Earls Kitchen + Bar - Waikiki — Restaurant in Honolulu

Initially I was sooo disappointed that 1. This wasn’t a beloved O’ahu Earls Sandwhich, 2. Is another Corporate chain restaurant. 3. Excessive fake/incentivized reviews. Completely unbelievable to think they have 255 perfect five star reviews after being open for one day. They’ve obviously been paying for reviews and or creating fake reviews because most of them don’t have photos and are from people with only one review.

They’ve been marketing for weeks and doing soft opening so I was expecting their opening night to run smoothly. I was greeted and sent to multiple host stands before seated with a complementary “sip” lol of cheap and very poor quality bubbly. Honestly, the food was decent, but it came out extremely quickly, so I would definitely recommend staggering your orders. The table next to me was at a tiny table, and all three of their dishes came out at the exact same time. They looked stunned and disappointed while their food got cold and could barely fit the table.

I got the little gem salad. It was served no longer than 90 seconds after I ordered it, which seemed a little strange, but it was cold. When they delivered it, they said here is your “side salad”. When I asked the server if this was a full-size or a portion, she said it was a side salad so I assumed it would be less money but they still charge me the full $17 for about 10 miniature lettuce leaves… very disappointing! I’m still unsure what I got or what I didn’t get. The steak and sushi was OK. The steak was cooked properly in the ponzu sauce was excellent. The roll was strange. The rice was gluey and hard and several pieces were missing the cucumber in the center. The crab was placed on top of the individual rolls that were cut and was maybe a half a teaspoon per roll. I think you probably get a total of a 16th of a cup of crab. Could barely taste any seafood. At least it wasn’t fake crab like most California rolls. I would definitely get the crispy tuna rice next time instead. The coconut cream pie was excellent. The service definitely left something to desire. My server was nice, but definitely seemed frazzled. There was a male manager who was just standing staring at everybody, did not do any table touches, and just ran around frantically whispering in the server’s ears while grabbing them on the shoulders or waist, which seemed very strange. Also, my server told me that it was happy hour and I asked to clarify because it was after five and she said yeah we have happy hour till five but it was 6 PM when I sat down so I have no idea why I was being offered happy hour. I would’ve really appreciated a manager coming over and asking me how I enjoyed the meal etc. overall, for $85 I was not impressed by the value. They also did not seem to care about giving good treatment to locals, and I can see that this restaurant just has a turn and burn...

We had a birthday occasion and decided to try the recently opened Earls in Waikiki.

We came for dinner but arrived during the happy hour and were able to take advantage of some of the happy hour prices on the appetizers and cocktails.

Our experience at Earls didn't disappoint. From the atmosphere, to the food and service, everything was spot on. The entire staff was fully engaging and warm. The hospitality was on full display and one felt genuinely welcomed by every contact on floor.

Jessica our server was gracious and accommodating especially when we had a few out of the ordinary requests.

The restaurant is upstairs, overlooking Kalakaua Avenue and is expansive. The atmosphere is green, fresh and modern. There's a bar that is center stage to the dining room and there are many options in terms of seating and tables. We sat at a front table overlooking Kalakaua and although we had a fantastic overlooking view, as the sun set we found ourselves shifting around the table to avoid the brightness and the heat. Those tables are best when the sun goes down. That said however, I didn't see an undesirable seating section in the house.

We ordered the seafood tower. The menu suggests that the tower serves 4 to 6 people and this was no exaggeration. In fact this could serve just fine as dinner for two if you pair it with a salad. It was one of the best seafood towers I've had imo and featured, tuna tataki, sashimi, chilled jumbo shrimp, spicy tuna roll, lobster tail, and a dozen oysters. Everything was fresh and bountiful!

We could have stopped there but we also ordered the spicy fried tofu which was light despite being deep fried and served with a Calabrian chili sauce, a little gem Ceasar salad, I'm a Ceasar salad dressing snob and theirs was perfection. And lastly we ordered the filet steak which was served with broccolini and garlic mashed potatoes. There was an option of sauce as an add on but the steak we ordered medium rare was so perfectly executed that to put sauce on it would have been overkill.

At the end a little birthday treat (chocolate/caramel cake and vanilla ice cream) nearly put us in a food coma but we had to abide and so we rose to the occasion!

We...

I had the pleasure of attending the soft opening of Earls Kitchen + Bar on Kalakaua Avenue in Waikiki, and what a fantastic evening it turned out to be!

The ambiance was vibrant and inviting, live music right on the main strip added to the electric yet relaxed Waikiki vibe. Whether it was the beautifully set interior or the energy from the crowd, everything came together to create the perfect setting for dinner.

We were lucky to have Johnny as our server as he was attentive, friendly, and made our dining experience seamless from start to finish. The service was matched by the quality of the food, which was absolutely on point, flavorful, well-portioned, and artfully plated.

We decided to share a few dishes to get a feel for the menu, and I’m so glad we did. Here’s what we had:

Main Entrees: • Pollo Tacos – Flavorful and fresh with a nice kick. • Black Truffle Butter Steak – Rich, savory, and cooked to perfection. • Truffle Tortellini + Sirloin – A decadent pairing that balanced creamy and meaty perfectly. • Tomahawk Maple-Glazed Pork Chop – Juicy, tender, and packed with bold, smoky-sweet flavor.

Dessert: • Sticky Toffee Chocolate Pudding – An indulgent end to the meal. Warm, rich, and the perfect amount of sweetness.

Drinks: • Colada Crush – A refreshing tropical twist that fit the Waikiki setting. • Lychee Tini – (Grey Goose vodka, lychee liqueur, elderflower, hibiscus, fresh lime) – Light, floral, and dangerously easy to sip!

We enjoyed ourselves so much that we made reservations for brunch right away! I’m looking forward to experiencing more of their menu and hoping we get Johnny again as he really elevated the whole evening.

On my brunch radar: • Earls Margarita • Earls Old Fashioned • Chilaquiles Brunch Bowl • Guava Pineapple Pancake

If the brunch lives up to dinner, I may have just found a new favorite spot in Waikiki. Highly recommend...