Restaurant Kunio
94-799 Lumiaina St, Unit 2F, Waipahu, HI, 96797
Restaurant Kunio Menu
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Visit below restaurant in Waipahu for healthy meals suggestion.
Visit below restaurant in Waipahu for healthy meals suggestion.
Visit below restaurant in Waipahu for healthy meals suggestion.
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Address :
94-799 Lumiaina St, Unit 2F
Waipahu, HI, 96797 - Phone (808) 680-9188
- Website https://restaurantkunio.com
- Click To Get Directions
Opening Hours
- Mon :10:30 am - 10
- Mon : 10:30 am - 10
Specialities
- Takes Reservations : No
Delivery : No
Take-out : Yes
Accepts Credit Cards : Yes
Good For : Lunch, Dinner
Parking : Private Lot
Bike Parking : Yes
Wheelchair Accessible : Yes
Good for Kids : Yes
Good for Groups : Yes
Attire : Casual
Ambience : Casual
Noise Level : Average
Alcohol : Beer & Wine Only
Outdoor Seating : No
Wi-Fi : No
Has TV : No
Waiter Service : Yes
Caters : No
WE SERVE THE FOLLOWING STATES
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T F.
Awesome food
(5)Anela A.
Very good Japanese food, probably the best restaurant in Waikele. A bit pricey but that's normal for Japanese food. Sushi was a bit inconsistent but other than that worth the money.
(4)Anne L.
It used to be our favorite place but not anymore. The quality of fishes are not as good as before and yet they increased their prices with smaller portions. The location is excellent for families live around Mililani. Waipio, & Waikele etc. We are so disappointed that now we have to go all the way to town to eat good sushi. On top of that, sometimes their services are not good due to short staff.
(3)Ruth P.
The food was great but didn't like the service. Our server's hand was dripping wet when she gave us the sauce for our tempura and her finger was in it! Also te waitress took my plate without asking if I was done:(
(3)Donna K.
Ordered Tenzaru. Noodle sauce and tempura sauce way tooo salty! Must be cook dropped the shaker. While trying to get the shaker forgot about the soba which came out over cooked! Lol! Sisters combo oishi and nieces udon was delicious!
(2)Shanna U.
Kunios is always super busy but it's easy to see why. They have a very extensive menu and their food is always good. I love to order one of the combinations sets and their chawanmushi is very good. Just make sure to go early and sign in as it does get super crowded.
(4)Aubry A.
Really good Japanese food! I always get the number 69. Has sashimi, teriyaki beef, salad, tempura, rice, and miso soup that comes with it. Servers are very helpful and friendly. The green tea ice cream they have is good too!
(5)Cely H.
Oh Kunio, how sorry I am. A few days before my wedding I was stressed out and wanted teri steak. Your teri steak wasn't teri steak...it was teri beef. The waiter decided to tell me that its supposed to be like that. So in all my bridezilla glory I snapped and I yelled. And he never came back. The very nice manager gave me green tea ice cream to make me feel better and I did. Kunio's was so nice when I was oh-so-nasty. so eat there and don't yell at the waiter that is trying to do his job. I already did enough of that for all of us. on another note, the food is good but the prices are super high. There are no free refills on drinks which makes my husband really upset (big guys need big drinks). There is always a loooooong wait because the restaurant is kinda small. I would recommend Kunios; my only advice is to try and not go on a weekend or friday night.
(3)Alyssa K.
I got the nabeyaki udon. It was ok. Husband got the oyakodon. That was ok too. very large selection of food. service is prompt and attentive. I'm glad there is a decent restaurant to eat at in Waikele. This will be my go-to spot for lunches when I'm in my outlet shopping mood from now on.
(3)Sherlie O.
Hmmm I thought this place would be okay but I thought wrong. Maybe I ordered the wrong thing. I got the salad sushi maki and the miso soup. It's the first time I've ever had bad miso soup. How can you run a Japanese restaurant that serves bad miso soup...that's one of the most basic Japanese foods. It tasted like broth...there was almost no miso flavor. I paid $2.50 for this? I'd rather drink instant. As for my maki roll...I liked the combination of veggies in it but way too much mayo. I don't think mayo was even necessary..but that's America for you. The service was okay. A bit slow but I guess that can't be helped. In the end I don't think i'll eat here again unless I have to. Wouldn't recommend it either.
(1)LeeAnn M.
I hovered over the 5 stars but decided on 4 stars because I've yet to give a 5 star rating. If I could, I'd give Kunio's 4.5 stars. I've been going to Kunio's since it opened ?? years ago. There is almost always a line during peak dinner hours, so I tend to visit when I'm in the mood for an early dinner (5pm ish), just because I hate to wait.... I love being able to eat good quality food in shorts & a tee and Kunio's fits the bill. Restaurant is nice enough for an affordable special ocassion meal, but you may be sitting next to tourists with a pile of shopping bags Food is presented beautifully and never disappoints. Their teriyaki steak is my favorite, other no fails are the tonkatsu & chicken teriyaki. Selection of Otsumame usually includes edamame (soybeans), prawn & seaweed. Portions are good, my Mom always brings a doggie bag home. I tried the steak & lobster recently and while it wasn't anything to write home about, it was okay & satisfied my cravings for lobster, although I probably would not order that again. I'll still to my teri beef!
(4)Mangione M.
Best sushi i had in a long time. Went here on a whim and was pleasantly surprised. Pretty authentic and the clientele was mostly Japanese. It's expensive though... even on a vacation budget.
(5)Ryan O.
My coworkers took me here for my birthday. It was a fantastic gift. A hidden gem in an otherwise unremarkable shopping center, once you stepped in the door you're transported to a better place. The food was fantastic. The sushi was fresh and vibrantly colored. The tempura batter was crisp and flaky I'd swear they cooked each serving in a new batch of oil. The serving sizes were just right. I'll absolutely be back. A side room that seats 16 or so looks promising for a group or family event. Not cheap, but the quality justifies the price. This place was packed solid for a weekday lunch, so I can't imagine the crush of people for dinner. The biggest challenge is finding parking in one of the worst designed lots on the island.
(4)Paul A.
There's a reason there is always a line here... it's that darn good. This is my favorite place on the island to get sushi or tempura (or udon or teriyaki or sashimi...). You get the idea. The food is definitely worth the wait.
(4)Shawn S.
Great food, not so great service. The waiter took our order, brought out our food, and never came back. No hot tea or water refills till we were done and ready for the check. Maybe next time will be better, if there is a next time.
(2)Janine R.
On a recent trip to Waikele we decided to try Kunio after hearing good things from friends. It's location near Party city, Baskin Robbins and Genki sushi made me think this was gonna be more along the lines of commercialized Japanese food. But I was surprised to find that it was a cute place and pretty spacious inside. We just happened to have gone there at the perfect time and seemed to have missed the crowd because right after we were seated there were a bunch of different people who were driving the workers crazy by not ready the sign and seating them on tables. As I passed a table on our way to be seated I saw this little boys food and decided to order what he had which was tempura and Teri chicken. It came with soy beans, gobo, choi sum and miso soup. I am not a big fan of gobo so my husband ate it and said it was really good and flavored almost like Taegu. The tempura came with 2 shrimp, 2 carrots, 2 green beans and eggplant. It also had green salad.My husband on the other hand has the Katsu don and spicy tuna sushi. We both really enjoyed our meal and will definitely be back to try more dishes! Yelp 365: 30/365
(4)Shirley Mina Y.
Karen's leaving for Martha's Vineyard so we all got together for dinner. I was told by the hostess to come back at 5:15 p.m. to put my name on the list since they do not take reservations, nor would I have to put in a special order for the Funamori Boat. This boat consists of lobster tails, deep fried shrimp, vegetable and shrimp tempura, teriyaki ribeye steak, chicken katsu, assorted sushi, and top grade ahi sashimi. I had seen the Funamori Boat in passing before but never this close up. My favorites were the salmon nigiri and the lobster tail. I was eyeing Lax and Marnie's side order of uni sashimi and sushi. I'll have to get that the next time I'm there. I was too full to order any side dishes or dessert. We all decided that it was our Last Supper, with the 17 day HI DOE teacher furlough that starts next month. Not Mary Magdalene but Linda Lingle instead.
(5)Milani C.
Love this restaurant! Great service! Some other Japanese restaurants have horrendous service, not this one! The food is superb! I am a Japanese food love and I have to say, it is a little pricy,as with ,most Japanese restaurants are, but the food is great here. One of my favs!
(5)Abbey Y.
I came here for lunch with my cousins, one who just came back from the mainland and was craving any type of Japanese food. I vaguely remember eating here about 7 years ago, which reminded me of why I haven't really been back since. First of all from the moment we stepped in it was a disappointment. We were not greeted at all (there were only two other parties in the restaurant so it wasn't busy) and after about 5 minutes or so a lady that was sitting in the back watching us finally comes and asks us "how many?" We were then seated and handed our menus. The prices for lunch are decent, but I think that you can find Japanese lunch specials for better elsewhere. We were pretty much ignored almost the entire time we were there. This ticked me off a bit. I dislike eating at restaurants where they're unable to serve customers with the same treatment, maybe because we looked like a group of young girls and maybe she has a grudge against us, either way the meal wasn't enjoyable. Our cups were never refilled only when we were able to catch her quick enough. As for the other tables, I noticed that their tea was refilled often and they were checked on by the server. As for us, the only time we had contact was during seating, ordering, serving, and clearing of our dishes. It was hard to even get our bill from the lady! Location: Waikele, not much other restaurants to eat at so you're definitely limited and parking is not so pretty during lunch and dinner. Environment: clean and comfortable Food: Decent Japanese food with their specials, but as for the other items it does range to the pricier side.
(2)Jason G.
I love this place !!! i had the tempura Udon which was pipping hot !! and like always the tempura was the best!!! I also ordered the the katsu don which was also great!!! the only downside is me... I always order too much food and have to waddle my way out of the restaurant with my giant belly full of food : ) - Tron
(4)Christopher Y.
good food but busy, long wait for a table and $$$$
(4)Ryan C.
What can I say that hasnt been said about Kunio?? I come here all the time....My parents and I are regulars! I always get number 69 combo...Teri steak, tempura and sashimi. Honestly best combo ever!! Definitely the best Japanese restaurant in the central oahu area. If you are ever near Waikele, make sure you stop in. Owner is same as Jurison's Inn next door.
(5)Bobby And Estee F.
Excellent udon! The chicken katsu was very moist unlike some places where it is quite dry. We got the triple combo so we could try a bunch of different things. Great value, large portions and included a salad and rice. It also came with miso soup and an appetizer consisting of three different items - garlic soy beans and two little salads/dips to sample. We had about a 5 minute wait and great service from start to finish.
(5)Summer B.
I've had to many bad experiences with waitress here they are rude and passive aggressive. The food has gone down hill, the udon soup is watered down and noodles taste stale. The sushi is soggy and lifeless and over priced. The place smells like a stale dirty mop and the tables are old and run down, there are so many better places to eat in Oahu so I've moved on. Food=yuck Costumer service=none existent Parking=atrocious, good luck
(1)Alex K.
I didn't think an off the strip sushi place would amaze me, but that's what happened. The miso butterfish was recommended on yelp, so I tried it and was really amazed. I got it in a combo with two other items, and everything wad good, but it definitely stood out as the signature entree. Shopping and sushi in Hawaii. Days don't get much better!
(5)dean t.
Consistent, delicious Japanese food...always get the broiled sake (salmon) teishoku, onigiri and noodle dishes. Got there before the evening dinner rush, so service was attentive and well-paced. Must try the funamori party boat next time, as diners near our table were pretty ecstatic about their choice. And, it looked great as well. We'll definitely be back.
(4)Jesse G.
Originally headed to Chili's Waikele, we were rolling around looking for parking in a very crowded lot. We lucked out and pulled into a stall fronting Kunio. We decided to eat here instead of the big chain, mainland franchise. Good decision. We all ordered udon with tempura. This place is one of the best for tempura. The udon is good too, but I've had better. The soup comes out really hot. Presentation is nice and the eating environment is pleasant. Definitely worth going here after shopping at the outlet. It's a bit pricey here, but the cheaper tempura udon was so good that I'll fork out the money to try the more expensive items next time.
(4)Bow C.
It's just okay. Overrated the way most people rave bout this place. This hurts them to me because I came with high expectations on this place. Unfortunately it didnt do it for me. Their identity is somewhat lost, you're in Waikele not Waikiki. Sushi was okay, as was everything else. Usually busy, it's not worth the wait for me. Happy this establishment is doing well, give it a try.
(3)Kat P.
We like it here for lunch. Service is fast if no line outside. Right next to Party City where we found Halloween costumes. Parking was okay- I pulled right in front. We had the miso butterfish, this is better than the shoyu butterfish which has some pool of shoyu on the section of the tray. Don't order the shoyu butterfish. Everything else was delish. I had an aftertaste to the fish a few hours afterwards which usually don't happen... hmmm I wonder where the fish was from... the tempura of shrimp and veggies were ono. I had to chew gum to get rid of the aftertaste. Stick with the sushi next time!
(3)Elizabeth M.
The only negative i can see here is that there is sometimes a wait. The food is delicious and varied. Offering sushi, bento style meals and even udon. I'm fairly biased in this review because this is where i go to get udon when i'm sick so i've come to associate it with comfort food. All in all, tasty. And that's what matters.
(5)Megan A.
This used to be my favorite Japanese eatery on the leeward side. Their prices have gone up significantly since the last time I've been here. Went on a weekday afternoon for lunch with the bf, his mom and sister. Definitely not as busy as it is during dinner but most of the tables were taken. No wait and we were seated right away. I got the ten-zaru udon which is what I normally get when I come here. It consists of cold udon noodles along with shrimp and veggie tempura. The price used to be about $12 but now is $15!! Crazy! It is still good nonetheless but the reason I used to get this was because it was such a reasonable price for what you get. Not really anymore. Service was good although a little slow. I think the server was serving most of the the tables by himself. I will return here whenever home but it really sucks that their prices went up so much.
(3)Masaru U.
