Flavor was okay, tasty enough to eat but disappointed in the dishes I got. In the picture on door dash there were no peas or carrots in the chow fun but my dish came with A LOT of peas and carrots. I ordered the garlic shrimp as well and I'm not much of a shrimp skin eater so peeling the shrimp was a pain for me. read more

Papa's Cafe - This was the picture off the chow fun I ordered - Cantonese Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

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When Papa's Tea House in Aiea closed abruptly last year I was devastated. Seriously. If I didn't mind driving all the way to Aiea for a bowl of the Laksa and they closed the doors with no notice I was sooooo bummed. But when I found out Gavin closed Papa's Tea House to take over Papa's Cafe I was delighted. And when I also found out Gavin was offering Laksa at Papa's Cafe, this news made Paulie super, super happy! I have dragged my family and friends to Papa's and glad to report they also give this place thumbs up. Favorite niece and nephew by default both enjoy eating here. I'll order a large variety of items to sample their menu extensively and happy to report my favorites: Spicy Beef Stew Won Ton Laksa (aka Lyla D Special) Crispy Gau Gee Cake Noodles Char Siu Pork Singapore Rice Noodles Beef Bell Peppers Black Bean Sauce Chow Fun Black Pepper Flank Steak It's hard for me to venture into their whole menu as the following items are outstanding and will rotate with my ordering. The ambiance and clientele of Papa's Cafe is a far cry from Papa's Tea House but Gavin tries to step up with his customer service background in Chinatown. Don't let those rude elderly consumers get to you for barging in and yelling out their orders despite you waiting patiently. The food is so good here that I won't allow impatient consumers ruin my meal here. Parking is always an issue when in Chinatown. You can test your luck with metered street parking or park at one of the numerous municipal parking lots nearby. It's BYOB here so if you want to plan a get together with "happy juice" call Gavin ahead of time to make a reservation. It's also BYOD so if you're planning a birthday celebration (like I did previously) Papa's will accommodate. read more

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I love this place! Back at home I would get food from here at least once a week!! Since we're regulars, the lady already knows my voice haha! The food is amazing, kinda like how my grandma makes it, but I'm more biased towards my grandma because she's got the touch Other than that, I would suggest their mapo tofu and their salt and pepper pork! Those dishes are ono!! Portions are great, they are not skimpy at all! I really appreciate their hard work and their service. I do suggest calling in to order cause it gets pretty busy sometimes! And be patient, they don't have that much workers but it's well worth the wait! read more

Their seafood laksa was excellent. The last time I had it at their old Aiea location, it was watered down. Today, I could taste the creaminess of the coconut and curry flavors. I can't eat anything too spicy, but I was able to eat this. The noodles went great with this soup. The braised duck was also a winner. The meat was tender and well flavored. It was braised in a soy based sauce. It tasted like five spice. My son loved it. The hubby got the lemon chicken with rice. It was ok. The lemon sauce was good and the chicken pieces were fried to a crisp. However, the piece that I bit into was dry and a little tough. The salt and pepper shrimp was also yummy. I was glad that they served it with the head on. The seasoning was perfect. The place is on the smaller side. It has about eight tables. The service was good. They were friendly and kept the water cups full. The food came out in 10 minutes. I'll be coming back more often. The only problem is there's no parking. It's either finding street parking in the area, or park in one of the municipal lots. read more

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Yelpers Be Aware - this is a small stand inside the marketplace. Looks pretty shabby, not exactly clean and dated. I'm not really sure what the high remarks are from other Yelpers but what I saw, wasn't what I expected. Just to be clear - we decided not to eat a full meal there. We got some gau gee for the kids. I had a bite and it was tasteless and bland. Definitely not worth the trip for us. read more

