flavors. I got that and chose the mango lemonade, eggplant parmesan sticks, and the aglio olio pasta. The mango lemonade was very refreshing. I was kind of scared there would be a super artificial flavor, but I had nothing to worry about! Definitely more lemonade. The eggplant parmesan sticks looked SUPER underwhelming compared to the cesar salad which was the other appetizer choice (peep at pic) LOL. BUT it was VERY good. I couldn't taste the eggplant as the cheese masked it very well. I wouldn't even know if there was a vegetable inside it if someone randomly gave me some. The aglio olio was also really good. The noodles were al dente which I liked a lot. It was a buttery oil based pasta without a "real sauce". There was real chili in place of the normal red chili flakes that many recipes call for. Surprisingly, it was spicier than I imagined LOL. Our server did say it was a spicy dish compared to the other options but did not expect the kick from it. My boyfriend ordered the Pizza of the Week which was the Truffle Honey Pizza. Interesting yet delicious pizza. I actually really enjoyed it. Probably because of the truffle. It was almost "creamy" but not. The pizza was salty yet sweet because of the honey. It was a really interesting mixture of flavors but fun! The price on the menu states $16 but because of the truffle, the price jumped to $36. Just a little heads up! My group shared the pepperoni pizza (can't go wrong with that) and also the lunch special with the cesar salad (super salty but the croutons very good) and alfredo pasta (also apparently super salty), and Papperdelle Bolognese (REALLY good, recommend!) (no pics). The pizzas took a while to come out but luckily the pastas came out earlier for my group and I to enjoy first. Great place to check out for an Italian-American feel. The prices are a bit steep but the lunch special definitely is worth the price for the amount of food! read more

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East coast flare in West Oahu! Living on Oahu and having grown up in New Jersey there are things that I miss. Classic Italian dishes with east coast roots and Hawaii flare is a welcome change of pace. You can sit inside or outside under cover and just enjoy the wonderful Hawaiian climate. The service was better this past time as the post pandemic workflows are all worked out. So glad this place survived the pandemic challenges. The food suffered a bit, but we all did. They have come back stronger and focused on quality food. read more

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Pretty disappointed in the Margarita pizza here. (Supreme pizza was better but not by much in terms of ingredients and quality (not pictured)). I Wanted to support in these covid times but the quality and care in the food was lacking.. there is 3 pieces of basil and barely any sauce to where you can clearly see the bread. One slice didn't even have anything on it. For a margarita, it's few ingredients to put together yet this looked rushed and skimpy toppings/ minimal sauce for some odd reason. Wouldn't recommend to others based on my second experience ordering here. Wanted to give it a second chance but clearly the first time wasn't a fluke, and pizzas are not their specialty if they let this out the door. read more

Mad Bene - margarita pizza - Italian Near Me - Kapolei, Hawaii

My quick take of this is the graduated version of a Bravo's where it is a bit more than casual dining but not the traditional fusion of Italian food you'd find at Chez Kenzo or Assagios. This place is huge and can accommodate large parties but I kind of wish the would utilize the outdoor for dining but I guess they don't want to worry about food getting cold. Service here is fairly quick once you put your order in. The first time I came here we tired all of the dishes. The NY pizza is actually more worth your taste buds. It is a nice to have a great restaurant added down in Kapolei AKA second city! They do take reservations and so call ahead to avoid a later time. The first time we waited about 45 minutes for a party of four. I enjoy the urban vibes when you see the bar area. My wife and I have yet to try their desserts which look great! However food was on point the first time. Pizza came out a little over-baked second visit here. Pasta is up to par in flavor. What I enjoy learning through the server is that everything is made in house! Servers also let you pay at the table with their mobile card machine. Overall, the service here can be mixed. I just think everyone is still getting in the groove but you can tell a handful of them showed what their passion is food and happy stomachs. Be sure when you dine in that you do it family style --it's better that way. read more

