i order from here via Door Dash every so often and they are really good at making my order complete but this time they forgot my side of rice. the food was good though. read more

We bought our plates early! Like 4:15! We've learned to get our food early because they might run out of certain sides like their potato salad! We also learned to not get the rice because they will let us get an extra side veggie as a replacement. We're going home anyway. This time they didn't have egg as a side, but this thing called kim chee pancake. I loved their egg! Food was good! Seemed like the BBQ chicken was extra ono this time! Maybe because it was early, and the chicken wasn't sitting on the fire that long to get dried out. Prices are always going up, but based on the size of our plates, it still seems like the best buy. read more

Pearl's Korean BBQ - BBQ chicken and no rice. $16.99 Double choy sum, chop jae, bean sprouts and potato salad - Korean Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

See all

I work in the Mall, one of their workers named Rose didn't get what they wanted so they called their Manager to come and harass us for their order. Also when I did order food they gave a small amount for what it was worth. They do not give generous amounts of food. Also all their workers are extremely rude. read more

We're on vacation here in Honolulu and tried this restaurant tonight. Everyone in our party (4 people) ordered different dishes so we could share and have several options. We all very much enjoyed the food and the service! We will definitely come back on our next trip to Oahu! read more

This Review is Only for the Soda!!!! Carbonation : Strong Cup : Paper Straw : Plastic Refills: Yes Syrup: medium Ice : Crescent Coke or Pepsi Products : Pepsi Price : $2.88 Pass or Order: Order read more

Pearl's Korean BBQ - a palm tree painted on a cup - Korean Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

We order takeout from the Kahala Mall location. While prices have steadily increased, you can expect to get a generous amount of food that 2 people can share. We usually order a combo to share. The 4 choices of vegetables is always enough to split and even save as a leftover.our favorite combo is meat jun and bbq chicken. They recently added 4 pc mandoo for $2.99 when you add it to your plate lunch order. Food quality is very consistent. read more

Pearl's is awesome, and probably my favorite spot to grab a plate lunch on the island. The inside of the restaurant is nothing spectacular, but that is honestly a sign of a quality meal. You get a main, along with several sides that they have, several veggie options as well which is great! The value here is awesome as well, you can get a massive plate lunch for $15; enough to last you for multiple meals. read more

Pearl's Korean BBQ - Take out spicy chicken - Korean Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

This is our neighborhood mall and we come here multiple times every month. No complaints except that we usually remember to ask for the $23.49 kalbi not burnt, but if we don't then this is what can happen. I don't understand how they can let this out to customers. Especially when we find discover the burnt kalbi when we get home. Auwe. Everything else is fine. read more

Pearl's Korean BBQ - Usually good, but if you don't remind them about burnt kalbi... - Korean Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

See all

Pearls is the best for take out Korean food. Portions are great and service is fast. The cooks are good and the food is tasty. Good job!

=== 1. VERDICT/VALUE 3.5 stars! The price is about "right" for what you get but the best part is that the sides and mains are not as salty as that of other places. Not a bad choice for eats when shopping at Kahala! === 2. FOOD Teriyaki BBQ Pork Chop with Mandoo Combo ($13.79) with an additional 4 pieces of mandoo for $2.25 (that price with any plate lunch): in this case, the pork chop was on the dry side - perhaps overcooked or left out (see Service comment below)? But the mandoo was nice - not too crispy and the meat inside not too salty. Speaking of which, the 4 sides they serve you with two scoops of rice was not salty either, a refreshing change and perhaps the best differentiator from other Korean takeout places! Whether it was the cabbage, seaweed, broccoli, or choy sum, you could actually taste the ingredients for what they were without being overwhelmed by salt - hooray! Price-wise, it's about the same as what you would expect from a place like Gina's or Yooncy, and if anything, a little bit more expensive. === 3. SERVICE Up and down - placing the order and making the payment was a pleasant enough experience, but getting the food was not so much. There were two girls working the front of the house, and only two customers remaining in the place. After all of the other customers were served and a bit of a wait, I asked one of the girls if my order was still coming. She continued using her phone...it turns out my dish had been prepared and sitting ready for a while, but the girl was waiting for her co-worker to come bag it and place it on the counter. Maybe the pork chop was dry from sitting there for a while? I'm not sure, but the extra wait wasn't appreciated! === 4. ATMOSPHERE There are a few standing tables and as well as some four-seat booths/tables available to sit at. The decor is simple and dated (and a little dim) so you may want to check out the four-seat tables in the (brighter) main concourse of the mall just outside the shop to enjoy your food. Parking of course, is as good as you are able to get with the Kahala Mall lot! read more