Kunio's is probably one of my favorite restaurants here in Oahu. The wait staff is awesome, and since our family had a long period of going there after church on Sundays a while back, I've gotten to know a few of the servers and they always treat us like family. (Kinda like going to Cheers..."where everybody knows your name~" hahaha.) Anyhow, tonight we went for my Grandma's 86th birthday, and the food and service did not disappoint. Grandma got the Nabeyaki soba, mom had the miso-butterfish/sashimi combo, grandpa had the shrimp tempura/sashimi combo, dad had the veggie tempura/fried scallop combo, and I had one of my favs, the rib eye steak teishoku. In terms of my steak, I normally have my steak medium rare, but the super hot skillet normally ends up cooking it to around medium. No worries though, the steak was still very soft and tender, and did not seem overcooked by any means. If you MUST have your reddish-pink medium rare, then I would recommend ordering the steak rare since it will most likely keep cooking as it comes on the piping hot skillet. I always get the garlic butter, and this time tasted just as good as always. Coupled with a natto handroll, I was well stuffed by the end of the meal. (^_^) So all in all, Kunio's is a winner by my book. Friendly service, casual atmosphere, and overall ono food, I'm a happy camper. Masaru recommends: - Kunio Rainbow Roll - Garlic butter Rib-Eye Steak - Ahi Tower (if you get lucky, and they have it on special.) - Miso butterfish - Sesame Ahi Bowl DELICIOUS! =9
(5)Yvonne Y.
I haven't been on yelp in months, but needed to write this review to document my terrible experience. Me and my boyfriend came here to celebrate finishing our summer school finals. The udon noodles were soggy, but worst of all, our service was HORRIBLE. We had an older asian lady with glasses and a pony tail and she had such a terrible personality. She did not smile at all or make us feel welcome. I was so turned off by the lack of service, I don't ever want to go back to Kunio, in fear of having her as our server. Avoid her if you don't want your day to be ruined!
(2)renee i.
Their butterfish is very flavorful! I have been here many times and always leave fulfilled. Their tempura is made just right and their portions are perfect. The many times that I have gone here, I didn't have a problem waiting for a seat, but this is a place that does seems to have a smooth flow of people going in and out, so I could see it getting busy most of the time. The parking is hectic and I have had to wait patiently for parking to open up since there are tons of other stores and restaurants in the area and only so much parking. But once I found parking, eating at Kunio is worth it! I don't anything bad to say about the food and service!
(5)Carol L.
Not on the menu. Salmon skin salad. Mmm. Crispy iceberg lettuce. (wished they used romaine instead) A splash of ogo(seaweed), ikura , tomatoes, avocados, cucumbers., and grilled bite size pieces of salmon with crispy skin. MMMMM guud also good with a spider roll too!! =)
(5)Marisa A.
One of the few authentic japanese food restaurants left. Food was great. But then again the food is always great.
(5)Chelsey V.
I have an uncle who goes here EVERY Friday and sits at the sushi bar. The waitresses and waiters all know him and bring us his favorite wine and the two chefs always know the order of dishes he orders. They are friendly to everyone, whether you're a regular or new. I definitely recommend sitting at the sushi bar if you're there for the sushi alone and not any box meals. The chefs are willing to tell you what's in season, what the specials are, what they recommend and it's always fun to watch them prepare the dishes. Plus, if you request like my uncle does, they'll decrease on the rice (for those of you who are watching your weight or starch intake) but never skimp on the slices of fresh fish :)
(5)Greg C.
Having stayed out in Ko'Olina for a few of days, there aren't too many restaurants to choose from if you want something close. For us, Kunio is one of the places that we will stop at each time we're out there! Food - Great and fresh! Service - Great, with a hot wait staff that makes sure you're taken care of! Overall, this is a great spot for a great meal that doesn't break the bank!
(4)Lisa W.
The food is yummy. You need to go when it's not crowded. I went around 4 o'clock late lunch. I had number 72 pork tonkatsu ,butterfish,steak and side tempura. It was good. I ordered the rainbow roll sushi that was good too. The staff was very friendly .
(4)Chris B.
Dirty spoon, something in the water both cups... Food was not worth the price. Flies in restraint
(1)Sean Y.
K, so feeling very adventurous on my last day off I decided to try "the boat". Seeing as I'm not a very big eater I had to have help! So with the help of two friends we attempted to finish it. Took a little bit for the kitchen to finish the behemoth that is the boat, so we sat around and "talked story" for awhile. Service was pretty good considering the last time I was here it was uber slow! Finally after around 20-30 minutes our masterpiece arrives! The picture is super misleading! It's way more food than we expected and there's lots to go around. From start to finish it took us a hour to almost finish it. The boat consists of shrimp tempura, vegetable tempura, teriyaki beef, lobster tails, chicken katsu, tonkatsu, sashimi, and various types of nigiri. Totally worth it! If you're ever down in Waipahu and feel like splurging on lunch, I suggest you go for it! Wasn't too bad for the 3 of us, with drinks and tip it came out to around $160. Which IMHO for all that food and good service was totally worth it!
(4)Sunny D.
Took mom here for a Valentine's day lunch. Arrived a little after 11:30 and the place was full with a few people waiting outside for a table. We signed in and waited about ten minutes, then was seated in a private room in the back where you remove your footwear. Thank goodness I didn't wear my Manolo Blaniks so no worries about someone walking off with high priced shoes! *he, he, he* The private room had four tables of four at each. I liked the privacy but soon found that it wasn't all that private since we could hear every word of the next tables discussion, eek! And mom being hard of hearing, I really didn't want to have to speak as loud as I normally do when conversing with her. So I stuck to non drama topics such as "When are you going to make an appointment to get a hearing aide?" We settle in and both ordered the combo to include shrimp tempura and miso butterfish. I love that it comes with all the little Japanese fixings like tsukemono, miso soup and trio of little appetizers. So the main dish comes out and I enjoyed the dressing on the salad. After all, veggies really have no real flavor so you mostly have to judge a salad by it's dressing...and of course the greens should be GREEN not brown. This one was fresh and tasty! The miso butterfish is so delish, I wipe that out first! Then I work on one shrimp tempura, one carrot tempura and one bean tempura and I was full. I ask for a container and the waitress obliged. Yeah! I have three more pieces of tempura left over for a partial lunch tomorrow! They even put a little cup container of tempura dipping sauce in the take home box! Nice! I had full intention of ordering dessert since I love ice cream and both the azuki and tea ice creams were mouth watering when I first read the menu. Being a petite person, I had no choice but to pass it up. But I will be back!
(4)Bianca S.
I went in for lunch & wasn't impressed. The sushi was ok nothing wow. The roll was small! I also ordered yakitori thinking for $11 I would get a couple, I was wrong only got one! My bill was in the $20 range. For the amount of food for the price it's not worth it. I had to wait a while for my waiter to take my order and to cash out.
(2)Lup Wah M.
This is one of our favorite places to eat Japanese food. The spicy ahi and sesame ahi bowls are fantastic. As for the sushi, my husband loves the spider roll. So far it is the best he has tasted.
(5)Geoffrey K.
My family and I went here because of its proximity to the Ko Olina timeshares. We were all pleased with the cuisine, although the one negative was the wait time. Most of the tables inside Kunio are 4 tops, which could lead to a large wait time for parties 5 or more. It has a small sushi bar as well. I ordered the sukiyaki, and its the best sukiyaki I've had outside of my mother's homemade deliciousness. The sushi was fresh, and the appetizers were great. I definitely recommend this place for the fare. The new york steak and nabayaki udon was also very good as I had a taste from other family members. Good times!
(5)Kayla R.
I have been here many times before, and have always gotten the best service. My usual favorite thing to order is their tempura because of how they batter it up and then add the panko crumbs on top (it's usually one or the other, hardly ever both), so that's a fave in my book! The restaurant is pretty small inside, and they don't take any reservations unless you have a large party, so if it's busy hours (dinner time) you'll probably find yourself waiting outside for a table. Once you get a seat though, the service is usually pretty quick and worth the wait. The only thing that I would want them to change is their dessert menu. They only serve ice cream and only in like two flavors... vanilla or green tea. I'm a dessert person, and that just doesn't cut it for me. Luckily baskin robin's is only a few doors down the way so I guess walking my full belly over there will help to slim it down a bit... or maybe not.
(4)Tiffany C.
I had a hair appointment in Waikele yesterday that took a little longer than expected. I was starving by the time my hair was beautiful. No really, I think my stomach was about to crawl out and start grabbing food. My stylist was scared. There was only one thing to do. Duh. EAT! Kunio, my husband's favorite Japanese restaurant was right next door, so I texted him to meet me there. This place is very popular and can get very crowded, but I was in luck. I beat the rush at around noon on a Sunday, and was waiting in a booth when my husband got there, which was a BIG score with him because well...he usually has to wait for me, not the other way around. Okay, so then there was food! I don't care for iceberg lettuce, but the hot and yummy miso soup made up for it. I had the miso butterfish which is exactly that...BUTTER. It was so delicious, i just can't describe it. Okay, maybe I can. It had the perfect balance of sweet buttery fish on the inside, and salty seared miso on the outside. Okay, let me rewind a second: I get this fish every time I go there, and I wanted to branch out a little and try some of their other dishes, so I ordered the teriyaki ribeye steak as my entree, got the fish a la carte. It was pricey to do it that way but glad I still got the fish; it's still my fave :o) My hubby got a triple combo special, teriyaki ribeye/tempura shrimp & veggies/sashimi. He loved it. He isn't very descriptive about his food, but he did say he preferred his raw fish the way they served it, without all the "yucky stuff." I think he meant rice. And, "you should make vegetables like this every day." I laughed at that because that's obviously funny, right? Scored points with my hubby, my tummy, and my tastebuds..win-win-win! I'll keep going back and I'll keep trying to branch out. But I can't promise I won't get the butterfish every time too. In the end, I give Kunio four big beautiful stars. The service is okay and the food/price ratio could be better, but so many of the dishes are fabulous.
(4)Lilian N.
I've been to this place at least 5 times and can't say that I was really impressed nor was I disappointed by the food. My most recent visit was with the family from Japan and they didn't have much to say except that the menu selection was overwhelming. In their minds having that much on the menu translates to a lot of pre-cooked, frozen foods. Most of the teishoku items tasted okay, however the more exotic (and pricier) items like lobster and fried oysters tasted pretty rubbery. In my opinion the tempura was way too heavy, as traditional tempura batter should be light and flaky. To my surprise the sushi/sashimi tasted fairly fresh; the chirashi included generous slices of assorted sashimi over sushi rice. Overall I would visit this place again if I'm in the area. I think the prices are steep for this part of town, expect to pay $20/per person on average.
(3)Robert K.
Good service too bad they dont take reservations. GOtta try that big boat of food for four one of these days.
(4)John A.
Service 5 star, price 2 star, taste 1 star. The tempura tasted like they reuse the oil.
(2)H. P.
My friends and I really enjoyed the food here. They put alot of their entres in bento boxes, which i thought was pretty cute. Their is a sushi bar you can sit at, but we chose a booth. We ordered the spicy tuna roll and california rolls for appetizers. I thought it was okay, but the others really enjoyed it. At least their food is fresh and doesn't go around in circles on a conveyer belt all day. The one you thing you need to try is their ever so popular MISO BUTTERFISH. Im salivating just thinking about how good it was. It melts in your mouth just like buttahhh! I also ordered the combo meal which i chose Shrimp Tempura and Vegetable Tempura. Oh my word... that was super good. It was crunchy and flaky and so tasty. And when you dip it in the tempura sauce you can't help but to cry. It was darn good. But then again, maybe it's just me... i loooveeeTempura. The miso soup was like any other miso soup i've tried and the sides were okay. Nothing too memorable. The only bad thing about this place was the service we had. One of the staff became impatient with us because our friend was 10 minutes late. And since then, she wouldn't really cater to us. She actually pulled the chopsticks out of my friend's hands thinking she was done. My friend was taken aback by that, she didn't have a chance to say much. But besides the bad service, (im just going to assume the waitress was either new or having a bad day) i still give this place 4 stars for the food alone.
(4)Rita L.
kinda pricey...had the chirashi...eh. service was great...the bento boxes are descent...just pricey...not worth it...rather drive into town and eat at Imanas for my Japanese fix!
(3)Rocelle S.
I hate to burst everyone's bubble. But, I will be very truthful in what I say. First of all, I really wanted to like this place, because it is the closest Japanese Restaurant to me. I have went here 3 times, both times spending more than $60. There were so much things that happened to so I will just number the cons and pros. Pros: -Shrimp tempura tasted good, crunchy with broth -The teishoku, the appetizers tasted good. -Sometimes the waiters are nice. Cons: -No free refills, what the hell? You are a restaurant you could at least provide your patrons with free refills with your expensive food. -My misoyaki butterfish is ALWAYS BURNT! It shouldn't be this way My butterfish at Restaurant Saito is always cooked to perfection. There was an actual time were the butterfish only tasted like fish there was no miso taste, like they were just rushing the food. -The lobster in the lobster ribeye, was over cooked to the point it was rubbery. -They never offer us tea, which is weird because I hear the waitresses asking everyone else. -It is quite pricey, a plate is around $15-$30. So I will tell you my experience, well the waitress didn't bother to tell me they don't refill fountain drinks so I was upset throughout my whole meal not having another refill. Also, when one of the waitresses served someone else's food to us and was corrected she said, "Shit" quite loud. This was very unprofessional. I guess the management overlooked etiquette and chose 'pretty girls'. Because of the bad service, and the crappy food I will not be returning. **Side note: i heard that owners of Jurisson's Inn, next door to Kunio owns Kunio as well. Maybe there is a correlation between the two. I recommend you go to MAKINO CHAYA. They have a vast buffet there, for lunch $15, for dinner $30 and you can eat A LOT of food. They have a special wagu beef station, and unlimited crab legs and seafood. Yummy =)
(2)Liz L.
This sushi place is incredible. Fresh sushi and generous portions! Good. service and great price. We were in Hawaii on vacation and ate here three times!
(5)Apollo Y.
Food was really good n loved the service but finally found out what $x2 meant....good spot to do a "treat yo self" lunch or dinner but if ur looking for a quick snack for cheap this might not be the place
(4)Star S.
Save your money, eat somewhere else! Service is the worst.. Their wait help can hardly understand any English! Took our order after waiting over 20 minutes and puts 2 place settings for a table of 3, leaves me with nada, zip! Um, do you think I was going to share with someone on the table??? Only after my guest asked, she quietly said, Oh, I thought you only ordered for 2 people? First time there, and it's our absolute last!
(1)Natty D.
Methinks not. Got ahi....then got food poisoning later that night. It was overpriced for the quality. Tempura was meeeerh. The Japanese place in Pearl Ridge by McDonald's is way better! &&cheaper.
(1)Rosie F.
Been here twice and we love the food. My husband is a picky eater, and never gives a place "its good" or "i'd come here again".... Hes more like.. Its okay, even if I feel the place is good. The sushi tastes fresh, and the tempura is yummy. The seats chairs are uncomfortable, so better to get a booth if you can!
(5)Joy V.
