Location at the union mall. Very friendly owner. Service is excellent. No seating inside but food…read morewill be made upon order. The restaurant is pretty small but it's clean. They have variety of dim sum and drinks can be choose. No tax if you pay by cash. * Must try their ginger chicken and soy sauce chicken combo for $15.75 - 10/10 - What a great deal in downtown area. It's a set which comes with daily soup, veggies and rice. * Milk Tea - 7/10 - pack of tea flavor, it's just ok * Lilikoi Lemonade - 9/10 - not too sweet, it's very refreshing. Support small local businesses. This is a very good place to get Chinese food in downtown area. Highly recommend!

Downtown Honolulu has been slowly dwindling on dim sum and Cantonese food for a while now. Dim Sum…read moreHouse? Replaced with a hotel. Jun Bo? Closed. Honolulu Seafood Restaurant? Gone. Might've bit more than they can chew. Finally, let's welcome Ocean Dim Sum in combination with Mon Cha Cha to Downtown! You might've seen them before at several farmer's market around the island. Now they have a physical store located along Bishop St at Union Mall in the Emerald Building. This is a grab and go place with an array of dim sum: sweet, savory, steamed, and basic meat with vegetable offerings with white or brown rice. The Chicken Curry and Beef Curry meat pies were very, very good. Flaky and crispy and light crust. The filling was decent. Beef had better flavor. Chicken was on the light side. 3 for $10. Ok to mix and match. Shrimp Dumplings were good. $7 for two is a bit on the pricey side, but they were much larger than your usual dim sum variety. The skin was thick yet soft. Decent flavor on the shrimp filling. Light for me. The Chicken with Tofu and Pork with Bittermelon were all right. I got the lucky scoop where all the ginger gathered up in both. The taste and flavors were homey and familiar. Again, on the lighter side. Same can be said about the seaweed soup - gingery and light (yes, I got slivers of ginger in the soup too!). Overall, not bad. If you're going with more healthier and more light tasting food, then this is the place. But too light for me. Even their hot mustard was overly watered down. At least I didn't get a ginger in there! The pies were excellent. Better than many other places. Service was good - super friendly and nice. Dim sum does run out later in the day. I did find it a touch on the pricey side compared to going to Chinatown, you're also sort of limited to what's there since everything is already neatly boxed.

Review 42 (2026) We…read morejust had drinks here today. I had Matcha latte with a little sweetener and my husband had Hojicha latte with a little sweetener. We loved and enjoyed their latte with Oat milk. So rich and refreshing flavored. We didn't order Musubi at this time but staffs were very friendly and welcoming. We are long time fan of Ajitama. Thank you so much. We will be back soon.

I tried their pop-ups at Kakaako Barn! I LOVE AJITAMA. Their musubis are delicious - so simple…read morebut flavorful and it's a pretty good size too! I always make sure to grab their musubis before they sell out because ya girl doesn't wanna lose my Ajitama Musubi to anybody. I have yet to visit their actual location but I definitely want to go one day and try their drink options as well :). Their musubis are my favorite though and I am craving them right now as I write this review.. LOL

Authentic Hong Kong style cafe food serving dishes from the land to the sea. Their foods are big…read morein portion and reasonably priced. They serve from cafe style comfort food to fresh seafoods. They also cook your freshly bought seafood for a small up charge too ! This is different than their next door neighbor where they also cook your seafood. This is more authentic Hong Kong Chinese style seafood where you can do it steamed or you can tried their typhoon harbor style seafood where it's crispy seasoned then fried. Super friendly service let support local goods ! Plenty shared tables at food court indoor or outdoor seating available too.

