We live in San Diego, CA and we have made 2 trips this month to get our Samoan food fix from Poly Grill. Their food is so tasty and delicious it takes you back home to the islands. From the luapulu povi or mamoe, palusami, sapasui, fa'i, talo, turkey tail all the way to the baking goods, the falaoa, faapapa, half moon pies and don't forget the pani-popo just amazingly spot on amazing! Thank you Poly Grill for bringing the hometown flavor of food from back home in Samoa to Cali. Looking forward to our trip next month, see you all then. Love, love this place! read more

Drove all the way from Oceanside to Carson to pick up some Samoan food and it was worth it! The women working were very beautiful, warm and welcoming! The store was clean and they followed cdc guidelines! The store smelled so good not only because of the fresh food that was being served, but also the amazing baked goods that had just come out of the oven! They charge by the pound so however much your food weighs, that's how much it'll be. Which to me is a fair and reasonable way to price their food considering good tasting Samoan food is hard to come by and ingredients are not cheap. And since this is the closest place to me, I'm willing to pay that extra bit to support my people and their business. The food was amazing! The taro was cooked to perfection! It wasn't dry in the middle like a lot of people tend to cook it. And the palusami just melts in your mouth! The Samoan bread and half moon pies were so sweet and rich! I don't have a picture of those cause I ate them on the drive home! I can't wait to make another trip back for more! read more

Poly Grill & Bakery - Taro and palusami - my presentation isn't as good as theirs lol - Bakeries Near Me - Carson, California

I've actually been here before and never had a bad plate. I ordered the the plate, best price ever for the amount of food they give you ($12 out the door). I chose the lamb and chicken as my two meats and it came with chop suey, taro and/or banana. I had both with coconut on top. The food is very tasty and it depends how hungry I am to determine if I will have left overs or not for dinner. The lamb was tender and though some may not like the fat on it, I just put it aside but it sure does help with the flavors. Same with chicken; everything is seasoned just right. This place is like a little hidden gem and if you didn't Yelp it, you would only know of this place by word of mouth. Which is actually how I found out. It is in the corner of a strip mall but there is enough parking. The grill/bakery is clean with a hot table so you know exactly what your choices are. I was told that the bakery goods are best bought on Fridays so...take note. I usually go in at lunch time so I've never had issues with the place not being open. Other than that, I enjoy going to this place and the folks there are very pleasant, as island eateries usually are. Food and talk story...what could be better? read more

Poly Grill & Bakery - Chicken, lamb, chop suey, & taro and banana (with coconut) - Bakeries Near Me - Carson, California

Making the drive here from Orange County is never a problem, especially for "quality" Samoan food. They have a wide array of Samoan dishes from their palusami (taro roots w/coconut cream), muli pipi (turkey tails), barbecue chicken, pork chops, povi masima (corned beef brisket w/cabbage), fa'alifu fa'i (green bananas in a cocunut sauce), fa'alifu taro (taro in cocunut cream) or baked taro and Samoan pork sausage. Food is wonderfully fresh and more affordable than most Samoan stores that charge way more than an arm and a leg for their plates. Their bakery also has a good assortment of half moon pineapple pies, masi (crackers), pani popo (Samoan cocunut rolls), banana panikeke (Samoan banana pancakes) and more. You already feel welcomed once you step through the door and Gurdi (the friendly owner) gave us complimentary masi and half moon pies just for coming all the way from OC. Such a lovely gesture and slick promotion of goods:) If you want to familiarize yourself with Samoan entrees, then drop by this adorable shop. read more

Poly Grill & Bakery - Poly Grill food. - Bakeries Near Me - Carson, California

I personally have not grown up with Polynesian food so this was all new for me. I asked the employee what her favorite was - she suggested the turkey tail. I had the plate which came with white rice and chop suey. Ordered the sausage and turkey tail she suggested. I would not order either of those items again. I have never had turkey tail. The texture of the meat was all fat. It was like eating the fat from pork. But the flavors were pretty good. The sausage was seasoned similarly to the turkey which was tasty but the texture was again really soft. For sausage, I would expect it to be a little more firm. I liked the rice and chop suey. The chop suey had small chunks of meat in it, giving it a little extra flavor. Overall, I would not give a bad rating because the flavors were all there. But my plate was basically a plate of mush. I would not order these items again. But having never eaten these items, I really have nothing to compare what it's supposed to be like. So my review is representing those that are in the same boat as me - new to these dishes. I will go back because it all smelled so good. But I might just stick to a teriyaki bowl and a manapua. read more