Went here for my birthday dinner with my boyfriend. I took them what felt like FOREVER to seat us, and we kept seeing them seat other people who came a after us before us. By the time we sat, we got a little table next to the walk way. After that the service wasn't great. They got to us promptly but after we ordered they took a long time to bring us out our food, and when they finally did our order was incomplete cuz the sushi chefs were backed up on orders. The quality of food is not bad, the pricing on bento's was good for what we ordered. Overall, I didn't have a great first experience there but I would go back to give them another chance.
(3)Bryson L.
Great Japanese food here! Their shrimp tempura is great along with the rest of their menu. I always order their combo plate where you can choose two main items along with rice, salad, and miso soup. I've always loved this place and the restaurant is nice and cozy. Great place to try if your in Waikele!
(5)Katie T.
The food is absolutely delicious!!! Everything is soooooo sooooo good at Kunio's. Everything is very tasty. They don't take reservations but they do keep the flow moving. You'll notice that many people choose to wait as you will definitely see a line around 7pm regardless of the day of the week.
(5)Brandy S.
This is, without a doubt, my favorite Japanese restaurant on Oahu (particularly since my all-time favorite, Misuzu, closed down over a year ago). Every item I've had here was better than what you could get at any other Japanese restaurant, even down to the simple tamago nigiri. I'm told the miso butterfish and shoyu butterfish here are great. The udon and tonkatsu here are delicious as well. Hey, I even applaud their brand of rice (Tamaki Gold). But my personal favorite, and what I go out of my way to get (at one point, I came here three times in three weeks, driving from Kaneohe), is the ahi tempura. It's light, not at all oily, and perfectly crispy. The cuts of ahi that they use are unbelievable - almost buttery in texture, moist, with a nice flavor. I'd say they use sashimi grade ahi for their tempura, but that seems a bit excessive. But it is THAT good. The prices are a little higher than what you'd expect for a family restaurant, but they do give large portions. My guy friends always enjoy coming here because of the attractive waitresses, but really - we're all there for the food. Service is always prompt, with frequent refills on tea and water. It does get busy and reservations are not accepted. This place is consistently busy on weeknights and crazy on Friday and Saturday nights. Waiting for parking can be a headache, but once you put your name on the list, you can always browse through Party City or look at the other shops nearby. My only quibble is that they don't have a more extensive dessert menu. It would be refreshing to see a Japanese restaurant that offers more than the requisite green tea ice cream. But for dinner alone, this place is sublime.
(5)Keane L.
I fly back to San Francisco tonight... My family and I came here for a sort of goodbye dinner and I think we picked a pretty good spot. Good food. Soothing interior. Pretty waitresses. I vaguely remembered liking it the first time I was here, but now it's definitely established itself as one of my favorite restaurants in Hawaii. Prices seem daunting at first, but their servings don't disappoint. (They have good weekday specials that end at 5 pm. Sadly, we missed that.) I ordered the Deluxe Sushi and was thoroughly satiated, which doesn't always happen when I order sushi combos. Texture was excellent and flavor was above par. My mom ordered a bento box with butterfish and salmon, and each piece was grilled to a nice flavorful char. My dad had the soba, and complained about fourteen times... which must mean it's pretty good because he normally complains fifty-seven times. Anyway, I fly back to San Francisco tonight. Night flights intrigue me. The lights go out and everyone is silent... When I sleep, I am in one location. When I wake, a totally different place and time.
(5)Love S.
Thanks to Jane, I checked this place out last week. They have specials from 3pm to 5pm (or maybe till 7) better call and ask. I had a $9 special. 1 piece of hamachi, maguro, salmon nigiri, 1 cut up california roll, miso soup and 2 pieces shrimp tempura with some veggie tempura. Great deal. The fish was somewhat fresh, better than genki but not memorable like Imanas Tei, Yanagi, Akasaka or Tokkuri Tei. This is a decent place for sushi/Japanese food on the west side. I would definitely eat here again if I had a choice between Kunio or Genki. Kunio wins hands down. Thanks for the recommendation Jane.
(4)David S.
Kunio is a great stop for Japanese food. Located in Waikele shopping center, it is in a convenient location after hours of shopping. As evening approaches, waiting time usually increases. Anytime before 6 for dinner here is usually good. Their price is a moderate (plan for 30-35 dollars conservatively per person). I'm 5'5" and I think their seats sit a little low compared to the height of the table. Other than that, their food is great. Love their rice. Overall round up to 5 star experience.
(5)Lisa R.
Food was yummy. Unagi, teriyaki chicken, and butterfish. Service was slow and it was only a Monday night. Took forever to get our 1 small box and to pay. My 2 little kids suddenly both had to go #2. I think an employee started pounding on the door. Not a place to bring kids. Most likely won't return to dine in.
(2)willey k.
Excellent food for the price you pay, which is quite reasonable! Portions are pretty decent as well! I mean no get me wrong, could always go for bigger portions but this is pretty good compared to most Japanese Rest. I think it's better than Kikuya's in Kaneohe, Gyotaku in Pearl City. Miso Butterfish is always a winner along with that spicy ahi roll! If you get room, side order of Furikake Tempura! Ono food! Ono Service! And most of the times, ono waitresses! Be ready to wait if you go during peak times! It's worth it though!
(4)Kurt N.
specialty sushi rolls here are the best! service is awesome!
(4)Jane G.
Funamori party boat, Funamori party boat Oh it's so yummy yummy yummy Funamori party boat, Funamori party boat Get in my tummy tummy tummy You overflow with sushi and sashimi Ebi, salmon, and of course there's ahi There's also crunchy katsu, chicken and pork And big lobsta tails you need to dig out with a fork Teriyaki ribeye steak, vegetable and shrimp tempura... Um sorry, I'm horrible at rhyming. I can't make up a whole jingle, like some other talented people =) The Funamori party boat is just a *little* pricey (24.95 a person), but so much fun to share with 3 other friends (minimum 4 people per order). I'm a simple kinda gal. Shrimp tempura is all I need. Some tonkatsu if I'm feeling porky. Portly. Fatty. Whatever. That would be combination AA, AB, or BB. One of those. Or teriyaki ribeye. Or salmon. Shrimp. I LUUUUUV shrimp. (Sorry, I try really hard to cover it up, but I have ADD moments) And these folks are FAMOUS for their shrimp tempura. Light, crispy, lacy, and not one bit greasy, dunked in their homemade not too sweet or overbearing tempura sauce. I would have taken pictures, but just waiting for this plethora of fried deliciousness is much too long for me. I'm not much of a vegetable person, but the shrimp tempura also comes with 2 carrots, 2 green beans, and 2 eggplant. I love carrots. I kinda like green beans. I despise eggplant. I ate EVERYTHING. So the last time I went, a server walks by with a sizzling hot platter and just the most smokin onolicious steak smell ever. My sister and I flagged down our server to find out what it was. Something ribeye. Were those onions? Yeah those were onions. Stop right there, send one our way! Our sizzling hot platter of ribeye arrives. A large ribeyes steak with beautiful grill marks, a large pat of butter, and lots of sauteed onions. We let it cool slightly because we wanted to keep the roof our mouths... well, on the roof of our mouths and not on our food. We each cut a slice and put in our mouths what we thought would be an amazing piece of steak. It could have been grass-fed lomi lomi massaged every single damn day of its life filet mignon for all we knew, but all we could taste was smoke! Meals come with salad (iceberg lettuce mix with thousand island dressing) and tsukemono. How they do their tsukemono reminds of Korean banchan, because it's never the same each time you go. Oh how can I forget their miso soup?! I am absolutely CRAZY about their miso soup. I get so stoked when I can snag my nephews tofu pieces. Up until I've tried theirs, I never cared for miso soup. Kunio has definitely changed my mind about that!
(5)Stan M.
I love this place. Great food, good price. The menu gives you a lot to choose from.
(5)Jesiree N.
This place is always packed and so there is usually a good amount of wait time. Thankfully though, the workers are always smiling and inviting. Also, the food is OISHI! Because the food is so fresh and good, we continue to come back despite the wait time.
(5)Dean O.
We visited Kunio's about 10 years ago while visiting Oahu and just fell in love with this place. We decided to head for dinner last night. Once again had a great meal and the service was very good. I would strongly recommend Kunio for Japanese food. The Sushi is just the best.
(4)Val B.
Establishment is too small to accomodate the massive amounts of people wanting to dine here. Busy, crowded, overpriced, but decent food. Not a good place for a large group of children to be at because of the lack of space to accomodate a high chair or stroller. The folks behind my friend and I were preaching the word of God loudly, too loud to have a conversation ourselves. There was no other table to move to as the restaurant was jam packed. We had a 20 minute wait and there was nowhere for us to wait, but outside where most of the folks waiting are blocking the entrance. The menu is extensive, but the service was very slow. Not too happy. I can find better Japanese restaurants that has the space, service, good quality food, and better prices.
(2)Aza T.
Service - great Food - chicken Katsu with rice was soggy and old Udon had only 3 little piece of meat Steak was greasy and not so tasteless Butterfish was the only thumbs up Shrimp tempura was crisp, but lacked taste Price - overpriced They should be
(2)Yolanda R.
Tonight, my husband and i went to KUNIO...we had a enjoyable evening!!...my husband order shrimp tempura, teriyaki chicken, and soyu butterfish...as for me i had the soft shell crab with the tonkatsu...it was the BOMB and we will go back again and this time we will order the "THE BOAT"...Kunio is a great place if you are Hungury for Japanese food...as for service, our waiter is the BOMB...5 STARS ALL THE WAY!!..
(5)Jeff M.
Wonderful local Japanese restaurant. Super friendly, good service and quick meals. Went at about 4:45pm and good thing we did. Wait started at 5pm. Very extensive menu of hot food and just as many choices of sushi. Don't be intimidated by the menu, it's both in English and Japanese. Wait staff happy to help decider. I had hot soup with chicken, veggies and udon noodles. Portions big enough to split. This place is a definite repeat visit when visiting Ko Olina. Ma Halo.
(4)Ian G.
This has got to be the best Japanese restaurant on this side of the island. I have never been disappointed with the food or the service. From the sushi to the steak and lobster, everything has been delicious and the portions are good. My mom always says that the shrimp tempura is the best here. The only thing annoying is that it's not a big place so there is always a wait to get a table.
(5)Graham W.
food is "OK" not great and not bad. service is off and on, depends on time of day and mood?? sushi rolls "horrible", i haveyet to have a nicely wrapped roll that holds together! i mean c'mon this is a sushi bar! their bento boxes are great but the green salad they include in them is sub par, some brown/oxidized lettuce and they use the standard store bought oriental flavor dressing, AVERAGE! now i keep coming back because the misoyaki is to die for!! the empura is ghreat but how can anyone get tempura wrong? LOL even though the wait time is greater the service seems to be better during evening dining,almost as if their "A" team is on duty for nights only?
(3)Jessica F.
Great service, pretty good food, not the best sushi in the world but definitely worth a try. I enjoyed our meal and would return if I was passing by for a light lunch. I would give 3 and a half stars if I could, but 4 seemed a little high...
(3)Cheryl K.
As I turned semi-towny, I forgot about the deliciousness they serve up closer to my neck of the woods. Kunio is one of my favorite Japanese restaurants. I love their combo choices where you can choose from 2 different items for a relatively decent price. I chose the Miso Butterfish and the Veggie Tempura and my fiance had Chicken Yakitori and Veggie Tempura the last time we ate with the in-laws-to-be. I loved how its served authentically in those bento boxes kind of thing with the compartments. Just shows how anal retentive I am with keep all of my food seperated. Anyways, just tonight we were craving udon and they close at 10:00 PM so off to Kunio's we went. I had the ebiten udon and the fiance had the wakame udon. Also order gyoza on the side. Mmm! I love it! And I and a lover of udon from Jimbo's and Kunio's made the cut! Their gyoza was fried but pretty tasty. The service is really great and helpful and pretty on it. It gets pretty busy sometimes for dinner so be prepared to wait. Anyways, I dig the restaurant and think it's one of the best Japanese food places on the island.
(5)Marc L.
On the weekends the wait can be super long but other than that the food is ono! A bit pricy tho!
(4)Sheri A.
Had a late lunch at Kunio's in Waikele. Add to the terrible service by waitress Sherri as we finished our green tea my husband noticed a scummy residual at the bottom of his tea cup, (GROSS!) As he scraped his off I checked mine, mine had it too!!! He told the waitress to take it off our bill and all she said was "The green tea is free anyway" NO APOLOGY. How rude can you be. Food was mediocre at best ... DON'T GO THERE! They need to improve their service, cleanliness, and food quality!
(1)David D.
This is one of the best Japanese restaurants I've ever eaten at! I've been here probably a dozen times already and plan to continue coming back as a regular. There is always a line outside every time I've been there. I love the sweet warm sake there. If you've never tried sweet warm sake, try it here. It goes so well with the food! The lobster tail and sizzling garlic steak combo is the best as it comes with side of sushi or sashimi, salad, soy beans and other mixed veggies, and miso soup. If you're on a date, get an extra bowl of rice and extra miso as it comes with one serving of each. However, the portion of the steak and lobster combo is more than enough for 2. Also, the fried shrimp tempura is awesome as it's the thick battered, crispy version. 5 stars for Kunio Restaurant!
(5)Gina C.
My husband and I love this place- super yummy and the staff is so friendly and attentive. This place is always busy too, which is a good sign! We tend to get the same thing when we go- the donburi and the katsu. One of these days we will try something different! It can get crowded by 6 sometimes, so be prepared to wait a bit or try coming a little early. Somewhat pricey, but the food and service is worth it!
(5)Kat A.
They have boneless butterfish!!!!! Its so good!
(4)Guy H.
Good sushi. Had the chicken katsu and sushi special.
(4)Gavin S.
I haven't done many reviews recently. Well tonight I was looking for a place to take a friend too for a belated birthday dinner. As I was going over the reviews this place came with 4 stars. In my book 4 stars is pretty good. Well, we get there we were seated right away. I've passed this place over the weekend before and the line was out the door. For that reason, I've passed it over as an option to eat. But this place must be pretty good because I called before hand to make reservations. They told me over the phone that they didn''t take reservations. I was told to just come by. Wow I think to myself. I was so glad to actually get in without waiting. I'm an impatient person when it comes to waiting for food and getting a seat. They sat us right away. Offered us water without waiting an extreme amount of time. This restaurant never let my cup get dry. I was super happy of that. I've been to other places that make you wait. And I start signalling to waiters/waitresses for water but never can get attention. Well rest assured that wasn't the case tonight. They came on their own will. Anyhow on to what I eventually ordered. I don't exactly remember the number on the menu. It had the misoyaki butterfish, teriyaki meat, and the pork katsu I think. My memory doesn't serve me well at times. The misoyaki butterfish was prepared pretty good. It was cooked but not overcooked and it maintained it's moisture and good flavor. But what really caught my mouth and was shouting yes for was the pork katsu and the sauce. I haven't eaten this good of katsu in awhile. I was super happy. It comes very close to the katsu you get in japan. It was crispy on the outside yet not too hard on the inside. The service was good with them coming by to refill water and checking to see if we need anything. It was a pleasant environment. I could say definitely I'll be back in the future!! I'll end on this last note. I'm not sure when these other yelp reviewers went to Kunio's but I bet the poor reviews were when this place was super busy with a line out the door. I would try to time it when there isn't too much of a crowd and I'm sure you should get good service!!
