Jolene's by the Bay - Kaneohe — Restaurant in Hawaii

Went on 24 Mar after a round of putt putt golf. This was our first time trying any of the Jolene's locations. Time was about 2:15 and the place was not busy. We were asked if we were dining in or for take out. We confirmed we were there for dining in and instructed to take a seat anywhere. Fiance eventually got up and went to the bar to grab menus as it seemed they were pretty slow with bringing out menus.

We ordered a pastrami melt with a side salad with asian dressing, fried chicken salad with asian dressing, shrimp salad with ranch dressing and fried mozzarella sticks as well as 3 different drinks. Food and drinks came out quick, but that was the last time we ever saw the serving staff. It was essentially one and done for service.

Pastrami melt was average at best. The cheese and pastrami was fine, but there was not enough to cover the whole sandwich so there were several bites of toast. It looked good though. The side salad was crammed into what appeared to be an 8 ounce paper container and was by no means a side salad. It came pre loaded with some a vinegar sauce due to all the pickled radishes they included in the side salad. No way was I going to add the asian dressing to it since it was already "dressed".

The shrimp salad was described as good and very filling. The fried chicken salad was described as the same.

Last and the least impressive was the mozzarella cheese sticks. Initially, the cheese sticks looked nice. In fact, everything "looked nice". However, all the cheese sticks actually were one mass of fried stuff. The cheese itself was bland and the breading was even more bland. The flavor profile was described as "yesterday's fried onion ring oil". Personally, that would have been preferable because it would have at least imparted some flavor as the only thing I tasted was fried oil. In a party of 4, you would expect someone to go for at least 2 fried cheese sticks but in our case nobody wanted a second stick and none of us wanted to finish the...

​Jolene's is famous for their lobster sandwich. I hadn't visited in a long time, and I had forgotten they opened a location at Bayview Golf Course. I finally ordered takeout for lunch this past Saturday. ​ Ordering online and picking up was quick and easy. My order was ready in 15 minutes, right by the time I parked and walked to the restaurant. It was a coincidence that the staff member called my name just as I arrived to pick up the food. ​ My family ordered the Buttah Burger with onion rings, a Buttah Burger with a side salad, the Papa Smokes Burger with waffle fries, and I got the Buttah Lobster Roll with waffle fries. Overall, we all enjoyed our food.

• ​The side salad was a pleasant surprise; it was more like the pickled vegetables you'd find in a bánh mì sandwich. • ​The onion rings were a disappointment—soggy and full of batter, not worth ordering again. • ​The Papa Smokes Burger was huge! I was told the brisket combination with the double burger was delicious. It was so good, in fact, that my father said he didn't need dinner that night. • ​My Lobster Roll was good but a letdown. It wasn't what I remembered. The lobster meat seemed blended and mixed into mayo, served over a bánh mì-style bread. While I liked the flavor, I wouldn't order it again. • ​We all unanimously enjoyed the waffle fries. They were really crispy, and the Cajun seasoning elevated them perfectly. ​ All in all, I would go back. I want to try their other menu items. I'm definitely glad they opened this convenient location at Bayview...

Food was good, service was abysmal and the price and 22% forced gratuity put the whole bad experience over the edge. I have been here many times before, paid at the counter and either found a seat or left, it’s a casual place. When entertaining a large group from work I chose this place to stop because it’s easy for everyone to pay for themselves. It was a weekday so I didn’t think the size of the group was a problem, they’re not usually busy even on weeknights. After seeing the size of our group, the staff informed us that we were not permitted to eat our food there unless we accepted table service for which they forced us to pay 22% gratuity, would not split the check more than 6 ways and then gave us poor service making us wait forever just to take the order. I tried to speak to the manager and she was extremely rude. You got your money this time Jolene’s, I hope it was worth it because we will never be back. $54 for 2 sandwiches and a side of rudeness is all it takes to tank a business.

Thanks for your response, I tried to call today at 315 and didn’t get an answer. I’ll try again tomorrow. Update: was never able to...