Pearl's Korean BBQ - Teriyaki BBQ Pork Chop with Mandoo Combo ($13.79): dry pork cop, great mandoo, less-salty sides! - Korean Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

So this is ok for Korean BBQ if your in a hurry. Prices are reasonable for the amount of food you get. My bbq chicken was a little over cooked but the area was clean, service was quick and they have kids meals available! I liked that you could order a kids portion, mini portion or regular sized plate depending on how hungry you are. For some reason the day I went in, it was cash only. I don't know if their machines were down or if this was a permanent thing but beware. read more

Pearl's Korean BBQ - It's currently cash only at this location 03/13/21 - Korean Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

See all

I'm basing this review on two visits that are years apart. FPO and I were at Kahala Mall looking for the Salvation Army Giving Tree station that's there every year. It was around dinner and we were looking for something to eat. We'd had an unusual run of fast food dining over the past couple of days and I wanted food with a little more thought out into the preparation. We decided to give Pearl's Korean BBQ another try. How many years has it been since the state board of health implemented the color placards for food handling establishments? Well, that's how long it's been since our last visit to Pearl's. We went while BOH was still rolling out the program, Pearl's hadn't been reviewed yet, and I got food poisoning - not sure if it was their BBQ chicken or mac salad. Either way, it's taken us years to go back. FPO had the BBQ Beef Plate, regular size that's apparently still the stuff dreams are made of. The regular plate comes with two scoops of rice and sides (in this case a double serving mac salad, shoyu potatoes, and kim chee). All the food, hot and cold were piled onto one side of the container. This is something FPO noticed in other pictures on Yelp. Since we dined in it wasn't a big deal. A little rearranging and FPO was good to go. I got the the Man Do Kook Su because it was a little cold in Kahala Mall. I'm used to saimin and the broth for the kook su has a different kind of depth to it. It took flavor and a little oiliness from the meat and I think from some sesame oil (?) but it wasn't bad, just different. I liked it and the next time there's a cold winter's night I think I'll suggest Pearl's to FPO. Or, maybe we'll just stop by when we're in the area and I'll try something else. Probably not chicken and not mac salad but this second trip has opened me to the possibility of a third without the intervening years in between. Okay, some time has passed since I started this review. I was waiting because the first time at Pearl's was memorable for all the wrong reasons so this second time I was waiting ... just because. More time than I planned has passed and I just realized I forgot to post this. For now we'll say I'm cautiously optimistic and it's nice to have another eating option in Kahala Mall. read more

Pearl's Korean BBQ - Man Doo Kook Su and BBQ Beef - Korean Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

We've always eaten at kimchee 2 for our Korean fix, but thought we'd try Pearl's for a change. I tried calling in our order to avoid waiting but like others mentioned- nobody answers the phone. They were crowded when I got there. My daughter and I ordered mini meat jun plates with seaweed for her and cabbage, Mac salad for me. I really wanted to love the food but was sadly disappointed. They gave a lot of side dishes and meat jun but even with the sauce we felt it had no taste. To me, the mac salad was tasteless. We added salt but I still didn't enjoy it. The batter on they meat jun was flavorless to me. Maybe we're just used to kimchee 2?? I hate to be harsh but I gave it one star for its generous portions and another for being conveniently located but I doubt I'll be back. read more

Ordered takeout of regular meat jhun w extra 4 pc mandoo and it was good but didn't have any sauces included plus the meat wasn't cut at all. I didn't request a knife as I just assumed the meat would be sliced. Not sure if that's how it's always served as I rarely go to Kahala Mall. I wasn't asked if I wanted the sauce for mandoo and meat jhun as at most Korean takeouts it is included. There was a kind of big takeout order before me with sone firemen and a person who may have been the owner or cook seemed more preoccupied with getting their order squared away. I only had one order and I'm certain it wasn't a priority at the time. I was disappointed there was no sauce or the meat sliced but the food was good. read more

Thanks for the hair in my food. Completely disgusting. Took the time out to go to Kahala specifically because Pearls WAS one of the better choices for K BBQ. Earn the name suffer the fame. You are not that busy to let this happen. My wife called to complain and they hung up on her. I gave up having our family meal together to drive the 5 miles each way to dress them down and get some money back. I called on the way to let them know I was coming and to prepare. They did not hang up this time, though were unprepared for my arrival. There was another couple waiting to order when I arrived and let's just say they decided not to order. Smart. read more

Pearl's Korean BBQ - Hair in food fing disgusting - Korean Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

