Saito and Pho Restaurant — Restaurant in Oʻahu

Probably the best Japanese food I've had on the island. My favorites are the Wafu Steak and the Saba Shioyaki. The service is slow -- which is why the restaurant is my wife's favorite! For her, it means we have plenty of time to talk, something we don't ordinarily have the chance to do. How long? Sometimes as much as 40 minutes to be served, although the wait time is commensurate with the number of people in the restaurant. Come early or come on a week night, and service is much likely to be far faster. None the less, the advice, "don't come if you're really hungry" may be appropriate.

There is no drink menu, except for the soda machine in the front of the restaurant. We usually content ourselves with the water, the sometimes hot tea, or else I bring my own beer, usually purchased across the street at Ewa Pantry. Bring your own opener. It's just easier if you do!

The servers are always friendly, albeit sometimes a bit frazzled. The decor leaves a great deal to be desired -- the above mentioned drink machine is not out of place. One goes for the food or not at all. This simply reiterates the basic message: at its best, the food served is the best of its kind. I have had both the Wafu Steak and Saba at multiple other fine Japanese restaurants in Waipaho, Aiea and Honolulu. The decor at these other restaurants is far, far, finer. The service is faster at these other restaurants. Beer and sake is often on the menu. But I still come back to...

ordered the eye-round steak and brisket pho along with the wafu steak, plus the tempura and sashimi add-on (which came with two shrimp, a few veggies, and five pieces of sashimi).

From the moment we sat down to the moment we left, we kept hearing the sound of sizzling plates coming from the kitchen, that’s the wafu steak, and it’s absolutely worth the noise. It was tender, flavorful, and easily my favorite dish of the night, honestly even better than their pho, which was still very good.

While I probably wouldn’t come back specifically for the pho, I’d come back for that wafu steak any day. The restaurant stayed busy the entire time we were there, the staff did a good job keeping our waters full, and the place was decently clean despite the crowd.

Overall, great food, lively atmosphere, and that wafu steak alone makes this spot...

Had lunch there for the first time today with 3 other adults. Greeted as soon as we entered and was invited to sit anywhere we wanted. Two of us ordered tempura plate. The other two ordered spring rolls and calamari off the appetizer menu. Tempura plate came with 5 good sized shrimp tempura along with several pieces of various veggie tempura, miso soup, rice and a small mixed salad. Calamari was a big bowl with crispy rings of calamari on a bed of shredded cabbage. Spring rolls was 3 good sized deep fried rolls cut in half with a wedge of iceberg lettuce and a small serving of noodles. Wow, food was delicious and way larger servings than expected. We left with a doggy bag with enough leftovers to serve as a dinner for two. Definitely...