I love Laksa! I will now even go down the scary part of Hotel Street to get it. Am I crazy? Yep I'm crazy for Laksa. When I told Paul C.....one of the original "C-men" I'd never been to Papa's Cafe and knowing I was such a fan of their former Aiea location, he checked his busy schedule and made plans to meet for dinner. I gleefully agreed to the meet up time and waited while reading their menu, for three days, trying to decide which of the many bowls I would order. At the designated time I parked on Maunakea in front of the locked gates fronting the marketplace. What's up with that? The restaurant address says 1120 Maunakea. I vaguely recalled Lien saying you access the restaurant on Hotel Street so I cautiously turn the corner and peer down the street. Ok, being the sissy girl I am and feeling as out of place as the orange in the Apple bin, I start the trek. The street is getting sketchier by the step and I decide to call Paul for better directions. As I'm looking around for an address I am amazed I'm not lost but right in front of the Papa's Cafe door. Looking inside...there is a server smiling and indicating to sit anywhere. I told her I was meeting Paul she laughed and pointed to a table for six. I'm pretty sure she didn't understand anything I said except "Paul". Everyone arrived and after much discussion I ordered the recommended combo now aptly named the Lyla Dang Special Laksa. Oh yum the Dang girl knows her stuff! Soft, tender Brisket and fat WonTons in Laksa broth (?) with sprouts, tofu and the noodles of you choice. Add an order of Crisp Gau Gee (nothing special), a huge Durian Shake (excellent) and a shared order of Char Siu (excellent and courtesy of Paul) and it was the best Chinatown dinner ever! The staff is accommodating even if you have to point at the pictures on the menu. I'm looking forward to the Salt & Pepper Shrimp. There's no parking on Hotel Street fronting the Cafe but in the evening there was plent of parking on Maunakea. I can't speak for any of the other food here but I will be back for take out for the entire family. If you're looking for fancy it's not here however if you're looking for good food this is a definite the place. read more

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Bab customer service ... especially the old lady wear eyeglasses taking order .. food not that great .. never come back again

I wish we had more restaurants that offered laksa. I only know of one other place that has but for like $18 an order! Glad I found out about Papa's Cafe. It's a nice little Chinese restaurant off Hotel Street. You can park in the municipal parking lot for $1-$2. It can get busy around lunch time but when my colleagues and I have gone a few times, we were able to get a table. We mostly order takeout though. The laksa was ok. I think because I first tried laksa in Australia, I had high expectations but this one was still good. Can never go wrong with the creamy broth. My go-to here now is the minute chicken with cake noodles. They give a generous portion for one order. One of my colleagues really like their shrimp wonton mein. The servers are always helpful and cheerful when we come in. I recommend this if you're downtown and looking for simple and yummy Chinese food. read more

Papa's Cafe - Seafood laksa takeout - Cantonese Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

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Papa's Cafe is right in front of the bus stop on Hotel Street in Chinatown, so it's super accessible for those of you who catch the bus. Not so much for those of us who drive, although there are a lot of municipal parking lots in the area. Luckily for me, I work in downtown so it's not too bad of a walk over. One of my favorite noodles dish is laksa. I've been to Singapore and Malaysia a few times and it's always a priority to me to have as much laksa as I can. There aren't too many options in Hawaii for laksa. You can either make it yourself (haha..sureeeee :D), get it from Panya (delicious but pricey), or here! I've heard there's also a place in Chinese Cultural Plaza that serves laksa but haven't had the chance to try it yet. I walked over with several of my coworkers for lunch one day, one of whom is from Singapore/Malaysia (She grew up in one country but lived as an adult in the other so I say she can claim both :P). We all got the won ton laksa, which had some amazing flavors in it, but wasn't too spicy. I personally wouldn't mind more of a spice. You can also choose your own noodle type if you're picky, but I was fine with the thin noodles it came with. They also have amazing drinks. I love their lemon iced tea (dong ling cha), as it tastes just like it does in HK. It's so simple to make but hard to find here...and I'm too lazy to make it at home haha. Some friends and I stopped by the other day just to pick up some drinks, and the lilikoi calamansi tea and Vietnamese iced coffee are also winners. I can see myself stopping by again just for a good tea. read more