***4.5 STARS*** I'm…read moreslacking. As the "Unofficial Mayor of Chinatown" I am aware of changes in the area I grew up in. Although I've moved away many years ago, I can still be found in the area every weekends as I do my weekly shopping. Step in Hong Kong Island Cafe (HKIC), which opened in Fall 2025. They are located on the Mauka end of Maunakea Marketplace serving authentic Cantonese food and drinks. My colleague mentioned HKIC to me as her mother operates one of the food stalls inside Maunakea Marketplace. In looking them up I'm sure late in the game as Auntie (aka Nadine C.) has already made her appearance here and wrote a positive experience. This past weekend during my usual shopping, I bumped into my colleague at Maunakea Marketplace so I walked over to join her at HKIC. Upon arrival I saw their extensive digital menu with some hand written signs and some food photos posted. I had already picked up that day's breakfast and lunch ingredients that day and was soon to head over to my part time job. My eyes landed on the chiller of bottled and canned drinks, along with house made desserts. I was very tempted to try either their cheesecakes or the durian cake roll but already had snacks so I ended up just getting their iced Hong Kong milk tea and requested 50% sugar when asked how sweet I wanted. My drink was immediately assembled after ordering and my waiting time was minimal. After taking the obligatory photo I took a sip. My iced milk tea was not bad but not as good as my go to place. Service was above average with cheerful staff (perhaps husband and wife team). I did take a glimpse of their food pics and they look promising. The fried shrimp, beef chow funn, won tons, braised beef brisket and beef tendon, and sweet and sour pork all look promising. I need to drag my family here to sample an array of dishes. The setbacks of this food stall are: communal seating, undesirable and sketchy foot traffic and the parking woes in Chinatown. Overall, a pleasant first experience but I'll have to return and try more of their offerings. I just hope there will be air conditioning (sometimes it's out of order) and no sketchy people around as sometimes they approach you for money and/or food. 2026 #55

Found another gem in Chinatown like Lams kitchen. For the people that like spicy, this is an…read moreawesome bowl of goodness. I've never had laksa before and I have no idea if this authentic but I know good when I taste good! Tasty, spicy broth that will leave you asking for another napkin so you can wipe your face from the heat! Lots of beef - not so much tendon as tasty chunks of seasoned beef! Choice of noodle type; I got look funn. The coconut and curry infused broth was delicious!!!!! Service was really good and I found the place clean! Mostly Chinese in there in the morning drinking coffee and eating that ovaltine toast. I would say this place is excellent and tasty! One of my favorites now!!!!

Been wanting to try HK Cafe for the longest time! It didn't disappoint, but it didn't exceed…read moreexpectations. Located along Maunakea St, in the previous Happy Garden dim sum spot. Inside is bright and surprisingly spacious. A big difference from before. Started with the Minced Beef Steamed Flour Roll, which was very good. Soft, tender beef, thin rice roll, and flavorful sauce. You won't find these "messy/not quite neatly rolled" style look funn at many places! I like it! The Preserved Chinese Sausage and Meat Clay Pot Rice was pretty good. Nicely prepared rice that was soft and fluffy that crisped up very nicely from the pot. The Lap cheong and lap yuk were good. Lap yuk was sliced on the thin side to be able to appreciate it. Sausage was the usual brand. The most important ingredient is the sauce, and it was excellent! Good balance of savory with enough sweet to balance out the meat and to flavor the rice. Note: these take 25-35 minutes to make. The Curry Laksa with Beef Tendon and Brisket Noodle Soup was good. Tasty and tender brisket and tendon. The laksa broth was flavorful with nice hints of lemongrass, ginger, and other spices. The coconut milk and the spice didn't quite come through leaving the broth not as creamy or silky, or spicy as I would have liked. Still good overall though. Noodles prepared well and the lemon added a nice acidity that goes well with everything. The Hong Kong Style Milk Tea and Coffee mix was all right. The tea was on the strong side which masked the coffee. Overall, a decent meal at HK Cafe. Food was good. Service was good. Reasonable prices. I'll come back to try more things!

Small ice cream shop with the cutest vibes. Their black…read moresesame sauce with their vanilla soft serve is literally such an amazing sweet treat. Would 100% eat a whole cup full of that sesame sauce.

I went to check out Malu after dinner nearby and was pleasantly surprised. It's a small shop in the…read moreKe'eaumoku plaza. There's a small lot in the back that's monitored but free for 20 minutes or less parking. The lot is not one of my favorites since it's very tight but it's fine in a small car. I wanted to try a variety to get an idea of what their best options are so we got one cream puff and two different cake rolls, one strawberry and one Okinawa sweet potato. When we went at 7 pm they still had about 6 options in the case, with the majority being cake rolls. The double cream cookie puff was hands down my favorite and absolutely delicious. Coco puff who? Just kidding, but both are delicious in their own way but I do prefer Malu, especially the dough on the cream puff. The cake rolls were not too sweet and very soft. We tried the strawberry and Okinawa sweet potato, the sweet potato had actual chunks of potato in it. The strawberry had one fresh strawberry and some bits in the piece. The prices were very reasonable, I think we got all 3 for under $14. The worker/owner? was sweet and got everything packed quickly. It's small but there are a couple of tables if you want to eat in, I chose to take home. I want to go back earlier in the day to try some of their other specialties. Loved the pink interior, very cute

