Duc's Bistro — Restaurant in Honolulu

We are in Hawaii for our family vacation and wanted to experience Chinatown. Our Google directions left so much to be desired, so we found a random street in Chinatown and held out hope that we could find parking for our two vehicles, holding our large family of 8. We found a little lot and paid the $3, and set out to find someplace for dinner. Directly across the street was a charming storefront with a whimsical neon artwork in the window of roses and their leaves. Duc's Bistro. Just the exterior was enough to draw me in, and my stepson chimed in that it was a highly rated restaurant on TripAdvisor. We went in. We were accomodated quickly and with a very genuine, warm welcome. The interior is gorgeously upscale, but you still feel like you can make yourself at home. We started out with wine and cocktails, ordered appetizers of escargo and spring rolls, both of which were over the top amazing. We sopped up the liquid left over in the escargo dish with crusty yet soft bread. We ordered 4 entrees, pork belly, duck made with Grand Marnier, Saigon steak, and fish of the day, which was Mahi Mahi. The accompanyments were rice and green beans. Every entree was so incredibly delectable that every one of us couldn't stop remarking about it. We finished the meal off with crème brulee, which, of course, did not disappoint. Ok, the food: top notch. GO TO THIS RESTAURANT. Now, onto the ambiance: gorgeous, SUCH a perfect choice of music, there's an amazing dragon suspended from the ceiling. Now for the staff. I would absolutely return to Hawaii solely to be able to spend time with this family, who are the staff. So attentive, pretty much can anticipate what you're about to want, charming, warm, entertaining. I could go on but I don't know how many words I can put into one review. Just GO HERE! Duc's...

5 stars. Great food, cozy and romantic ambiance inside. Friendly and personable service. Wide selection of traditional French and Asian dishes with an elevated touch. What's not to like?

There were 4 of us and we tried a lot of things: foie gras, escargot, spring rolls, duck breast, pan fried fish, lamb chops, chicken curry, saffron rice, and tapioca banana pudding, crème brûlée and affogato for dessert!

Honestly, I enjoyed everything and I can't wait to go back to try the rest of the menu lol. The star dishes for me were the pan fried fish and the chicken curry with saffron rice actually! I mean the traditional French fare was solid too, but you know there isn't much surprise to it. The pan fried fish however was a shocker in that it's done so well with the texture and the taste. I was hesitant about getting the chicken curry, but the sweet lady (who's also a cook) recommended the chicken curry so I was like, OK let's give it a shot. Hmmmm that might be one of my favorite curries that I tried. The chicken was tender, and the curry had depth without being sweet or salty; it's hard to describe.

The portions were not big. They're all "exquisite" but I thought the prices were not ridiculous. They're higher than average, but the quality was delivered, so it's worth it imo.

Parking lot is across the street with discount code provided by the restaurant, make sure you don't pay yet until you get the code from them, or free street parking after 6pm.

I can't wait to go back. Thank you for the delicious food and...

We drove by Duc's Bistro to check it out, and the entrance is really small. But when we booked our reservation and went for dinner, it has two dining rooms and a full bar inside. Don't let the entrance fool you. We were greeted warmly and served very professionally all night. The owner(?) was very helpful making sure we didn't order too much (since it's family style.) Ian, our server, was very nice and pleasant to talk to. All their meals are served family style, not huge portions but certainly enough. My wife and I had a great time enjoying Steak Tartare, Butter Lettuce Salad, and Fire-Roasted Eggplant (teased with mint!). She had a split of Prosecco, while I had an excellent ginger martini! We followed that with Duck with Grand Marnier, and a marvelous jumbo Shrimp dish. More wine. Wonderful tastes. All complemented each other very well. Finished all that with a shared tapioca/apple banana pudding and a couple of coffees, and we were reluctant to leave. Duc's Bistro is so good, and we appreciate everything about the place. The online menu is only a sample, and the actual menu was more complex and very interesting. They followed Covid rules and we didn't feel crowded, but make sure to call for reservations since they have limited seating at this time. We'll be bringing our friends here next, and I expect that this will be one of our go-to 5-star dinner places. Be aware that they do only one seating per night, and close by 8pm. No late night dining. I'd plan to seat between...