The Hanalei Dolphin Restaurant — Restaurant in Kauai

It's been a tradition for our family to have an Aloha dinner at the Dolphin for over the last 35 years of visiting Kauai. Unfortunately, that will never be on the agenda again due to the inappropriate and rude behavior of the Manager/Hostess (Morgan) or (Megan).

I have worked in the restaurant/bar/hospitality industry for over 20 years, and I have never experienced such behavior that has now left us simply sad that our Aloha dinner was ruined by the catty Manager.

We were sat well beyond our hour wait, the waitress never introduced herself, then she was asking for drink orders without providing us time to review the drink menu. We ordered quickly after that with multiple appetizers and drinks and salads, and the food beat the drinks to the table.

Different people had asked the waitress for pepper, and it was never brought, and after ordering my main Sashimi entree, she asks me if that is all that I am going to order? Really? I said yes, I've ordered multiple appetizers and the Sashimi option I went for was $35. Don't you just love having to explain why you ordered what you did at a restaurant to the server?

They were either unable or unwilling to accommodate our two families as we had asked for separate checks. This apparently isn't a system they subscribe to, which puts you in a position to have to itemize every order and chop it up at the end of the meal. Certainly not the way I want to end my evening. Well, it didn't work in their favor as it allowed me time to see that they had double charged my friend for his entree, and mine was incorrectly rung in as a $43 Sashimi entree. No big deal right?

I walked up to the bar to approach the server, and the manager walked over and asked what the issue was. I said I didn't want to bring this up at the table in front of other guests to address this but I see that we had two problems. She looks it over and says ok we can take off the overcharged entree, but "really, you're really standing up here arguing over an $8 difference in your sashimi?" Not only was I taken aback by her remark, it was coupled with her tone which was over the top rude and loud enough to disturb the nearest table. I said yes I am as I did not order the $43 sashimi entree. She went even louder and was clearly agitated and tried to make me feel cheap.

After getting the bill straightened out we were waiting and waiting for the server to grab the credit card. The kids were over it and our friends took the kids to the car and I said I would handle it. I walked up to the Manager and said here's the bill, can you handle this for me? She said no, that she doesn't run credit cards and the server will. (Great teamwork on turning tables guys). I was headed to the bathroom to wash up and placed the bill next to her and said I am sure you can figure it out. When I got back to the table my wife tells me the Manager came over, refused to run the credit card, and said that I "threw the bill at her." LOL! She has some imagination.

Officially after two decades of dining there for aloha dinners, we will never return and it is solely based on my interaction with "Morgan". Obviously I am not alone on this when you read reviews about the Dolphin on this site and others. Hope she's investing her money as sooner than later the owners will wise up and take this trash out to...

Positives: Dolphin has access to amazing fish. Doug & Beatrice Allen have built a good reputation since the 90's. The fish market is to die for (been going there since '07).

Now the reality check: The Allens need to have their heads examined if they plan on keeping the female manager. Upon arrival to the restaurant, she just finished sending away a party of 4-5 with their tails tucked between their legs. We'd heard about her rep, but how bad could it be, right? We soon found out. The first thing we noticed was the staff (ALL the wait/bus staff) we running around like a wolf was chasing them, with very stressed looks on their faces. Barely made time to answer questions about the menu.

The sushi rolls had an over abundance of rice (scanty on fish). My wife's calamari was over done and rubbery, coating burnt. When asked about that, the waiter simply said "that's normal" (NOT!). Then the waiter was in such a rush to turn over the table, he dropped a small square plate on my wife's foot, DREW BLOOD, but just said "sorry" and dashed off, again with that scared look on his face. I asked for the manager, and who would you guess claimed the position... yep, cranky-pants 'hostess'. Without listening to me, she popped of and said "I'm not buying your dinner!" (note: I never asked for that, nor did I expect it), but she instantly went from awful to completely demonically insane and turned her back to me and walked off. So I followed her to have a reasonable discussion. But she wasn't having it. So, right their, in front of people waiting for a table, she's screaming and said "get out of my restaurant! Looking at the people's eyes, I said "you really might not want to eat here", at which time she said she was calling the police (really?) I said OK, I'll wait here, and went back to my table and sat down to wait. I might have agreed to simply leave, but in the fake police call, she said very loudly "I have a person refusing to pay his bill !!!" and hung up. Now the gloves are off. I sit down and wait. She came over and "leave!" I said you called the cops on me, remember? I'll wait right here till they get here. So much fun, yeah! Then she said "get out, your bull is paid" and sent a guy over to escort us out. The shock other patron's faces was the icing on the cake. I tipped the waiter in absentia and asked the 'escort', "it must be awful working with her", he said "it's not easy". I apologized to him for that, and we left.

You would think that a patron about to drop $150-200 for a meal would receive some form of a show of appreciation, no? Maybe even just a smile and "how is everything?" Obviously we won't ever be back (unless the Allens reach out to me, and tell me the manager has been fired. THEN I'll return). Until then, we've had awesome dining experiences at other restaurants in town. The mediocre food, high prices, PLUS an unwarranted attitude, just ain't worth it. Eat at Dolphin at...

We came to The Dolphin in Hanalei on our honeymoon after my wife recommended it from a past trip, and it absolutely lived up to the hype. On our first night we had the pleasure of being served by Ānuʻu (forgive me if I’m spelling that wrong) and Storm, and it was nothing short of incredible. The drinks were spot on, and the sushi was some of the best I’ve ever had anywhere. We let them choose a few rolls and dishes for us and every single thing they brought out was perfect. They were attentive, welcoming, and genuinely fun to talk to, all while hustling nonstop to keep the whole restaurant taken care of.

After that first night we tried several of the other “top” recommended restaurants around the island, including the 1 Hotel and Welina Terrace on the north side and a handful of spots on the south side as well. We walked away underwhelmed every time, both by the food and the service. That made it clear there was no comparison. By our third night we knew there was only one place worth going back to, and that was The Dolphin. Once again Ānuʻu and Storm made it special. At that point we had tried nearly every roll on the menu and not one of them disappointed. The crudo was phenomenal, the nigiri melted in your mouth, and everything was packed with flavor.

On our last night in Kaua‘i we decided the only way to end the trip was to come back to The Dolphin one more time. It turned out to be even more memorable than the first two visits. The place was packed with locals celebrating Megan, who I believe was the manager, on her final night after 18 years. The atmosphere was full of love and energy, and once again Ānuʻu and Storm recognized us right away and treated us like family. By then we had probably tried three quarters of the menu, and not a single bite fell short.

I’ve eaten at some of the most well-known sushi spots across the country, including Uchi and Nobu, and The Dolphin holds its own without question. The servers hustle harder than anywhere I’ve ever seen, the sushi chefs never stop moving, and the quality is consistently top tier. Any complaints about “slow service” are simply from people who don’t understand the amount of care and effort it takes to serve this level of food in such a busy and high-demand place.

The Dolphin is five stars in every sense. It was by far the best restaurant we ate at on the entire island, north or south, and it became the staple of our trip. Ānuʻu and Storm in particular made our honeymoon unforgettable. This is the kind of restaurant you remember long after you’ve left. If you’re in Hanalei, don’t waste your time or money anywhere else. The Dolphin is where...