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The food here is exceptional! I strongly want to emphasize this. However, the service seems to be in a decline. The management seems to be in a lull when it comes to communication. Anyone that knows to lead, knows preparation is key, especially in the restaurant business. Too many restaurants in Hawaii come and go. The best seem to fall off rapidly. Mad Bene is no exception. If it's going to be a holiday weekend, your staffing should be prepared. Made a reservation, was seated 45 minutes past the reservation time. Waited 1 1/2 hours for our appetizer to arrive. Dinner arrived 5 minutes after the appetizer. The wait staff seemed very inauthentic about their service, very young and timid, and passive aggressive with their responses. I'm patient and understanding. But to many others, that is unacceptable. Please! Management please address this. I would be truly heartbroken to see this place end up like every other restaurant in Kapolei. I'm still a fan, but will be hard-pressed to recommend it to any more friends of mine until this is fixed. read more

Yummy! This place is so amazing, they make all their pastas, dough and sauces in house, and it surely tastes like it! So yummy! We enjoyed it so much so, we came back the next day just to try it again! My all time favorite is a truffle gnocchi. It's actually a seasonal flavor I think? I think they always have gnocchi, but they switch up the sauces and flavors of it. Anyway, if you get a chance... get the gnocchi! It's so fluffy and delicious! My only gripe about this place is that it takes sooo long for the order to come out. Which, I guess is the result of being a super popular spot for locals and tourists.. and because they make the dishes fresh. So, for that I'll give it a pass. read more

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Mad Bene Just opened in Kapolei. They make New York style pizza. My husband and I were coming from the movie theater, when we noticed that there is a new restaurant that opened up. And the The restaurant was packed with people. I pull my husband's had to check it out. We were greeted by the friendliest hostess. We told them "we were just coming to check out the new restaurant and wanted to check out the new menu". We were excited to hear that it is an Italian restaurant and they specialize in a New York pizza. They had a brick oven flown in from Italy. They make their own pizza Dough, They make their pasta from scratch. And they make their mozzarella from scratch. They had us at "new York Pizza". My husband is from New York. And we've complained about not finding New York style pizza, Here is hawaii. We made a reservation for the next day. I got to tell you, I was dreaming about pizza that night before our dinner reservations. And thanks to our "YELP! elite's" for your reviews and photos. . We had our order ready. We were so excited to try out our new restaurant on the west side. We ordered the Nyc pizza, the mad garlic pizza, a caprese ( they make their own mozzarella) and the eggplant mozzarella sticks. I danced in my seat with every bite. The service was fast. And we were catered to not only just by our waiter. I must say this is now our favorite restaurant. Right now Mad Bene is only open for dinner. They have indoor seating and a private seating area. They do have an outdoor area as well but it doesn't look like it's open yet. They have a beautiful Bar and signature drinks. We have Already been back a few times!!!!! Ps. They do take out read more

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Came with some friends because they wanted to see what the hype was all about. I demanded that they drive me because kapolei is far and I forgot there are car chargers in the target parking lot.... Anyway. The ambiance is nice. I like the industrial, modern look. The food was just ok to me and I definitely wouldn't drive all the way to kapolei just to come back here. I do like that they offer carafes of drinks to share, and we did choose one to share, but we didn't finish it fast enough (maybe we didn't like it enough?) to actually get some wine to have with our pasta. Cocktails and pasta don't really mix. Next time, I'll just need to stay longer and eat like the Italians do... The waitress couldn't really pronounce the Italian names of dishes. She wasn't very confident and it made it awkward. I ordered the pappardelle and it was okay. It would have been better with some wine. read more

This may be my new favorite place on Oahu. I sadly don't remember the bartenders name (the head bartender), but he made our experience unforgettable! We decided to sit at the bar since there was no wait. We were immediately impressed by the great decor and atmosphere. The super convenient location is originally what lured us in and we were immediately happy that we found it. We tried a few of the specialty cocktails, which were all delicious. The dragonfruit one was our favorite. For appetizers, the carpaccio and the Caprese Salad were both delicious. They hand spin the mozzarella to order!! We also loved both of the entrees that we ordered. the Pesto pasta dish, which features handmade pasta, was amazing. The pasta was perfectly cooked and the Fusilli Pesto Pasta is made with macadamia nut pesto that was perfectly creamy and flavorful. The chicken parmesan was also INCREDIBLE. Tender, flavorful, and not overly breaded. One of the best chicken parmesan dishes that I have ever had. Mad Bene is absolutely the best Italian food that we have had in Hawaii. I can't wait to come back! read more

Love Mad Bene! My husband and I recently returned from a 2 week vacation and we ended up eating here about 5 times for dinner! Everything was very fresh and had a lot of flavor. Their house made tiramisu was the best I've had yet! read more

