irvinehomeowner
Well-known member
It's interesting that there are multiple Hawaiian food joints in and around Irvine. Back long ago during the time of dinosaurs, you had to go to Huntington Beach to get Hawaiian food (The Loft).
The last month or so, for some reason we've been eating a lot of Hawaiian food so this is my personal rating of the various places in/near Irvine. This is skewed because most of my rating is based on one dish, Chicken Katsu... so YMMV.
Da Luau Hawaiian Grillhttp://www.yelp.com/biz/da-luau-hawaiian-grill-irvine
IHO Rating: 4.5/5
This place is nice and clean. Large indoor seating area and outdoor seating is available too.
Their Katsu is all white meat (almost like a pounded chicken breast) which I like the best. Also, their macaroni salad is different from the rest as it's a combo macaroni/potato salad which is awesome. They have some different Hawaiian foods that others don't and on weekends they serve breakfast... corn beef hash, Hawaiian Portugese sausage, spam, macadamia nut pancakes... and bacon fried rice (wish they had that on their normal menu). They also have Shave Ice. They have gravy for the Katsu and also sell the Korean short ribs. They sell burgers/fries too.
A bit pricey, they don't have mini-meals but they do have kids meals (although it doesn't include a drink. Their entree combos should come with more rice, but at least you can choose your sides.
Nalu's Island Grillhttp://www.yelp.com/biz/nalus-island-grill-irvine
IHO Rating: 3/5
I used to really like this place. But in the last several years they've changed their menu to a more esoteric style than the standard Hawaiian plate lunch menu. Plus, they don't have the Korean short ribs anymore which is what the Mrs. likes.
The Katsu here is more like the Japanese one which is dark meat. It's okay but not as good as Da Luau. You can also choose your sides here (grilled veggies cost $1 more) but their mac salad is the standard type, which is too mayo-ey to me. They also have Shave Ice here.
Prices are about the same as Da Luau except their kid's meals do come with a drink. Like Da Laus, they have burger/fries also... but no gravy for the Katsu. Also has large indoor dining area and outdoor space.
L & L Hawaiian Barbecuehttp://www.yelp.com/biz/l-and-l-hawaiian-barbecue-irvine
IHO Rating: 2/5
This is one of the OG joints from Hawaii. One of their first places I went to in the OC was inside a Japanese supermarket (don't think it's open anymore). They now have one in HB.
The one in Irvine isn't very big inside and outdoor dining is sparse (if even available).
They have the standard Hawaiian plate lunch menu, complete with gravy for the Katsu, mini-combos etc. The Katsu is more like Nalu's, so only okay. The only sides are rice or mac salad. Prices are bit more reasonable here (because of the mini combos) but they only take cash.
They have something new here called the Saimin Burger... basically hamburger that uses fried(?) Top Ramen as the buns. I'll let qwerchete try that one out for me.
No Shave Ice.
Aloha Hawaiian BBQhttp://www.yelp.com/biz/aloha-hawaiian-bbq-tustin
IHO Rating: 3/5
Technically not in Irvine, but The District is basically Irvine SouthWest (AKA Qwerchete Country). This used to be called Ono Hawaiian BBQ. They still have the same menu... more like an L&L with standard Hawaiian plate lunches... and they have mini-meals too which are HUGE. The Katsu is similar to Nalu's and the gravy here is more like curry. Also like L&L, they only have rice and mac salad as sides but they include boiled cabbage with all their combos (which I really like).1
Seating (both indoor and outdoor) is limited too like L&L. No Shave Ice here either.
Conclusion
I wish they had The Loft closer. The one in Costa Mesa closed, so the closest are Huntington Beach (http://www.yelp.com/biz/the-loft-huntington-beach) or Cypress... the bacon fried rice is redic.
So my favorite is Da Luau. They would be a 5 if the kids meals came with drinks, if they had mini-combos and most importantly, bacon fried rice on the regular menu (and maybe even breakfast all day).
I'll probably update this as I go back and visit these places again.
The last month or so, for some reason we've been eating a lot of Hawaiian food so this is my personal rating of the various places in/near Irvine. This is skewed because most of my rating is based on one dish, Chicken Katsu... so YMMV.
Da Luau Hawaiian Grillhttp://www.yelp.com/biz/da-luau-hawaiian-grill-irvine
IHO Rating: 4.5/5
This place is nice and clean. Large indoor seating area and outdoor seating is available too.
Their Katsu is all white meat (almost like a pounded chicken breast) which I like the best. Also, their macaroni salad is different from the rest as it's a combo macaroni/potato salad which is awesome. They have some different Hawaiian foods that others don't and on weekends they serve breakfast... corn beef hash, Hawaiian Portugese sausage, spam, macadamia nut pancakes... and bacon fried rice (wish they had that on their normal menu). They also have Shave Ice. They have gravy for the Katsu and also sell the Korean short ribs. They sell burgers/fries too.
A bit pricey, they don't have mini-meals but they do have kids meals (although it doesn't include a drink. Their entree combos should come with more rice, but at least you can choose your sides.
Nalu's Island Grillhttp://www.yelp.com/biz/nalus-island-grill-irvine
IHO Rating: 3/5
I used to really like this place. But in the last several years they've changed their menu to a more esoteric style than the standard Hawaiian plate lunch menu. Plus, they don't have the Korean short ribs anymore which is what the Mrs. likes.
The Katsu here is more like the Japanese one which is dark meat. It's okay but not as good as Da Luau. You can also choose your sides here (grilled veggies cost $1 more) but their mac salad is the standard type, which is too mayo-ey to me. They also have Shave Ice here.
Prices are about the same as Da Luau except their kid's meals do come with a drink. Like Da Laus, they have burger/fries also... but no gravy for the Katsu. Also has large indoor dining area and outdoor space.
L & L Hawaiian Barbecuehttp://www.yelp.com/biz/l-and-l-hawaiian-barbecue-irvine
IHO Rating: 2/5
This is one of the OG joints from Hawaii. One of their first places I went to in the OC was inside a Japanese supermarket (don't think it's open anymore). They now have one in HB.
The one in Irvine isn't very big inside and outdoor dining is sparse (if even available).
They have the standard Hawaiian plate lunch menu, complete with gravy for the Katsu, mini-combos etc. The Katsu is more like Nalu's, so only okay. The only sides are rice or mac salad. Prices are bit more reasonable here (because of the mini combos) but they only take cash.
They have something new here called the Saimin Burger... basically hamburger that uses fried(?) Top Ramen as the buns. I'll let qwerchete try that one out for me.
No Shave Ice.
Aloha Hawaiian BBQhttp://www.yelp.com/biz/aloha-hawaiian-bbq-tustin
IHO Rating: 3/5
Technically not in Irvine, but The District is basically Irvine SouthWest (AKA Qwerchete Country). This used to be called Ono Hawaiian BBQ. They still have the same menu... more like an L&L with standard Hawaiian plate lunches... and they have mini-meals too which are HUGE. The Katsu is similar to Nalu's and the gravy here is more like curry. Also like L&L, they only have rice and mac salad as sides but they include boiled cabbage with all their combos (which I really like).1
Seating (both indoor and outdoor) is limited too like L&L. No Shave Ice here either.
Conclusion
I wish they had The Loft closer. The one in Costa Mesa closed, so the closest are Huntington Beach (http://www.yelp.com/biz/the-loft-huntington-beach) or Cypress... the bacon fried rice is redic.
So my favorite is Da Luau. They would be a 5 if the kids meals came with drinks, if they had mini-combos and most importantly, bacon fried rice on the regular menu (and maybe even breakfast all day).
I'll probably update this as I go back and visit these places again.
