Umekes Fish Market Bar & Grill — Restaurant in Hawaii

Food was very tasty but the service was a failure. In short if you want some good poke, be prepared for dealing with some service disconnects.

The full review:

Being in the restaurant industry for many years ourselves, my wife along with 3 other members of our dining party were excited to dine at this poke acclaimed establishment.

We learned the hard way the previous evening that they only accept reservations for parties larger than 8 people and were told even then the reservation needed to be made more than 3 hours in advance. The wait list was closed for that night at 7pm so we would have to return the following evening. We came early the next evening to avoid the issues we found out the evening prior.

Upon arrival, there was no visible wait so I entered and let the hostess know we would like a table for 5 to which she responded, that we needed to first “check in” on the kiosk located outside, which by the way was unmanned from any staff members to let approaching guest know this was the procedure, even though they had no wait. Odd but ok, we checked in and then we’re immediately pinged that our table was ready. We were sat and then proceeded to wait for an interaction with our server for over 5 minutes while we watched him greet other tables who were sat after ours. Once he did acknowledge us, he dropped waters and said he would be back shortly. When he finally returned numerous minutes later, he made no effort to greet us, explain any of the specials of the day such as what the fresh “catch” was or the chefs poke flavor or make any recommendations. We ordered our drinks, appetizers and entrees at the same time base on his lack of attention as to not be forgotten again and he assured us as he entered our large order, that he would submit the appetizers first to “get them going right away“. We were brought our drinks within 10 minutes and shortly after our appetizers. In less than 5 minutes our entrees were dropped by the same kitchen runner who dropped the appetizers only moments prior, which is completely unacceptable. When the server came back around for his table touch and asked how everything came out, I explained that while the food so far was delicious, the entrees dropped only moments after the appetizers were delivered and how disappointed we were about that. He made now offer to get his manager or take any ownership of the mishap and literally just ignored this issue. There continued to be issue’s upon our desire for ordering dessert to go, as he said there was no way to provide the ice cream that was to accompany our cake in to go form. No offers to adjust the bill, get a manager or offer a compensation for the number of issues with service.

As icing on the cake, be prepared for a 4% additional charge if you plan to pay with a credit card.

Overall I would say the chef has talent but the front of the house (and kitchen expo) need some coaching.

Food quality, quantity and presentation a solid 4 stars.

Service speed, accuracy, and restaurant ambiance...

Our good friend ate at their original location which is/was a takeout counter only, and said the food was really good. They've since opened up this place.

ATMOSPHERE: They're located in a metal warehouse building in a dinky strip mall known as Kuakini Center. The inside is themed as a fish market, complete with a small refrigerator that sells a tiny selection of pokē. Seating is bar, booth, and tables, with high tops on an outdoor lanai that's semi-protected.

MENU: Daily specials, local apps, salads, sandwiches, burgers, rice bowl entrees, desserts.

BEVERAGE: Da Party Tower It's a 96-ounce portable tap filled with the TAP BEER of your choice, limited to about 5 selections in which we chose Heineken. A cylindrical stainless steel ice bar is plopped in to keep it cold. $35 domestics, $45 imports. A minimum party of 4 is required.

FOOD: Umeke Salad This is a somen noodle salad topped with romaine, pohole ferns, lomi salmon, and a scoop of ahi pokē. Very tasty combination, though I've had tastier, firmer pokē. Portion was big enough for 4 to share.

Umeke's Pokē Balls A mixture of mashed up ahi and other binders were formed into 3 golf ball-sized balls, panko-crusted and deep fried. Nice subtle flavors with the drizzled semi-spicy garlic aioli.

Fried Kole Not always available so order it if it's in! The 3 small whole fish were lightly salted, peppered, and deep fried to perfection. The meat is white and flakey, with a minimal amount of bones to deal with. Added a few splashes of shoyu and I was in heaven!

Umeke's Chicken Wings Over priced for just 5 wingettes, but we luckily got ours at the happy hour price. Very crispy and tossed in a tasty sweet chili sauce.

Ahi Belly Katsu We got it as an app-sized portion (no rice). This was the only disappointment of the night as the ahi didn't taste like the belly part, and was firm and dry. The house katsu sauce was an odd red color that looked like blood and tasted like char siu sauce. Pass.

DESSERT: Fried Kulolo The square block was breaded, pan fried, drizzled with chocolate sauce, and topped with ice cream and whipped cream. The kulolo was a bit crumbly and not solid. Good but nothing extraordinary

SERVICE: A quoted 20 minute wait greeted us on a late Saturday afternoon but ended up being close to 40 minutes due to a combination of no reservations, a huge party already there, and their happy hour. The hostess was apologetic. To be fair, we could've sat outside but it was too hot and muggy.

Our female server was friendly, but wasn't too familiar with the menu. Service was painfully slow throughout the meal. She checked on us now and then.

OVERALL: Nice menu, good food, slow service. Definitely will be back...

My family and I visited last night to celebrate my son’s third birthday. Unfortunately, our experience was far from what we hoped for on such a special day.

Our server, Kahala W (Per the Receipt), took our order, but for most of the evening, she didn’t really check in on us. Her attitude and energy felt dismissive, and we didn’t feel welcomed or cared for throughout the meal.

When it was time to order dessert I did remind her that it was my son's 3rd Birthday, we chose the fried kulolo with ice cream. I politely asked if they had a candle so we could sing happy birthday to my son. She responded with attitude, saying, “We don’t do that here,” and that they didn’t have any candles—while giving us a stink face, and walked off. A few minutes later, I kindly let the manager know we wanted the dessert to go instead. When the server came back to give us the bill, I asked if the manager had spoken to her. She said no. When I reminded her that we just wanted it to go—with ice cream—she rolled her eyes and said, “Ice cream? Really? Whatever.” (Which I didn't mind taking the ice cream To-Go as we live a few minute's away) She Rolled her eyes & gave stink face again & Left. Her tone and attitude were very unprofessional.

I’ve worked in the restaurant industry for over seven years, so I understand how service normally goes. Most places at least offer a candle for a birthday or a simple acknowledgment—if not a complimentary dessert. When I paid the bill, the dessert wasn’t complimentary, which I didn’t mind at first because I wasn’t aware of their policy.

As we were leaving, I spoke with the manager, Sabrina. I first asked what they usually do for birthdays, and she told me they normally do offer candles and a free dessert. I then explained what happened. Instead of taking the situation seriously, she kind of laughed, which made me feel even more dismissed. She offered to refund the dessert, but it didn’t go through at the moment. I told her my main concern wasn’t the money—it was the way we were treated. Even so, I haven’t seen a refund yet, which is fine, but again—it was never about that.

What hurt most was feeling like we were treated differently, possibly because we’re a local/Native Hawaiian family. The service felt cold, rude, and unprofessional from start to finish, and it truly put a damper on what was supposed to be a happy celebration for my son.

I’m extremely disappointed in both the server and the way the situation was handled by management. This was not the experience I expected, and we won’t...