Located in the lanai food court in Ala Moana next to Macys, HiTEA is a great spot for boba tea,…read moresmoothies, or juices. They also serve food, but their drink menu boasts about 50-60 different drink options varying in fresh fruit or powder flavored varieties. I had the taro coconut milk tea on this occasion with boba. Boba, jelly, bubbles, and other chewy add ins cost a little extra in addition to your drink, but each concoction costs between $7-9. The service is quick (I think I only waited five minutes for a made to order drink) and the counter no frills, just the way we like a fast food establishment to be. Definitely competitive with the sharetea that operates a few feet away!

Always fast friendly service, call ahead walked over from work and was ready to go! First time…read morehaving the salt and pepper pork chops. Hit the spot!!

It feels like I just keep returning to this place (like every month LOL), but the food is so…read moreappetizing and I have major FOMO, which the Shioketh team seems to be good at inducing! Their rotating menu means that whatever I end up enjoying might not be available in the near future. At the end of January, my friends and I ordered the Beef Rendang Combo with Sambal Goreng and Fried Egg (always good), Roti John (so good), Blooming Eggs (always good), Veggie Spring Roll, Pandan Waffle with Nutella (super sweet but so good), and 3 Combo Deals of a drink and Kaya Bun: Pandan Iced Coffee, Watermelon Cucumber Spritzer, Bandung Fizzy. The Bandung Fizzy has a nice rose flavor which was new to me. At the end of February, my group ordered: 2 portions of the Nasi Lemak, a Nonya Vegetable Curry, 2 orders of the Fried Gao Spring Rolls, and the Pandan Bun Combo Deal, with the drinks being Lychee Spritzer, Mango Cream Soda, and Pandan iced coffee. In early April, we ordered: Singaporean Laksa, Salted Egg Popcorn Chicken Plate, Blooming Egg, Pandan Iced Coffee, Watermelon Cucumber Spritzer, Mango Iced Tea, Pandan Waffle, Strawberry Matcha Sorbet, and Strawberry Pitaya Shrubae. In mid-April we ordered Punggol Mee Goreng, Ginger Fried Chicken, Mango Iced Tea, Lychee Iced Tea, Yuzu Fizzy, and Pandan Frozen custards. In mid-May we ordered Hainanese Fried Chicken, Curry Bak Mee, Pandan iced coffee, Pandan matcha coco cloud, and Kaya Toast frozen custard. I repeat myself when I say that the quality of food has been consistently satisfying. Shioketh is a rare Singaporean food offering on Oahu, and it has exposed me to unique dishes that I cannot forget. (The Roti John is something I still think about to this day.) Sometimes the Shioketh team brings you your food, and sometimes you go to the counter to retrieve your order. I'm fine either way because it's a smaller venue. We always choose to dine in, and we get here early (between 11 and 12) so that we *can* dine in. The head chef Emily usually makes the rounds to greet customers, and she's seen me enough times to recognize me as a regular (LOL). This practice of hers helps lend a feeling of community in the air.