(4)Kevin D.
i dont get it, everyone talked about how good the butterfish is.....it tasted like butter with a hint of fish. Totally gross, dont do it
(2)Mark G.
Kunio Restaurant is fortunate to be in Waikele I guess because if it was shoulder to shoulder with some of the other restaurants in town some of it's glow would be shadowed. Luckily it stands virtually alone above the Ewa plains. A shining beacon of perfectly acceptable cuisine. There are several well done things, the Saba was good the beer was cold. The cold tofu was pretty good too, very silky. But it I have to hit where it hurts, they seem to be famous for their tempura and I didn't get that. Many people ordered it but for me it was heavy and thick. At least it was on the fish and shrimp. For some reason the vegetables had it about right. It's an ok place. I'd probably eat there again but there is no way I'd wait long, as I see some people doing. Not worth that.
(3)Jeraldine O.
LOVE Kunio! One of my favorite Japanese restaurant. Shrimp tempura doesn't get any better this; like none other. Even the miso butterfish my fav. Hubby always gets the #69. It's with sashimi and steak. Green tea ice cream is always a must have when we eat there.
(5)Ryan O.
Excellent Japanese food, best tempura in Hawaii. Good portions, great combo sets and delicious sushi! The fact that it's close to home is also a major plus for me, making it a nice stop for small celebration dinners. (tonight we're celebrating my fiancee's dads birthday... sorry for not inviting you guys!) The only qualm I have is the fact that i can't make a reservation or do call ahead seating.... If Cinderella rode up in here with her prince, her ride would turn back into a pumpkin by the time they got a seat at the table. And the parking on that side of Waikele blows... You have more of a chance parking in the lower lot by KFC and walking up to the restaurant than waiting around for a stall close by.
(3)Sherwin T.
I believe, the only non-chain food provider in the Waikele Shopping Center, but probably the most expensive of the lineup too (which was a comment I heard time and again from passersby as me and the folks waited for a table at dinner time). The biggest surprise to me was their lack of appetizers!!! - WTF??? We'd waited a good 30 minutes on this particular night and were feeling munchie. To start, we settled on an order of sashimi, which seemed more like an entree because the pieces were so THICK; good deal though, yeah? The dinner menu is a smattering of sushi rolls, bentos, combo bentos and combo combo bentos - it's really a bit overwhelming and schizophrenic. Between my parents and me, I had a pretty good sampling of the Kunio food experience. I was impressed with their tempura skills cause it was like the shrimp had been cooked in air - no trace of oil whatsoever, but certainly crunchy and light. The quality at Kunio certainly justifies the higher price - if you want a more affordable meal o' sushi, head a few doors down to McGenki (or as my boyfriend likes to call it Skanky Sushi - if you couldn't tell, we're BIG fans...serious).
(3)Lorinne N.
Never dissappointed here! Amazingly it wasn't busy at 1200 on a weekday. There's usually always a wait! But so worth it! Service is always great even when busy.
(5)Dan B.
Outlet shopping can really build up an appetite. The only problem is I didn't really want to eat at an outlet restaurant. To my surprise, Kunio is this gem of a restaurant tucked away between a Party City and a couple other restaurants. The thing that got me was all the locals and Japanese tourists who were eating here. Now, I understand the tourists since it's outlet shopping but for locals to also go here should tell you this place must be good. And it is GOOD. I thought I was the only one who thought the butterfish misoyaki here was outstanding since I have no reference, but Lisa C. has confirmed my suspicions. In addition to the fish, I also got a nicely grilled and tender beef teriyaki. The wife got the tonkatsu donburi which she thought was just okay. I sorta liked it since they gave you such a generous portion: which meant more food for yours truly. I recommend you try to place if you get a chance. And if you do try it, have the butterfish misoyaki and tell me what you think.
(4)Curious A.
Ahhh it's aight! Nothing to rave about. We always see crowds waiting to get seated when we go to genki so we wanted to sample it for ourselves and their portions are small compare to spicy ahi. Quality of food is aye okay! They do have lots of choices on the menu. I got their salmon - grilled with the shrimp & vegetable tempura and the salmon tasted kinda fishy eeew. The batter for the tempura wasn't all that and the shrimp was tiny. Sad.... That being said, don't think I'm coming back!
(3)Olivia F.
My family/friends and I always dine at Kunio. The food is delicious. I love everything on their menu. Service is wonderful all the workers are very friendly and very accommodating. The ambiance is also terrific. There's usually a long waiting list but it is always worth the wait.
(5)Emiko T.
Pretty good portions for the price and everything was fresh. Had the toro and miso butterfish (thank you fellow yelpers!) and everything was great. Nice quaint little restaurant that has character in an otherwise commercialized shopping center.
(4)Linda K.
I came here for the happy hour special. They have it on Monday thru Thursday between 2-5pm. It comes with tsukemono, miso soup, 4 piece California roll, one salmon, one hamachi, one ahi nigiri, and your choice of zaru soba, zaru udon, chicken katsu, yonkatsu, or shrimp tempura for 9.75. It's a great deal for what you get but they only offer it when no one really wants to eat. The food was excellent but we also glanced over their regular menu and it looked expensive. The restaurant is nice and clean and the waitress was friendly. I give it 4 stars cause I don't think it's a good value unless you come during the special. Otherwise it's really expensive. Next time I'll bring my grandma here. Old people eat early anyways.
(4)LESTER T.
I ordered the oyako donburi and the gyoza. The gyoza was kinda pricey for just 6 pieces. It was good though especially with the sauce they provided. The oyako was pretty good but not worth the wait, nor was the portion very filling. The servers were attentive and apologized a few times for the wait. As for coming here in the future, I do see myself going there in the but only if it's part of a group that wants to go there.
(3)Kevin S.
The food here is very tasty and its my parents second favorite Japanese restaurant on the Leeward side though I will admit its a distant second to Futaba. In any case, I will have to admit this place does get pretty busy as the prices and portions aren't bad and its located in a pretty residential area and well after work its packed. I really like the tempura and teishoku plates so definitely give this place a look if you're at Waikele outlet mall and would like slightly better food than food court quality stuff.
(3)S F.
Went to Kunio's for dinner with family. I had the combo salmon and chicken katsu. Everything was yummy and service was excellent as always!!! I asked for a box to take my left overs home and they had tonkatsu sauce in a small container already in the take out box.
(5)Boki C.
maybe 3.5... or 3.75. it was a few months ago when i ate this.. so i can't REALLY remember the names of stuff that we ate. but we had this fresh seafood stew/soup thing was DELICIOUS. i've had better and cheaper sushi... but it was still good here. it's in waikele. small & quiet spot. not too rowdy. i'd consider going again since it's close enough to where i live.
(4)Jojo R.
We got to Kunio at around 9:30pm, half an hour before closing and we still have to wait for about 15 mins to sit down. Food was excellent and the service was very good. In the 45 mins that we were there, they filled our hot tea about 5 times. We ordered the #69, kunio tempura and beef teriyaki combo and rainbow roll... The sashimi that came with our food just melted in our mouths...did I. Mention the food was very good? Two thumbs up....and a big toe!
(4)Alex S.
Close to home and never disappoints! Can't say enough about this place. The service is very consistent and the food is always good. I usually get the cold soba and misoyaki butter fish, mmmm... and the sushi bar is fresh with a great variety of classic sushi favorites, Dynamite roll, rainbow roll and spider roll is the usual order when I go! Everyone can share that! Prices are a little high but I feel they are reasonable for the great food, service and Japanese atmosphere! Reminds me, I need to go soon!
(4)annette p.
Love the miso butterfish! Ordered it both times here and even though it was brought out lukewarm the 2nd time (I think the waitress was trying to hold off to bring my husband's sushi rolls at the same time), it was still scrumptious-melt-in-my-mouth! How is it so tender??? And fresh fresh sushi/sashimi. My other half ordered rolls and I had the Butterfish/Sashimi combo. His rolls were stuffed full of beautiful fish and my sashimi were cut perfectly. One of my only requests was for the rice of his rolls to be more sushi-like rice. The rice that was rolled seemed almost to be like the rice I was served as part of my meal...not your normal sushi sticky rice. Other than this, Kunio is an awesome dining experience, and the prices are reasonable considering the quality of the food. Service is always friendly as well.
(4)Rebecca H.
Tried this place on a whim and based on other yelp reviews. We are somewhat stranded in Hawaii waiting for motor repairs on our boat. In any case, I was hungry for sushi and this place did not disappoint! The first thing that struck me was the long, complicated, japanese-english menu. I go to lots of sushi places in San Francisco but there were things on this menu I'd never heard of. Which was definitely cool. We both got chiriashi bowls (basically a bunch of raw fish and things on a bowl of rice.) The fish was unbelievable. Very fresh. Lots of variety in such a tiny bowl! It also comes with a yummy plate of tiny appetizers and very good miso soup. After all this I still had room for Azuki bean ice cream, which was also excellent. Highly recommend!
(5)Kacy M. O.
I used to work at Kunio for 4 years (2003-2007) so my review may be a little biased but then again, I'm writing this review about 4 years after I've last worked there so...you can either take what I say or leave it. I know the menu like the back of my hand and I have to say that if you are a fish eater, get the miso butterfish or hamachi Kama. The combination meals are a good way to sample two different things. It comes with miso soup, salad, and a small and I mean SMALL appetizer...which is usually edamame, tsukemono and gobo. The udon suki is good if you like nabes and it comes with homemade ponzu sauce to dip everything in. Kunio makes good white rice, it's fluffy and they don't scrimp on quality. For sushi, I would say they have better than decent quality and my favorite rolls are probably the dynamite which is spicy hamachi, the salmon carpaccio which is only served on weekends, and the rainbow roll. They don't have much selection for desserts, just ice cream. Oh and one more thing, don't get pissed off at the servers, if your food takes long, it's not their fault! The kitchen is only so small and the cooks buss their butts back there trying to make all the little dishes that Japanese food requires so give them a break. Just relax and your food will be there as soon as it is done. Some customers are so impatient...they should just go to a drive thru if they are going to complain about waiting.
(4)Albert Y.
Pretty large menu with a variety of Japanese dishes. The food is pretty good and the portions are not bad at all. Try the miso butterfish!
(4)Daisy S.
Came here on time because I was craving for some shrimp tempura.. I actually like the place, but hubby didn't. I must agree with him that it is a little pricey. So, I kind of regret that we never returned before we left Hawaii.
(4)Jaynie K.
I've been lucky enough where I've never had to wait in line to eat at Kunio. Miso butterfish is so crazy delicious! Perfectly seasoned and totally melts in your mouth! And the sashimi is so great! Fresh, thick slices of almost buttery fish... MMMMMMMM! So good!
(5)Donald K.
Great Japanese food, excellent service. I'd go back. Had the Chirashi "A" tonight. At $26 not cheap but this was worth it. Had a bit of everything, couple pieces each hamachi, tai or flounder, salmon, clam, tako, egg, 4 pieces tuna of 2 varieties, dollop each of ikura and tobiko, 1 raw scallop, 1 ika. The only obvious MIA was unagi. The bed of sushi rice had good flavor but was not overpowering. Generous veggies (takuan and some pickled root) on the Chirashi plate. The tsukemono and soup were great, but the soybeans were overly spicy hot. The beer offering were good, I had a big bottle of Echigo which was very good, for $6.75. I was impressed with the fast friendly attentive service. I thought the chairs uncomfortable and the table too high. But all in all an enjoyable dinner. Waiting area is nonexistent so plan your visit accordingly. Also, this is not a place to sit and relax for a few hours they will likely be gently prodding you to leave. Go to an izakaya if you want that...
(4)Ange M.
I have been here many times and this review is long past due. I love this place. It is my favorite Japanese restaurant on Oahu. The food is always good (everything I have had), the service is always spot on, and prices are reasonable. Sometimes it can get pretty busy, but I have never had to wait for a table even if there were a lot of us. My only complaint is that they are not closer to town so I have to drive a bit to get there when on Oahu. But somehow, I always find my way there.
(5)Michelle C.
The sushi here is fantastic! Hubby and I shared the rainbow roll and the tempura roll, and both surely did not disappoint. The fish was fresh, the avocado was smooth and creamy. Tempura shrimp was light years better than most places I've because you can actually taste the shrimp. I'm not a fan of tempura'd batter so if you like tempura like we do then this is the place to give it a try. Friendly staff, clean, prompt service. Kid-friendly. They had a good size menu with bento boxes and entrees that looked really enticing. For a family restaurant, the entree prices were a little on the high side, but the rolls were on par with any other sushi bar. Our only regret is that we couldn't indulge in more!
(5)Trina M.
I like it. The fish is fresh. Slightly expensive, but I've yet to find a resturant aside from Zippy's that isn't.
(4)Kayfo T.
Excellent Japanese food. A little pricey, but it's expected for high quality Japanese food! I got the shrimp tempura udon which was really good. My friend got the misoyaki butter fish which he said was the best he ever had! Service staff was also very friendly! Highly recommended.
(4)Chelsea F.
This was the first time eating here. When we arrived it wasn't too busy, so we were seated right away. It was so nice and elegant there. Pretty lights. Not too loud. I order katsu with teriyaki chicken and it was so heavenly. Cooked to perfection! Hopefully I'll be going there again.
(4)R M.
I really liked this place. The miso butterfish was delicious. This is a great place that it looked like was full of locals. It is located in a stripmall, but if you are looking for good food and not ambiance then this is the place for you.
(4)Lizzie C.
Eh, it's alright. I tried their California rolls and unagi rolls and I've had better. Not bad though. However, it seems a bit pricey even for just your standard roll.
(3)Marc H.
The sushi here is off the hook! It's so fresh, moist and it just melts in your mouth. One of my favorite is the caterpiller roll. As for dinner, you can't go wrong with the combo dinners, and top it off with a big asahi. Great food, reasonable prices, and a full belly...what else can you ask for?
(5)Cynthia A.
