Category: Hawaii Accommodations & Dining

3 best Honolulu pub crawls

The wind and rain continue to howl and lash here in Honolulu, and throughout most of Hawaii, with no sign of letting up any time soon. It’s fine, though, except perhaps for my wife’s new clutch of doomed houseplants and the Aloha State residents who’ve been inundated by turbid floodwaters or had their property whipped […]

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Tipping in Hawaii – here’s why

One of the most common concerns we hear from visitors regards tipping in Hawaii. Who should be tipped? When? How much? Food and beverage industry workers should be tipped, certainly. Parking valets, too. Leaving a few bucks for the cleaning staff at your hotel/resort/vacation rental is also a fine way to express your aloha for […]

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A Sleek, Casual Dinner at Moku Kitchen on Oahu

After my recent dinner at Moku Kitchen, I’m eager to share all about this fantastic restaurant. For our 13th wedding anniversary, my wife and I decided to forgo our tradition of dining out at a fine-dining Oahu steakhouse and opt for something different.  We were after something more casual, and with a more eclectic selection […]

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Where’s the meat in Hawaii? The Livestock Tavern

We don’t often write about restaurants here but very often we’re asked where to get locally sourced meat. This is mostly because we tend to eat farm-fresh at home, making most of our food purchases from local farmers, ranchers, and butchers whom my wife has come to know over years of shopping at a weekly […]

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Hawaii sports bars: don’t miss your game!

Summer is heating up, and so is the world of professional sports. While a Hawaii vacation is a chance to leave the everyday routine of home and work, vacationers bring along their sports fandom just as sure as they pack a swimsuit and clean underwear. There are plenty of Hawaii sports bars, some sprawling and […]

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Hard Rock Cafe Honolulu Never Stopped Rocking

The Hawaii Aloha Travel Blog recently returned to the Hard Rock Cafe Honolulu after a long three years. We are happy to report that it remains one of Waikiki’s “must-do” establishments. The food is great, the prices are reasonable even for Waikiki, and the location is central to pretty much everything there is to do […]

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Black Shamrock Tavern: Hawaii’s newest Irish pub

Hawaii’s newest Irish pub, Black Shamrock Tavern, opens fittingly on Saint Patrick’s Day, March 17, 2022. It is the newest iteration of an Irish pub in the historical T.R. Forester Building in Downtown Honolulu, which has been part of the Irish Corner in the Chinatown Arts District for decades. The Black Shamrock’s owner Jay Neihbur […]

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HAT Blog Maui dispatch: a tale of two tables

After our pilgrimage to Maui’s petroglyphs at Olowalu, I was wrought and marveled by the spirit of learning. I needed a drink. We headed to the Sly Mongoose on the outskirts of Lahaina. It’s been recommended by every bar industry person I know on Oahu. A proud dive. Google it. No website. It’s just “out […]

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Hawaii “junk food” favorites

Every now and then, Aloha Bruce talks about something on the Hawaii Vacation Connection Podcast that sends us here on the blog down a rabbit hole of memories of growing up on Oahu. The Labor Day episode about must-try Hawaii foods for Hawaii vacationers did just that, and now we’re thinking about Hawaii “junk food”. […]

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Comfort brews at Honolulu Beerworks

Tucked just off of Ala Moana Boulevard on Cooke Street in Kakaako on the way from Waikiki to Downtown, Honolulu Beerworks looks much more like a charming farmhouse than a warehouse. Its corrugated walls are painted a clean blue-jeans blue, trimmed with white. It opened in 2014 and has been a vital part of Kakaako’s […]

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Waikiki’s freshest seafood at Duke’s Waikiki

Duke’s Waikiki is one of Oahu’s most iconic attractions. It’s more than just an attraction, though, and it offers some of the most affordable and fresh seafood dining in all of Waikiki. Hawaii Aloha Travel enjoyed a dinner with out-of-town friends there recently, and we were reminded of what makes a special place for residents […]

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Oahu’s best farm-to-table at Merriman’s

Merriman’s Restaurant at Ward Villages in Kakaako is the latest iteration of visionary chef and restauranteur Peter Merriman’s commitment to locally sourced meats, seafood and produce. A recent Monday evening at the new restaurant during the holidays was quite busy, with a line at the door and every table and seat at the bar full. […]

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