After visiting Singapore many years ago, we enjoyed the flavorfulness and spiciness of the street…read morefood at the hawker stands, which was a mixture of Indonesian, Malay and Singaporean cultures. Occasional eateries have opened in HI offering this cusine, however, many were short-lived. In 2014, Emily Terukina immigrated to HNL from Singapore with her husband, Gavin. She worked as a host and kitchen helper at the Pig & the Lady. After missing her native home cuisine, she left the Pig & the Lady to open her own restaurant pop-up at the Hapa Market and Grill in Palolo called Shioketh on 9/7/24. Emily uses her traditional recipes to display the authentic flavors while growing up in Singapore, with slight adaptations to the likes of the local residents of HI. Huband Gavin oversees the back end of the restaurant's operations, including graphics and web design. Emily chose the name "Shioketh," which is a Singaporean/Malaysian slang term meaning: * "Shiok" = delicious, pleasurable, superb or highly satisfying and frequently used to describe a great meal. * "Shooketh" = a slang for shaken/surprised. She hopes to provide fun, casual food options of Singaporean flavors that leave her guests both satisfied and craving for more. Generallly open on Saturdays only, Shioketh offers a rotating, limited weekly menu that includes: * Entrees: laksa curry, beef rendang (Indonesian curry), ayam penyet (crispy Malay chicken), nasi lemak (coconut rice with chicken and egg), crispy wonton with noodles. * Sides: sambal goreng (stir-fried tofu, long beans, tempeh, shallots); blooming eggs. * Desserts: pandan waffle, Kaya sweet bun. * Drinks: Pandan iced coffee, bandung/yuzu fuzzy, mango cream soda, lychee/watermelon cucumber spritzer, iced teas. I had the following: * Salted egg popcorn chicken plate. Super crispy popcorn chicken tossed in a creamy, spicy salted egg sauce and finished with fried curry leaves, served with jasmine rice. Delicious, flavorful, seasoned sauce that was fiery spicy that complemented the chicken and Jasmine rice topped with garlic chips! Excellent spicy sauce that had me wanting to eat more and more! * Ginger fried chicken with fragrant chicken rice. Crisp, juicy ginger-marinated chicken fried with garlic, curry leaves, and blended macadamia for subtleness. Paired w/ fragrant chicken rice infused with ginger aromatics and war spices. I expected the chicken or the sauce to be spicy, but both were not; however, I enjoyed the spices that they were cooked in! Yum, very delicious! The juicy chicken is best eaten when freshly fried and dipped into the sauce for the best flavors! * Pandan coffee. This was a cold brew coffee topped with pandan coconut cold foam and sweetened with gula melaka palm sugar. I enjoyed the rich and creamy coffee with the subtle taste of the pandan foam! Very refreshing! As the weekly menus change, I plan to check Shioketh's Instagram site to see what food items will be offered on future dates. And if I see a menu item that interests me, I will preorder before the Saturday to guarantee having it. Staff is very friendly and knowledgeable about the menu items. Since I had preordered the food items and coffee, they were ready at the time of pick-up. There are a few tables for dine-in, and when we arrived at the peak of the lunch hour, all seats were taken. However, I had previously ordered online for takeout to ensure that the food items would not be sold out. Note that even if you dine in or take out, all food items are served in take-out containers and are made to order to ensure freshness and quality. Shioketh is generally open on Saturdays only from 11a to 3p, unless it is participating in private events; check their Instagram posts a few days prior for their schedule. Free parking in private lot shared with Hapa Market and Grill. I look forward to trying more of the different dishes offered! Love the delicious Malaysian cuisine with the accompanying spiciness, the authenticity of the menu, and the friendly staff that make this an amazing dining experience! I am glad that Shioketh has garnered a loyal following over the past year and wish them continued success. Support local!

@fortunefoodfinds: "Celebrating National Mango Day with my bes-TEA! A Mango Sago with Grapefruit…read morefor me n' a Cloudy Mango for my mini from FORTUNE TEA. What makes these yuMmmy drinks even sweeter aside from hanging out with my bestie, is that I had enough stamps n' got them both for free!" SERVICE: friendly INTERIOR: limited seating, gets hot inside EXTERIOR: on the corner, near Safeway WAIT TIME: normally fast (5 mins) but I think since there was only 1 person working n' I came right at opening, it took maybe 15 mins (I only paid for 15 mins of parking so I cut it close!) PARKING: metered street right in front n' to the side or free lot around the corner OVERALL COMMENTS: prices are great in my opinion in this day n' age. My usual go-to is their brown sugar milk tea with brown sugar boba or either their mango or strawberry sago with grapefruit. Since it was national mango day, I went with their mango drinks. The mango sago with grapefruit is always refreshing, tasty, n' has great textures. The mini sago is made perfectly. My daughter really enjoyed their cloudy mango. Don't forget to scratch off the scratcher on the drink cups, it could contain a discount for your next visit. I earned enough stamps to fill two stamp cards from previous visits, so you can say I'm a frequent customer!

Matcha matcha very good, nice refreshing Frappuccino 6/5…read more All fruit tea 6/5 very nice tea, not too sweet or overpowering for the orange juice Service very nice to let us eat outside food in. No restrooms available