Both times I've been here the wait was at least 15 minutes. A cool thing about this restaurant: They have these giant boats of sushi that seem fun for parties of 3 or more. The bad thing about this restaurant: Starting 20 minutes after we finished eating here (while sitting in my fiance's parents house, at the kitchen table...), I started having the worst gas of my entire life! I never imagined that I could be filled with so much air, but it just kept coming out! Thankfully the drive home by myself took about 40 minutes so I could let out the worst of it, but Geez! I know it's gross, but I gotta say this because it's freakishly weird - I never have gas like that. All I ate was some oshinko maki and a tanuki udon, and then this crazy phenomenon occured. WTH?! Yuck, I'm not eating at this restaurant again if I can help it. Was it MSG? I don't know, but I eat a lot of Japanese food and I don't usually get crazy gas afterwards. Hours: 10:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sunday and Monday; 10:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday Prices: About $16 to $50 for two for lunch or dinner
(2)Maria M.
This place can be a bit pricey, but it has good quality sushi. I've been here on several occasions (maybe more) and the food has been excellent all of those times. The majority of the time I've had the sushi boat, which has very fresh sashimi. It seems like a very popular place because there is always a waiting time. The employees are nice and service is always good. I'll be coming back here for sure.
(4)Richard D.
Me and da Mrs love this place; it's our fav Japanese restaurant. Almost always a line at the door. Shrimp tempura and chicken katsu are yummy as is everything. Wash it all down with a cold Kiren and I am a happy camper! Compai!
(5)Marisa O.
Food is good. Try the nabeyaki udon, it's fabulous! They have a combination menu that you can choose two items off of to make a plate, so the selections and combinations can take a bit of time to get down. The sushi bar is ok, but overall, the food is good. Service is pretty good, and although the prices can run a little high, depending on what you get, it's worth it. It's casual dining.
(4)Nicole K.
it's rather expensive here, and i've heard great reviews about it from my friends. i went here with my grandparents, but it wasn't as good as i thought. maybe my expectations were high because of all the good stuff i heard. don't get me wrong, they do have good food. their sushi isn't as good as i thought. i had their tempura, and it was pretty good. overall, it wasn't fantastic, and it wasn't horrible. it just was.
(3)Gunther W.
This is my favorite sushi place in west Oahu. I have been here numerous times, and the quality of the food is first rate. I am a huge fan of the Sunset rolls. (Nori with a layer of salmon, a spicy tuna mix with tobiko, slice of cream cheese all rolled up and dipped in tempura batter served with tempura sauce). The fish is very fresh, the chefs remember you when you come in, and the speed of service at the bar is great. I have also had the teriyaki steak and it was WONDERFUL!! The shrimp tempura is also VERY good since it is not one of the places that the shrimp is all batter and a small piece of shrimp.
(5)ed k.
I can't understand why Kunio is receiving such positive reviews. I'm not an expert on Japanese food but I do know when I'm served bad shrimp tempura. Tempura which reflected unchanged oil which resulted in a very greasy heavy tempura. Man was it bad!!! There are way better Japanese restaurants. Pearl City has Spicy Ahi and town has Hinone Mizunone.
(1)Justin L.
I have been going here with my family for many years and have noticed a decline in the quality of food and service. Last night was the worst of these experiences with the food coming at all different intervals with the Nabeyaki Soba [the simplest of the dishes] being the last to come. We all ate our meals at different times and was a really unpleasant experience with wait staff being the core of the problem. The maki sushi was falling apart on the plate before being touched. Another problem is the furniture, the essential thing to do in a restaurant is proper seating, the booth seats were incredibly low and the table height being chest high and very uncomfortable to eat at unless you want to relive your childhood proportions. The restaurant is definitely not 4.5 stars and should really be reconsidered by yelpers.
(2)N G.
always crowded and kind of expensive but i love it! good food. lots of choices.
(5)Skizzle D.
For someone not from this part of the Island it is harder to make a decision on where to eat; when you don't frequent an area you don't have the experience of eating at many of the local restaurants to have a good understanding of what is conveniently available and worth your hard earned money. Until about a year ago, whenever I would make the trip out to Waikele for some discount shopping, I would find myself eating at places I knew (i.e. Chili's, Genki Sushi, Little Caesar's). My taste buds weren't doing back-flips but at least my hunger was gone. Now, after several meals at Kunio, things are different and I'm happy to report I have a regular spot to eat after a long day of shopping at Waikele. There are many reasons as to why I gave this place five stars, here are just a few: Price does not always equal value - At first glance the prices seem a little high, by like 20%, but then the food arrives and you're like "wow! all that for only $15" then you taste it and you're like "wow! I didn't know $15 could taste so good!" Convenience - as stated above, finding a good place to eat when you're far from home is key, especially after a full day of shopping. Service - super friendly wait-staff, cute local girls, always accommodating. Freshness and Flavor - The tempura is light and not greasy (and so good!). The sushi and sashimi is always fresh (no chlorine taste like some places). Butterfish is onolicious (miso or shoyu). So, if you're in Waikele and reading this on you iPhone because you're hungry and don't know where to eat... hopefully this will help.
(5)Jake K.
Their seating policies leave much to be desired. While many restaurants will require at least half the party be present to hold a table, they will let 2 people hold a six seater. Of course, I learned my lesson, next time I show up earlier than my group, I'll just hold a table asap. I made the mistake of waiting for most of my group to show up and two people who entered just ahead of me snagged the six seater that was available. We gave up waiting 10 minutes into the quoted 45 minute table wait-time since the 6 seater hadn't even ordered yet (since none of their 4 others had shown up). Considering how busy they are, allowing that kind of thing to happen is kind of crappy. I guess I can't expect any improvement there, though, the fact that they're busy indicates that they probably won't feel the need to change anything. At least there were multiple "Plan B" restaurants to choose from nearby.
(1)Lisa C.
My favorite place to get butterfish misoyaki because they have a huge menu with tons of combinations to choose from and the prices are not bad at all. And the portions are Big. The atmosphere at Kunio is casual, but nice enough to have family gatherings, which we often do. There is a room in the back for large groups - but what's weird is that they make you take off your shoes, even though you are sitting at regular tables and chairs. This is a great place for lunch and dinner, but it is always crowded so be prepared to wait - I'm pretty sure they only take reservations for large parties.
(5)Christopher C.
great experience was here about a month ago and the food and service were great just a bit of a wait to get in. wished I had known about this earlier because we decide on the place till I was pretty hungry. looking fwd to my next trip there once i figure out someone to go with
(4)ayyyych m.
even the miso soup was best i ever had lol...miso butterfish was heavenly! hamachi sake and maguro was like butter!
(5)Jacob S.
This is always a good place to eat. The place is always crowded since their food is consistently good. Definitely worth trying if you haven't yet.
(4)Ms. P.
i really enjoyed this restaurant. staff was very friendly and sashimi was really fresh! good taste. my only reservation was that it was little bit on the pricy side...
(4)J F.
My dad wanted some good seafood for Father's Day dinner so we decided to do Japanese again. We got a bit lost getting there but enjoyed the neighborhood we were driving through. The amount of people waiting outside made my mom consider going to another restaurant but made my dad only want to eat there more. The wait wasnt too bad (they said 40 min but we were probably seated in 25 min) and the food was worth the wait. We dined on the following: -miso butterfish (recommended by Yelpers): everyone must try this; the fish is so juicy and the flavoring is perfect -hamachi kama: not fried like the one we ordered at Kuru but still good. Not as delicious as Chef Ricky's though. -mixed sashimi: seriously can not go wrong with the fresh fish in hawaii -unagi nigiri: have never seen the unagi bigger than what we have seen in hawaii -sukiyaki: the flavor was a little different but we still enjoyed it -mixed tempura: yum.
(4)Brian L.
I have been here several times and am never disappointed. We stopped by here as soon as we landed in Hawaii. We had a rainbow roll and a deluxe crab salad and miso butterfish. The miso was so tasty. Wow. The rainbow roll was super fresh and the crab salad was nice. The servers were really friendly and we didn't have to wait long. All of this and a fruit punch for $42. What a great way to start a trip!
(4)warren k.
we ended up here after shopping at the outlet & its seriously a treasure found! ive been looking for a classic japanese restaurant & this is def. it! its clean, good service & the food tastes really good! the price is a bit higher than the usual but its worth it~ we get the AB combo meal w/ the vege tempura which is excellent & super crisp & fresh! and the chicken teriyaki was very good quality! i also got the sushi combo which was so good! all the meals came with sides of salad, japanese pickles/seaweed & soup! you can really taste the quality at this place!
(5)jason u.
Went to Waikele last night and was lucky enough to find Kunio. The interior is very nice but still has a casual feel to it. As soon as you open the menu, you are bombarded with a lengthy menu. There are so many choices it kind of gives your brain a work out. After you order, you get some tasty sides (the soy beans and imitation crab are the best). I ordered the AB Combination with Saba and Tonkatsu and hamachi sushi while the gf ordered Shrimp Tempura Udon and Spicy Ahi. The slices of fish for the sushi were surprisingly thick and fresh (which made it way better than the paper slices they serve at Genki Sushi next door). The spicy ahi was pretty spicy and served with avocado. The only thing that disappointed me was that my tonkatsu was a little dry. But other than that, its definitely the best place to eat at Waikele. And maybe it was just the night I went but all the waitresses were very attractive. Overall, good local style Japanese food for a reasonable price. Definitely worth a try for yourself.
(4)Elle U.
One of our favorite Japanese restaurant! Miso butterfish, tempura and fried scallops are our fav! My daughter ordered the spicy poke bowl. She drank 3+ glasses of water but said it was worth it. Service is always top notch! Very friendly and accessible. Can't help with the long wait, but when you look in the window, it's hard not to question why are there empty tables... All in all, we always enjoy it! Note: it can be entertaining watching cars fight over parking or see people park on the handicap stall but both driver and passengers are healthy and walk better than me... Lol!
(5)A G.
I'm never disappointed when eating at Kunio. They have so many options, but I always end up getting a combo. During our recent visit, I had the chicken katsu and teri beef combo which was YUM. They accomodated our party of 7 on a busy Friday night and we didn't have to wait to long. The waitress was nice and friendly, even after asking her to split the check 3 ways. The restaurant is always clean and has a great feel to it. Prices are reasonable.
(4)Conor I.
I love Kunio. This is one of the best Japanese resturants on this side of the island. I always get the #69 conbo. Teri Ribeye Steak, Tempura, And Sashimi. They bring you a bowl of miso soup and a little plate of apetizers which usually consists of 3 seasoned edamame, some gobo and some kind of fish. I like their edamame so I usually also order a side order of it. Add an ice cold 22oz bottle of Kirin and you have a match made in heaven. The california roll here is good too with the real crab and all their other sushi is always super fresh and generous cuts of fish. After writing this review I want to go back, and I was just there 2 days ago!
(5)Amy K.
My family likes this place, i however do not care for it... (im a bitch of a critic) Food is average nothing special...way over priced.. Sushi is very delightful. Sushi Chef and kitchen timing is horrible even when they are slow. If you order a combo from the sushi bar and kitchen expect your hot food to come very cold or your sushi to be withered... Some servers are ok. However, Service gets a total of half a star . One hostess is extremely nice but she does tend to her regulars and will go out of her way to get an extra tip from them even if it means neglecting the rest i the customers.... The one Asian girl server/hostess is extremely rude. She made us sign in today when there were five empty tables... Then a couple walked out of party city asked a table for two and she sat them then sat us... Smh... Then I ask for a straw and it comes five minutes later unwrapped and in the servers bare hand. Nasty! Put it in a napkin. I swear these servers need some common sense.?!??? This place has horrible service..... mediocre Food... decent sushi great presentation.... and did i mention horrible service?.... That's why the low rating...
(2)Mike C.
Hidden gem outside of town. Price for sushi is super reasonable and one of my favorites on the island. Best place to eat if your hanging out at Waikele. They don't take reservations so get there early.
(5)Niki T.
Prices are decent. Azuki ice cream is the best. I am a regular but I am truly sad and disappointed. Kunio what happened today!? Im a regular and I eat here very frequent, but today must have been an off day. I'm only doing this review because I brought a friend here telling her how great this place is. We usually eat at Chilis, but I really wanted her to come here today! This was her first time here and I assured her it was worth it... I guess I came on the wrong day where the waitresses could CARELESS. Not to much smiles, they looked like they didn't want to be there, but heres what got me. 1 out of 2 cups of water had lipstick all over the rim. We noticed AFTER drinking the cup. I asked for a empty bowl to share my udon with my son, she gave it to me with DRY FOOD STUCK all over the bowl. Then the spoons they gave us (THAT WAS ALREADY IN OUR SOUP) had food stuck to it and a hair attached to the back. The worse part, our server didn't care much. She brought back new utensils and what not, but did she really think that made up for it? Maybe the dishwasher quit, i don't know. The food today took longer as usual too, so not sure if the waitresses had to play their role, plus the cook and dishwasher. All i know is i was embarrassed for recommending this place, bringing someone here, having slow service and dirty dishes. My three year old son told me, "MOM THAT IS DISGUSTING" I take my son, boyfriend, and friend here 2-3 a month, and i'm not sure ill return as frequent. It was upsetting to rant and rave about how great this place is and in return have such a horrible experience. Not even a complimentary dessert or anything for those dirty dishes and its not like it was one thing. Cups, spoons, bowls, basically everything. If the tea cups weren't black who knows what I would have found. Very unsanitary for a restaurant. There are health codes restaurants need to follow. I wish they would have been more caring about all their nasty dishes. LOST A CUSTOMER.
(1)Judy S.
Dinner here tonight was ok not great. Place was busy as we left but only 2-3 tables when we arrived. Fried oysters were over cooked had very little flavor. Spouse had chicken katsu donburi and said was good. Sushi was average. Given prices not sure I would eat here again.
(3)Sharon N.
We love coming here. This place has to be one of my favorite Japanese restaurants to go to, and it's a short drive from where we live. There can be a wait if you arrive at "dinner time." So my husband and I like going an hour before the rush starts, and we're good to go. We love getting the combo of either miso butterfish and teriyaki chicken or the miso butterfish and mixed tempura. Whatever it is, you have to try the miso butterfish. Super good here! My husband and I also like getting the lobster tail and ribeye steak combo. I mean...you can't go wrong with lobster, right? When you get the combo, it comes with miso soup and this little tray of side samplers. Depending on the day, it will vary from imitation crab salad to edamame, to shoyu potatoes. It is a tiny sampler so don't expect a whole lot. It's good, though. We love getting surprised at what we get. This place has never taken reservations, which kind of sucks, because one time we were planning a little surprise brunch for a party of about 12 and was thinking of getting that little small private dining room. However, it's a nice little restaurant with good Japanese food. Give it a try!!! The price is reasonable for good Japanese food.
