Bali Hai Restaurant — Restaurant in San Diego

We had our wedding here and overall had a wonderful experience. The event team, Lesley and Courtney was an absolute pleasure to work with. We specifically chose this venue because we wanted something that was already beautiful, outdoorsy, and offered iconic San Diego views/vibes. We also didn't want to deal with making a million tiny decisions about silverware, chairs, napkins, etc. Their event packages include everything needed for a full dinner service, which made planning much easier. We didn't want a blank canvas. We wanted something mostly ready to go and this place fit the bill perfectly.

Planning and coordinating with the event team was easy and stress-free. They were responsive, flexible, and accommodating with our requests. You can tell they worked hard to make our special day as smooth and memorable as possible.

On the day of the wedding, everything went mostly as planned. We held our event at the Hawaiian Village, the outdoor covered pavilion. The San Diego Bay and city skyline made for an incredible backdrop, perfect for photos. Our outside vendors coordinated seamlessly with the BH event team, and we were able to do everything we'd envisioned. Mario, the bartender, was awesome! Guests told us he was quick and made great drinks. We weren't approached with any issues during the night, which made us feel confident that anything that came up was handled efficiently behind the scenes. Guests were mingling, dancing, and just having an all around great time.

Now for the one big disappointment, which pains us to write because we genuinely had such a fun wedding. Guest experience was one of our top priorities for us, so food quality was extremely important to us. We wanted our guests to leave full and happy. Before booking, we randomly ate here several times and were impressed. Even the menu tasting was fantastic, everything we tried was delicious. We chose the top sirloin and chicken for our main entrees. The steak at the tasting was tender, juicy, and full of flavor, so we felt confident it would be a hit.

Unfortunately, on the day of the wedding the top sirloin was completely different; dry, chewy, and flavorless. At first, we thought maybe it was just our plates, but multiple guests at different tables had the same complaint. Since over 80% of our guests chose the steak, we felt terrible that they didn't get to enjoy their meal. It was so disappointing that we could barely eat half of our expensive entrée.

We did hear good things from guests about the chicken and appetizers (lumpia egg rolls, coconut shrimp, and beef skewers), which was some consolation. Still, it's a huge letdown to spend thousands of dollars on food only to have the main steak entrée fall so short. We were too busy with wedding activities to bring it up at the time but honestly we weren't sure what could have been done in the moment. But the chef and kitchen staff missed the mark, and it felt like there was no quality control to ensure consistency from the tasting to the actual event. They host a lot of events here, sometimes even two weddings a day. So we're not sure how something so important was overlooked.

Despite the food issues, we're still grateful that we got to celebrate with amazing friends and family, surrounded by the beautiful San Diego scenery. If you're considering hosting your event here, just make sure to discuss how they'll maintain food quality on the day of. It might even be worth negotiating some sort of satisfaction guarantee in the contract, especially if food is a high priority for you like...

