I make it a mission to eat here every time I'm back home. This place takes me back to the glory days of Dillingham Saimin, which sadly bit the dust a couple years back. It's now my go-to spot for local saimin, with portions big enough to make any appetite happy. The menu is a nostalgic replica of Dillingham Saimin's, so I always know what I'm getting--a saimin with a Teri beef stick. It's the same order I've been having since I was a kid! My all-time favorite has always been the kimchee saimin, while my dad swears by the moyashi saimin with won ton. We've got our favorites, and this place never disappoints. The atmosphere has that old-school, local vibe, and the service is always friendly. Plus, the food arrives so quickly that I never have to wait long to dig in! read more

Tanaka Saimin - Moyashi Saimin Wun Tun - Japanese Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

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Love this place the staff is amazing the food is so ONO sevice is fast place to be when u hungry . read more

Tanaka Saimin - Chinese chicken salad - Japanese Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

I always love the food here. Choices are endless, it's overwhelming in all the good ways. I always get a 2 choice: crispy shoyu chicken, hamburger steak with fried noodles, & rice. And a side of potato/mac salad. Our server worked really hard for our party of 11. Nobody was disappointed. A must when I find myself back home in Hawaii. read more

Tanaka Saimin - Crispy shoyu chicken, hamburger steak, fried noodles & rice - Japanese Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

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Everytime I tatse the broth from Tanaka Saimin, it brings me back to the Boulevard Saimin days at their old location where we would go from child hood days. read more

Tanaka Saimin - Saimin + Cheeseburger Combo - Japanese Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

Lemme tell you--this place is like my childhood days in Honolulu. The food is really good, reasonably priced and the service is friendly. I like everything that I have tried here, from the Oxtail stew on Tuesday to the regular saimin. Is this a Michelin starred eating place--no, and it doesn't try to be. The portions are generous, the food is cooked to order and the seasonings agree with local taste buds. Hubby and I look forward to coming here any day of the week and love the potato mac salad and the chicken katsu. Be sure to ask the waitress to have the cooks cook it light colored or it can get overcooked like katsu often gets. Mahalo to the owners for trying to keep the prices down for locals and for the senior discount on Tuesdays--that gives seniors a break so that they can order the banana cream pie at the end, LOL! read more

Went during lunch. Food and service were satisfactory. It was quiet and casual. Ordered oyako donburi and he ordered a cheeseburger. Maybe I'll try something else next time. They do have daily specials. read more

Tanaka Saimin - Japanese Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

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Wow it's been 11 years since my last review, i thought i better update my review! Its funny because I ordered the exact same item I ordered 11 years ago and my thoughts are the same. The difference is wow this place was packed with people! You know that's when it's going to be good. I ordered the Tanaka saimin which comes with six pieces won ton, and sides of shrimp tempura, teri beef and a choice of a green salad or potato/mac salad. I got the potato mac salad. Everything was so good. my order came out really fast and the soup was piping hot. The shrimp tempura is home made which I appreciate that's it not the frozen kind from the supermarket and the won ton is also home made. Everything tasted good and I ate the entire thing. Parking is still an issue during busy times as many of the stalls are reserved. You need to enter on Alakawa street and circle around the back to park in front. When coming back to the front, also look left for parking since that's where most of the Tanaka saimin parking is, most of the stalls in front of the building are reserved. I had to circle around twice to find parking. I can't wait to come back and try the ox tail soup next time. read more

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We visited here recently for breakfast and enjoyed a very nice and present service with good food at an affordable. Highly recommend Tanaka Saimin for almost any meal, I've had dinner and breakfast, in a casual atmosphere and good service. We will be back. read more

Busiest Restaurant that I've seen in a while. But, you get seated quickly and the service does take a while but it's worth it. Oxtail soup with the long rice inside is yummy. read more

Tanaka Saimin - Soup menu - Japanese Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

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This is like an old reliable place! Service was nice and quick, very attentive. We got the tanaka saimin combo which came with saimin, wunton, shrimp tempura, teri beef and mac salad- pretty good deal for $16. It was all good, although the shrimp was a little doughy. Definitely a good stop to come by if you need a quick n filling meal. read more

Tanaka Saimin - Tanaka Saimin - Japanese Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

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The Cheeseburger & Saimin Combo is ono!!! Next time I wanna try the other foods on the menu. The service was awesome! juliet was super nice, friendly, and funny! We were seated pretty quick for a party of 11. Thank you! read more

Tanaka Saimin - Cheeseburger - Japanese Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

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Local comfort food with friendly and efficient service. My mom's favorite restaurant to go to bc it has all her faves for a reasonable price. Our go tos are the Tanaka Saimin combo, or their combo plates. They also have really good desserts that usually change from time to time. Supposedly the owner makes all of them! It does get busy so prepare to sign in and wait to be seated. read more

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Ono oxtail soup. Lots of oxtail with longrice, mushrooms, and cabbage. Service is fast and accommodating. Great value.

8/17/24 Stopped to pick up some dinner on my way home around 1PM on a Saturday. This is one of our favorite local restaurants for food when we are in the area. The parking lot was pretty full as it is most weekends, I had to circle the building at least once. This time, I didn't call in ahead & just walked in to place my order. I was greeted by Carol, a long-time regular fixture at this popular place who seems like she's been there forever. I have always had great service by Carol & it will be a sad day when she finally decides to ever retire. The rest of the staff are equally as nice, & their customer service has been pretty consistent in all the years we've come here, not to mention the food. Decided to order 2 of the prime rib which is a weekend special available only on Friday's & Saturday's. We tried so many items on their menu over the years & we didn't recall every having the prime rib. And of course, dessert to go. Prime rib - got the princess cut ($23.50), medium rare. It's about a 12 oz portion and the sauteed vegetable that day was broccoli topped with some cheese sauce. You get a choice of starch & one additional side. No substitutions on the side, either soup of the day - which was corn chowder, or salad. I selected the soup, mashed potatoes with no gravy for the hubs, & brown rice for me. The prime rib was cooked perfectly & quite tender, well-seasoned. 1/4 of the piece was fat. Hubby didn't care for that but I told him that's pretty much how prime rib is. It comes with au jus sauce, which you don't really need because of the juiciness of the meat. I had forgotten to ask for horse radish, I thought it came automatically. We both enjoyed this & would gladly order it again. We actually ended up eating half & saved the other half for another meal. Corn chowder - great! On the thick side but once it's reheated & stirred, it's ok. It had good flavor & along with the corn, you could see the bacon pieces in the soup. It's about 8 oz of soup that they fill the container to the brim. Sides - the broccoli was cooked just right, still with a little crunch, not soggy. It was just under 1/2 c & the cheese sauce was a couple of tablespoons that complemented the broccoli nicely. Mash potatoes & brown rice also good & more than enough for 2 meals. Dessert - I ordered 2 different pies & noticed it didn't come with the usual whip cream topping. Not sure if they no longer do that or just forgot. As expected, the price for the pies have gone up to $5.50 a piece from $4.95. Either way, it's still yummy & worth it. I got the lilikoi chiffon pie which was heavenly, one of my faves. Just love the macadamia short bread crust, and the overall lightness of the dessert, not overly sweet but a nice way to end a delicious meal. It tastes similar to a lemon meringue pie in tanginess, but so much better. Hubs had the peanut butter chocolate banana cream pie. It's a newer item on their menu that he's never tried. Hubby liked it but said you could barely taste any PB & it was overshadowed by the chocolate, which was very sweet. It did look a little messed up when he opened the container but he still enjoyed it. read more

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I went here to get take out and got their Tanaka mix plate that comes with chicken karaage, roast pork, Teri beef, Mac salad with fried noodles and rice. This was a lot of food that lasted me 3 meals and was quite tasty. Great local dine in spot. read more

Tanaka Saimin - Tanaka Mix Plate - Japanese Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

Hubs was home early on a Monday and wanted to get something for lunch. We also had to go to one of those nearby hardware store, so It just made sense to kill 2 birds with one stone. Hubs ordered the stew and french fries and got really excited to see someone else's order of onion rings, which were huge I mean HUGE!! I actually saw the customer cut it into smaller pieces because it was so huge. I decided on the daily special, which was a prime rib sandwich and the soup of the day, french onion soup. I have never tasted a french onion soup like that before, it was light and the broth wasn't dark and there were croutons and cheese on the top. Hubs and I were trying to breakdown what was in the soup, my first thought: chicken broth and maybe miso. Again, it was good, just not what I expected. The sandwich came with potato chips which was a nice addition to the soup and prime rib. Service was great, water was topped off and food was delicious. Only 4 stars because of the pricing. My soup and sandwich was $16, Hubs Stew was $16 but add on a drink and some fries and that was an extra $9, add a tip and it's easily $50. I guess that's how they keep the food prices lower, by upping the price of soda and fries, but it was a sticker shock for me. read more

Tanaka Saimin - French onion soup - Japanese Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

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Comfort food at its finest, nothing fancy. Just hearty food that will fill your tummy after a long hard day of shopping or beach. Staff is very fast and attentive. Food comes out at a very decent time. Simple restaurant, decor is simple and cozy. Saimen with shrimp tempura is always a favorite, fried noodles and tempura is a match. Love they are open 7 days a week but no longer open late. If craving comfort food, this is the place, see you there ! read more

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This is their Friday special. Can't go wrong with their prime rib. Always delicious and always cooked to how I want it. read more

Tanaka Saimin - Prime Rib - Japanese Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

First time here and came for breakfast. Had the cornedbeef hash which was delish. The coffee was really good and the server kept it coming! It looks like the establishment has been around for decades. From the decor to the tables, everything is dated. The food and service was great. I will definitely come back again. read more

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Appetizer: Onion Rings w / Ranch Dipping Sauce Food: Pork Cutlet w/ Brown Gravy (me) Crispy Chicken Plate with Spicy Sauce (boyfriend) Service: Awesome customer service. ASK TO SIT IN CRYSTALS SECTION Ambiance: Relaxed environment with A/C Parking is limited with a few reserved for Tanaka Saimin Customers ONLY. read more

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Relative wanted to eat here for the first time, he has gone to the old Boulevard Saimin (there was a split from Boulevard Saimin to Tanaka Saimin and Dillingham Saimin, though Dillingham Saimin closed its doors due to financial loss during the pandemic) maybe the last time there was over 20 years ago. I have eaten here at Tanaka Saimin once before about 2015ish? We walked in just about 10:55 am (February 22nd) with three retired couples ahead of us. The nice older female host decides to say what today's specials to us together as a group. We were given a booth way towards the back which was nice as I did not realize how big(ger) it was compared to the time I came years ago. Got the Saimin (small) and Hamburger deluxe combo for $15.00 for early lunch today. Kept telling myself I never knew 'this was a thing' until I kept hearing) in local food Facebook forums) about how people pair saimin/won ton min with a hamburger/cheeseburger. Thus it was my first time to combine these two items. Saimin - appearance wise, it looked striking but ahh, nothing special about it, not the noodles, not the broth though my relative said the broth was 'salty'. Everywhere I have saimin, if I like it, I will sip the soup until the bowl is practically empty. Both my relative and I left a lot of the soup remaining. Bland broth... I mean it sorry to say... Hamburger sandwich - was surprisingly tasty (even though its appearance was on the bland side with its iceberg lettuce), buns were right sized (not like the slider sized hamburger buns you buy at the supermarket) and soft enough that it broke apart while eating my juicy hamburger. Perhaps they steam their buns? But yes, I see they are grilled. The only real negative? While we were ordering our meals off the menu, she asked me if I needed cheese or sauce for my hamburger... I said, ahh how about teriyaki sauce? Asked her if there is a charge? Few moments later, she comes back and says it's "$1.75". "$1.75"??? I laughingly told her 'ahh no thanks'. Geez, $1.75... I hope then it would be a half to a full cup of teriyaki sauce if I did order that! Glad I didn't need a cheese slice as garans-ball-barans it would have cost even more than the price for the teriyaki sauce! Wow. Our waitress though nice, never mentioned her name but only saw it on the bill (Patricia). This is the old school of waitressing (local style) as the waitresses don't say who they are... just would be nice though if they did introduce themselves before handing us our menus wouldn't you think? The crowd around the 11am hour seemed to be more our age, elderly (lol). There was no rush to have us leave our booth, so we stayed about 15 minutes more after finishing our meal. I was wondering if we had to pay somewhere up front, but when our waitress came to give us our bill she said just to pay her (no need to leave our booth). Funny this place, as though it is called 'Tanaka Saimin', their saimin needs some work as the other dishes seem (IMHO) to carry the load for this place to be successful. They may have to change their name to just 'Tanaka's' or 'Tanaka's Diner' (deleting the 'Saimin') as their saimin version just didn't do it for us... Sad... read more

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So the weirdest thing happened here before we even got our table. Jamie W. and I took a long local bus ride from Waikiki to come here because frankly it was hard to find places close to the tourist areas that specialize in saimin. This cavernous place looked popular among the locals with the attitude to match. I looked at a vacant spot on a bench, and this senior woman snapped, "You're too heavy to sit here!" I simply thanked her for her observation and sat down. This apparently upset her, and she used her back to try to shove me off. It was like a WWF match, and she had a 100 pounds on me. When they finally called our name, I thanked her again and told her she should consider therapy to deal with her anger management issues. We were then led to a big booth and served by a lovely server named Pi'ikea. She made the rest of our experience most pleasant. The menu was more than saimin and included local grindz, burgers, and breakfast plates. Jamie ordered the $13.50 Oyako Saimin which featured chicken, egg, onion, and kamaboko (photo: https://yelp.to/PZD7EcLa7j). Very much in the comfort food category, it was presented like oyakodon but with saimin noodles instead of rice. It hit the spot for Jamie, but I was suffering PTS from the bench incident. I decided on the $23.50 Oxtail Saimin with Wun Tun (photo). It was quite a feast of meat and not disappointing on that front. The noodles were a bit too soft for me, especially compared to the saimin at Shige's (review: https://yelp.to/rljyeRp1rl). If you're into portions and don't mind paying a bit more, this might be well worth the bus ride over here. And if you run into that woman who shoved me, tell her I love her. FOOD - 4 stars...hearty bowls of saimin but noodles and broth need a bit more refinement AMBIANCE - 3.5 spacious...except for that bench, I guess SERVICE - 4.5 stars...at least Pi'ikea was a joy TOTAL - 4 stars...if you need a lot of variety in your saimin, this be da place, brudda RELATED - Exploring Hawaii? Here's a collection of places I've visited and reviewed: https://bit.ly/3Kz5ksc read more

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I've been to Tanaka Saimin a few times now and so far I have not been disappointed. The food is tasty and portions are big. On this most recent visit, my son had the Korea Moco and I ordered the Sizzling Rib Steak. So darn delicious!! My steak also came with fried noodles and a salad (you can choose any 2 sides) and I had enough leftovers for my lunch the next day. Service was great and food came out quick even though they were busy. It's very laid back and not noisy, and they don't make you feel rushed to eat and leave. read more

Tanaka Saimin - Sizzling Rib Steak - Japanese Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

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The food was good, our server was very nice and she did her best. The ambiance was great.

Always the go to place when visiting home Best friendly service Chill atmosphere nothing fancy Variety of food read more

Tanaka Saimin - Tanaka saimin - Japanese Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

Have not ate here in a long time! Recently had a couple items that I thought were good! The crispy shoyu chicken was perfect! Seasoned well and fried perfectly, it paired well with the fried noodles and Mac salad! Amazing option! Second... The beef stew! The closest to homemade I've found though it's mostly gravy and vegetables. Mine had two little pieces of meat. Overall still good but not a good selection of meat and veggies. The ratio was off. Overall will keep coming back for those items! Well worth it! read more

Tanaka Saimin - Japanese Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

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The oxtail saimin was the bomb diggity!! Food baby in my belly!! Anything in the menu is delicious read more

Tanaka Saimin - Oxtail Saimin - Japanese Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

Favorite dish here is the oxtail saimin. The broth is comforting and the mushroom slices had an earthy taste. The soup is served with a giant portion of minced ginger. Hot mustard is also available. The oxtail chunks are gigantic and tender. Auntie likes the crabmeat sandwich here-however the chips that came with it were stale today unfortunately. The place can be packed during peak hours so just be aware there may be a wait. read more

Tanaka Saimin - Oxtail Saimin - Japanese Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

I love Tanaka Saimin! It is a place myself, friends and family enjoy! Their menu offers such a good variety of food from Prime Rib, Chicken, Pork, Fish yup whatever your craving they got something to satisfy it!! The Saimin is a winner! We love French Fries from Tanaka Saimin too Hot Mustard and ketchup mixed together makes it so yummy!!! I personally love the Oxtail Soup! The service is always good!! Staff is friendly and always smiling! There is parking but it can get busy. Definitely would recommend!! My fat cells ALWAYS do the happy dance after eating at Tanaka Saimin!!! read more

Tanaka Saimin - Yummmmm- Oxtail Soup - Japanese Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

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Quick service food is always good. Lots of seating. I always order the Tanaka special saimin with Teri beef, shrimp tempura and Mac salad sometimes cheese burger on the side. Yum! read more

Tanaka Saimin - Cheese burger homemade burger. - Japanese Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

The food was really good, very happy with my find and definitely going back next time

I got the kimchi saimin while my bf got the saimin special which came with some mac salad, "tempura" and beef on the side. The saimin was very okay, I felt the kimchi wasn't quite authentic but that's okay. The wontons had little meat in it compared to Palace Saimin. My bf's tempura was very sad :( it was soggy and cold. The beef was also cold. We both didn't feel too satisfied after our meal. Service was however very friendly and we saw a lot of people waiting to dine in. read more

Tanaka Saimin - Japanese Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

Decided to stop by after visiting Party City to try some oxtail saimin. The oxtail is cooked well, it was very soft and the noodles were perfect - but it was just too salty (I think it was the broth). For $22 it's a steal compared to other restaurants, the portion size is huge. They don't trim the fat so some pieces were a little gristly. We also tried the princess cut prime rib, it was very good! The broccoli and mash was cold tho? Maybe they forgot to heat it up? Overall Tanaka is okay, the service was good but I don't think I would come back. read more

Tanaka Saimin - Oxtail Saimin - large portion - Japanese Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

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Ahhhh....I no live here anymore. Sad face. But everytime I come back home to visit, Tanaka is one of my must stops. This location is huge, and there's always a long line/wait of local bruddahs and sistahs. So awesome to hear the pidgin when you've been stuck on the mainland listening to perfect white lady english (not that there's anything wrong with that -Seinfeld). On my last visit, I of course got the tanaka saimin and a mixed plate of teri chicken and roast pork. They fast over here and before long, we had our grub in front of us. The saimin is just straight up comforting to me, even on this muggy summer night in Hawaii. Perfect broth, awesome chewy noodles, and the perfect amount of mix ins. This place is better than my previous fave at Blvd Saimin. I was getting full, but nothing was gonna stop me from eating my plate. The yakitori chicken had a burst of flavor, and it's nice to rub it against the rice to make your own fried rice lol. Roast pork was tender and tasty, just the right amount of saltiness to it. Everything just lovely. I walked out a few lbs heavier, but boy was it worth it. 10/10 would recommend! read more

Tanaka Saimin - Japanese Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

We were the 4th/5th customer before the crowd arrived, the hostess shouted my name loudly for no reason as if she was at a park. We were seated at the first table next to her station. She shouted every name before seating, it was unnecessary and really disturbed our dinner and ambiance. I've patronized this restaurant for years this was the worst. A group of guests were allowing a Kupuna and his family to exit before heading into the center of the restaurant where the hostess waited for them, as she is in the center of the dining room she shouts the group name so loudly and we're at the first table it was unbelievable that management would allow this action in their restaurant. I made a complaint to our server who agreed to notify her. Upon leaving in our car i called the male manager and made a complaint. Instead of him apologizing he made an excuse for her actions saying that "they were busy" this insensitive attitude was very upsetting and i got loud, he had no empathy that we paid $48 for a meal that we couldn't enjoy as she shouted every time she seated a group and told me that I needed to show him some respect instead of arguing with him as he took no care of responsibility for his employees actions. This is unacceptable is what i told him, we'll dine elsewhere in a calm environment where we can enjoy our meal in peace and where customer care matters. read more

I love supporting local businesses and I've been trying to love dining at Tanaka Saimin, but I really don't. I've given them a try about three times over the course of a couple of years and the verdict is still 3 stars at best. The restaurant is large, and good for groups. However, they don't accept reservations. Good news is that your entire party doesn't have to be present for them to seat you. They serve up old school style saimin and local dishes such as chicken katsu and teri beef. They have a pretty extensive menu, so as an option, you can get a mix plate with two different entrees and your choice of two sides: rice, mashed potatoes, fried saimin, mac-potato salad, or tossed green salad. Lately, I've had the Crispy Shoyu Chicken, Korea Moco, Vegetable Tempura Platter, and the Tempura Ice Cream. The Crispy Shoyu Chicken was ok. The flavor was good. It wasn't as crispy as I thought it would be. It kind of had the consistency of chicken karaage. The Korea Moco was pretty satisfying. It consists of two eggs over kim chee fried rice, kalbi, crispy won ton, and sauce on the side. The portion is huge and well-worth the money. The Vegetable Tempura platter was really "bready" and therefore saturated in oil. The thing that did not and usually does not ever disappoint was the Tempura Ice Cream. A huge scoop of vanilla ice cream in a ball of fried dough rolled in cinnamon sugar is a great way to top off your meal. The ultimate reason for my 3-star rating versus a 4-star rating is for the service. They are S-L-O-W, slow! The last two times I've dined there, once for an early lunch (around 11am), and for dinner on a weeknight (6pm). Both days were fairly busy but the wait times for the food were extensive, and drinks weren't filled in a timely manner. However, the servers are friendly and provide good customer service. Good overall local restaurant to support with some uncommon menu items, but the sense of urgency/speed of service needs some work. read more

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Great comfort food. Fast friendly service. Nice local vibe. Food is very good. The wonton mien was very tasty with a lot of wontons. Love the Saimin noodles. read more

I had Tanaka Saimin for $16.95 and it was great. A good size saimin bowl with so many wonton dumplings and side dishes of teri beef slices, shrimp tempura, and mac-potato were enough to get me full and satisfied, so tasty. The servers were great also. read more

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This was the first time at this very popular saimin spot so I was looking forward to a great bowl of saimin. The soup base is so flavorful and there are plenty of goodies inside. My neighbor in the table next to us had the oxtail saimin so I had to take a photo of it because it looked so Ono! Our server was helpful and quick so we tipped her well. I will definitely be back!!! PS if you plan to get here by bus, take the #20 to Alakawa Street (next stop after Lowe's if you're coming from town). Going home the bus stop is across Nimitz and Alakawa and go left to the cement bench. read more

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Tanaka Saimin with shrimp tempura, Teri beef and toss greens good. Hostess shouted party names so loudly disrupting our dinner the entire time what made it worse was being seated at the first table next her station. She walked up and down the dining room with telephone in hand taking calls it was upsetting. Spoke to manager who made an excuse for her actions, "we were busy". Unacceptable. read more