It's about time....Laksa is on the menu. Since their location in Aiea closed, I didn't know where else serves good laksa. Same owner at both but this one was more chinese food where the other location had mixes of poke bowls, katsu, tako balls, other chinese dishes and laksa. Well look no further you can get it here! This one is located in the busy hotel street, right in front of the bus stop. You'll miss it walking to fast, I've done it! People are standing in front so it is hard to spot. I have dined here once before for dinner and their chinese food is alright. We had ong choy, eggplant, clams, dry beef chow funn and those were all good dishes. But what I'm here to tell you was about be LAKSA!On a Saturday morning I was invited out for lunch... Didn't know what to order and noticed oh they now serve laksa! So I got wonton laksa extra spicy. Be warned it has a strong kick, you be sweaty. If you can't handle spicy, I don't recommend. I love spicy! It was so good! The wonton was plump! The laksa was creamy and the bean sprouts went well with the dish. The other peeps I dined with ordered a egg drop ho funn dish.. It looked good but they weren't as satisfied. They serve smoothies here and I must have bad luck.... I order DURIAN and it's always sold out.... This time someone beat me to the last cup.. This was at lunch time. Sad panda. read more

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How can a tiny restaurant tucked in Chinatown earn a 4.5 star overall rating? It's affordable, good portions, quick service, and tasty! I'll admit I had trouble finding Papas cafe because my maps lead me to maunakea marketplace but it's actually on hotel street. If you're facing river street it's on the right by the super popular bus stop. There were so many people waiting at that bus stop I almost couldn't get to the door! Parking is limited to either municipal or metered. I was able to find a metered stalls along river street for $1.50/hour. Inside has only 6-8 tables. It's quaint but the servers are quick and turnover is fast. They have a huge menu from lunch specials like mapo tofu on rice to teriyaki chicken. I however came for one thing and one thing only after salivating over my Yelp friends photos of Papas cafe laska. In Hawaii, Laksa is hard to find. I ordered their wonton noodle laska for $9. It comes in a huge bowl and that orange creamy broth with wontons swimming on the surface looks so ono. The broth was really delicious marrying coconut with heat and subtle dried shrimp flavor. It's a little thicker and coated the noodles nicely. The wontons were excellent with a large piece of shrimp encased with pork and wrapper. I sampled my parents wonton soup and it was very translucent but tasty. We even got their "rice dumpling" or jung as I know it by. A mochi rice wth beans and egg yolk and pork steamed in leaf. It was a good deal for $3. Overall I was very satisfied with my meal. Those won tons have me wanting more. Alas the small space can deter people as well as parking but give it a shot cause the price and food is worth it. read more

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Ohhmygoshh just roll me out. The food was so delicious, even tho my brain said to stop, my chopsticks had a mind of its own! So when a few dear friends planned an "almost surprise" birthday dinner for me at what has become one of my favorite comfort food places I was excited. Being more frequent diners here than I, they knew exactly what to order. And in good Chinese style, they ordered more food than we could finish..! hahah. We did a really good job of cleaning up most dishes tho. Favorites included the flavorful and crispy salt and pepper shrimp (served without head), the black bean clams which were plump and tasty, spicy eggplant, duck. Also always enjoy the stir fried rice noodles...either with curry (Singapore style) or tossed with sweet sour cabbage and shredded meats, minute chicken noodles, stir fried vegetables. Everything so delicious. And when thoughtful friends brought a bottle of Ichiko 25 and (adult dessert) tiramisu cake from outside, the restaurant happily accommodated with cups and dessert plates. Thank you Papa! Thank you to my dear friends who make celebrating getting older less painful! Restaurant is accessed on Hotel street in the very heart of Chinatown. Look for the busy bus stop the look just behind it, where the green, brown, and yellow sign hangs. You can also find, quick and easy, a few premade dishes on their hot line in the Maunakea Marketplace (the back side of the same place). I will be back for the delicious regular dishes of won ton soup, cake noodles, harm ni chicken fried rice, or new found delicious ones we had tonite! Its my comfort food for sure! ...Maybe tomorrow! read more