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Honestly this place has changed but for the better! I gave it time and the new owners are very nice! The food is delicious and well! My family and I continue to frequent this place! read more

I had the turkey tail (muli pipi), mamoe (lamb), chop suey (sapasui), and fai (green banana). It was $10 for a "plate" which included either green banana or Taro, chop suey, and two meat items of choice (turkey tail, chicken, sausage, lamb, fish, corned beef, etc). BAD: If you're expecting a rave in customer service, this is probably the part they lack. They are not the friendliest people on earth and their workers were on their phones texting the whole time over the counter. Smiling is not in their agenda either. Don't let them fool you though... their food WILL make up for it. Well, at least the items I ordered. Also, the baked goods display was pretty empty so I'm not sure if they were sold out (we were there at 12 pm) or they didn't have any prepared. GOOD: Love their food..... Turkey tail - Dangerously good. The marinade penetrates through every fiber of the meat. The sauce the meat sits in is a perfect sweet and tasty teriyaki sauce with no overpowering flavors so you can enjoy the taste of the turkey tail too. The meat also falls right off the bone. Lamb - I'm thinking it had the same marinade as the turkey tail because it had the same marinade flavor along with its sitting sauce. Of course, the sauce wasn't too overpowering so you can taste the lamb meat. Again, marinade penetrates through every part of the meat. Chop Suey - I am a big fan of samoan chop suey (Sapasui). Ive tasted many sapasuis in my life. So, my review on this particular sapasui was that it was delicious. Sapasui was mushy, garlicky, and made with pisupo (corned beef). There were largely pieces of garlic I picked and put aside but it did not affect the taste overall. Might I mention this is free with every "plate." Green Banana - Cooked to its right form but it wasn't simmered in coconut milk as I would have liked. Just plain green banana. ********** If you're planning on eating your plate immediately, grab a cold drink from the nearest gas station as they don't offer fountain drinks here. They do sell water and soda cans. Will i be going back here? Of courseeee.... especially for the turkey tail and chop suey. Very delicious and tasty. I can tolerate poor customer service if the food is worth it... and yes, the food is worth it :). read more

Poly Grill & Bakery - Turkey Tail (muli pipi), Lamb (mamoe), Green Banana (Fa'i), and Chop Suey (Sapasui). - Bakeries Near Me - Carson, California

Great food and the selection is awesome. Very friendly staff. Definitely recommend this place!

The pies were really tasteful and just the way I like.... The Samoan bread is on point... The atmosphere is so positive... And the owners make you feel like you're family... read more

Grand Reopening Today Thursday 11/14/2019 Pineapple Pie is the Bomb. Brisket is the best in South Bay.

Great food great people great way to have a piece of the islands here in Cali :) Glad it opened up again because for a while it was closed down but it's open now so all good read more

(Late review) We drove up yesterday from San Diego after a friend told us about this spot. Totally worth the drive. Staff was friendly and the food was amazing. Mmmm the turkey tails!!! read more

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We will drive to Poly Grill from San Diego just to get some food from here. We usually take orders from our family before going and clean them out with our orders! Everything is bomb, from the freshly baked breads to the sapasui! The lu pulu is my favorite read more

I found this place because I went to Octoberfest at Alpine Village and met a nice gentleman named Semi. My friends and I are foodies and we talked about Polynesian food and how there aren't very many places in Los Angeles. He mentioned this place and we just disregarded it. 5 months later, I'm shopping at Alpine Village, found Semi and asked again about that Samoan place. My mom and I drove around, found it and met two very sweet people ready to help us. They introduced me to the chop suey (which is not what you think it is) and Fa'alifu Fa'i - green bananas in coconut milk. I ordered the $10 plate which included chop suey, tarot (chopped in quarters), green bananas, corned beef, and pork chops. But you can choose any two meats. Coming from a Filipino family, you would like a lot of food for your money but don't expect it at restaurants and food establishments. This $10 plate was enough for me and my mom to share, and for lunch the next day! We then ventured over to what we considered dessert; Panikeke - round, deep fried banana, coconut or plain pancakes. We also bought a loaf of Samoan bread. The Panikeke was amazing! Just the perfect crisp to the crust, and a soft, very moist bread center with a hint of fruit. Great experience, super clean, sweet and informative people and good tasting food. I can't wait to head back there and try the turkey tail. read more