This place has wonderful food, the kal bi, meat/fish juns and soups are everything you need if you want the Korean food fix. However it does not come without a price, I'm not talking about money, I'm talking about patience. They will not answer the phones from 3pm on. So phone orders are a no go with this place. Tried the online ordering system, they will get everyone's food out before yours despite you ordering your food ahead of time. I live about 15 minutes away from this place, no way can it take 40+ minutes to prepare my food, while others come and go, ordering and then leaving with food. Bottom line they don't want to take advanced orders to make it easy for the customer. Additionally please work on the customer service, the way the front of house treats the customers, is very poor (that's being generous). Look elsewhere for your Korean food needs. I give them 1 star because the food is delicious! read more

I really wanted Pearl's because the Waipahu location is great with portions and price. So, I decided to Yelp the Kahala Mall food court, low and behold there's a location here. I always order fish Jun since I prefer it over meat overall. Since it's a new year new me (lol....joke) I didn't want rice. This entails an extra veggie choice. The overall food was good. Portion was hearty. I've got no complaints considering I was dying of hunger before school. Anyway, the order came out quick, staff was friendly, and overall place looked tidy. read more

Pearl's Korean BBQ - Fish Jun, all veggies: broccoli, choi sum, cabbage - Korean Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

See all

I used to get food here pretty often due to working in the building. Their food and service are usually okay. But there was an incidence where they would not accept cards (happened a few months ago). The cashier told the person in front of me that credit card was okay, however the person ended up paying with cash. Then when I stepped up and asked to ensure if using card was okay, she said no with zero explanation or apology. I had no cash at the time and ended up going somewhere else. Because of this incidence, I stopped going for a while. It wasn't just about using different payments, but their service has always been mediocre at best and they always seemed to be snappy at their customers. Customer service is something I strongly value, so this was a big cause. I finally visited this place again a couple days ago and this time, it was this young lady at the front counter. I believe her name was Roselle. She was a lot nicer and more attentive to the customers. She was sanitary -- washing her hands after touching money to scoop food, frequently wiping the counter, etc -- all of which I never saw from other ladies. They also accepted cards this time. read more

The potato salad is my favorite "vegetable" side and this is one of the few places you can get it! I like to get an extra vegetable instead of rice since we take it home anyway to eat, and then you get to pick five with a regular plate! One of our favorites is the meat jun with fried mandoo. Shoyu potato and potato salad are a must as well as mac salad (the local Korean one is so much better since it's covered in mayo and garlic!) For the other two sides, chap chae and wakame or bean sprouts balance out the fattiness of the mayo in the others. read more

Pearl's is a great choice if you're on a Keto/low carb diet! You can substitute the rice for an extra vegetable choice to keep your carbs down. Aside from that, it's one of the few "fast food" places that serves decent veggies. Prices seem to be up, but the serving sizes are huge so unless you're a football player, one combo order will feed two or give you some good leftovers for the next day! I like their kalbi and spicy pork combo. A little sweet, a little heat and I don't feel guilty cuz I'm eating my veggies, lol. Their yook gae jong is legit if you're in the mood for some spicy soup! read more

We decided to try this place so we ordered online this week and asked for chap chae instead of rice for our 3 different plates. Picked up orders and there was rice on all 3 plates and no noodles so I reviewed this as a negative on a follow up survey and Gracie actually called me later that day to apologize and to offer the noodles if I came back. I told her I would be back the next day. The food at this location is tasty and the portions are generous and I was impressed that she would actually call me back and offer to give me the missing noodles. Ironically, after getting the noodles, they are not what we Koreans think of chap chae as, there were no other veggies or sesame seeds or seasoning other than soy sauce, so I really wouldn't get them again, but the Customer Care and Customer Service is great here and Gracie is a gem. I will be back to get their delicious food again. I think it tastes better than Yummy's at Ala Moana's Makai food court. In this day and age of Covid and food inflation Pearls offers delicious food at a reasonable price for the quality and quantity of food. One of the few good values left in Honolulu for a plate lunch. read more

If I had read the Yelp reviews before ordering food from here, I probably wouldn't have ordered the spicy BBQ pork plate and a side of teriyaki beef. However, I could not be happier that I did because the teri beef was DELICIOUS. So good that I came back and it was my last stop before I left for the airport. The portions are huge and you will not leave hungry. The spicy pork was good, but not great. I would give this place 4 stars for the teri beef, however I will take away 1 for the ambiance and service. The people who worked there were not very nice, all the soda was watered down and the place looks like there are roaches. Thankfully they had their sign up that said they passed the food inspection, but reading other peoples reviews right now scares me that I ate here. read more