(4)Joy N.
Kunio's is located in Waikele Shopping Center next to Party City. It's a small restaurant and they do not take reservations so expect to wait about 20-40 minutes if you're going at dinner time on the weekends. Parking can also be difficult at times since the lot gets busy since there's a bunch of food places in that area. We usually order the following items: - Combination AB - Miso butterfish and sashimi (there's a lot of choices to choose from so you can customize according to what you like... I've never had anything here that I didn't like) - Cold Tofu (average cold tofu with all the bonito and ginger but like how the tofu is very soft) - Chirashi (BF loves this and always gets it. They have 2 different versions... one just has more slices in it) - Salmon Nigiri (nice slab of sashimi; always fresh) Still want to try the boat entree that has lobster, sushi, and a whole lot of other yummy items but it's a bit pricey... Gotta come here on a special occasion when we're willing to splurge!
(4)Kiichi R.
Actual rating, 3.5 stars. Cliff Notes: Average-tasting, small Japanese restaurant with a selection of 150+ of items. Details: My folks love this place. Living close by, it's their go-to restaurant for casual celebrations. I personally didn't care for it at first. Now, it's ok. What's changed, or rather, what hasn't changed? First off, the staff. Overall, I'd rate them 4/5 stars. I don't recall a single time that they've been rude or unaccomodating, but I can think of once or twice they didn't seem happy either. But I mean, EVERYONE gets tired at work at some point so it's not really something I'd knock them for, if at all. Second, the space. Forget getting an immediate seat during dinner time. They're always packed and as far as I know, don't take reservations. Wait times can vary between 15 minutes to upwards of 45. I'd say there are about 12-13 tables that can sit a party of 4, a sushi bar, and a room that has an additional 3-4 tables, or can be reserved for parties. Lastly, food. A large list of selections, from combos, to nabeyaki, to zaru sobas, to teishokus, to sashimi, down to sushi rolls. There ought to be something for everyone. Heck, they even have lobster tail and rib eye! So huge plus for having a lot of options. However, not so great in the taste department. It isn't torture to eat here, but I wouldn't go anywhere near saying they're delicious either. To each their own but there are other restaurants that have better tasting food (e.g. Ojiya). Again, it's not the best, but considering the price you pay, it doesn't make the sting any less painful. I had the fried oyster and scallop last night and it was rock-hard, the fried shell. The kaki (oysters) weren't fresh and unflavorful. The scallops were alright. The sushi we ordered weren't very flavorful. About the only thing I actually liked and wasn't neutral about was the tea. I grew up hating eating here, and it's not high on my list, but I've at least grown to be able to eat here, after figuring out what they do offer that's usually good (zaru soba for one). Honestly, I'd rather just eat at Chili's.
(3)Annie W.
Lunch special for just under $10 is not that bad of a deal. You get miso soup, choice of chicken katsu or tonkatsu. Basically, it's either breaded chicken or breaded pork along with some salad. I just remember it being really cold in that restaurant and made having conversation a bit intolerable without the proper attire. Back to the food, I thought it was just so so and the menu is quite pricey without the specials. It's better than hitting up Genki's for a quick meal after a long shopping spree.
(3)T T.
Yum!! I always wondered why they have a long line and decided to try this place. No disappointment here. Food is yummy and atmosphere is so fitting.
(4)kristine f.
If you are shopping at the Waikele Premium Outlets be sure to stop off at Kuno's for a nice local Japanese meal. I love their combination meals as there are so many options. The prices are a little high but Japanese good is typically on the pricier side.
(4)Ramfis B.
If you are on the west side of the island and looking for a decent place to eat Japanese food, then Kunio's is probably your best bet for some pretty good Japanese fare. Located at the Waikele Shopping Center, Kunio's packs em in day in and day out. The pricepoint here isn't as bad as you think and they do have a wide array of items to choose from which includes Sushi,Sashimi, Teishoku combinations, and Udon. They also have a party boat which has an assortment of goodies but have to be ordered by four people. Everytime i come here, i order the 69, which includes Steak, which is thin sliced, Sashimi, Shrimp Tempura, Rice, Salad, and Miso Soup. Not a bad combination for a little over 20 dollars. Also, the sushi here is quite good and very tasty. Just about everything you order here is pretty good and i love the atmosphere here. The service here is usually pretty efficient and friendly. I have to admit, they do have some very attractive waitresses that work here and makes my dining experience much more pleasant, even with the wife watching on with a keen eye =). This is a very short review for me but with the lack of stellar Japanese Restaurant on the westside of the island, i would definitely recommend Kunio's for anyone who doesn't want to make that trek out to Honolulu..
(4)Tru H.
Very friendly, helpful service tonight. From walking through the door til we left, everyone was so pleasant and attentive. Food was delicious. Medium rare ribeye teishoku and a vegetable tempura/teri chicken combo. They could add a couple more soybeans to the appetizer and we didn't get any tsukemono, however, the food was delicious. Satisfied but not over stuffed. Two thumbs up.
(5)Alison L.
Very awesome japanese restaurant... so awesome, we went here twice in a week, while vacationing in Oahu. Great food and sushi! Parking may take a while and they don't take reservations. My only con-- I wish they also served some Kona Brewing Co (but I get it, it's a Japanese restaurant, therefore Japanese beer).
(4)Caprice L.
Best Japanese on the westside. The service is always good and the waitresses are always friendly. The food is delish. I recommend the miso butterfish and the fried scallops. Also their nabeyaki is great for a cold day. If you go during "quitting time" expect a little bit of a wait but it's worth it!
(5)Gee Gee M.
Five or four starts except for this evening - what a disappointment - the server/waitress that sat us was rude from the beginning - my friend walks with a cane so when we were called, I stood up and the gal just started to walk ahead - I followed a bit, called out excuse me and although she did even turn around, I asked her (her back) to point out the table and we will be fine [as soon as my friend can catch up and get to the table] - the menus were left at the table which was fine and she just walked away but so rude of her not to even acknowledge at all. When our order was being taken my friend asked for separate tabs and said she was going to also order takeout so she wanted it separate from my tab. Orders were placed, we asked for water, and tea for my friend and I said tea for me later will be fine. Thereafter we sat and sat, never ever saw her again the whole evening. A younger server came by and asked if we were okay - I told him we were okay and that someone was getting our water, etc. We continued to wait and waited a LONG time - finally I got the attention of the same guy and told him that when I responded earlier that we were okay, we did not realize that we were not going to be served at all. I also mentioned that my friend had ordered a small bottle of sake. I asked him where was the server that took our order - he answered me by saying I'm taking care of you now - I told him yes, but where is she to just leave us waiting for so long. He then said oh she must be running around in the back. This guy brought our water and tea for both of us and said he would check on our order. He later brought us soup, etc. and thereafter the food started to come. My dinner order was okay, but my friend's order was treated as Ala Carte (we both had ordered combinations) so she had to ask for rice separately. One of our sushi orders was mixed up too. When one of the servers that wears the 'hapi coats' came over to ask if we wanted dessert, I took the opportunity to tell her how awful the service was. I asked her what happened to the server that took our order and she said that she was working in another area (My friend and I never saw her). My friend chimed in to let her know that we go there often and usually have a server named Jesse wait on us and have always gotten good service - she said he had left earlier finishing up a day shift - and said he is now on day shifts for Sundays. She did say sorry to my rambling of the awful service. She then brought the take out order and the check. Yes the check. I called her back and told her that my friend had specifically asked for separate checks and again expressed that the person that took our order just did not handle things from the very beginning. So frustrated at that point in time. They offered to have it rung up separately but we declined the offer and said we would figure it out which we did. So sad that one person started off which such poor service and it messed up everything throughout the evening aside of that guy that picked up the pieces so-to-speak, nobody really cared from our point of view that we got awful service. Thank you to this guy for making up for as much as he could to service us. As far as everyone else, awful service - poor service.
(2)Jackie Q.
Great place. They have a really big menu of over 100 items, so we had a hard time picking what we wanted. We wanted to try a little bit of everything! I guess it's good though because there is all the more reason to come back and try something new. Between the two of us, we ordered their deep fried scallops and a spider roll maki to share, and we both ordered the lobster/ribeye steak/sashimi combination. My fiance and I can eat a lot, but let me tell you we had a lot of food on our table. Well I guess for every full entrée, they start you off with a light salad and a seaweed appetizer with seasoned soybeans. They also serve the miso soup with the appetizers. They were all pretty good, standard for Japanese restaurants. Our appetizers came next. The spider roll was good. It was stuffed with big succelent pieces of crab which i loved. Our deep fried scallops had a good tasty batter on the outside that was hot and crispy. However, although they were large scallops and seemed of good quality they were a bit tough. Then came our sashimi, which was a combination of ahi, salmon, and some other type of fish. The sashimi was very good and fresh. Delicious! Then our main entrée came of our ribeye steak and lobster. The lobster was cooked perfectly- not tough or rubbery, it was juicy and chewy and seasoned very well. I didn't really need the melted butter that they provided on the side. The ribeye steak was about an 8 oz portion and it was served on a sizzling platter on a bed of grilled onions. There was a slice of butter on the steak added for good measure, however I felt like the butter was just too much. The steak was 'okay', needed salt and a bit grizzly. However I feel like we had a good combination of dishes and we were both quite happy and satisfied. We asked for a box to take home our steaks for later as we were so stuffed. We did opt for a scoop of azuki bean ice cream to share for dessert and it was mind blowingly delicious! I almost wish I ordered my own scoop to myself! Lol. Our bill came out to a little over $100, but I don't think this is standard because we did order the more expensive combination along with our added sides. Pricewise I think this place is fair. Plus the ambiance is nice and service was great. I was loving the cherry blossom looking tree that they have with the lights on the tips of the leaves. Very nice touch. I'm sure we will be back again soon.
(4)Elle V.
A lot of my Japanese food loving friends and family rave about this place and now I'm going to rave about it too. Going to Waikele just to visit Party City, being the sweetie he is, my boyfriend spontaneously decides to take me to Kunio's. We were this close to ordering the boat of food but didn't have two more people with us, seems like a deal for all that food you get. We settled in on pretty comfortable booths in the back, which was nice, I'm a booth over chair kind of girl! The decor had that kind of traditional Japanese house feel, lighting was dim but not too dark, the restaurant itself is not very big at all so I can see why there's always a wait outside. By the way, we were sat in two minutes with no reservations, I would say come in for an early dinner if you want to try eating here! The hostess, woman who sat us and brought our drinks, and our server were all very friendly. We ended up trying the ahi sashimi (they were out of toro *sad face*), I got tamago sushi, hamachi kama, and combination AA with shrimp tempura and miso butterfish. I have to say that everything was OISHI! I really liked the fact that I didn't just get shrimp tempura, they included eggplant, carrot, and some string bean. The portions were all pretty hefty and we were satisfied for what we paid. No complaints here! Kunio, we shall meet again!
(5)Norm G.
What? I haven't written a review of Kunio? But I've been here once before! Was I too lazy because I ate too much? Oh, I know, I had a beer with lunch that first time, and no, I was not driving; my wife was. We drove out to Waikele to get back-to-school clothes for the kids this morning, and after the hard work of shopping and parting with our hard-earned money (Don't you dare say raising kids is cheap!), we decided to treat ourselves to lunch. There was a big line for Genki Sushi, so we wandered over here without even bothering to put our name on the waiting list at Genki, and I am so glad we did! We were there before the lunch crowd today, and got seated right away. I ordered the Combination AB for $19.75 and had salmon from the "A" section and sashimi from the "B" section. This came with a green salad, miso soup, pickled vegetables, and rice. They also served tea (brown rice tea, I believe) and water upon request. Everything was just delicious. The salmon was cooked just right, so that it was nice and juicy (I could just imagine those Omega-3 fatty oils helping me maintain my cardiovascular health!). The sashimi consisted of 3 different kinds of fish, and it was just so tasty and fresh; I think I might have actually entered an altered state briefly. The servers were friendly, and kept a watchful eye on our tea, which my wife and I appreciate, since we are both tea aficionados. My wife had the Nabeyaki Udon for $14.50, and she said the udon noodles were cooked just right. My daughter ordered her two favorite kinds of sushi: tamago and maguro. The maguro was huge, bigger than the rice it sat on top of, which is just how you want it to be. The only thing I would ask to be different next time is to ask them to leave the wasabi off from underneath the maguro, since my daughter doesn't like the hot stuff (it was easy enough to scrape off, though). My son also ordered his favorite, California roll, so he appeared to be experiencing a bit of heaven as he ate, too. This place is not cheap, as our total bill came to over $57, and that's a lot for lunch in my book. But you really can't beat the food and the service here. The table behind us consisted of a four person party, all of whom were speaking Japanese. The last time we came here there was a table of people speaking Japanese, too. In my book, that is usually another indication of a good Japanese restaurant. We'll definitely be back next year (if not before) to reward ourselves for surviving another "back-to-school shopping escapade!"
(5)Van T.
They have great green tea ice cream here, and that is pretty much it.
(2)Jodi M.
Had lunch here today. We arrived a little before 12 & luckily beat the lunch crowd. We ordered a spicy tuna roll, and I had the misoyaki butterfish/chicken katsu teishoku. The spicy tuna roll was delicious. I was really looking forward to my miso butterfish, but I was a little disappointed with my butterfish having not much flavor/taste. Everything else was delicious.
(4)Tiffinie K.
My favorite Japanese restaurant on the Leeward side. I'm rarely in Waikele, but when I am, I go to Kunios.
(4)Cam Z.
My new go to spot...the gf and i wanted something different so we came here..had the butterfish..mixed veggie tempura..tempura combo and combination sashimi..everything was very good and fresh..prices were just right and our waiter was the best.
(5)Diane K.
The Sunset Roll. Spicy tuna making sweet, sweet love to a Philadelphia Roll as they cook to golden tempura perfection. When I was living out-of-state, I'd have daydreams of this delicious concoction. It's a bit on the richer side, making it a perfect sharable dish.
(4)David O.
