Hawaii Bakery & Tea House — Restaurant in Mississauga

A good business is based on people, process, and product. I have visited this place 4 times and I am only interested in the bakery portion of their business, so this is my take.

PRODUCT (baked goods) Their pineapple buns have some weight, a dynamically sweet topping, and a soft semi-sweet bread.

PROCESS (needs improvement) The way they display their product, specifically their bakery products is abysmal near 3-4 pm. There aren't any bakery products to display and you have to ask for them in the back. It makes you think they have sold out. In addition, to reserve baked goods (2 dozen buns) you need to place an order with cash in person (no credit cards are accepted over phone) one day in advance. It is inconvenient to say the least.

PEOPLE (rude, allow me to explain) I walk in at 5 pm on Saturday (Oct 11, 2014) and ask for pineapple buns with pineapple filling, they reply that they have none and I quietly leave while thanking them. I walk in Sunday the next day at 4:30 pm and politely ask for pineapple buns with filling. They say they have none, I ask if they ever made them, they say they never have, I am disappointed but unfazed since their buns are so good. Then before I can order a regular bun without filling, the Asian lady tells me slightly annoyed, "If you want the filling you can put it in yourself". I was gob-smacked at this response. People pay you to have a product a certain way, I don't tell people if you want cream in the donut, "you can put it in yourself". That step is done in the kitchen by the staff, not suggested to the customer who is willing to pay for it. You should say "Sorry we do not carry them, may I suggest something...

My favourite place in Mississauga for Hong Kong style Western breakfast. Technically, It's an all-day breakfast place that serves some other snacks such as noodles throughout the day. Staff is super friendly (not owner... She's grumpy as hell!) and you always feel welcomed the moment you step in. Their specialty of course is their signature pineapple bun. Their Hong Kong style coffee and tea goes great with it! Another favourite is their French toast.

However... We're done... the bad service and abusive treatment from owner was kind of a novelty before but after today's fiasco, that will be our last visit. Time to look for another pineapple bun HK style cafe unless you enjoy the poor treatment and insulting remarks to accompany your meal. For many years, this was a five-star review and I was a big champion of this restaurant. Had to reduce it to three stars mostly for nostalgic reasons. I'm sure other people will still enjoy the dining experience but can't spend our hard-earned money here anymore.

Is it me or did they used to use butter before in the pineapple buns and they switched over to margarine or something like that? Something was a bit off today but I guess it doesn't matter since I'm not going back...

It's been a long time and we still haven't gone back. In fact there are many friends that we've talked to that swear they will never go back because of the bad service and the insults they have had to endure. Simply doesn't make up for the food that used to be...

Authentic Hong Kong style restaurant. Love the satay beef noodle and I’d go for optional Nissin instant noodle whenever my mood feels like. One of the most must-haves is the pineapple bun. While many Hong Kong restaurants offer, they are nowhere close to this.

The caramel top is crispy while the bun is soft but not too oily. Enjoying that with a piece of butter in it is the best and most Hong Kong delicacy you can have.

Some complain that they don’t sell pineapple bun with pineapple filling. To be honest, I have never heard of that in my life. Unless the menu shows it, by asking for the same thing multiple times won’t help. Perhaps it’s worth researching for a real pineapple bun would be a better idea than getting a smack in the face.

Milk tea is decent though I wouldn’t say it’s the best in GTA, but enough to curb your crave. Combining that with the most authentic noodles and protein (egg/ham/sausage/omelette), I’d say it’s the best combo you can get anywhere in GTA for the price you pay.

Haven’t been there for a while due to covid but definitely planning to...