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    Sugoi

    4.1 (780 reviews)
    ModerateJapanese, Hawaiian
    Open 9:30 am - 2:00 pm
    Updated over 3 months ago

    Sugoi Photos

    Business Info

    SUGOI ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Casual
    Classy
    Moderate noise
    Dogs allowed

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    Reviews With Photos - Sugoi

    Entrance
    Shannon K.

    I haven't been here in years and since I was in the area I decided to do a takeout order to bring to coworkers. Of course I got the garlic chicken! The mini size has a generous portion and the chicken was as flavorful and crispy as I remembered. I walked in around 10:30a and was helped at the counter right away. Service was fast and friendly and I was headed out with hot fresh food in less than 10 mins.

    Large sesame chicken bento
    Raymond N.

    Whenever I go to Waikiki, I always make a stop at Sugoi for their mochiko chicken. Mochicko chicken can be somewhat hard to find because not all Hawaiian establishments offer it, but Sugoi makes it perfectly. For this trip I went on my way to the airport with initial plans to get some bentos to eat at the airport or on the plane. Unfortunately, when I went they ran out of mochiko chicken! I opted for the sesame chicken which is still good! It was my first time ordering their sesame chicken and it tasted very similar to the mochiko chicken which was a plus, though I could tell it wasn't the mochiko chicken I was craving for months. The bento is nice since it comes with a few other small items so you don't get sick of eating nonstop chicken and fortunately the container isn't overloaded with rice. Parking can be a bit tricky since there are other businesses in the area and the place can get busy around lunchtime so it is best to arrive early! Hopefully the next time I head to Oahu I can satisfy my mochiko chicken craving!

    Yakisoba with garlic chicken
    Klemens T.

    Still think they have the best garlic chicken. I normally don't order anything else on their menu except for the garlic chicken regular plate. The plate is a bit pricey, but definitely worth it and the portions are pretty big. The skin is so crispy and the garlic is out of this world. Lots of parking near other establishments. Lots of table to dine on and the restrooms are located in a hallway a few stores down to the left side if you're facing Sugoi's front doors.

    Large Garlic chicken plate
    Sunny V.

    One of the best Garlic Chicken places!!! You can order to go or there's an eating area that has open seating tables and cleaning wipes so you can clean up afterwards. The staff is friendly and service is fast. I love this place!

    Mini plate- spicy garlic Ahi (comes with white rice, mac salad)
    Emily L.

    Decided to try this place out for lunch on a Thursday. We did a pickup order. I ordered a mini plate with Spicy garlic Ahi tuna. It comes with white rice and mac salad. But you can upgrade the rice to noodles or fried rice for an extra charge. My fish came with a spicy sauce, and it was delicious! Not too spicy but perfectly spicy. It paired amazing with the Ahi. The Ahi was perfectly cooked too. I was shocked at how good it was. I heard great things about their chicken too, and I will have to try when I come back. Overall, I would return again.

    Chow fun with garlic chicken
    Lloyd W.

    Haven't been to Sugoi since they first open. It's a walk up order counter so service was fast. Went at the start of the lunch hour and they handled the crowd like pros. Ordered the chow fun with garlic chicken. Chow fun with a lot of goodies. It was like chow fun with side order garlic chicken. Didn't realize chow fun had it's own plate and garlic chicken came in its own container. Lunch partner ordered the pork cutlet with mushroom gravy, rice and mac potato salad with some tuna in it. Pork cutlet was thinly sliced with slight crunchiness, gravy to dive for - delicious!! There are limited tables to sit and eat at. Parking get full fast so you may have to park in the large lot and walk in. Pros: Love the abundance of goodies in the look fun. The garlic chicken is the greatest and you can't say "where's the garlic". Tuna in the potato mac salad hits home like mom used to make. Con: Parking is bad. That's it. Would I go back? In a heart beat.

    Spicy Garlic Chicken
    TeeTee M.

    Just got back to the island and bought all the sauce they had in stock AGAIN!! Lol if ur on the island this chicken is a must!! This is coming home with ME!!

    Jason M.