It's my first time here and sad to say, it will be my last. It was either Ghenki Sushi which I love or a new place with a shorter wait. I figured we should try something new tonight. Well, I wish we had just stuck to what we know is good. First and foremost without asking, they attempted to seat us in the back room where you must remove your shoes. Not a fan of removing shoes at a restaurant regardless if it's customary or not. My feet are perfectly clean; it's just a preference. Second, the lady asked if we could sit back there since there were only 3 in my party... Uhmmm no lady. You're going to put us in the booth like you were originally to! Third, our waitress was somewhat rude in a sense that she showed no interest in pleasing the customer. I honestly couldn't understand her because of an accent(?) and how fast she was taking and it didn't matter how many times she repeated herself. I asked about some items which she didn't really tell me what they really were. So we just went with whatever. I love pork katsu so I ordered the Pork Katsu Don. Little did I know that the crispy fried pork cutlet I love would come out soggy because it was cooked in egg. The waitress could've told us this. We all ordered different meals (Gyu Don, Pork Katsu, Chicken Katsu) and were all dissatisfied. The waitress never once asked how we were doing and if we needed anything. I see that I'm one of the very few displeased customers on here. Those that enjoyed it, that's awesome! I wish I had the same experience.
(1)MT T.
I went here to try it out since it was near I live. The food was okay - I've definitely had better sushi. However, the service was the WORST I have ever experienced since I've been in Hawaii. They provided sushi with no bowl for the shoyu and more than 15 minutes later I decided to get it myself at the sushi bar. Same thing for the subsequent delivery of food, etc. No follow up for beverage refills and both female servers (older and younger) ladies had terrible attitudes. Suffice it to say I won't recommend this to anyone at work or coming to visit.
(1)Tammy S.
This is probably my favorite Japanese restaurant! They have the best shrimp tempura, it's crispy and isn't overly oily to the point where it'll end up soggy before you get to eat it. I wish the place was a little bigger!! It can get extremely crowded for dinner, especially on the weekends and the wait can be long if you don't go early. We've had several different waiters/waitresses...ask to see if Kaipo is working! He's awesome and seems like the only person who can keep up with his tables without being overwhelmed. A lot of people only acknowledge a person when they receive bad service but I think people who provide excellent service should be recognized! My husband and I haven't been here since my daughter was born 3 months ago...I have been craving to eat here and can't wait to go back.
(5)Amy Y.
The food looks really delicious here, and that's what got us here. Sadly, we never got a chance to tried the food. Service was TERRIBLE!!!! It wasn't a small restaurant nor a big size one. It was around noon and it wasn't sorta busy. There were a few tables opened. My friend and I signed in and asked for a table. There were only a few people before us. We got a table in 10-15 minutes? We sat right next to the window by the entrance, right in front of the cashier. There was only 2 waitress?! ...during lunch time, and only 2 waitress serving, cleaning, and cashing customers out. So sitting for 15-20 minutes or so, we got no water or tea. No one came to ask us if we want to order or anything. We were basically ignored the whole time. Okay, my friend and I wouldn't be as mad if it was just waiting for them to come by. The thing is, the table next to us who finished eating their lunch when we sat got served well. They had their plates taken away, order desserts, got their desserts, finished it, got their bill, and got it paid! That whole time they got it all done and we had no attention at all. What kind of service is that?! We were hungry and ready to order, waving them down was not working. So we got up and left. i never expected a nice restaurant like this would have that kinda of service. It felt like we didn't exist.
(1)Peter Y.
Had the miso butterfish n ahi tempura combo - $18. Food tastes good, came out pretty quickly. Food looks consistent since pic fr 5 years ago looks exactly like what was served last night. Friend suggested we go there because it was the best Japanese food restaurant in the area. He was not wrong. Unfortunately for us, we got there at 8:00 PM and were not seated until 9:00 !! Parties which arrived at 8:45 - 9:00 only had to wait 30 - 15 minutes so go late if u can on busy nights.
(5)Penny V.
The wait time is 35 minutes or more! But it is worth the wait. The service is great and friendly. The food is of the highest quality to me. My husband and I go there for the Miso Butter Fish and Teri Chicken combo. It is sooooooo good! It is a very expensive place to dine but for the service and Ono food it is worthed!
(5)Sara P.
Don't get me wrong, the food here is very delicious. Authentic japanese food. But for the price? I can get that somewhere else. All of their teishoku's for lunch were around $20!?! Am I crazy for thinking that's expensive for lunch? All the sashimi is just as expensive. I wasn't feeling too hungry (and didnt want to drop $30 on lunch) so I just ordered an ala carte miso butterfish because I read how great it was in reviews. It was $10.95. And the size of my fist. Okay fine. My mom ordered vegetable tempura (also $10.95 HUH?) and a 6 piece california roll. We also got a tekka maki roll. The whole thing came out to $45. That is way to much for lunch especially considering we didn't even order that much. Like I said, dont get me wrong the food was good. But I'd rather spend that kind of money some place where they'll give me bigger portions. To top it all off there were a bunch of little gnats constantly flying around at our table while we tried to eat. Am i paying extra for that?
(2)Helena C.
Friendly wait staff. Seated right away at 430pm. Ordered their happy hour special meal 2-5pm which is m-th. $9.95 you get a piece of maguro, hamachi, sake & 4 pieces of California roll & chicken katsu. You can pick between chicken katsu, ton katsu, shrimp tempura, zaru soba, or zaru udon. The chicken katsu was a hearty piece. Recommend this place
(4)Mark Y.
I'm almost embarrassed to say that this was the first time we tried this restaurant even though I knew about it and its high star rating for a few years now. Well, for my "birthday month dinner" I finally took the plunge and am happy to say that I'm glad I did. I guess Kunio does not take reservations, and although quite packed for a Sunday night, the wait was short - maybe 10 minutes for the 2 of us. And while we waited we perused the menu. Seemed like a great selection of sushi, nabe, noddles, and entree items that included combination and teishoku settings. Having just made our selections, the hostess came out and called for us - perfect timing! I settled on the ribeye/lobster tail/sashimi teishoku and my wife went with the butterfish misoyaki/mix tempura combo. While waiting for the food I noticed that they make good use of the space and the place is nice and clean - always a good sign. The miso soup, a small appetizer tray (spicy edamame, seasoned gobo, and a konbu/onion/carrot dish), and tossed salad arrived rather quickly. Our main courses also arrived rather promptly and I was surprised when our waitress apologized for us having to wait - it really didn't seem all that long. The miso soup, as other Yelpers described was nice - warm, well-seasoned and it had pieces of aburage I think in it. A nice way to start, as were the appetizers. My sashimi plate actually arrived before my hot entrees. It was perfect: two slices of salmon, and 4 pieces ahi plus daikon. Normally I'm not a big fan of salmon sashimi but it was very buttery albeit a bit fishy (as salmon sashimi usually is). The ahi actually looked like 2 slices of regular grade plus 2 slices of toro. When I ate the toro it made me very very happy! It just melted in my mouth. The ribeye and lobster came out on a sizzling platter. I ordered my ribeye medium rare but I think the heat of the platter cooked the meat a bit longer to near medium. Still, it was tender with nice grill marks and the grilled onions beneath were a nice touch. The lobster tail was nicely done as well - not overcooked to death. My wife enjoyed her meal as well. She said the tempura, especially was very good. All in all, a very good dining experience and I was happy to leave a good tip. We'll be back!
(4)Michelle R.
If I could give them zero stars I would. I went here with my friend to try the food out and although the menu seemed very enticing and the food I saw the other customers eating looked delicious, the people working here did not want to let me order. I came here to eat during lunch time and they were very busy. We sat down at a table and given menus. For 15 minutes we were never checked on again. No water or anything, just chopsticks and napkin... Oh yeah, I'm supposed to eat the table? All kidding aside I was very angry for the lack of customer service. I was starving and very willing to order food but yet every time we tried to get the attention of a waiter so that we could order, I felt as though they ignored us. My friend and I watched as people who were sat down after us and the people next to us were tended to. Angrily, we left and I don't think I'm ever coming here again.
(1)Laura S.
Really good! I love this place. It is a little on the pricey side, but definitely worth it in size and flavor. There is always a wait to get seated, but I always say, if its busy, must be good! Once, we got seated, the waitress came and greeted us to get our drink orders. She was very attentive to get our orders and repeated it back to us to make sure it was correct. That's good customer service in my eyes...I hate it when they mess up your order because of miscommunication. As for food, superb! We had a party of 5 and our food came pretty fast, the only thing that took a little long was the sushi which I was a little confused since it was the only thing not cooked. I understood after receiving it though why it took so long though..it was beautiful and a pretty good size (good fish to rice ratio). I will definitely come back to enjoy some japanese food here, when the wallet can afford it. :) Happy eatings!
(5)Melanie D.
I really wanted to like this place based on the great Yelp reviews I read, but I was disappointed with the whole experience. We went in at around 8pm for dinner, so it wasn't crowded. I ordered the rainbow roll, and it came out 15 minutes before 2 other people's hot meals. The fourth person in my group got her meal about 5-7 minutes after the other two. Although it looked good, none of the fish on my rainbow roll had any flavor and lacked freshness. The tempura my grandmother ordered was soggy, and she said the batter was too thick. The service was sporadic at best. Personally, I think you get the same quality at Genki Sushi next door for 1/3 the price.
(2)Jasmine C.
Good food and nice service. It's always packed but for good reason. The price can get expensive but the quality is high
(5)Jenifer G.
I was pleasantly surprised at my impromptu lunch here. The Gyoza tasted homemade, you get 6 pieces for $7.89, I just wish they served it with the gyoza shoyu/vinegar, but we opted for just dipping it in a little bit of soy. The Katsu Donburi $11.95 was flavorful and moist, a good balance of flavors, but wish they pounded the chicken to flatten it more and cut the fat out..otherwise I would order this again. The dish was large so I ate little more than half of it and was more than happy to bring the rest home. The Tonkatsu Donburi $11.95 was equally delicious, not overcooked, I'd probably get this again but want to try a teishoku plate the next time..they start at around $15. The donburi dishes come with miso soup (I swapped mine for a wakame or seaweed miso, which was good), and tsukemono, however the girl forgot the tsukemono..oh well. Despite the missing pickled sides, the staff was attentive and positive and we enjoyed our experience. They are located a few doors down to the left of Genki Sushi. They also have a sushi bar/chef who looked like an older guy from Japan. There were large packages of fish on his counter that looked great, gonna definitely make use of his skills the next time I swing by. I can't believe I never knew about this spot, but thanks to Yelp I found them, yay.
(4)Brandon S.
I hate to sound like your typical townie but I don't really know of anywhere else in this area that has decent Japanese food. Thank goodness for Kunio. When we shop or golf in Waikele that's one place we always make sure to stop at. Heck even if they were in town I'd eat here. The food is reasonably priced and good. They have a large selection of different Teishoku's, Noodles and sushi. The combo's are also a winner here as you can select one to three main items. The only downside of course is that because it's so popular you may have to wait for a table. I enjoy the sushi and the Chicken Katsu here so next time you're in the area, consider this an option.
(4)Wayne M.
Just went to this excellent Japanese restaurant this past Sunday. We arrived before 5:00pm and got seated right away. I ordered shrimp tempura, beef Teri, and sashimi. Delicious and, cleaned my whole tray. Everyone in my party of 6 enjoyed the food, especially the soft-shelled crab. Be assured that this restaurant rates among the best.
(5)Cheryl S.
They really need to work on their time management coordination. I saw 4 empty tables!! Some needed to be bussed and some clean just waiting so they could seat new customers. Especially when they had a wait list of 20 minutes. Don't you know if you can turn tables fast you could make more revenue for the restaurant?! Hire a busser or more servers please. So I just wanted Tanuki udon and wakame too so half and half both were the same price if ordered separately but the waitress said she had charge me $1.50 for the wakame to be also in my Tanuki udon. Geezz. Also my boyfriend had tempura but one of his green beans was still frozen.... =( BTW- This is the only sit down Japanese restaurant in Waikele Shopping Center. I'm not including genki sushi as that to me is in a different category of restaurants. The food is good but the wait is just ridicuolus.
(3)Andre V.
Everything on the menu is so good here! The best is the miso butterfish tho!! It has always been my favorite. I've been coming to this restaurant since I was a kid. And it was always a special treat! Everything is delicious and well prepared. The staff is kind and friendly and the sushi chefs are impeccable! This is definitely one if the best Japanese restaurants on the island. They offer lots of variety and the choice to mix and match your combination plates. Their sushi is always fresh and delicious and they don't use a lot of rice like most of those cheap sushi places that wanna fill u up with rice. I live in town now so it's a trip to come out to the west side to eat here but it is always well worth it! My recommendation is to try the combo set AA which is only $17.95 and u get to choose from 13 different menu items and it comes with miso soup, tsukemono, rice, appetizer and a salad! Can't beat that!! Also, their California Crunch which is their version of the world famous California Roll is epic!
(5)CJ C.
My wife loves this place. It's really good Japanese food. Great quality and the dishes are fairly large for the price. The staff is excellent and provide great service. The only recommendation is come early because is can get packed quick.
(5)Michael K.
The Miso Butterfish was legendary!! Their other sushi rolls were great as well, but they charge extra for side dishes (we are Korean and used to free side dishes) like miso soup and their AWESOME edamame. We just had to order another bowl.. but later we regretted it cause of all the salt. :P Anyway, I REALLY regret ordering the Zaru Soba here....The noodles stuck together and were really doughy. I don't think they cooked the noodles fresh here. It was probably sitting somewhere for the whole day, and they just put it on the soba tray and gave it to me. This dish really ruined it for me. Why would you offer something on the menu if you can't make it taste good? Take it off so people like me don't end up trying it and being very dissatisfied. This place would do well if they JUST served the miso butterfish. I would have given it three stars, but the butterfish was so good that I have to give it an extra star.
(4)Terry K.
Kunio's okay. Food is good; more "Japan" taste than "Hawaii" taste. Pricey for their style of restaurant Don't go during peak hours or you may have to wait. Well- it's the only "japanese" food restaurant of that caliber in that area I guess. Would I go again? Only if I were in the area
(4)Frances G.
Y - U - M ! Food is bomb-tastic! Everything on the menu looks good but I always seem to go back to my miso butterfish and mix tempura. Miso soup is on point and definitely satisfying. I remember crossing fingers to sit in the room inside, just because you take off your foot wear in the front. I have gotten the chance to sit there once, but on most occasions its a miss. Some odd reason, i find it exciting haha!! The service here is amazing as well. Smiles up, ears open, ready to serve kinda people.
(5)Wena G.
Kunio used to be my favorite Japanese restaurant. We just had dinner with the family. I was very ddisappointed. The sushi is now only four pieces. Now they lay it down to fill the wooden plate instead of being upright. The price also went up. Smaller portion and more expensive? The butterfish is now a thinner slice. The staff is very personable, but $12 for half a sushi roll is too much. Taste is good, but we will find a new Japanese restaurant.
(2)Mariah T.