Mad Bene - Italian Near Me - Kapolei, Hawaii

This place was eh. We ordered 3 pizzas, 2 pastas, and a few appetizers. The pizzas were good, especially the supremo. The appetizers were ok. I ordered the linguine with clams and I thought it was decent. Not the greatest I've had but it wasn't bad. My mother in law ordered the paccheri and gravy and that tasted like chef boyardee. She hardly touched it and we all had a sample of it. Other items we ordered were bone marrow and fritto misto, and eggplant parm sticks, all were good. I'd prob order those appetizers again and the pizza. read more

Mad Bene - Italian Near Me - Kapolei, Hawaii

The food was delicious. They were very crowded when we went and our server did warn us ahead of time that the food takes a little longer to come out. Everything is made fresh including the pasta. Our son is in a wheelchair and they were able to accommodate him in a nice table out of the way. Our server Jenisie was so nice. It's been awhile since we've had such exceptional service at any restaurant. Everyone there from the host to the servers were so nice. We will definitely be going back there. read more

We stopped by during happy hour, so this might not be a fair rating. The pizza was Okay, needed more pizza sauce on the pizza. Over all it was good. We had appetizers and a few drinks read more

Our party of 3 stopped in for dinner at 6:00p on Friday, 1/3/20. The hostess informed us that there would be a 45-min. wait. We decided to leave our name on the waitlist and go strolling to the nearby stores and return later. We returned 45-minutes later and we were seated promptly. The ambiance of the restaurant is open and airy. You can watch chefs and cooks in the back of the house in action. The lights are unique. They have cute lights and hanging square shaped lights that are artful. The paintings haven't been put up on the side walls yet and are leaning on the wall. The small plates are cute and come in various decorative styles for each patron. I liked my friends plate better than the one in front of me and traded it with her. Our server, Raven, enthusiastically shared with us all about the authentically hand made pasta and freshness of the ingredients of the items on the menu. He was thorough and had a friendly and positive demeanor which added to our experience. Raven also suggested an appetizer since our entrees would be a 20-minute preparation time before we were served. We opted to order the Eggplant Parm Sticks. That came right away. There were 4 breaded pieces of eggplant and cheese with a tomato sauce for dipping. We each had 1 and split the last one. It whet our appetite. My friend and I decided to try Raven's recommendation of his favorite the Pappardelle Bolognese. The large flat pappardelle pasta was al dente and the ground beef meat sauce was creamy in a light sauce with a hint of tomato and basil with Parmesan cheese sprinkled on top. It was very flavorful. That was the first time I had Pappardelle pasta and it was a great tasting pasta noodle dish. The other person in our party enjoyed her spaghetti and meatballs. It was a substantial amount that could be shared with others if you wanted to eat it family style. I wanted to try the NYC pizza also. Therefore, I ordered it to go to have it for lunch tomorrow, since Mad Bene is only open for dinner, 5:00p to 11:00p, on most days. All in all, the service at Mad Bene was excellent. Our waters were constantly being filled. We were also checked upon on how we were enjoying our meal. We also had our leftovers packed nicely in boxes and put in a sturdy paper bag to go. I will indeed come back for dinner again and enjoy their other dishes on their concise menu. Mad Bene's pasta and pizza will rival any NYC pizza and pasta eatery. read more

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Portions are sadly small even for a lunch special. Drinks were delicious though. I got the carbonara and I thought it was just delicious. My friend got the scampi and loved it too. We both felt like the amount served was pretty itty bitty. The Caesar salad was amazing. Makes me want to eat healthy. I ordered the Alfredo to go for my husband and he said it was subpar. I asked for chicken added to it and they forgot to add the chicken!! That was a disappointment. The environment was nice and I like how you can see the kitchen. But it wasn't entirely worth the price to be frank. read more

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The food is ok, but the service leaves a lot to be desired. I've visited this place a total of 5 times, and left angry every single time. This last time our server Kendall was very nice and attentive. My wife ordered a salad, I ordered pasta. My wife's food came quickly and she finished it before my food was even started. How long does it take to cook pasta, I waited for 45 minutes before it finally came. We were going to the movies next door and had to shove the pasta in my mouth so we didn't miss it. For some reason I thought 1-1/2 hours would be enough, but I was wrong. Pasta was terrible. I should have just bought the greasy pizza at the movie theatre. Bring your wallet, and don't come hungry. Portions are small and take forever, and are EXPENSIVE for the size. read more

First off the service is great! I loved our waitress, she was so sweet & patient. She constantly checked on us. We had a little mishap & she attended to us without a problem. Unfortunately, the hype with the pastas fell a bit short. Apps- Ahi carpaccio won our palates! Fritto misto- was good and different BUT PLEASE PUT MORE CALAMARI, it seemed as if it was loaded with just smelt. Yikes! Ratios ppl! But it's worth a try. Could be a hit or miss. And grab a side of the Crispy Potato Guy because why not!? Haha. Salads & pizza- We got the Caesar & the Crudite for the salads. Margherita & Mad Garlic for the pizzas. We'd order the Caesar & Mad Garlic again. Pasta- Don't order the Vangole, I hate to say it but it's the worst Vangole I ever tried & I love Vangole. It lacked in flavor and it was almost a dry pasta. My mother ordered the same thing and to my surprise she had sauce in hers! It was like a whole other dish! Please be more consistent. Okay, so try the Rigatoni Tako. As odd as that sounds it was flavorful! My nephew loved the Fettuccine Scampi. My brother got the spaghetti and the noodles were overcooked. He described it as saimin. Lol! The chicken parm comes with no pasta, they don't even have pasta as sides! Please add that to your meThey did comp me for the Vangole as I explained the problem when I showed the waitress both dishes & the massive differences. Overall, it's a great space, the staff is friendly and the food is good. The kitchen just needs to be more consistent and figure things out. read more

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Located in the former Eating House at Kapolei Commons, next to the theaters. Cute place with a simple menu. The tables are really close to each other so you can hear the entire conversation - we even ended up talking to the table next to us because they overhear us discussing what to order. Pros: -Food was very tasty! And the pizza looked sooo good, I can't wait to try it next time!! -Super friendly wait staff. Cons: -Small portions that left me wanting more. -The appetizer and my entree both came out warm, not hot.... not sure why. *Not a con... but super weird... we weren't given a spoon. So I like to twirl my pasta and MOST places give you a spoon with your cutlery so yeah... meh. read more

Mad Bene - Fettuccine Scampi - Italian Near Me - Kapolei, Hawaii

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Ample parking at the shopping center Service: very very slow Reservation was at 7:45 and we waited for a good 20 minutes to get a table. They waited until a table got cleared so having a reservation didn't really matter because they didn't honor it. We ordered appetizers and drinks which came pretty quickly but we didn't get our main entree until after 9 pm! By that time I was no longer hungry and wanted the check right away... I didn't even wanna look at the dessert menu because I was afraid it would take an hour for it. The waiter got a star. He was very friendly and explained the food really well. Food: average We got different kinds of pastas and it wasn't anything special. .. so I would try ordering a pizza if you wanna try here. read more

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6/16/22 LOCATION: Located next to the Regal Theatres in Kapolei Commons, it sits where The Eating House 1849 restaurant used to be. AMBIANCE: It was fairly crowded this Friday evening. However, because it's one of the larger restaurants in the area, we were able to get a seat right away. Nicely decorated, it's decor looks like a modern Italian eatery. FOOD: This is where I teeter between 3 and 4 stars. Everything was pretty delish, there were actually tiny little anchovies on the Ceasar Salad. (Usually it's anchovy paste in the dressing) The four of us sampled that and the fresh mozzarella as an appetizer. Everyone finished their entrees and were probably what a normal portion of food is supposed to look like! They were out of clam linguine so the hubster ate shrimp linguine which had 3 shrimp and 1 prawn in the linguine. They were out of the NY Strip. Now buddy was already one of the pricier items at $48. They were out of Strip so they asked if they could replace it with a ribeye for $7 more. I'm thinking ok rib eye medium, YUM! And it was sooo delicious but the steak was borderline well done and there was a lot of gristle in the meat(that white chewy part) that took away from me loving the dish....especially because it set me back $55. The Yelp description says $$. I'd say it's $$$ because dishes are stand alone. You have to order the sides. Moving forward, post pandemic cost containment by serving smaller serving sizes and product shortage issues will probably probably be the norm for all restaurants. With great company, and still tasty food, made our first time here a bit more palatable. read more