    We love the grinds here, but today I went change up what I normally get and went with the yakisoba. The garlic chicken is ALWAYS ACTION! But the yakisoba was just noodles with the usual things in it, just lacked and taste! Other than that tho service is always great and quick. Oh and the salad is action and I'm glad my mother in law bought side orders of it! Until next time keep up the great grinds!

    Combo Bentos with Garlic Chicken, Mahi Mahi, and Teri Beef delivered to funeral (where photo was taken).
    Reef A.

    Ordered 100 combo bentos for a funeral reception. It included Garlic Chicken, Mahi Mahi and Teri Beef. Bento tasted okay but not amazing. Chicken was a bit on the dry side. Mahi Mahi was ok. The Teri Beef was pretty good. Was expecting better but overall satisfied. Owner was accommodating to let me order & pay after they closed for the day. Free delivery all the way to Mililani. There is 3% extra charge for credit card transactions so better to pay in cash for large orders.

    Korean Fried Chicken Bento. (The container of sauce is not in the picture.)
    Gerry L.

    One of the guys at our office makes a run down to Sugoi's to pick up bentos for us every so often. As it was Tuesday, the large bento was on sale for $17.75 + tax. Three of us ordered the Korean Chicken bento while others ordered the salmon. My bento contained furikake rice, a split hot dog, a piece of BBQ meat and four or five large pieces of Fried Chicken and a slice of takuwan. I suspect they use pieces of Mochi Chicken or Garlic Chicken because I tried a piece before pouring on the sauce that was included. The sauce made it Korean (style chicken) and made the rice so tasty I had to eat all of it. It's a substantial meal. I ate half for lunch on Tuesday and the other half on Wednesday. For me, that came to less than $10/day, a deal in today's environment. Recommended!

    11-8-24. Garlic Chicken
    Lloyd C.

    Some friends recommended Sugoi for their Garlic Chicken. We had to try it out. Sugoi located in the warehouse district close to Young's Fish Market, Kamehameha Bakery, etc. Side of Chicken (Crispy Garlic) [4/5]. This is what "they are known for!" The food took several minutes to fry up. It was piping hot and crispy. There was juicy garlic sauce in the box. The boneless skin-on chicken was juicy and that fried skin...yummy. Several tables for you to dine in. The service was super friendly and nice! We found a new place. Come support local.

    Outside
    Kim B.

    Unfortunately I want to give them a better review but with the lack of staff I am sure they are suffering a lot. I give them two and a half stars. The garlic chicken lacked sauce. A lot less sauce is given. The flavor of garlic isn't wild like how it used to be. I don't know if they changed their menu but I missed that. The noodles were decent and had a decent amount of ingredients inside. It seems like they just need people and they had a help wanted for cook help! The ambiance is the same as always and the service was good! I will return to try it again because I miss the old sugoi flavors!!

    Garlic chicken
    Justin H.

    The best item on the menu , Garlic Chicken. Super super good. Service is good too, nice and clean restaurant. Sometimes parking can be hard to find.

    Storefront

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    Sugoi Reviews in Other Languages

    Ask the Community - Sugoi

    Do the catered bentos come with utensils?

    Yes they do.

    Does Sugoi serve plate lunches (garlic chicken) all day? I understand they serve breakfast all day...was thinking spicy garlic or mochiko at like 8am in the morning!!!

    Yes, they do.

    Are they open for indoor dining?

    They were open fort indoor dining when I was there on December 2, 2021

    View All 5 Questions

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    Helena's Hawaiian Food

    Helena's Hawaiian Food

    4.4
    (4.5k reviews)
    0.9 mi
    $$

    I've been to plenty of local spots, and Helena's is one of those places that lives up to its…read morereputation. After hearing so many people say it's a must-try, I finally made the trip--and now I get it. We ordered the pork lau lau, fried butterfish, luau squid its like Daing filipino dish, short ribs, and macaroni salad. Every dish looks basic not something that needed color to make it look good. The pork lau lau was incredibly tender, the fried butterfish had a light, crispy coating without being greasy, and the luau squid was rich, creamy, coconut and The short ribs were packed with flavor and practically almost off the bone. Even the macaroni salad was the kind you keep going back for. The only thing I probably wouldn't order again is the lomi salmon. It wasn't bad--it just wasn't my favorite compared to everything else on the table. If you're visiting Oahu and only have time for a few local food spots, make Helena's one of them. It's the kind of place that reminds you why simple, traditional food never goes out of style. I'd honestly stop here one more time before heading to the airport if I had the chance. That's probably the best compliment I can give it. Fyi food portion are on the smaller side but trust me they will hit the spot.