I have eaten here a couple of times and have thoroughly enjoyed it. So, years ago, my mom suggested Bali Hai for my wedding reception. We wanted either Bali Hai or Admiral Kidd (we're military). So, the time finally comes, I get engaged and begin planning my big dream wedding with my now husband. We reached out a little over 18 months in advance, and the big room was already booked for our date, but the Hawaiian Village was available. Not my original dream, but it's still Bali Hai. From there, the experience really didn't improve. Their correspondence wording always makes you feel as though you've missed a payment (which incurs a late fee), only to discover it's due in a day or so. In the over the phone meeting, I asked about sound system hookups and wifi as we'd have a friend utilizing custom Spotify playlists we made to DJ for the night. They said they had everything and even asked if we'd need a mic. No where do they tell you that if you don't meet the minimum number of people, the minimum cost can also go towards appetizers, punch bowls and other goodies. We found that out the day the final payment prior to our hig day was due. 😵‍💫 We were excited but also frustrated...because we had not know that was an option. On the day of, we didn't have our walk-in music playing because apparently there isn't a wifi set up for diners to utilize, so we had to walk in to random music and then use my husband's phone for a hotspot the rest of the evening. The best part of that, is that the mic didn't work while the music was playing. Then the head server kept coming up to me and asking me when I wanted the food served or when this or that was supposed to happen. Mind you, I could see the time, and we stayed according to schedule, in fact...slightly ahead. He was just bothered that the speeches were still going as they were setting up the food...which was how it was supposed to go. When it came time to cut the cake, we had asked that the top layer be brought out for the cake cutting (the cake did not turn out visually as planned), and to be taken back right after the pictures. We also asked that all three layers be cut so that people had options. Each layer was a different flavor. Nope, they cut the middle layer to serve, leaving the top layer on display until they'd served all of it, and then came and got the top layer to finish cutting it. They never brought out the last layer. We had many people leave early (they were older and it had been a long day), the guy comes up to me, open his folder with my contract and says that I have paid for such and such appetizers, do I still want them? Seriously?? Yes! Duh. I say yes, and he tells me, "well then tell people to stop leaving, too many people are leaving." Are you kidding? I'm sorry, but you don't say that to a bride on her wedding day. Finally, as we were cleaning everything up at the end of the night, dude comes up and asks what we want to do with the bottom layer of cake. I responded that it should have been cut so the guests had the option to try it, but, since it wasn't...I guess just toss it. He asked if he could give it to his employees, I said sure, I don't care. He got all excited and said they'd be so grateful.

I love Bali Hai as a restaurant, but the catering and event function is terrible. The food, views and atmosphere were fantastic...but the service...

First, let me start by saying I’m no self described “foodie” who feels compelled to review every restaurant and take pictures of my food. I just like a nice meal. We are locals and used to go to Bali Hai quite often and, while it was never a cheap restaurant, the food was always good and you could take people without apologies. We hadn’t been there in several years until out of town visitors said they wanted to go and we thought, “sure, it’s a nice place to go”. Well, no more!

Let me start with the positives. The building is interesting and the view from the restaurant is legendary. You won’t get a better view while dining, especially at sunset. Also, the staff was wonderful. Our waitress was pleasant and friendly and very helpful with the menu. All of the staff were nice and attentive without being intrusive. This is the only reason Bali Hai gets ANY stars.

The cocktails. We started with cocktails. Stay away!! The “signature” Mai Tai is strong and so ill flavored it’s offensive. I get that they want to make a “strong” drink, but there actually are combinations of liquors that actually taste good. The Mai Tai actually made us wince at the horrific flavor. The other cocktails we ordered weren’t as bad, but were in no way outstanding, interesting or flavorful (Navy Grog, daiquiri).

The food. I get that Bali Hai is not a cheap place, but the food was exceptionally bland and uninteresting. The poke was flavorless and slimy. I’ve had better poke from the fish counter at the local supermarket or from Costco. The beef skewers were so tough, you couldn’t cut them with the table knife. Then you had the privilege of chewing the meat for several minutes before you could swallow it. The calamari was tasteless, it was like eating straight panko. The coconut shrimp were good (the dipping sauce made them) but were mostly batter. The Asian noodles were good.

For entrees, the seared tuna was good, but nothing that stands out. The scallops were okay but largely flavorless. You get 3 scallops on a bed of some inedible “sea grass” for $40. That’s it. The waitress was generous when she suggested I order a side dish because the scallops were a “light” dish. Light doesn’t begin to describe it and the side dish added another $13 to my meal.

Lastly, the hard surfaces of the restaurant created such a loud din that you couldn’t hear what someone in your party two seats away was saying. It was like a loud cafeteria or mess hall. It ruined the whole atmosphere and I couldn’t wait to leave just to give my hearing a rest. I actually felt relief when I got back outside just to escape the noise.

ON TOP of everything, management has decided to add a 5% surcharge to your check to cover “costs” (read the fine print!!). What?!?! Just be adults and raise your prices instead of putting prices on the menu that aren’t the actual prices. Sneaky and subversive.

Overall, needless to say, I won’t go back as there other restaurants with great views and there is nothing else about the Bali Hai that’s...