Poly Grill & Bakery comes up as the second result when you search for Hawaiian food in Carson right after Poke Etc. As I had tried Poke Etc. and liked it, I decided to give Poly Grill & Bakery a try as it had pretty good ratings on Yelp. Poly Grill & Bakery is located in a non-decrepit strip mall that it shares with an Italian restaurant and a Liquor store among some other businesses on Carson St which has a small but sufficient lot. When I entered I observed that this was primarily a take out place without any tables to eat-in which was not a problem for me as I was anyway planning to get something to go. There was one other customer who was paying at the register so I just hung around looking at the steam table containing the food trying to make some sense of what was available. After finishing with the other customer the lady behind the counter walked over to me with an expression of absolute bewilderment on seeing me there. I asked her a couple of questions on basically what was available and she replied back in monosyllables like fish, pork, turkey in a tone that wanted me gone. I figured I might as well try something so I decided to get a two item combo for $10 which seemed pretty reasonable considering the price. First question was do you want rice or taro and bananas. I thought that taro and bananas was some concoction like poi so I decided to give that a try. Next I was asked do you want the noodles so I said yes. Next it was a choice between the turkey tails and whole steamed fish. The turkey tails looked like globules which did not look very inviting so I went with the whole fish. There was a tray that was labeled lamb but it seems that they were out of that as it was empty. I proceeded to pay by card but was told that there was a $1 charge so I simply paid in cash. Let's come to the taste. I think my biggest mistake was getting taro and bananas which was just plain unprocessed steamed taro and two absolutely raw bananas. As I am not native Samoan there was no way that I was going to be able to eat this so it was on to the next item. The noodles were thick glass noodles which looked heavy but were light and had a little bit of a spongy chew to them. They also had like a slight sweet finish which was unique to me but I kind of liked it. Unfortunately after a couple of bites I realized that there was some meat in the noodles and as I did not know what it was I decided it best not to eat the rest. The fish had a strong smell up close and its skin tasted a little off like it was cured over a period of time. The inside flesh was soft and milky so I ate just that. After eating the fish I did not fall sick of anything so it was not bad just a little different than regular steamed fish. Goes without saying that just the fish did not fill me up and I think got myself a burger meal from McDonalds across the road from my house to fill me up. For me this entire visit was an absolute failure and I blame myself for not having picked up all the signs to walk out. My recommendation to anyone who plans to visit here is to let them know that it is your fist time and ask for samples before proceeding to buy so that you know what you are getting into. I on the other hand have no plans to return. read more

Poly Grill & Bakery - Two item combo ($10) with noodles and whole steamed fish. Comes with unprocessed steamed taro and two raw bananas. Avoidable!!! - Bakeries Near Me - Carson, California

The in laws wanted to some freshly baked bread for breakfast, so we woke up early and got 3 loaves of bread. They were so good, especially fresh out of the oven! They also serve plenty of good Polynesian dishes.. most of which I think are Samoan dishes... chicken, fish, sausage, chop suey, luau, turkey tail...not the lightest meal but I know they are delicious. The store is nice and clean, and the staff here is friendly too. While we waited for the bread, I was offered a pancake ball with pineapple... which was really good! I tried it before from other places but I would say their version is really good... not too sweet and perfectly doughy. read more

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Went out with a friend talking about where she should have dinner. I remembered my boyfriend telling me that this place was open now, so I recommended it. We initially just wanted to stop by and see what they had.. but when she told me that she saw 'Chop Suey' on a menu board I knew I wasn't leaving empty handed. The place is small, with no indoor/outdoor seating. Clean. Friendly staff. They've been open for about 3 weeks now. oh! and *Cash Only* LOVE the Chop Suey. minimal veggies, just how I like it (: I also love the Panikekes. Now that I know I can get ChopSuey and Panikekes here, I'll be coming back a lot more! And so I can try more items (I'll yelp again once I've tried more items off the menu) yayyy!! read more

