Manuela Malasada Co — Restaurant in Hawaii

We went to Manuela Malasadas in Lahaina and had a great experience so we couldn't wait to return and eat them again here on the Big Island. We have raved about that place and sent many friends to the one in Maui. This place I will warn everyone not to go to!!

It was one of the most AWFUL experiences for food service!

Wait Time: We waited 60 mins for 9 Malasadas and 2 iced coffees!!!

Cost: Expensive!! Overpriced for what you get. The "deal" for 6 Malasadas and 2 drinks for $25 is just for plain donuts. If you add any fillings it's an additional $2 per donut!! You must order in "threes" we needed 7 donuts and had to order 9. For 9 Malasadas and 2 drinks it was $46!!

Employees: The guy at the window was so confused taking our order and made it way more complicated than it had to be. Then half our order was wrong. The lady cooking was a bit rude, kept pushing the guy out of the way when taking our order and slammed the window on us when we picked up our order and needed more napkins.

Quality: Filled donuts only had a smidge of filling on top, barely inside if any at all! My friend saw them pour our iced coffees from a can into a cup with ice in it, not even "house made". The plain ones were good, but you can definitely taste the sour/yeast, if you don't like that you won't like these. Half the size of Tex's

Atmosphere: The atmosphere is horrible. On the side of the highway, in the heat, no view, no shade, no seats, wind and sand blowing in your eyes.

Clean Up: These things are messy! With sugar and sweet sticky stuff. Plus, they are best served hot, so you probably don't want to eat them in the car. However, if you eat them there you have to eat them standing and there is no way to clean up after. No water to rinse, just cheap paper towels that stick to you hands. Oh and no garbage throw away your waste.

Not sure what you're paying for, no ambiance, just a small cart in the desert with 2 workers that don't know what they are doing.

Conclusion: If you want to have a miserable experience and to spend 2 hours of your vacation in Hawaii (assuming most drive 20+ mins) for extremely sub-par and expensive malasadas while sitting in the sun being blasted in the face by sand, this is your spot.

If you want to enjoy your vacation and enjoy good food,...

Guilt by Association.

So, We stopped here because we heard it was amazing, but its cash only and in a digital world, there's not that many people with cash. Bummer!. We left the spot and went back to the Waikoloa resort when I realized that I had lost my phone. I checked the vehicle and it wasn't there and so I headed back to this place as I had it before I was there and only went there. Anyway, I arrived at the location and asked the staff if they had seen it. The replied that they hadn't and I believed them. However, whomever has the stand behind them I did not believe. I asked this individual if someone had found a phone and he just looked away and said "Naaaahhh" . wouldn't make eye contact at all and wouldn't engage me. I literally parked next to him. I drove back and grabbed the wife (I should have done this the first time, it will always haunt me) and fired up google to track the phone. Sure enough it was directly in the parking lot with a +- 10 feet degree of error. As we approached (it was near 5pm) we saw the phone start moving North on Queen K hwy (19) onto 270 and then the signal went dead. Then, just 2 hours later I get a notification that someone was trying to activate my sim card in a different phone that had been reported stolen as well. That's just awesome. Prey on the people that pay your living.

So, I didn't get the doughnuts and their counterparts found my phone, lied about it, took it home and tried to use my sim card on a separate phone , a stolen one. I was quick to erase and block the number within 15 mins. I had the guys address to where he was. Service bars and GPS pings are 2 completely different things so even if you take out the sim chip, the GPS transmitted still gets pinged. it just wasn't worth getting stabbed over. Even though Manuela Malasada didn't do this, they know the sketchy guy that did. Ill erase this if they reach out and tell me what happened. This stop cost me $1200.00 so ya, not happy. My fault that I dropped my phone, but they could have done the right thing and...

First time trying Malasadas and they were delicious. I can't really compare this to any other Malasadas spots but this is a must try. Service was excellent. It is a CASH ONLY spot. If it's your first time, the lovely lady in the food truck will be happy to walk you through the ordering process. You order the quantity (the more the cheaper), the filling, the coating and Ta-Da! Wait about 5-10 minutes and the piping Hot Malasadas will be ready to be picked up from the back of the truck. They also have iced coffee. They ran out of cups the day we went but didn't hesitate to fill our flasks with coffee upon request. Note, the Malasadas are very dense and filling. Eat them while they are still hot to enjoy. We brought a dozen and had no choice but to carry it out to our hotel for the rest of the family. They held up well. Also note, the special filling of the day usually runs out earlier in the day. Parking is anywhere around the truck. We waited about 10 minutes to order and 10 minute for them to be ready. It's almost a miracle as to how these delicious desserts come out of a tiny roadside food truck. A dozen donuts, all with filling, with 2 coffees ($5 each) came out to a bit under $50. Most will say it's overpriced but it's a heck of an experience and worth the money in my opinion. Be sure to see the...