    We came here to try some more traditional Hawaiian food. Particular favorites was the squid luau…read morewhich was sweet and a little salty with a unique flavor coming from the taro leaves. If you're not a fan of seafood, don't let the squid deter you as it is a minimal part of the dish and added more of a crunchy textural component rather than actual flavor. This was my wife and my favorite dish. The luau pork was also very good though I liked the version we had at Toa Luau better. We also liked the haupia which was a very refreshing coconut pudding though for some reason our boys didn't like it. We also tried pipikaula which are thinly sliced dry-aged beef short ribs marinated in soy sauce and something else that made it sweet. If you know Korean barbeque, you'll instantly get the sensation that these are close cousins to galbi, though the pipikaula are much less sweet in comparison. The dry aging process also makes them a bit more dryer than galbi. On to more difficult stuff. I was enthusiastic about the fried butterfish collar but once I got a waft of the dish, I knew I was in trouble. I'm very sensitive when it comes to fish so the smell (more than the taste) was off putting. My wife was fine with it and enjoyed the dish, but if you aren't a fan of fishy fish, then I would skip it. The lomi salmon looked very much like pico de gallo with the addition of salt-cured salmon. My boys loved this dish because they love salmon but again I would steer clear if you are a seafood weakling like me. Alas, we come to poi. Had my hopes up since I love taro but the texture and a bit of sourness from fermentation deterred me from trying too much of it. I'm glad we tried it but not sure that we would get it again.

    Photos
    New larger inside dining area
    New larger inside dining area
    Menu B: Kalua Pig And Pipikaula Short Ribs
    Menu B: Kalua Pig And Pipikaula Short Ribs
    Cashier counter

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    Cashier counter
    Highway Inn Kaka'ako

    Highway Inn Kaka'ako

    4.1
    (2k reviews)
    1.9 mi
    $$

    I just finished a Yelp event nearby (she wasnt able to go) and we are starving, so we finally…read moredecided to check this place off our bookmark. Highway Inn is known for traditional Hawaiian food, but we ended up trying some of the local-style twists. The kalua pig quesadilla was really good, and the tacos were solid too. The surprise for me was the chicken from the kids menu. I ordered it anyway, and honestly, no regrets. It was juicy, flavorful, and better than a lot of regular chicken plates I've had. The Kaka'ako location is clean and modern, service was quick, and it was exactly what we needed after a long event. We would definitely come back to try more. The on-site music artist was good.

    The internet told me if I wanted authentic Hawaiian food, this was the place to go, so of course I…read morehad to try it. Since it was our last meal before leaving Hawaii and there were still a few Hawaiian dishes I hadn't gotten around to trying, this felt like the perfect spot. What I really liked is that they have a sampler plate with a bunch of classic Hawaiian dishes, and the menu actually breaks down what everything is. Clearly this is something people come here for, because it makes trying a little bit of everything way less intimidating. I split the sampler with someone, and overall I was pleasantly surprised. Some of the items didn't look the most appetizing at first glance -- one especially because of the color -- but flavor-wise, everything was actually really good. One of the dishes reminded me of a comforting chicken soup situation, the clear noodles were good, some of the other items were more savory, and it all balanced together well. The lomi salmon was one of my favorites -- kind of like a light, fresh tomato salsa or pico de gallo situation that paired really well with the pork and everything else on the plate. I didn't finish it all because I was already full, but I genuinely liked the variety and thought the flavors were rich and comforting. So if you're curious about Hawaiian food but don't know where to start, this sampler is a great move. Don't let the appearance of some of the dishes scare you off. Service was quick and everyone was nice. At first I kind of wished someone had walked us through the food a little more, but honestly, the menu already does that for you pretty clearly. Overall, I'm glad we came. It was a fun way to try the Hawaiian dishes we hadn't gotten to yet, and I'd come back to try more.

    Photos
    Highway Inn Kaka'ako
    KALUA PIG NACHOS,FRIED RICE & SOUR CREAM
    KALUA PIG NACHOS,FRIED RICE & SOUR CREAM
    Fried Rice

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    Fried Rice
    Side Street Inn

    Side Street Inn

    4.1
    (2.5k reviews)
    5.0 mi
    $$

    OMG! This was a dining experience! So, the restaurant was closing so my friend said we should eat…read morethere! I didn't know that the servings were group sized!! I found so many things that looked great on the menu, to include fried gizzards, boneless Kal Bi ribs, fully loaded fried rice, Mac salad and other stuff I can't recall! So the TWO of us ordered way too much! We tried to eat as much as we could and ended up taking the rest home! Everything we ordered was delicious, so we knew we were going to eat good leftovers! The restaurant was a great place to go with a group to eat and watch sports! Our Waitress (I have to remember to get names) was a track star, she was running to and from several tables of groups to deliver food! I will go again if they reopen!

    If you're visiting Hawaii with a big group, 100% recommend taking them here…read more We initially were a party of 16, and showed up without a reservation at 6pm on a Saturday. The staff was super nice about it and was able to accommodate us, with only a small request that we be out by 8pm since there was another big party with a reservation coming in. Absolutely reasonable. They sat us right away at three large tables, which gave us plenty of space for food and didn't force us to sit super close together. Menus, waters, plates, napkins, and forks were all brought out immediately, and our waiter was quick to take our order. We started with the prix fixe menu for 8-10 guests and were going to add other items à la carte, but a handful of our group accidentally went to the other Side Street location (make sure your group is all on the same page), so what we ordered ended up being more than enough. We left stuffed and with 5 boxes of food still. Edamame was nice and steamy, and large enough to easily pop the beans out with your mouth. Wish there was a bit more salt though. The farmer's salad had everything going on from citrusy to salty to crispy. Avocado had a little bit of oxidation but the capers, dressing and potato curls provided plenty of reasons to overlook it. The fried rice came in a hefty portion, with sizable pieces of bacon and sausage. The chicken I didn't realize was boneless based on the shape of the deep fry, but it was nice to freely bite into it without worrying about hitting anything with my teeth. Probably a bit too much on fried bits but still good. Pork chops had a better meat to crisp ratio in my opinion, as well as juiciness. They even came with ketchup on the side, which I love as a pairing but don't see much of at restaurants. My favorite meat item was definitely the sizzling boneless kalbi. The presentation on the sizzling plate with a side of kimchi was spectacular, and the meat was full of flavor. We also ordered yakisoba, which wasn't part of the prix fixe. Tasted good but nothing past standard expectations. We let the waiter know we had a 30th birthday at the table, and they brought a couple scoops of vanilla ice cream with a candle, and did a decent job getting the whole room to participate in the singing. It could also be the type of crowd this place attracts, since it seemed that everyone was so friendly and approachable. Thanks to the quick and consistent service, we were out in a little over an hour with no complaints.

    Photos
    Our Chef Colin's Classics Menu feeds 3-4 guests for $105.00!
    Our Chef Colin's Classics Menu feeds 3-4 guests for $105.00!
    Oodles of Noodles! Try our Yakisoba! You can also add Kim Chee for extra flavor.
    Oodles of Noodles! Try our Yakisoba! You can also add Kim Chee for extra flavor.
    Popcorn Chicken & French Fries

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    Popcorn Chicken & French Fries
    Musubi Cafe Iyasume