Best poly grinds in town! Everything is delish.....but the mamoe (lamb) is off da' hook! You have to beat the lunch and dinner crowd cause the food goes fast! read more

Sadly, I drove over 45 mins to come here for my poly food fix after seeing all the pics on Instagram. Needless to say I was dissapointed. The bread loaf was stale and the pineapple pie was tart with a gooey crust. The sapasui was greasy and bland. The chicken was covered in Lawrys season salt (which is odd for a Poly restaurant) Mamoe was tough with a weird after taste. The only real edible thing was my kalo which was dissapointing. The girl behind the cash wrap claimed to be the owner while another lady in the hat named Tupu claimed to be the cook. She was rude and arrogant unlike the previous owners although I heard its the same family. Poly food should always be made with fresh ingredients and heart. I guess this place doesn't have neither. I wouldn't be back just based off of the poor service let alone the old food. Sad. I'm not a yelper but after wasting my time and almost $80. I am now. read more

This place is the best! I can't believe the level of excitement in the gal that helped me. She was extremely generous in letting me try lots of foods I've never had... I had essentially a sampler of everything and it was off the hook! I was coming up the freeway on a long drive and needed to stop and get some food, this was the closest place on yelp and it absolutely delivered! Thank you to the gal that hooked me up, I will absolutely making my way back when I'm in the area! read more

Excellent food. Tried their octopus, corned beef palusami, sapasui, pilikaki, taro, fa'i, lamb, sausage, (basically have tried them all, even the peach merengue pie and they were all lip smacking delicious!!! My favorite is the pani popo. On point! Samoans cook the best food. And this hot spot rocked it!! Thank you so much!! And yes they're open during this pandemic, take out only, is their regular anyway. read more

Great service and really good food! I was my first time eating this kind of food. The noodles were great! The pastries were delicious. They have these round like pancakes (just wish I had syrup). They are a must if you stop by here. If you want Samoan home style cooking, check it out! read more

I am Samoan, so I may be a bit biased... but this place serves authentic foods from the islands. I was visiting from New York and brought a friend who lives in Hollywood over for some Papa (coconut like cake bread) and some manapua. He loved it! I found myself wanting to go back for more, which I did the following few days. Try something new! Samoan cuisine doesn't offer most intense or intricate of flavor profiles, but it definitely is different! read more

Love everything this place make...every time I go there I just ordered some of everything...lol! I'm a big fatty! Never disappointed with this place. read more

Poly Grill & Bakery - Manapua...yummy! - Bakeries Near Me - Carson, California

By far the best Samoan Food restaurant I have ate at. Clean and spacious. Gurdi hooked us up with a tray of Pani popo for free for the kids. A definite return to this spot when we come back to So Cal. BTW, they don't weigh the food like the other spots. Straight combos and bowl meals. Thanks for the hook up Gurdi!!! Shot out to Brownzville Carson California! read more

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I must say its been long over due for a proper Samoan take out. I mean you got to be a favorite of the food to know just how it should be done as in moms kitchen. This spot is top notch if you ask me. To all involved at this spot great job and much thanks. There has been and are Samoan take outs but none as clean, tasteful, FRESH and welcoming. Hats off to Poly Grill & Bakery. Woowoo! TasiAlofa:) read more

Legit is all I can say. Got there early for the warm Popo and let me tell you it's off the chain. The best in the west! I'll be back.

It is one of the best Polynesian Island take out place. It is also nice and clean, u know after reading all the other negative responses about this place, maybe bcuz they had a bad day or u had a bad day! LOOK! Evrybody makes mistakes? In this life, God Blesses us wit choices to make in this crazy world!! But I can say whats real, Poly Grill will always be the star of the show!!! There fresh food comes along wit a smile. For those who had bad experience in the beginning Im sure the staff are very sorry? Everybody deserves a second chance, Give it a shott!!! *** JONAH!! read more

Got a poly plate. Sapasui was really good. Kalo and fa'i were awesome. Turkey tail was a little rich or too oily for me. Overall great plate though. Will come back when in Carson. read more

This place has amazing food. My first time trying Samoan food and it was the best ! The customer service was amazing and the staff helped my partner and I in describing how the foods tasted and so much more! I showed my mother pictures of our plates and she begged me to go and get her a plate as well Lol! I will definitely be revisiting to take some food to my family in Texas. Another thing I loved was that the business was extremely clean and followed the CDC guidelines. read more

