• The TUGBBS forums are completely free and open to the public and exist as the absolute best place for owners to get help and advice about their timeshares for more than 30 years!

    Join Tens of Thousands of other Owners just like you here to get any and all Timeshare questions answered 24 hours a day!
  • TUG started 31 years ago in October 1993 as a group of regular Timeshare owners just like you!

    Read about our 31st anniversary: Happy 31st Birthday TUG!
  • TUG has a YouTube Channel to produce weekly short informative videos on popular Timeshare topics!

    Free memberships for every 50 subscribers!

    Visit TUG on Youtube!
  • TUG has now saved timeshare owners more than $24,000,000 dollars just by finding us in time to rescind a new Timeshare purchase! A truly incredible milestone!

    Read more here: TUG saves owners more than $24 Million dollars
  • Sign up to get the TUG Newsletter for free!

    Tens of thousands of subscribing owners! A weekly recap of the best Timeshare resort reviews and the most popular topics discussed by owners!
  • Our official "end my sales presentation early" T-shirts are available again! Also come with the option for a free membership extension with purchase to offset the cost!

    All T-shirt options here!
  • A few of the most common links here on the forums for newbies and guests!

where to eat near BI hotels

Luanne said:
We were not overly impressed with either Kamuela Provision Company or Lava Lava.
Click to expand...
Did you do the tasting menu at KPC or regular menu?
 
thanks for all the suggestions we will get a couple reservations going
 
we have reservations at FORC and will reserve at Napua at 30 d out. maybe Pueo osteria but we can get good Italian here. definitely will drive to Kona a few times for poke shack and umeke fish market based on reviews, and shave ice even though it won't be waiola.

anything else in Kona we shouldn't miss?

we have a large group so for most of our dinners we'll need to figure out some kind of take out.
 
letsgobobby said:
we have reservations at FORC and will reserve at Napua at 30 d out. maybe Pueo osteria but we can get good Italian here. definitely will drive to Kona a few times for poke shack and umeke fish market based on reviews, and shave ice even though it won't be waiola.

anything else in Kona we shouldn't miss?

we have a large group so for most of our dinners we'll need to figure out some kind of take out.
Click to expand...
Just be advised if you are going to Pueo's Osteria, they will add a 3% fee if using a credit card.

If you are looking for a unique takeout experience, I can recommend Chef Noah at Puako Provisions and Catering. An FYI, Noah is Terry Bradshaw's son-in-law.

Chef Noah Hester - Catering & Private Chef Services

Custom meal prep and delivery. Fresh or frozen homemade family meal kits. Private Chef Services. Picnic Baskets. Food Delivery. Custom Meal Kits. Catering.
chefnoahhester.com chefnoahhester.com
 
We always liked Huggo's in Kona. Great view.
 
FORC had the best quality ingredients but the preparations were at times muddled with too many flavors. Good steak and lamb, good fish.

Napua has a nice setting. The menu is somewhat limited. Steak is not Big Island and was not particularly great. Mahi was less interesting than the opah.

Pueo's was fun. I'm told it was good pasta - not a good match for Passover. Great sides apps and veggies.

Umekes was good, we ate there twice.

Tried Broke Da Mouth but too long a wait.

near Waikoloa the Island Gourmet market had decent poke and surprisingly good malasadas. the Foodland is small and limited but had poke. The nearest daifuku mochi is in Waimea Foodland.

The best poke we had all week was at Kawaihae Marketplace north of Hapuna Beach. the poke was fresh and flavorful and a good size. Da poke shack was very fresh but less flavorful and kinda small.

we had some great shave ice. best is Original Big Island shave ice in King's Shops. Second was Kula shave ice in Hilo. Next was Ululani in Kona. The shave ice in Kawaihae was terrible.

Prices were high everywhere.

Overall a good week, we definitely prefer Oahu for variety, elevated cuisine, and competition leading to slightly better pricing.

Hope this helps some folks!
 
Last edited:
I suggest Sam Choy's. He's been making awesome food since I was a kid.
 
sponger76 said:
I suggest Sam Choy's. He's been making awesome food since I was a kid.
Click to expand...

Have you been there lately? The online reviews are terrible, Sam is not involved. They serve on paper plates with plastic forks, you have to order and pay at check in and pick up your own food.
 
SmithOp said:
Have you been there lately? The online reviews are terrible, Sam is not involved. They serve on paper plates with plastic forks, you have to order and pay at check in and pick up your own food.
Click to expand...
It has been quite a few years. I didn't realize he wasn't involved any more. It's a shame, I have very fond memories of his food going back to my childhood.
 
Sam Choy's served me the worse fried calamari I have ever eaten. The only reason I went there is that one of my friends who used to live on BI told me it's like the Millennium Falcon -- doesn't look like much, but it's got it where it counts. This is a restaurant which gave up caring about anything and caters to people who don't know any better. The food was, frankly, insulting.

Maybe back in the day, 20 years ago, they lived up to their reputation of a "sleeper." Today? Total rip off. Worse than the other Haolewood restaurants I've seen in this thread.
 
ScoopKona said:
Sam Choy's served me the worse fried calamari I have ever eaten. The only reason I went there is that one of my friends who used to live on BI told me it's like the Millennium Falcon -- doesn't look like much, but it's got it where it counts. This is a restaurant which gave up caring about anything and caters to people who don't know any better. The food was, frankly, insulting.

Maybe back in the day, 20 years ago, they lived up to their reputation of a "sleeper." Today? Total rip off. Worse than the other Haolewood restaurants I've seen in this thread.
Click to expand...
When Sam had his restaurant in the industrial area (same street as Home Depot), it was wonderful. The menu was prix fix and posted daily on a big board. Very local clientele, locally sourced ingredients and a very reasonable price.

We have been to the restaurant in Keauhou shopping center once quite a few years ago, it was not great and not worth going back.
 
lynne said:
When Sam had his restaurant in the industrial area (same street as Home Depot), it was wonderful. The menu was prix fix and posted daily on a big board. Very local clientele, locally sourced ingredients and a very reasonable price.

We have been to the restaurant in Keauhou shopping center once quite a few years ago, it was not great and not worth going back.
Click to expand...
Yes, my parents took us to eat at the one in the industrial area many years ago, on one of our first visits to the BI, and we enjoyed it then. They continued to eat at Sam's restaurants through the years. My dad still hasn't forgiven us for refusing to go to the one in the Keauhou shopping center on our last trip several years ago, when we took the recommendation of the desk clerk (DH asked her where she'd go to eat) and had wonderful fresh mahi at a little place next to the boat ramps at Keauhou Bay, watching a couple of outrigger canoes practice. He brings it up all the time.
 
lynne said:
When Sam had his restaurant in the industrial area (same street as Home Depot), it was wonderful. The menu was prix fix and posted daily on a big board. Very local clientele, locally sourced ingredients and a very reasonable price.

We have been to the restaurant in Keauhou shopping center once quite a few years ago, it was not great and not worth going back.
Click to expand...
The industrial area was the first one I went to, and it was great. All local clientele, he hadn't become a big enough name to get put on the tourist circuit yet. I was sad when that location closed. Even when he became more known, his cooking show started, and tourists started frequenting his newer "fancier" spots, the food was still good. It just really bums me out to hear what his legacy has become.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top