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I was so happy to find out that this place has laksa! They are located by the bus stop at one of the entrances to Maunakea market (by the fruit shop). I believe they used to located in Maunakea market food court but now they have their own store. They have a good amount of seating maybe 6-9 parties at once? They do fill up during lunch time. I got the laksa with wonton and laifun noodles. Here you get to pick what you of noodles you want. My friend got the same thing but with ramen noodles. I think she made the better choice, her noodles was really able to soak up the flavor from the broth. The wonton was pretty standard. Their soup however is on the spicy side. I can handle spicy foods but you can clearly see a thick layer of chili oil on top. It was too spicy for my friend so the waitress brought out an extra bowl of soup broth to help water it down. So nice of them. Besides that, this place does not have my favorite laksa. I wish it had more flavor to it other than spiciness. It lacks depth in flavor and I was a bit disappointed. The calamari was really yummy tho. It was salt and pepper flavored and the batter was very thin and crispy unlike calamari at other places. Very chinese style batter. My bf got their charsiu noodle soup with look fun. It was yummy and very standard. Their brown sugar milk tea was not bad. They did put a lot of ice but it wasn't too sweet enough tho I forgot to ask for 75% sweetness. I would come again but pass on the laksa. I want to try their other appetizers too! Service was great and the portion/price was on point. read more

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They have great authentic Chinese cuisine love their Won ton noodle with beef brisket . Also have a delicious fried Gau Gee that I can't get enough of. Everything on their menu is very affordable and worth it . read more

"Feed Me, Feed Me"! Whoa, that sounded like a line from "Little Shop of Horrors" as our stomachs growled and snarled at us this morning. I told my husband that we should just go in to dine at one of the featured restaurants at the Taste of Chinatown (because we don't really enjoy al Fresco dining). But, I got "overruled" when my husband noticed Papa's Café. Yes, it's the same owner as Papa's Tea House in Aiea where we've been going for our Peranakan fix for laksa. Unfortunately, Papa's Tea House had closed recently and now, my husband was fixated on the idea of trying to get laksa. Um, I told him that Papa's Café doesn't serve laksa, yet. We walked into this small air-conditioned café (seats 24 comfortably) from its Hotel Street entrance. There was a crowd of people that almost blocked the entrance as a bus stop is nearby. Almost immediately, we were welcomed and offered a table to sit at. The FRIENDLY server brought us glasses of ice water and menus right away, too. Geez, for a Chinese restaurant, I must say, this was impressive.... Friendly and quick! She pointed out a couple of signature dishes to us and we also noticed their menu photographs which grace the walls. Our server was patient and even told us to take our time to look through the food and beverage (boba and milk teas) menu. Their extensive menu consists of over 110 items, not including their daily specials or beverages. So, it is to be expected that it may take you a few minutes to decide. Our eyes zeroed in on their Beef Brisket & Won Ton Soup ($9.50) and Shrimp Chow Funn with Egg Sauce ($9.50). As our server went back into the kitchen to submit our lunch order, I noted that they served Soursop smoothies with boba ($4.00). Both dishes were SOLID! The flavors and textures were on spot. The won ton dumplings in my husband's noodle soup dish were plump and had a large piece of shrimp in each with its thin Hong Kong-style wrapper. Also, the noodles were fresh and thin-cut. My shrimp chow funn with egg sauce was very good, too. Lots of whole shrimp that were cooked to a perfect doneness of tenderness. The chow funn (flat rice noodles) and egg sauce worked well in this luscious soft dish. We shared that sour sop boba drink because it was a pretty good sized cup (at least 16 oz). The frozen fruit smoothie was delicious! Soursop is also known as guanábano or graviola or guyabano. It tastes like strawberry and pineapple with tart citrusy undertone flavor. Oddly, my husband has never tried this fruit before so he was hesitant about trying it... I was explaining to him that this fruit is similar to cherimoyas (chirimoyas) except that it (soursop) has a tart finish. As we were leaving Papa's Café, I pointed out fresh soursop at a fruit/vegetable stand in Chinatown. But, guess who finished the smoothie? Sheesh, I couldn't get that cup back from him! Haha. Anyway, Papa's Café is a good tasty choice for a "hole-in-the-wall" in Chinatown with quick and friendly service, to boot! We can't wait to return as we hear that laksa might be put onto their menu soon. read more