Pearl's Korean BBQ - Teri beef - Korean Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

See all

I am so happy that there is a Pearl's at Kahala Mall. I always buy the combo plate: Kal Bi & Meat Jun for $15.49. The portion size is very generous and is enough for 2 people. It includes 2 strips of Kal Bi & 2 huge slices of Meat Jun. They have a nice selection of sides too. My favorites include: tofu, fried egg, shoyu potatoes, chop chae, bean sprouts, choi sum, corn, macaroni salad. Also, the 2 scoops of rice are good size. The staff is always nice. read more

See all

Order our dinner 45 mins early not ready and FORGOT , asked for my receipt but yet charged my card ‍, horrible customer service .. don't phone order Broken read more

Quality is not great, kalbi was really, really tough. Banchans were good. Maybe they changed ownership?????

Mobile ordered and didn't get what I MOBILE ORDERED. Something printed from an online order vs verbally given shouldn't be to hard to read instructions. it's very minor but still upsetting when getting home from a long day of work and opening a plate that is incorrect. Pay more attention Pearls Kahala. read more

Pearl's Korean BBQ - Korean Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

See all

Can't beat delicious tasty Korean bbq for a good price!! Especially with their portion sizes. I always get a meat jun and bbq chicken combo plate and share with my 2-3 kids. We can never finish all the food if I get more than 2 plates. In the picture we got 4 combo plates plus a garlic chicken and zucchini jun. There was 10 of us and we still couldn't finish it all. read more

Pearl's Korean BBQ - Family dinner - Korean Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

See all

The food is always consistently good and the portions are generous. I enjoy their selection of vegetables and they give you an option of no rice and one more vegetable instead. read more

Always dependable for a quick Korean fix. I found that their fish jun is better even than of other Korean restaurants. The fish is sliced and flavorful. Other Korean restaurants the fish is cut, pretty thick and that is not good for fish jun. read more

I'm always craving korean BBQ chicken. It's addicting...for me! I've been here a few times. This place has tasty BBQ chicken with decent portion and pricing. I can always come back here when I'm on this side. I always ordered the BBQ chicken plate with brown rice (yes! they serve brown rice now, free...heck yea!) I love the sides of long rice/noodles, broccoli, and choi sum. They give you a decent amount of chicken on the plate. It's like about 4 big pieces. The chicken isn't too burnt and the taste isn't too bad. It's really filling even when I shared it with my BF. He gets full too, and you know some guys eat a lot. Many options on the menu. I want to try the mandoo noodles next time. I always say I want to order it but end up getting the BBQ chicken. As for service. It's okay, nothing special. When I ask for extra utensils and stuff, the ladies behind the counter gets a little cranky and gives you the look. Ehhhh...whatever. read more

Pearl's Korean BBQ - BBQ chicken with Brown rice - Korean Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

See all

I came to Pearl's for the first time in a few years and I was pleasantly surprised! We ordered the pearls special which had bbq short ribs, beef and chicken with mandoo and 4 sides. At $17.99 it was pretty pricey but WOW the portions were huge! I split the plate with 2 other people and we couldn't finish it. The meats were cooked fresh to order so we did have to wait a while so next time I'll probably call in my order. Like others have mentioned, I appreciated that the sides weren't too salty. I also liked how you could order egg rolls as a side dish....yum. read more

Pearl's Korean BBQ - Pearl's Special Plate - Korean Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

BAD SERVICE! They were rude and the food was dry and it taste like trash unless you want to eat bad food go here. IM NEVER GOING BACK!!

Ordered meat jun and bbq chicken plate and holy hell, the portion size was massive! People do note the prices are a little higher than other Korean bbq but damn, the serving sizes make it well worth it. read more

I come out here periodically, just for the food and away from the typical fast food fare. While it is expensive at $7+ a plate, they don't do justice when they give small portions of vegetables too. Granted that this place is relatively good, the prices aren't worth coming back to. I had the miso soup. It was delish. Also loved the Yook Gae Jang and the Seaweed soups too. The meat jun and fish jun are aok, but the BBQ chicken and kal bi were kind of dry. read more

