Pele's Kitchen — Restaurant in Hawaii

I have heard so many great things about Pele’s Kitchen and after referring others to it (because I felt 100% confident they would be great cuz I follow them on social media)— so I FINALLY got to check them out for myself. So glad we did!!

First of all- 10/10 for the vibe. Great local musician, playing guitar and harmonica (at the same time!). He killed it! 🔥 So appreciated that he was there even on a Monday(?) morning.

The ambiance is super fun with extremely colorful, hippy, sparkly, creative murals all over the walls— obviously inspired by island life and lava. Even the walls were adorned with jewels and a colorful light which slowly changed colors.

The food was presented beautifully— super fresh and delicious, many/most fruits and veggies having been harvested from the owners farm. (Tip- they do paid tours of their farm, so snag a spot if you are visiting the island and wanna see beautiful Hawaiian foliage and fruits and veggies.)

We had their Fresh Mango Ginger Juice, House-made Biscuits and Gravy and Breakfast Burrito.

👍🏼Mango Ginger Juice.

Biscuits and Gravy were nice and tender, with House-made Gravy. I could have used a bit more flavor in the gravy— and more gravy but only because I love lotsa gravy! 😂🤣 Technically speaking though- they did have plenty gravy for the biscuits though.

My husband is Mexican and we ❤️ Breakfast Burritos. Pele’s Kitchen had their own unique take, which I was not expecting (read: more healthy hippy food/Indian food type flavors)— but it was surprisingly delicious! Not surprising really because I was confident Pele’s Kitchen would fully live up to my expectations, because I had heard and read SO MANY great things… However, their take on the burrito was what surprised my mouth, coming from a Mexican food loving home. The flavorful rice inside it was what really made it shine to me. My husband enjoyed it also, but not nearly as much as I did (he doesn’t enjoy the Indian food type flavors, herbs and spices so much and had been hoping for Mexican style). If I had to suggest an improvement- I would want the salsa to be thicker so it “hugs” the burrito instead of runs through it.

The side “salad”/veggies that accompanied was absolutely beautiful! We loved the corkscrew veggies and flowers!! I love edible flowers so much!

The auntie (kapuna) that served us was very friendly and provided wonderful customer service— which is always a must in order to win me over, as I used to be a cast member at Disney World, so recognize and very much appreciate great customer service. Mahalo nui auntie!!

When given the opportunity— we will DEFINITELY be back!!

Keep up the great work Pele’s Kitchen!! We will continue to highly recommend you to our own guests when they need a breakfast recommendation. We can count on you guys to knock it out of the park and live up to expectations!!

Much...

Our third time back on the Big Island was an opportunity for us to once again spend some time at Pele’s Kitchen. We love their local ingredients and colourful atmosphere, but perhaps best of all are the unique syrups that the chef Stephen makes. I always take the opportunity to drench some pancakes or their signature french toast in them. Being fans of farm tours it was wonderful to learn that Stephen hosted one on his property. The tour was extensive, taking us through all of his different crops, as well as details of their growth and cultivation that would require some serious note-taking to retain. The variety of crops and experiments (including a small rice-paddy, honey, and local crops such as Uhe) was greater than we’ve encountered on any other farm tour. Indeed, it appears this one farm has more variety of crops than all the other of have half-dozen farms we’ve visited combined.

Stephen himself was a pleasure to spend some time with. A quirky mix of farmer and chef, at heart he appeared to us the kind of dreamer that makes Pahoa a unique place. It’s the spirit of adventure, of doing it yourself, living off the land and trading conventional security for the whims of one of earth’s greatest natural wonders - a volcano that has been continuously erupting for decades. Though Stephen and his family lost weeks of work and a season of cultivation during this past summer’s flow (which he was happy to share with us in excited detail), his land is lush and has recovered with few traces of the catastrophe that struck the surrounding area.

Between thrilling memories of the 2018 volcanic flow, to the independent spirit of growth, we couldn’t think of any place better to experience what makes...

I really hate to leave a negative review, because I really love to support local businesses in my area.. I eat breakfast at Pele's Kitchen around 2-4 times a month, and am a Loyal customer. This morning, I was given TERRIBLE Service. I always order my food as take out. When I arrived, my food was sitting out on the counter, not behind it, but out where customers and employees are steadily walking past it. I wasn't going to say anything, even though in the past I have spoken my concerns.  The older woman, who I've never seen before, gives me my total which was written down as "$19.something". I just bought the same exact plate 2 days ago, and it totaled out to "$17.27" with tax. This woman's attitude switched, as soon as I corrected her about the price. Then I mentioned how it's not really appropriate to sit customers food out in the open where people are walking past it. Instead of just saying she was sorry, she became rude, made every excuse as to why it's sitting there, and even blamed the price being wrong on a different employee, when she was the one I talked to on the phone and took my order! Nonetheless, practically slamming my card and the pen down on the counter for me to sign and stomped away..

After all of that being said, and the treatment I was given this morning. I will no longer be eating at Pele's Kitchen, and would much rather go a little ways down the road to Black Rock Cafe, where I would be treated better. Really sucks because I really do enjoy their food, but the customer service that woman had with me was SO...