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Great location right next to regal at kapolei commons. Tried their new wagyu bone marrow. Mind blowingly good. Better than the bone marrow I had at Kraft steakhouse in New York, the top chef head judges restaurant read more

Mad Bene - Wagyu bone marrow - Italian Near Me - Kapolei, Hawaii

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Food quality very poor reason I say this I've never had a pizza so salty in my life. The food was so salty my family and I couldn't even eat it. Service hoe ever is excellent very perfesional. And polite. Cost very expensive. I get it it's Hawaii but. Still very overpriced. Ambiance. read more

Mad Bene, located next to the Theaters in Kapolei, offers authentic style pasta and pizza dishes in a relaxing, casual dining setting. My husband and I decided to stop by this local eatery offering a mix of tasty cuisine, friendly service, and a convenient location. We ordered the Pappardelle Bolognese made with a 12 hour homemade ragu sauce, and the Supreme Pizza which featured home made sausage, mushrooms, bell peppers, red onions, and black olives on a thin crust. Both dishes were delicious and well seasoned! For anyone looking to enjoy a comfortable, fun place to gather with friends and family on the west side of the island, don't hesitate to stop by this local eatery. Perhaps you can even find time to fit in a feature movie next door! read more

Absolutely loved this restaurant. Wasn't busy on a Friday night but we had reservations for three. You can choose outdoor seating or indoors. There are also a few tables that would sit you next to the pizza oven window. Wait staff was attentive and friendly throughout our meal. The menu had a lot of items we wanted to try. We got the eggplant parmesan sticks and french fries to start. While I was hoping for something that resembled more of an eggplant parmesan stick, this was more mozzarella stick than eggplant. Nonetheless it was tasty. The french fries were really well seasoned and despite it being a thinner fry, it was not fried to a crisp and still maintained the potato-y-ness inside. The dip/sauce was so good we took the left overs home. This was a flavor bomb of garlic and truffle. We ordered the mad garlic pizza to share. The quality of the pizza here was superb. The crust was crispy and airy. I did wish that there was more garlic here though. So if you're looking to slay some vampires after dinner, this might not be it. The serving size of the pastas here are well worth it. While others ordered the Parppardelle Bolognese and the Tagliatelle Dolgana, i enjoyed my Linguine Scampi the most. I rarely go out to eat pasta as I enjoy cooking it at home most of the time, but this Linguine was so perfect that I would come back just for this. The flavor of the shrimp comes through very nicely in the sauce and you get a little crunch from the toasted breadcrumbs. The texture of this linguine though... perfection. While there were some mishaps with our drink orders, the staff quickly made things right. We ended the night with the mad tiramisu. I'm definitely looking forward to coming back here. read more

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Everything we had here was delicious!!! The employees were all awesome as well. Between me and my husband, we had the truffle gnocchi, ahi carpaccio, crispy potato guy, pizza of the day, NYC pizza, mad garlic + pepperoni pizza, Kona kampachi. (My brother ordered a bunch of stuff for us to try) For drinks we had a Montego Bay and Kings Wings, as well as some Ferrari Brut. Nothing we had was anything less than stellar. I would absolutely recommend this restaurant! read more

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It was a Friday evening and we wanted to try the new Italian place at Kapolei Commons that replaced Eating House. I'm so glad we did! Because this place is so darn delicious! The flavors are excellent! I'm returning as most often as possible! Kapolei commons is always a great spot to eat out anyway because of the ample parking, convenience, shopping choices and varied food options! We only had one of our boys with us this night because our younger one went shopping with his favorite benefactors grams & gramps. Too bad for him since he missed out on Mad Bene, he is the very one of our family that loves Italian food. Sorry for my pics of the half eaten Food dishes-- it was so good that I almost didn't get pictures, we ate it all so quickly We ordered: Eggplant Parmesan sticks - these are not your regular finger-sized sticks tho; they are bigger! My guys don't really love eggplant as much as I do but they loved this; the eggplant is not overbearing at all I won't NOT order this when I come back Caesar salad - flavor was just right not too salty like how other Italian places make it. And it was a large plate; I didn't realize it was family size! When you look at these pictures you assume the plate is small but it's big! It was a good size for us 3 to finish! & Of course they make their own real bread croutons that are not perfectly square like it was from the store Mr Potato Guy - (not sure if I named it right) these are like crispy potato wedge fries with garlic and other seasonings Can't go wrong with this! Bolognese with Pappardelle - this was my favorite dish! I won't be sharing this with others in the future! Fusilli Pesto Pasta - i didn't know that at other pasta places pesto pasta is not always green. This one is and instead of using pine nuts they use Mac nuts Carbonara Pizza - so good! When you look at it you forget there's pancetta and it's under the cheese; a raw egg is on top when they bring it to your table and they pop the yolk while slicing the pizza for you Mark liked the Modelo Especial beers he ordered I like the ambiance and decor of the place. While the previous restaurant also had a nice decor, Mad Bene interior decor accomplished a different vibe from what eating house had. I like the bright lights and comfy seats complete with pillows read more

Have not been to Mad Bene for a while. Today we went and got the lunch special. $19. for 2 eggplant parmesan appetizer, a pizza and a soft drink. Great deal! I haven't had their pizza before, but boy was it good. Can't wait to come back! read more

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We came on a weeknight evening , it wasn't very busy... service was great . Cool atmosphere, fun music . Food was a bit pricey but decent . Chicken parm tasted almost chemically . The entrees are served Ala Carte so the chicken parm came solo $22..no pasta , you can for extra $9 . Stromboli has a wonderful crisp . Would come back and probably get a pizza! They looked great! read more

Was so excited to try this place but very disappointed with the food and service and probably won't be back. My lasagna bolognese was super burnt and dry I didn't even finish it, we also ordered shrimp Alfredo which the sauce was super runny and nasty. Ordered the supreme pizza which was just ok but very spicy The hot chicken wings was pretty good. It's pretty sad to say the best thing we ordered was the Caesar salad. My son ordered shrimp scampi and his ONE shrimp that he had for the whole dish was burnt. The dinner sizes are like kids meal portions and to top it off we waited almost 45 mins for our dinner. Don't see any reason I would return to this restaurant! read more

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Had the linguine scampi and was not expecting the lobster pieces, but they did not disappoint! One huge head-on, broiled and super juicy Kahuku shrimp - broke da mouth! The wife had the chicken Alfredo, and the garlic cream sauce was outstanding. Add to that, the in-house fresh made pasta and we had a meal that we will come back for. Service was a bit lax in that even a water refill took a bit. Server never asked if we needed drink refills, but did offer dessert. Enjoyed the ambiance and glad we took a chance on trying a new local joint on our trip. read more

This was our first time at Mad Bene. The zuchini sticks were delicious! We had the lamb and Cod specials. For $30 each plate we expected better. It was ok but wouldn't order it again. The pizza and pastas look good so I'll try that next time. Will also try the caesars salad. The service was good and the restaurant was pleasant. read more

Mad Bene - Cod in puttenesca sauce - Italian Near Me - Kapolei, Hawaii

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Update your hours on your website and Google maps/Apple Maps. It is incredibly annoying and frustrating to show up to this place two times in a row now with either handwritten or altered hours signs only posted on the window. Apple Maps, Google maps, even their website says they are open for happy hour 3 to 5 daily. Showed up today and it's happy hour only on Saturdays and Sundays with no update to their website. Everyone in the world uses the Internet. Update there then post it on the door. Very disappointing. Please do better. read more

Mad garlic pizza , cheese pizza , pasta bolognese, focaccia with herb butter, kids tenders and fires were all delicious and full of flavor. Price is not much more than eating at chilis so I'd rather eat here. The vibe is cool, great spot for a bite then to the theaters. read more

IGNORED at the door!! And the restaurant was empty... Waited at the front check in table with no workers insight, except for 1 female worker behind the bar, with her back faced to the door while texting on her cell phone. There was a family of 4 dining and 2 ladies sitting waiting to be served. We waited 10 minutes at the door and two other parties are waiting behind us to be seated too. The female worker behind the bar finally turns around, sees 8 guest waiting to be seated, and proceeds to fill glasses of ice. We left as we could see this was not going to be a good experience dining here!! AUWE! We were looking forward to trying Mad Bene but instead we left saying BAD Bene!! We drove to Kamakana Alii to eat at Cheesecake Factory........ nice, friendly greeting and seated right away!! read more