    Musubi Cafe Iyasume

    4.5
    (5.4k reviews)
    4.6 mi
    $

    If you think 5,400 reviews are lying, let this one be the reason you make sure to visit this local…read morebusiness when you're in Honolulu. It was love at first bite for me with musubi and onigiri, so when I saw a spot dedicated to this deliciousness you better believe I made a point to go there! I ran even faster when StaciLei, Yelp Hawaii's amazing Community Manager, told me it's a must and gave me her list of greatest hits and must not miss items as a guide! Now I've had a lot of these in my life, and I must say, Iyasume are easily the best. See musubi and onigiri have humble origins as a quickly made homespun snack or on the go lunch, and when you spot them in the convenience environment they're often a giant ball of rice with a tinge of protein or seasoning for flavor. At Iyasume, these are culinary adventures, stacked with ingredients, all in handheld form, and the variety they offer is IMPRESSIVE! Of course musubi starts with the classic, SPAM. I had to order the kimchi + spam, shiso + spam, and unagi + tamago + spam, all of which were awesome (even the next day!). Onigiri here are actually layered with ingredients, so you get them in every bite, unlike the convenience store versions! They have a HUGE menu, and I went with spicy mentaiko and salmon, spicy mentaiko and ikura, ikura and salmon, and tuna mayo curry, all of which were great. I LOVE that they make these to order. You can see the line in the back hard at work, and they're very fast. You're sure to encounter a line when you arrive, but don't be scared, it moves quickly. I only had to wait about 5 minutes for mine to come up! Well worth it. Reasonably priced. Very filling. A taste of Hawaii and Japan in one place that'll have everyone smiling!

    Friend recommended this spot and I'm grateful she did. There were so many fresh and interesting…read moremusubis to choose from. I bought kimchi spam, eel spam, inari spam, and a furikake rice ball. Didn't really interact with staff as they didn't offer to help while I viewed the items and I selected my items fairly quickly. I found purchasing four musubis very affortable. Finding parking was tough and expensive in the area. Not the restaurant's fault and probably drivers are not the bulk of their business.

    Photos
    Inside the shop
    Inside the shop
    Teriyaki Spam & Rice with Hawaiian drink
    Teriyaki Spam & Rice with Hawaiian drink
    Black pepper spam musubi and inari-egg spam musubi

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    Black pepper spam musubi and inari-egg spam musubi
    Da Ono Hawaiian Foods

    Da Ono Hawaiian Foods

    3.9
    (294 reviews)
    4.9 mi
    $$

    3.5 stars We wanted…read moreto try authentic Hawaiian food and came across this spot. The owner was very friendly and took the time to recommend dishes for us, including the laulau and lechon kawali. We also ordered the BBQ short ribs. Overall, it was a good experience trying Hawaiian food, but it's just not really our type of cuisine. The laulau was quite dry, and the preparation felt more like meat that had been boiled or cooked in liquid, which isn't something I usually enjoy. The lechon kawali had a crispy pork belly texture, topped with something similar to a salsa, but it didn't suit our taste either. Unfortunately, the cabbage served with it also had some black spots, which was off-putting. The BBQ short ribs were the highlight of the meal and the dish we enjoyed the most. We appreciate the experience and the hospitality, but the flavors just didn't quite match our personal preferences.

    1. The hours posted on Yelp was incorrect. They open from 12:00 pm…read more A group of us ordered food the night before for pickup at 12:30pm, on Thursday. Then someone wanted to change from rice to poi. I tried many times and no one answered. Their voice mailbox was full. We e ended going there to make the change. He gentleman looked like he was working be himself. We bads to wait almost a half hour for him to finish the order. 2. Price - the prices were higher than expected. All the plates were $26.00 and up. 3. Food - The poi was very tasty and fresh, although a bit watery. The lau lau had a lot of lean pork filling, not a lot of leaves. The long rice didn't have much chicken and was a bit watery too. We enjoyed the sweet potato. There was also lomi salmon, haupia onion and chili pepper water. 4. As mentioned before there isn't much parking. The restaurant wasn't busy when we got there. Overall the food and service was OK. The price was a bit high.

    Photos
    Menu
    Menu
    Short Ribs Plate
    Short Ribs Plate
    Menu

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    Menu

    Sugoi - japanese - Updated July 2026

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