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Went there once. Wonton soup was bomb. Went there today. 4 people working and 15 minutes after I got a menu still no one had taken my order. THERE WERE NO OTHER CUSTOMERS. Don't bother with this place. They don't want my business? I LIVE in this hood! read more

Waiting over 25minutes!!!? Stay away !!! Lots of workers ,, now over 39minutes just for two entrees?? Sat away read more

Ordered 2 different laksas & it was delicious with loads of ingredients but lacked the right noodles. It's as if it was made with spaghetti pasta. Price was on point & wait time was awesome. I didn't give it 5 stars because the inside was not too clean for a take out & they kept their door open I guess for Covid reasons but it left the door open for random people to walk in while waiting for their bus since the bus stop it literally right outside. Also parking is a bit hard to find so best to go when someone that can get out & pick up food after you call it in. read more

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Still great food and friendly service. We went on a Sunday so it's wasn't busy but during the week at lunch hour, it's crazy! We had the Lo mein with beef brisket. So tender with bits of tendon. Yum! read more

Papa's Cafe - Won ton lasksa - Cantonese Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

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One of my fave places for chinese food in chinatown! With the huge pickins here, papa stands out against the rest. Their cake noodle is some of the best, make sure to get it with pepper beef! Also the char sui is probably the best in the island, always consistent and super tender. I hope they will being back their $5 plate lunches soon! read more

Papa's Cafe - Char sui best on the island!! - Cantonese Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

Second visit here, with my really good friend... my friend Jenny recommended this place back in May. We just had to come back! Salt and pepper calamari, omg, so ono. Light and crispy with the right seasoning. Shared the cake noodle with beef and kai lan. Hit the jackpot! Cooked perfectly. Definitely will be back! read more

Papa's Cafe - So Ono - Cantonese Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

Stop by for lunch with the family on Saturday. As always, everyone enjoyed their food. I brought my daughter this time & she sure enjoyed it!! As usual we were stuffed!! My husband said, he hates over-eating!! I feel the same way, but its hard, since everything taste so yummy!! This visit we got: Salted fish & chicken fried rice Minute Chicken Cake noodle Singapore Rice noodle Char Siu sai min in egg noodle & Char Siu sai min in look fun noodle. We always enjoy our meals here & this makes visit # 5. :) As I was paying, I met a Yelper Li. Y. :0) read more

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I dont ear chinese much, but papas is the best in chinatown! The cake noodle is nice and crunchy, the secret is to get it with pepper beef sauce and it will blow your taste buds away! The char sui is also my fav. Insanely tender and juicy every time. They even have $6 lunch specials! read more

Papa's Cafe - Best char sui in chinatown! - Cantonese Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

Address says Maunakea St., but they are actually on Hotel St., between Hotel and River. Among all the sketch that Chinatown has to offer, sometimes you come across great little finds like Papa's Café. Yup, located just short of a bus stop, is this small little restaurant with a colorful interior and friendly workers who are eager to please. If you've been keeping up with the reviews, then you probably know by now that their Laksa is a solid choice. And with good reason too. The coconut milk based curry broth is creamy and delicious. The spicy Laksa has a mild kick to it, but not so much that it distracts from the broth itself. Papa's Café is synonymous with Laksa to me, but I've also had the some of their other dishes too. Similarly, they are all good. My recommendation would be to avoid going during the common lunch and dinner hours because the place is pretty small, and there really is nowhere to wait unless you go and stand out on the sidewalk. And we all know how lovely that experience can be out on Hotel St. Think Chinatown, and traffic, parking challenges, pungent odors, and interesting people all come to mind. But ya never know when you'll come across something great too. So check these guys out! read more

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The address in yelp is wrong! Should be: 105 N. Hotel st . (In front of the bus stop) I was ready to walk into another restaurant because i was getting tired of trying to find this place! Luckily the waitress was super nice and answer all my calls (i called 5 times LOL) asking where exactly this place was! And good thing i am super persistent and made it here!! Finally!! Here the reviews: *Ambience: place is tiny and nothing fancy but who cares as long as the food is good! Do watch out if you come night time as there are plenty homeless people walking around and some of them are screaming and stuff... *Service: like i said, my waitress was super nice taking all my calls and was also friendly :) *Food: -Seafood laksa ($11.95) I remembered i had this place bookmarked when they were in Aiea and never made it so i was so glad to see them here! And yes! All that hassle was worth it! The broth has a LOT of flavor. It is a little bit more spicy than what i am used to hut i still could handle it! -Won ton mein ($6.95) Really flavorful too! The wonton was good too!! Overall i would definitely come back! Loved the prices too! read more

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Little hole in the wall in Chinatown! Such good food for a great price! Owners are very friendly and remembered my order the next time I ordered. Would definitely recommend! Btw, they have an actual RESTAURANT! The back of the shop is part of the Maunakea Food Court and is more like a walking drive-through. read more

Normally, Chinese establishments are a dime a dozen... So when a five star place comes around, it's no joke. The laksa here is so flavorful: full of coconutty, spicy goodness. The won tons are stuffed with shrimp and filling. Everything I've tried here so far has been yummers! I love the shrimp egg chow funn with gravy, beef chow funn, and won ton mein. It's ultimate comfort Chinese food done well at rockstar prices. Service is typical for a Chinese restaurant, but the quality food and cheap prices will make you fall in love with this place. Please don't ever change, Papa's Cafe! Note: This establishment has TWO "entrances." One entrance is located in front of the bus stop on Hotel St and the back entrance is located in Maunakea Marketplace as a take-out counter. read more

Papa's Cafe - Won ton laksa $7.95 - Cantonese Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

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The braised duck has a delicate flavor and not too oily(but still preserved duck's fattiness), great place for lunch. The main shop front is on hotel, but you can also enter the market on Maunakea and they have a counter in the foodcourt. The rice is just soso, yet i would highly recommend the duck! read more

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It's been more than 2 years since I order from this place. This recent order is very delicious. We ordered the dry stir fry chow funn, house special chicken with noodle in soup, and minute chicken cake noodles. The price is reasonable and would come back to try more items next time. read more

I've been passing by this place for years and always wanted to wander in but never made it until today. It's definitely one of my new favorite places for a quick bite in Chinatown. Such a little gem, it warranted my first review in years :) Firstly, there's an actual menu on top of the limited pictures on the wall, so be sure to ask for that to peruse the more extensive dishes they have to offer. It's where we found the beef and egg with rice plate lunch. Service was excellent and happy to easily replace the rice with look funn upon my request. Sure the frozen peas and carrots were a little misplaced, but the gravy was delicious and flavorful. Usually I have to add soy sauce when I get this dish elsewhere, but the level of umami in the clear gravy was on. point. The laksa was also very on point and highly recommend it. They were also happy to allow us to customize by having a brisket and won ton combo. Brisket was tender and had my favorite pieces of tendon mixed in as well. read more

Papa's Cafe - Egg and beef look funn - Cantonese Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

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Laksa!!! That's all I went for. But came out with laksa and then some. Hmmm!! Gotta love small places with big food!! Place ~ small, bright and clean. Food~ cheap and tasty! Service ~ friendly! Laksa ~ yumm!! Came here during my china town hop mainly for the soup. But had a few things on top! It's a tiny spot. They have everything from roast meat to the usual fried rice/ noodles/ soup to meat and seafood. They also had Vietnamese coffee, smoothies, regular coffee and so on! I wanted the Vietnamese ice coffee but they brought me regular one instead. Lost in translation! Love ~ the fried rice. I got this with beef and extra spicy. It had a little kick. The lady was excited that I wanted it spicy! Chicken in black bean sauce~ there's two option. Regular or lunch portion. Lunch portion came with rice. I go the regular. It was tasty. Not that spicy! Laksa with seafood ~ this was delicious. I didn't eat it fast enough. The rice noodles soaked up all my soup! Grr! Going with less noodles next time. Tasty broth!! Overall, it's a clean and comfortable spot. The lady that works here is nice. Total 3.5 stars for the dishes I've had but rounding it up!! Definitely will be going back! read more