I'll start this review by saying I really like the food here. It's tasty, and the portions are generous. That's why I'm really torn on this review. The service here isn't that great. I placed an order online with a promised time of 7p. When I got to the restaurant, I was a little early, and waited. When 7p came around, my order wasn't ready. It wasn't until 715p that I received my order. Normally, 15 minutes isn't a big deal. If I was told my order was going to be ready at 715p and it was ready at that time, I wouldn't have had a problem. The problem is that I was promised a 7p time. I was hungry, and it looks as though my order was waiting on the counter when I asked about it. I don't know how long it was waiting on the counter, but I'm guessing for several minutes. And it wasn't like I wasn't paying attention, either. I was watching as they were calling up customers who arrived after me, and I could tell they were overwhelmed with orders, and it seemed they were fulfilling orders out of order. Anyhow, I believe they need to work on how they fulfill orders. It seemed a little chaotic. read more

The Pepsi was out but no sign. The meat jun is not cut and they didn't give me a knife or the sauce for it. I had to go back for the sauce then realize it wasn't cut and they didn't give a knife. The veggies were bland. $20 out the door read more

Did not read some of the scathing reviews until I was in the Mall already hungry for a light Korean lunch. Wow, I prepared myself for the staff from hell with rude stares and being ignored. I puffed up my chest and flexed my biceps to get pumped for the initial confrontation as I walked up to the empty counter. Took a breath....and I was greeted with "hi, how are you, can I help" from a nice young Filipino girl. I could tell that they were all Filipino by the local like pinoy accents. It was pleasant and not at all offensive. I let down my guard and watched as the sweet girl piled on my MINI PLATE. Wow, it ended being a heck of a lot of food. No rice cuz its a "rice-less is priceless" day for me. I mentioned light on the potato and heavy on the Kim Chee. She obliged. I now have lunch and dinner all set. Add a homemade salad to the dinner and it will be perfect. Whew - I really do not see what all the negative reviews were about. Maybe it was the fact that I smiled plenty when I approached the counter. Amazing what a "weapon" a smile can be! Pearl is pretty pearly..... read more

Pearl's Korean BBQ - My mini spicy chicken plate...plenty of food for lunch and dinner! - Korean Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

Save your Money, Worst plate from there ever! I had so many egg shells in my egg omelette. I was getting irritated eating this junk....it cost $13 for 7 small overcooked pieces of chicken katsu and $17 for a special that was the opposite of its name. I paid $30 for 2 plates of bad quality food. I've eaten here for YEARS, and have eaten meat from here that was undercooked, overcooked but never have I seen the quality this BAD..It was like the chef threw this together and was like I dont give a crap, cause that's what this was... I became upset when my disabled uncle & older aunty had to eat this for dinner & worried they ALMOST CHOKED...Wth.. Chicken isnt expensive, dont be SO STINGY and put more than 7 pieces of chicken katsu for a $17 Reg plate...A mini $9 plate from here usually has 4-5pieces how the heck is there only 7 on a REGULAR SIZE. Please stop trying to pinch every penny & make it at least decent..I ve eaten at the Moanalua Pearl's recently and they gave me 5 pieces of chicken katsu along with everyone else I ate with.. I called their number 4 seperate times and no ones answering, I'm about to REPORT this to the DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH, my first time ever doing that. I only ever came close once in Chinatown when I found a full size roach in my food and an upset waiter who was dumbfounded why I wouldn't eat it esp since I'm mixed Chinese..I told him I dont pay to eat roaches..I can do that myself, I pay for roach free food. It's sad that this isnt the only review like this, I hope you improve and would hate to see this place shutdown. But continue to ignore your customers pleas results in a sad but true outcome and it's sad & involves a close sign for you.. read more

See all

Ended up coming here for lunch by default, wanted to go to Taco Bell but when we passed the line was soo long didnt even go inside, checked Panda and Subways, same. So came here only cuz they had the shortest line and few empty tables left. I like Korean food but I've never been to this company. Ordered a pork chop and meat jun combo no rice so 5 choice veggies which was enough to feed the two of us. Glad we ended up here cuz one combo plate big enough to feed two and tasted good cant go wrong. The only thing I noticed is their chap chae dont have any veggies or meat like I'm used to at most Korean joints. Customer service was typical for a counter korean bbq joint. We got our food pretty fast felt like only 5 or 6 mins. They have brown rice. Didn't realize its CASH ONLY until I went to order and saw the signs posted at register. read more

if you come here, either prepare to eat alot or bring a friend. The food portions are generous and very tasty! I ordered a Pearl's Special which comes with Kal-bi (short ribs), teriyaki meat, teriyaki chicken, two scoops of rice, macaroni salad and a fried mandoo. All were delicious and it pretty much was my lunch and dinner. My wife opted for the veggie plate and my daughter shared her meat jun plate with a friend. Service was great and I'll definitely eat there again! Check them out! read more

Pearl's Korean BBQ - Fair prices. Generous portions! Taste great! - Korean Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii