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    The Polynesian Luau

    4.1 (61 reviews)
    ModeratePolynesian
    Closed Closed
    Updated a few days ago

    The Polynesian Luau Photos

    Business Info

    THE POLYNESIAN LUAU ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Good for groups
    Outdoor seating

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    Recommended Reviews - The Polynesian Luau

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    Sapasui, fasi povi, Turkey tails and fa'i
    Monique S.

    This is a childhood staple for me, my dad used to take me here. I don't think there's another spot in the city that serves Samoan food. You walk in, it's a counter space to the left that sells accessories, jewelry, keychains etc. all from Samoa. The right side of the store has clothing and ie lavalavas. The food is in the back, cafeteria style serving of course. What they make everyday is half the same as usual and other days it's different. But there's always taro, fa'i (plantains), and sapasui(noodles). I got a regular plate, I opted for all fa'i and no taro. It came with sapasui, fasi povi(corned beef), and Turkey tails. When I tell you the Turkey tails do it every time for me. Slow cooked in gravy with veggies, tender and fall of the bone. Just delicious. The corned beef is a little on the salty side but I just assume it's from cooking in such large batches. The older woman (I call her aunty every time I go in) she's so kind, asks how I'm doing, how my dad and my kids are. It's like walking into your family's place. Always feel welcome. Good and quick customer service.

    Fyi Yelp hours are wrong... Updated hours as of May 1st, 2024  You're Welcome!
    Gee D.

    Was dropping off my car for service up the street and needed to get another tortoise bracelet because my old one broke. I checked on yelp, hours listed that they were open so I decided to take a walk. When I got there they were Closed today(Wed). I was so bummed but I guess I'll come back another day since it's close by. Here's the updated Hours for your reference. I've bought Polynesian print material, pearl braided necklace, tortoise bracelets, earrings, they sell Poly food, kukui nut necklaces, and Poly outfits too! It's an Awesome store and the owner is really nice!! Support Small Businesses!

    The front of the store with some outdoor seating in case you REALLY can't wait to eat your food, lol
    Lili M.

    I love love love this place. My family and I have gone here for years (I'm surprised this is my first Yelp review about the place). It is located near the Cow Palace and pretty easy to get to from across the Bay Bridge. I legit don't mind driving here from the other side of the bridge for this food. I've had Samoan food elsewhere in the East Bay and it simply does not compare. The food is always fresh and delicious. The staff is nice and sweet, always greeting you as you walk in. The plates are $20 I believe and they come with taro, banana and 3 other items of your choice ranging from sapasui, corned beef, turkey tail, lamb curry, etc. The lamb curry is freaking BOMB and don't forget to get some palusami while you're at it. I think my mom and I have gone here weekly this summer lol but that's because it is SO good. Can't wait to see them again next week!

    My 21 dollar plate missing my sausage
    Amia P.

    First off i been coming here since levi closed born and raised in city . Cant believe they charged me 21 dollars for large plate its always a different server this lady that served me i known her for living in sunnydale projects so why do your people like that . Not asking for anything free but really the owner lady always scoops and hooks my plate up because i come there alot . I cant believe my plate is the way it looks and she didnt even add my sausage . No one was in there and its Friday. Thats bad smh no wonder yall went down to 3 days and is not having buisiness like yall should . Yall should be popping being the only samoan food place around the city . A city full of of polys . Its always a hit or miss but today thought it will be good for lunch im glad didnt have my coworkers pull up this embarrassing. Yeah its not the owner, its always the servers she made sure i had the smallest taro . Never again

    Corned beef (tasty but very salty) noodles (had ginger in it, yuck)
    Terri M.

    I was in the area and I came here. It wasn't busy. When the lady opened the food, it didn't look appetizing at all. I got some noodles which weren't good because it had ginger which I cant stand. Odd that ginger would be in noodles like that. The corned beef was very salty but it did have a good flavor to it.

    Lamb Curry
    Maile T.

    This was our 2nd time picking up food from here and it was so delicious and worth the drive. Because we live about an hr and half away, we bought multiple plates. We got the plates which comes with taro and green banana and 3 sides. Every dish is it's own flavors and perfectly cooked! It's definitely your home cooked poly food. The staff are very friendly especially the lady that works at the register. She always makes my family and I so welcomed. Also, they sell Polynesian clothes and accessories and it's absolutely beautiful! It's the only place my Mom and I buy our puletasis. This place is such a gem!

    Tuna in coconut

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    4 months ago

    Best Polynesian food in the peninsula. Been coming for years. Service is good, owners are friendly.

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    8 months ago

    Nice staff. Good home food and beautiful textiles. Ambiance is nice too, will return.