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UPDATE: Quality has DRASTICALLY gone down over the past few months. Ate the same brisket laksa a couple times recently and now it's totally watered down. There's also only a tiny bit of meat but a whole bunch of really tough and rubbery beef innards that couldn't be chewed. We noticed a different lady at the counter and serving, so maybe they changed owners? So sad. read more

Take out only restaurant. Located in Honolulu Chinatown. Friendly service, delicious food, and refreshing drinks. Their dishes are very tasty and given in generous portions. read more

Easy to find on hotel street opposite Wo Fat for those who remember. I had the laksa with braised beef and Singapore curry rice noodles. I've had good laksa And this is just ok, same goes for the Singapore noodles. Both I'm sorry to say were bland and I'm not use to the noodles used in the laksa. It also took a long time for the cook to make. I actually thought they forgot my order. There was only one other party there. read more

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Papa's Cafe is a small Chinese restaurant on the periphery of Maunakea Marketplace in Honolulu's Chinatown. It's one of many Chinese restaurants in Chinatown (no surprise) but it serves laksa (surprise!). For those who have never tried it, laksa is a noodle soup from Singapore/Malaysia. It's a true fusion food; it combines Chinese elements (noodles in soup) with Southeast Asian elements (curry and coconut milk). Papa's Cafe offers three kinds of laksa, the "traditional" seafood laksa, wonton laksa and beef brisket laksa. I sampled the seafood laksa. It was nicely prepared. The soup was spicy but not too hot. The noodles were like a smaller version of udon noodles. There were bean sprouts, half a hard-boiled egg, shrimp, squid, and tofu. Instead of the traditional fish balls, this version included several pieces of steamed fish (it tasted like cod or some other white fish). There was a nice balance of noodles to soup to seafood. Overall, I think it's the best laksa I've tried in Honolulu (okay, compared to the two other laksas I've eaten, not really a huge sampling). Papa's Cafe served a variety of more traditional Chinese food and also serves bubble teas and fruit drinks. The restaurant itself is in front of a busy section of Hotel Street. The interior space is relatively small. I came here around 11:00 a.m. on a weekday. I can see this place being much busier closer to noon. There is no real place to wait for a table to open and the area outside tends to be crowded. If you want to eat here, I suggest you come early. The service was fast but it was pretty early when I came. read more

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This place is where it's at when you're craving some Cantonese food!! Service is warm, portions are proper, price is right, and the food exceeds expectations! If you're in the mood for noodles get the cake noodles with shrimp or beef. We asked if they could do it with char siu and they did and it was soo good. First time I ever had cake noodles and I can't wait to have them again!! We also got the garlic pepper beef with vegetables and rice and it was delicious. You guys rock. read more

Papa's Cafe - Cake noodles with Char siu - Cantonese Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

3 stars for the food. 2 stars for the service. ts too bad that the food is great but the customer service from the older short haired lady is horrible. Waited almost 10mins for someome to ask what we wanted, 2nd in line mind you, & the couple Imin front got 2 drinks... older woman finally asks us what we wanted, we ask her if they have bittermellon & spareribs... mumbles something like she's not sure & points to the back. Disappears to the back, comes back, looks at us, skips us & asks the people behind us if they want to order/pickup. I'm sorry is my order not good enough? Do you NOT have any spareribs? Communicate with me so I don't feel like you wanted to help everyone but me. read more