If you want 'white' polynesian food then this is not the place for you. If youre into authentic poly food specializing in SAMOAN, then youve come to the right place. Samoan food isnt pretty. It looks bland, no special presentation. However, when cooked right, the flavors compliment one another. For example, a taro, chop suey, and a polish sausage- go well together. This place has potential if they were consistent in cooking and opening up on time, and having the food ready when its suppose to be ready :) read more

I have never had Polynesian food before. I have been to many Hawaiian restaurants, but I assume they are not exactly the same. I would have given this place 3.5 stars if possible, but averaged up since it was my first time here. In the area and wanted to try something different. Located at the end of a small strip mall, the sweetness aroma hits you as you enter the place. Its half bakery, so that might be one reason. But more likely because most of the meat seems to be basted in a sweet teriyaki type sauce. I read about the lamb and turkey tails in the other reviews, so wanted to try them. Got there late in the afternoon, so those two trays were almost empty, but I still got them in a two item combo with rice and chop suey noodles. The turkey tails were great. I have never had them before. There were some bits of fat in them, but the meat portions were all tender and flavored well with the sauce. The lamb meat was also really good. A bit more on the chewy side, but not tough at all. My complaint about the lamb is that there was a lot of fat in each piece, and not much meat. The rice noodles also seemed over done as they were breaking apart into little pieces. Maybe because I came late after lunch and there wasn't many pieces of turkey tail and lamb available, but i thought the portions were small for the $10 combo price. I was still hungry after finishing my food. In any case, I'm glad I got to discover and try turkey tail for the first time. I would definitely come back here again and try some of their other dishes. read more

5 stars for being the cheapest place around when it comes to authentic Samoan food. The place has a bakery too that sells panikeke, pies, fresh bread and cookies. They open early in the morning (7am) and have all types of food ready which is dangerous lol Sometimes I think my parents are sneaking over here buying food they know they're not supposed to be eating. The entire menu is ready to be served by 8, 8:30. There's no place to sit and dine so you got to take your stuff to go. I spoke a little to the manager of the place and she was really really nice and spoke about serving real, affordable, authentic Samoan food. She also helps other Samoan vendors by selling their goods in her store which is admirable and gives you another reason to eat here. Comparatively, the prices and quality of food is great. The place was clean and the service was good. Very friendly people. If you're in the mood for some ready made Samoan food come here for the convenience, quality and to SUPPORT SAMOAN OWNED BUSINESSES. read more

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Very rude lady okay so I'm not Samoan does that give u the right to look at me all crazy like wtf r u doing here that lady had a snobby ass attitude she seriously didn't want to help me I ask her a question and she took her sweet effin time to answer back forcefully haha whatever I walked out eff her read more

The Samoan food here is good and inexpensive. Go early, food sells out quick. Panipopo here is delicious, best I've ever had. Corn beef cabbage and chop suey are my faves. read more

Great food, but you need to work on your customer service. When customers call, you should greet them with a "hello, how can I help you?" Not a what do you want tone...i guess my money is no good at your place of business... read more

This place is amazing clean and the Samoan food is authentic and so good. I'm in love with everything here lol hard not to buy the whole store. We are so lucky to have this store close to us and every holiday I come here for the pani popo (coconut buns) love them :). Prices are great and the customer service is just as good. It's great seeing our Samoan people supporting this local store. read more

Got the plate which my selection was of 1 taro which was wet, banana, corn beef, 2 turkey tails and a sausage was pretty good. Also purchased a manapua which was ok. I have had waaaaay better. Also purchased oka which was ok. Mines is waaay better. This place has alot of other food options and alot of baked samoan treats. My rating is on my food i purchased yesterday. Overall i will go back again to try other stuff they have and because i love to support samoan business owners. Also facility is clean and staff is very nice and friendly. read more

Wonderful experience and tasty food. For me - I could make two meals out of the plate... large servings.. which is just fine because it tastes so good. Found them on Yelp and I am glad I did. Heads up: Need to eat elsewhere --- no tables or chairs. But well worth the pick up. And the bakery - awesome. read more

Love me some Samoan food. The only thing is the lamb is a little bit salty. Everything else is great.