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    10 months ago

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    6 months ago

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    7 months ago

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    1 year ago

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    1 year ago

    Food is always good! Service is good and friendly. Place is clean! Must go for authentic Polynesian food.

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    2 years ago

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    2 years ago

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    2 years ago

    Food is always good but I have to say lately the corn beef has been a little tough other than that always delicious

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    2 years ago

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    2 years ago

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    3 years ago

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    2 years ago

    Took my kids here for the first time and they loved it! Been coming here every since with my parents

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    2 years ago

    Nice ladies behind the counter. Nice to have ready made Samoan food. Bongos, wahoo, corned beef also for sale.

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    6 years ago

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    8 years ago

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    3 years ago

    Great service, Great Food, the only flawed , they stopped making half moon pineapple pies.....

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    4 years ago

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    5 years ago

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    5 years ago

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    3 years ago

    One of the pricey food place. It's best go buy the food and fix it yourself than here.

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    6 years ago

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    5 years ago

    Best Samoan/Polynesian food around. Turkey tails and chop suey are delicious. We come here every time we're in the city.

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    7 years ago

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    Page 1 of 2

    Ask the Community - The Polynesian Luau

    I’d love to try the dish offerings. Is it like a Panda Express take out where we point to a dish and it’s placed in a to go box or ordered and it’s packaged from the kitchen…

    I went before Covid but yes it is done Panda Express style. You pick 3 meat dishes (there might be options for fewer or more entrees) and it comes with standard sides.

    View All 2 Questions

    Diamond Head General Store

    Diamond Head General Store

    4.0(494 reviews)
    6.1 mi
    $$

    I just love this place. It's like a little piece of aloha in the middle of the bay area. I love…read morethe feel of the general store along with the shave ice section and the fusion hawaiian food. It's almost like a Matsumoto's meets upscale Zippy's feel. My favorite is the luau curry katsu...huge portion with all the yummy memories of being back home. My daughter loves the spam musubi and she always loves to pick out a small snack from the general store isles. Everyone goes home happy and we always look forward to our next visit to this little "diamond" in the rough.

    cute spot with good energy, but the musubi didn't quite live up to the hype…read more i got the tempura musubi and the bacon, egg & avocado musubi. first impression of the store was really good though. the space was super cute, there were people sitting down and eating, and the musubi were all lined up so it was easy to see what they had. the menu was clear, and the staff was around and happy to answer questions about pricing, which i appreciated. overall, it had a really welcoming and lively energy. the musubi themselves were a little disappointing for me. the rice was really mushy and didn't have much of an individual grain texture. it basically all stuck together, and the rice itself was pretty flavorless. i was expecting something more like sushi rice, although i know that's not necessarily how all musubi are made. the sauce was also kind of unevenly distributed. it was mostly on one end rather than throughout the musubi, so some bites had a lot of flavor while others were pretty plain. that said, i think some of this could just come down to personal preference. someone who likes softer rice or less seasoning might actually enjoy it. it just wasn't quite up to my standards based on what i was expecting. overall, really cute store and good atmosphere, but the musubi themselves were just okay for me.

    Photos
    Diamond Head General Store - Dining room

    Dining room

    Diamond Head General Store - Crunchy Chili Garlic Chicken

    Crunchy Chili Garlic Chicken

    Diamond Head General Store - DHMW San Bruno:  Interior - seating to the LHS, lots of island goodies

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    DHMW San Bruno: Interior - seating to the LHS, lots of island goodies

    Manuia Polynesian Revue - Manuia Polynesian Revue at the 2018 Nihonmachi Street Fair in Japantown.

    Manuia Polynesian Revue

    4.8(16 reviews)
    3.3 mi

    I started my daughter this year (2019) through a referral of one of the moms I knew from my…read moredaughter's daycare. Auntie Camille was super sweet and welcoming. My daughter enjoys the Monday classes. We also started the Saturday classes which I have to get her warmed up to. The instructors are good, they do their best I don't have an outrageous high expectation, its hard enough to be a teacher yet, it's even harder to be a teacher to children because not all kids have a long attention span. Im happy that I found this new dance family for my daughter. We plan to be with them for a long time.

    Manuia is family. I started my daughter at Manuia when she was 3 and right before the lockdown. I…read morewas going to pull her out when COVID happened, as when they started virtual classes I thought it was not going to be worth it, but I am so glad I let her stay. It was a perfect extra curricular for her during lockdown and she learned so much virtually. They had virtual showcase and the kids learned the dances just though the screen and to me that was amazing. Teachers Fue and Jackie are very patient to the kids. Now that Manuia has been open in person, they were able to do in person shows lately, one of which was in Chase Center for the Warriors Polynesian Heritage Night. That was a very memorable experience for my daughter. Not only that she's learning different dances, coming out of her shell and is more confident, but Manuia is like a family to us. She's making new friends and the amazing team: Auntie Camille, Uncle Tommy, lovely teachers Fue and Jackie and the rest of the Manuia teachers and drummers are very welcoming and talented in more ways than one.

    Trader Vic's - Lettuce Cups

    Trader Vic's

    3.6(1.3k reviews)
    10.8 mi
    $$$

    Finally was able to try this legendary spot! We made reservations on a Saturday afternoon. We…read morearrived a bit early so they sat us in the "lounge" instead of the dining room but we were okay with this since the seats were by the window overlooking the water instead of the middle of the dining room. We mainly wanted drinks and maybe an app anyways. Ambiance is immersive with the tiki experience but still feels open. Large windows overlooking the bay and boats, music is very quiet. Casual and relaxed vibe feeling like an island escape. Water was promptly provided and was kept refilled throughout our visit. We tried 4 cocktails. Solid painkiller and variety of drinks and flavors but my absolute favorite was the "Cucu Lada" this was essentially a piña colada with cucumber. Really refreshing and nicely prepared with crushed ice. We also tried the crab rangoons. These came out ultra fast but were not hot, seems like they prep them ahead of time. The dips were awesome though, we loved the spicy mustard that they were served with. Never had that before with rangoons. Our service was great for the most part up until the end when we were trying to leave it seemed difficult to flag our server down so we could close out and leave. Overall it was fun and if back in the area I'd gladly return for another Cucu lada and maybe try some dinner menu items. Don't forget to checkout the gift shop for some fun tiki mugs and memorabilia.

    My friends and husband brought me here for my birthday and it was AMAZING! From the food to the…read moreservice to the decor, it was all memorable. I love the Tiki Room at Disneyland and this goes right along with that vibe, except no singing. We ordered many "Tidbits and Pupus" to start us off, it almost meant no room for dinner. But our dishes were so good, we miraculously grew a second stomach. I had the Tuna Poke ($24.50) and the All-In Fried Rice ($29.50) for my entree. My friends loved their Madras Curry ($30). Great service throughout and then I got a Free Snowball dessert for my birthday. ($10 value) We also ordered the Decadent Chocolate Cake ($17) to share. I highly recommend this place for a fancy night out!

    Photos
    Trader Vic's - Well-stocked bar included local rums

    Well-stocked bar included local rums

    Trader Vic's - Koans Puffer

    Koans Puffer

    Trader Vic's - Bumbu Hunter

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    Bumbu Hunter

    Pa'ina Lounge & Restaurant

    Pa'ina Lounge & Restaurant

    3.9(948 reviews)
    5.5 miLower Pacific Heights, Japantown
    $$

    We were having dinner nearby last Friday night and decided to stop by what's been one of our…read morefavorite bars only to learn that Paina's last day of service was Saturday July 11 :/. They had a final closing party this past Saturday, and we knew we had to stop by for few last drinks and bites. It was low key kinda sad as we had to say goodbye to some of our favorites. Over the years (past decade or so now) we've gotten to know the staff and this spot has been a spot where we knew we'd get great service, good convos, and of course tasty wings, totchos, and $1 oysters on Thursdays. Shout out to Matt, Tracy, Jeremy, and their entire team for the amazing hospitality over the years. Paina closing is a reminder that it's important to not take your favorite restaurants/bars for granted because you never know when that final day will eventually come and when it does it comes way too fast. I hope the team reads this as I just want to say THANK YOU for everything and that you will be missed. The memories and moments I've gotten to enjoy here over the years won't be forgotten!

    So bummed to hear Pa'ina Lounge & Restaurant is closing due to the sale of their building. I've…read morereally come to appreciate how it's become an easy spot for chill weekend brunch in Japantown (when there isn't a game on). The other plus is that the folks working here are absolutely lovely and sweet. Even on busy night like wing Wednesday, they never fail to bring both efficiency and a smile. Speaking of wings, the house Pa'ina flavor was really tasty. Even un-sauced, they were tasty. You will be missed Pa'ina!

    Photos
    Pa'ina Lounge & Restaurant - Spam Musubi

    Spam Musubi

    Pa'ina Lounge & Restaurant - Lamb Sliders

    Lamb Sliders

    Pa'ina Lounge & Restaurant - Rock a hula goblet

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    Rock a hula goblet

    The Polynesian Luau - polynesian - Updated September 2026

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