When I first walked into Papa's Cafe on a Chinese New Year celebratory night, I was expecting papa or grandpa to greet me but there was no papa nor grandpa lol... I mean I expected an elderly gentleman to be by the door to greet me and welcomed me into this humble Cantonese eatery. I don't mean to stereotype but with a name like Papa's Cafe, it comes natural. Papa's Cafe - you are my favorite Chinese food place to go now when in the vicinity of the Chinatown neighborhood. Ambiance 3/5 = a small but very clean-looking place. The set up is quite efficient and this small space roughly housed four tables of varying sizes capable of accommodating 10-12 people. The only improvement I could easily suggest would be to close the door at the entryway. That should mitigate some of the noises coming from the streets. Not sure if this would be conducive to making the place more accessible to passerbys. Food 4/5 = a pretty easy-peasy eatery to patronize. Of all the menu items I have ordered from my numerous trips, all the dishes I selected turned out delicious and they were done right. Any papa would be proud. The first thing I noticed on their modern and photographic menu was the salt and pepper shrimp. Those pictures were so enticing and we do eat with our eyes sometimes. Gotta order that and was super glad I did. A perfect amount of salt and pepper lightly breaded the shrimp shells and when you bite into the crunchy shrimp, the meat was fresh and cooked correctly. Overcooked shrimp taste okay but Papa's Cafe made it pretty moist and tasty. Ooh the sweetness of the shrimp was gooey good. Another favorite dish is their dry beef chow fun. These noodles were not oily nor soaked in lots of sauce. This is why this dish is called dry chow fun and it had such a clean tasting texture to the entire dish. The seasoning and flavoring of the chow fun from the ubiquitous soy sauce was nicely balanced. Beansprouts worked well as it still retained some crunchiness from the partial pan-fried treatment. Compliments to the Chef! I could nom nom the entire plate of this in one seating. It was such a wonderful, tasty and comforting meal the first time I ate at Papa's Cafe. On my second visit, I wanted to try a different noodle dish and decided on the char-siu pork vermicelli noodles. What a great noodle dish this time around. The thin rice noodles were not greasy nor oily and it was lightly pan-fried to perfection with thin strips of tender red-colored pork, onions, scallions and beansprouts. So delicate and clean-tasting...I liked a little bit of the sweetness from the char-siu pork strips. Portion was very decent-sized and I abstained from shoving the entire dish in mouth. That was tough to do. It didn't helped that I ordered a tropical fruit smoothie before the vermicelli noodles came out. Lesson learned: don't drink smoothie immediately before the meal even though the weather was extremely scorching hot. I had to quench my thirst quickly. Service 5/5 = WOW WOW WOW. Papa's Cafe should be a shining example/model for some local Chinese restaurants to follow when it comes to customer service. Every single time I've frequented the place, the owners, the staff and even some patrons are super nice and friendly. There is no rush for you to order if you're indecisive. I told them it was hard to pick from so many good looking pictures/dishes they provided. They laughed wholeheartedly and patiently let me take my time. I just enjoyed being in this place and the vibes are so comfy. It's how they make you feel; they make me feel so welcomed here. At times, I do the take-out routine and never once did I feel rushed (as such feelings can be common at more than a few Chinese eateries) nor curtly snapped at. No wonder you're called Papa's Cafe since papa is an affectionate term for father. read more

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Hidden in the heart of Chinatown, Papa Cafe serves up delicious Hong Kong Cafe food! My favorite is this egg sauce dish with fish fillet. My boyfriend enjoys their laksa, minute chicken noodle cake & fried rice dishes! Along with their many delicious dishes, they have cheap all fruit smoothies, juices, fruit teas & Hong Kong milk tea! Trying to eat healthy? They have yummy veggie dishes you can swap the carbs out. There is something for everyone here, even for the most picky eater like me. read more

Papa's Cafe - Cantonese Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

I don't remember the last time I had Chinese food. It was that long ago. I had stopped over the maunakea marketplace for a pineapple smoothie at Thanh. I noticed papas cafe right outside the fruit stands and the bus stop. The eatery is more of a dive, but most great food are discovered at places such as these. I briefly looked at the menu and craved chow fun. It's basically fat thick noodles with a choice of protein in sauce. I chose chicken instead of beef in my entree. I gave my order to the young lady at the register along with a side of shrimp wontons. They also make smoothies as well. I sat down and waited for ten minutes. Once the food was ready, I happily took it home. The shrimp wontons were ok. I felt there was a lot air pockets then shrimp. The dipping sauce was very good and tangy. The chowfun was greasy and ok. There were moments where it did lack flavor and tasted bland. The bean sprouts, onion, and chicken gave texture to the meal itself. Overall it was very filling. This tends to be one of those foods that put anyone to sleep. :) In a good way. I'll be back to try their other offerings. read more

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