Shaka Shack — Restaurant in Alameda

INCREDIBLE! Fo' serious, y'all! Entering Shaka Shack is like teleporting into Hawaii. I miss Hawai'i ... and now I don't have to anymore. They've taken the essence of Aloha Spirit and infused this lovely place with it. They exude Ohana because they are Ohana ... and make you feel like your Ohana too BECAUSE YOU ARE! And the food! They had me at POG juice (P.assion O.range G.uava). I was waiting for Shaka Shack to open and couldn't wait to go for the shave ice (cuz real Hawai'i-kine shave ice is neigh hard to find on mainland, brah), but I got side-tracked with POG juice, roasted pork plate lunch and maladadas (Portuguese donuts kinda like beignets but better) - ube-filled if you want. My daughter is a fiend for masubi and Shaka Shack makes the BESTEST she's ever had (so fo' real, y'all). She got them 3 days in a row. I've also had the fried rice (good golly miss molly, y'all ... so good) and the ribs and rib salad (can't get enuff), the cobb salad, the macaroni salad and the kimchi cucumber salad. Can't wait to try the rest. Oh! The iced ube latte w whipped cream is incredible too, y'all! Note that once you enter Shaka Shack, you're on island time - the food is real and made with love. This ain't no fast food joint. It's the real deal, so chillax and let yourself go island, brah....

I've heard good things about this place recently and my wife and I wanted to try it out since we're already in the area.

Customer service was friendly; they welcomed us and took our order promptly. The menu is somewhat limited but they do stick to the major Hawaiian classics. I ordered the Kailua pork which was good but nothing special. The pork was cooked well, but under seasoned. And the fried rice was average. I also tried the Mac salad everyone kept raving about. I was not prepared for the cut up spaghetti noodles instead of the traditional macaroni. It didn't affect the taste but overall it was really underwhelming. My wife got the vegetarian breakfast burrito which she said was good, but again, nothing special. It needed some hot sauce for flavor. We also ordered the cinnamon sugar malasadas which were too dense and just lacked any flavor; the dough needed a tad more salt.

Overall the food was decent. I would definitely try other things on the menu but I'm in no rush to come back. Lastly our take out order took about 15 minutes to prepare; not the worst but still longer than one would expect. It could have been due to still getting their bearings figured out which I won't hold against them. They have a good and refreshing take on the typical Hawaiian food you...

Would love to see this place thrive as it has good vibes. I had a great experience but can't help but feel it could easily be better. Service when I visited was very slow and it was hard to find a spot to sit. Loved the live music, but please turn off the radio so there are not 2 songs playing simultaneously . Some of the dishes could use an extra element to take them to the next level. For example the loco moco is overwhelmingly heavy and could use pickled onions or something to brighten it up. The gravy also tasted odd, maybe using too many burnt bits. The Hawaiian French toast was awesome but a bit dry, and I had to ask for butter and syrup. Would be great with vanilla ice cream or some kind of sauce to tie together the loose buns sitting sparsely on the plate. Maybe I just chose the wrong items? Will be back eventually to try...