Kaleo's

[macuu222]

So what I can surmise from all the comments is that Kaleo's is consistently OK. And it can occasionally be great or bad. It's definitely pricey but the best choice in the Pahoa area if looking for 4 star quality food. Sit away from the music, make reservations around the holidays and definitely order fruit drinks from the bar!

Thank You!

[2liveque]

Great live music....especially Rupert and Sole. Wait staff is awesome too. I agree with many posters. Some nights....food is epic and off the charts. Other nights, just so so. There is a serious drop off when one chef is working or not. Hope the owners are reading this thread.

[knieft]

birdmove: I consider the fish and chips at Pahao Fish the best I've had.

Coming from Wisconsin and the Friday Fish Fry tradition, I have some pretty fond fish memories, but agree that Pahoa Fish is _consistently_ excellent. Almost always have the mahi mahi, but they have salmon (wild/frozen) lately which does very well in their high tech fryer. Pretty much a lovely novelty to my taste buds. Once a year or so they have swordfish--unforgettable!

They get backed up sometimes, but it's worth the wait.

macuu22, unless your relatives are too snooty to eat at a clean hole in wall, maybe you take em to Kaleo's (or Pauolo's) to fake some fine dining and then casually stop by Pahoa Fish at another time. Betcha a buck two eighty they remember the fish more than the fine dine...

Cheers,
Kirt

[Mendo]

Kaleo's is great. Most restaurants have off days, that's the way it goes. But Kaleo's is 1st class in every way.
BTW, Ning's, Paolo's, and Luquin's are also remarkably good restaurants. For a small town Pahoa is a culinary star. Support them if you want them to stay in biz.

[terracore]

Kaleos is hit and miss. Both food quality and service. We've had great and sub-par visits there. I definitely agree that the acoustics are hard to deal with. There can be 20 people in there and it sounds like 200. Go for lunch or early dinner if you don't want that exacerbated by the live "entertainment". Nings is great, though last time I was there I could tell it had been awhile since they painted over the roach and lizard feces on the walls. They have the best spring rolls around and their curries are fantastic. I actually like the food at Luquins but the place is filthy, every surface is sticky, its impossible to keep the flies off your food, the service is horrendous, and the food takes an hour to come out. That was my experience 3 times in a row- I haven't been back since then (over a year plus and no plans to go back). The Black Rock's food and service never rises beyond mediocre, but it is at least consistently lackluster. I ate at the local cafe / cooking school that occupies the old KFC twice. The first time the meat was so salty it was almost inedible. The second time I found a live cockroach when I unrolled the rolled-up-flatware-in-the-napkin-thing. The waitress was there when it happened and they were quick to bring me out "insect free" eating utensils but the psychological damage was already done, so I never went back. Although its not a "restaurant" the "deli" at the Orchidland General Store has better food than either the Blaines or Minit Mart "Maui Style Chicken" it shares a parking lot with. You can get a HUGE chef salad (enough for at least two meals) for about $5 (includes choice of meat) and their sub sandwiches have better fillings than Subway, but unfortunately inferior breads, but they are also cheaper. They also have a few hot food items of note like their grilled Cuban sandwich. Best of all their kitchen is right in front of you and it's SPOTLESS. Like really reassuringly clean. The employees are both always washing their hands AND using disposable gloves. Anybody been to that BBQ / Smokehouse lately? It looked like it was close for awhile but I saw their signs lit up etc today.

[dmbwest]

Bread inferior to Subway ? I did not think that was possible : )

Still,,, gotta go back in and eat again.

aloha,
pog

[KiminPL]

I like Kaleo's for lunch. While I can appreciate the music in the evenings, it comes at the expense of conversation. If you are over 50, go for lunch, not dinner.

Most often the service is good, even those few times when the food is just okay. But my last experience was quite unfortunate. The waitperson grabbed away the wine list before I had a chance to peruse it; she took our order after the next two couples who were seated after us, and never came back to see how things were -- and certain condiments usually associated with our meals didn't arrive until we flagged another person down. We had to beg for dessert as it was never offered. Same for a drink refill. She was more concerned with drying glasses than with helping her tables. She was either very inexperienced, or purposefully rude, not sure which.

I will go again in hopes of having one of the better waitstaff. Kaleo's is the finest restaurant Pahoa has to offer.