SAVE YOUR MONEY. Service was great, food not so much. Two stars only for the service. Seems like others really like this place but it was a miss for me and my boyfriend. The portions are small and expensive and I felt terrible that he had to pay for what we got. Wasted money. We got 3 of the special rolls on the menu: the dynamite roll, salmon and avocado roll and the sunset roll. None of them had any sauces, hence had no taste. Our bill was $30 for about 14 cuts total. We could have gotten a 14 cut roll for $12 worth of bigger and better tasting sushi elsewhere. Even Genki Sushi three doors down would be cheaper and better than what we got. Won't be coming here again, very disappointed.
(2)Jasmine D.
I love the food here. Of course, it's pricey. But you get what you pay for: ono food! Place was clean. Surprisingly it wasn't busy even though it was almost lunch time. Service was fast & employees were friendly.
(5)Jonathan P.
This place has definitely deflated my head a little bit. After all, who knew that Waikele had such an undiscovered gem and I not know about it??! I guess that's due to being a townie who rarely ever ventures out to Waikele... Anyways, Kunio is located right next to Party City and it's easy to find. Once you see Party City, Kunio is on the right hand side. There is just one thing I have to say FUNAMORI PARTY BOAT ! So what is this party boat I speak of? Well it's just the most spectacular/amazing behemoth of Japanese food that I've ever ate..on a boat that is. Here take a look! yelp.com/user_local_phot… . The Funamori Party Boat has sushi (ahi, hamachi, salmon, and ebi), sashimi, pork katsu, chicken katsu, shrimp tempura, vegetable tempura, teriyaki ribeye steak, and lobster tails! They first start you off with tsukemono, miso soup, and a salad with oriental sauce; all of which are plain-jane and is probably meant to be a palate cleanser. Then came the funamori party boat and it was WAY BIGGER than the picture in the menu! Everything about it was amazing! A hungry man's dream! The tempura was hot and crispy. The katsu was crisp and had a rich tawny brown color and the meat was warm and succulent. The ribeye steak was a little sweet and very savory with the meat falling apart with the slightest effort. The sashimi was fresh and clean tasting. And the lobster was flat out amazing! The meat was easy to extract and the butter sauce made my mouth go into a state of bliss! When ordering the funamori party boat you MUST have a minimum of 4 people. Our boat came out to $31.95 per person for our party of 4. Essentially it's like a roller coaster. It starts off slow and dull with the plain-jane tsukemono, miso soup, and salad. Then it starts to climb with excitement as your boat arrives. Suddenly it takes off with amazing speed and excitement when you get to dig into the massive behemoth. Then it slowly dies as you're struggling to finish every last morsel. I was like, "Please, no more fried stuff..." But overall I liked it! The service was great; our waitress kept on checking whether we needed more tea, water, or rice. And the service was pretty fast. The only mood killer was the fact that you need 4 people and it comes out to a whopping $31.95 per person. But if you're ever in Waikele with a group of 4 and want to impress your friends GET THE FUNAMORI PARTY BOAT!
(4)Yosapon T.
Mmmmmmmmm Fooooood ! I was super hungry from the hike i did pior to this so i decided to order there chicken donburi : ) was super filling and tasty service was good they kept filling water for me for like 5 times so when it was time for us to go shopping i constantly have to pee.... anyway love this place will prob go back when i am around there: )
(4)Stephanie D.
The food was pretty good. I had the miso butterfish with tempura. A little pricey though
(4)Tyler G.
Our family eats here for the past 10 years. We drive out from Aiea to treat ourselves to a great Japanese dinner. You need to go early or expect to wait a while for a table. Service is fast and portions are good size. One of the best Japanese family restaurants on the island.
(5)Alan K.
Short version: Dropped to 3 stars. Most disappointing visit ever. Long version: We've been going to Kunio for over 10 years, since when they were half the size they are today. I have never been so disappointed. While everything else was par, their unagi was horrifying. I have had their unagi don, unagi kabayaki 40-50 times over the years. It was always the same: properly cleaned fish, all fins removed, very well seasoned with unagi sauce (grilled, sauce, grilled, sauce, repeat) on the flesh side, near crispy skin with most of the fat melted away then sauced as the flesh side. You can pick it up with your chopsticks, jam it in your mouth and expect a mouthful of perfection. Last night, the skin was slimy, the fins were still attached, bones everywhere, the flesh side was sauced but the skin side was just cooked so there is a layer of fat jiggling under the slimy skin. My first bite had bones jabbed into my mouth. I spend a significant amount of time trying to pick out the inedible, in the end mutilating the fish without getting a good fleshy bite. I had a chat with the hostess and waitress, who know us well (basically watch our daughter grow up). They had a chat back in the kitchen. The bottom line was that they change supplier and that was a bad piece and they were cooking it differently. Sure sure and all that. But your cook should know better. Nothing worst that a cook that doesn't know his own ingredient, what should be served, what shouldn't, how it should be cooked, and how it should taste and look. I mean, comon, FINS?! SLIME?! Although the sunset roll and spicy ahi roll and everything were great, this requires a rating adjustment. At $100 for 2 adults and 1 child, I'd think twice about going there again, thrice about ordering unagi again.
(3)Tasha C.
This was our second time eating here. The first wad amazing. When we got there it was busy and it looked like there was a long wait. when we went in we were seated right away because there wad a table for two left. found out the people outside waiting was a party of sixteen. so lucky us! Ordered our food. came out fast. miso butter always amazing. fresh sashimi I'm not a fan of raw salmon but this one wad good. my husband enjoyed his meal he said the gyoza was the best hes ever had. of course we finished with green tea ice cream! great service. we did have a main server everyone helps us st one point in the meal. the first guy took our drink order. A girl took our food order and another girl took our dessert order. the buss boy made sure my drink was always full. we will be returning again!
(5)Isa R.
I love Kunio's! The only thing I don't love is the wait when you go at peak hours, that's why I usually only come here before 6 PM or after 8:30 PM when the wait isn't as bad. Unfortunately, they don't take reservations, which is why I only gave them 4 stars instead of 5. I always order the garlic butter steak teishoku, sometimes with a side of miso butterfish if I'm extra hungry. My mom loves the soft-shell crab. The only sushi roll I've tried is the simple tuna avocado, which is so good I haven't bothered trying any of the fancy rolls. *Update: I've since tried the ginza roll & the sunset roll, both of which are very good, but for some reason I still prefer the tuna avocado. :)
(4)Jade N.
Kunio has great combo choices...so great that you WILL have a hard time deciding what to get. My fave is the miso butterfish and vegetable tempura :) Love the bento style serving as well. Staff/service was great. Place...nice and clean. Definitely worth going too. You won't be disappointed.
(4)Shayna K.
This place is almost the polar-opposite of the restaurant I just reviewed (Minato). The tempura is done to perfection. The teishoku combinations are generous and high quality. The sushi is top-notch and the salad is not a joke. Kunio is the place we like to come to after dropping the kids off at my in-laws in Pearl City. It's great after a long day of shopping at Waikele, too. The wait can be long at times, but if you let them know you don't mind sitting at the sushi bar, you can get in quicker. Only drawback is that you have the sushi chefs staring at you the whole time. When they're not busy and you're ordering a teishoku combo, it's quite unnerving. The service isn't the greatest, knocking off one star. It's pricier than other places, but the quality is worth it. 4 stars for Kunio.
(4)Tiffany Y.
Yelp 365 Challenge #09/365 I've been to Restaurant Kunio before with my girlfriends but last night I snuck over here with my daughter while the honey was home with the boys (hehe). I believe it was fate for me to be here around the time we got there because we were seated within 10 minutes! *fist pump* I do not eat sashimi but my daughter does :) She ordered #69 that came with shrimp tempura, sashimi, rice, salad, miso soup, and steak. Obviously it was good because she inhaled it all. Although I do not eat sashimi or shrimp tempura, I have to share that the sliced sashimi looked fresh, which my daughter confirmed that it was. I ordered #50, which is the rib-eye steak with a side order of Inari Sushi. I ordered my rib-eye steak medium and it was cooked to perfection. It came out sizzling hot and so easy to cut with a knife. The inari sushi...I do believe it was prepped right before it was served and I have to share that it was delicious. Here I thought nothing can compare to Ninja Sushi's Inari Sushi but Restaurant Kunio and Gyotaku is right up there with preparing/serving stellar inari sushi since I won't eat an other type of sushi. Everything that was set before us was seasoned just right. There was nothing lacking in flavor. The Experience Service: 5 Stars (Thank you, Kelsi!) Food: 5 Stars Ambiance: 5 Stars Price: It's worth it for what you are getting! I tell you...if I could dress up like Memoirs of a Geisha and do that dance to show how happy I am when I find a great japanese restaurant I would. So, here's a toast to Restaurant Kunio at Waikele Premium Outlets for their awesome service! BANZAI!!! BANZAI!!! BANZAI!!!
(5)Amanda G.
This place reminded me more of sushi places in the Bay Area, than other Japanese restaurants I've been to in Hawaii. I had some fantastic miso butterfish, (yes, i ate a lot of butterfish on this trip!) The sashimi was fresh and delicious, and the server was friendly, but not very knowledgeable. The food was all pretty good, but I probably wouldn't seek this place out if our dining options hadn't been so limited. Prices were reasonable, and they were open a little later than other restaurants in the area. If you live nearby, i could totally see this being a repeat stop.
(4)Chris B.
This place has awesome Japanese food. My wife and I love the misoyaki butterfish. I get the tonkatsu sometimes but this is not the place to get that. If you want good katsu, go to L&L, they make it better. But you don't go to Kunio for katsu, you come here for the sushi, which is excellent!
(4)Kay S.
Yum! Why would you go to Genki when you could walk three doors down and come here? Affordable. Delicious. Great service.
(5)Crystal R.
I Am a regular here usually come once a week. Tonight was a disappointment. The portion of the food is smaller. did not get service what so ever I had to ask the chef for my meal, lemon and straw for my water. I had to consistently ask for refills on water. What disappointed me most the price went up on my bill which was weird because prices on the menu are the same so they added extra on my bill without details. I don't recommend this place to anyone else.
(1)Shelley K.
Darren's Grandma's 88th Birthday Dinner Didn't realize I was so behind on my reviews, sorry yelp! Well, what can I say about Kunio Restaurant. It's like every Japanese restaurant that I've been to... the food selection is all very typical, sushi, tsukemono, tempura, combination plates, etc, etc... I like the food. Everything is prepared well. Service is okay, depending on who the server is. Seating is limited since it is a small restaurant, but prices are kinda high... then again, what Japanese restaurant is cheap nowadays?! lol Definitely a nice family dining place to go to for like weeknight dinner or something.
(3)Kam Kel B.
Chirashi A is awesome! It also goes good with Orion. I'm not a beer drinker but I will drink Orion when I'm here!
(4)Pete S.
When in Hawaii, you gotta visit the relatives. Of course, they know good eating because, well...they' local. So we met up here and I ordered the AB special and I chose sashimi and the miso butterfish, around $19. static.px.yelp.com/bphot… The food comes with miso soup, sides, salad, rice. It was really good. Nice to eat something besides the local plate food while on vacation. I know some yelpers said this place was expensive but I think it's really a good value for what you get here. Even the kids meals have good sized portions! It's nice you can go to the Waikele outlets across the street to do shopping and walk off the food also.
(5)G R.
I've visited Japan many times over and ate delicious food there. Hands down best sushi and Japanese food in my life. In saying all of that, this restaurant has some pretty tasty food. Misoyaki butterfish is a delish fish. My bro gets his uni fix whenever we are there. Quite pricy for sushi but that's life here in Hawaii. Overall...I say their food is not bad at all. :-) give it a try! Oishii!
(4)Hervick R.
We finally decided to eat here for lunch. My chicken was raw so I couldn't finish it. I wasn't offered any discount hence the 2 stars. Paid $73 + tips for 3 people. If u have a money tree. Go here!
(2)Joe P.
Always a pleasure to dine here. Awesome food and service.
(5)Inthira M.
After eating at I-naba I've been having cravings for soba, so when we arrived at Waikele for some food and shopping my fiance and I decided to try this place. I originally didn't know if I wanted to eat here or Chili's, but when I passed by their window and saw that this one table's dishes were huge I made a U-turn and went straight for the entrance. When I opened the menu I was stunned to see how many items they had listed on their menu. Three pages with two rows on each page with what seems like 12 font of just items upon different items to choose from. The second thing I was stunned at were the prices. For the most part everything was about $18+ (with the majority of the prices being around $21-$30). For lunch that seemed a little steep. But remembering that table I passed in the window I continued to look through the many options. I finally decided on the soba and tempura combo, the fiance had the AB combo (you choose an item on the A list and one from the B list) with tonkatsu and saba. Now this is where the fatty's in us kind of came out. We also ordered the ginza roll which was their special roll of the day with spicy ahi in the middle with avocado, and spicy ahi on top, with tobiko and Japanese mayo. We also ordered ikura nigiri sushi for him, uni nigiri sushi for me, and I also ordered the chawanmushi (idk why I ordered this other than I thought what we ordered wouldn't be enough for me). Our meals came with miso soup, tseukemono, and his came with a little appetizer of edemame, nishime, and kabocha. When the rest of our orders started to come out and be set down on our tiny two top, I realized everyone around us must have thought "holy crap those people ordered a lot!" I know everyone was thinking that because I was thinking the same. For the breakdown of the food, the ginza roll was awesome. I actually saved my last two pieces to eat at the end of the meal so that that would be the last taste in my mouth (I know, I'm a foodie weirdo, but whatever). The tempura that came with my set was a generous portion. Two huge shrimp, 2 carrots, 2 string beans, and 2 zuchinni. The only thing I didn't like was my soba. It wasn't anything that they did wrong, it just wasn't the home made soba I ate the night before at I-naba. So, I can't really fault them for that. The fiance's bento box came with salad, a generous portion of rice, and a huge slab of both saba and tonkatsu. The uni was perfect and melted in my mouth as always and I don't know about his ikura because I don't like salty balls bursting in my mouth. (haha... hope I just gave you a visual). Besides the let down of the soba the only thing I thought was disappointing (and a rip off at a little over $5) was the chawanmushi. I wouldn't have minded the price if they gave me some nice goodies inside, but instead all I got were chicken pieces and fishcake. REALLY??!!. Even Genki gives me mushrooms and imitation crab on top of the chicken for a little over $1. Oh well, lesson learned. By the time we were finished you had to wheel me outta there I was so full, but I got my fill of Japanese food and I satisfied my soba craving :)
(3)Hayley K.
This is by far my favorite restaurant! I love the sushi, the steak, the fish, everything! However, I do not like the wait on most days. Kunio is very popular and is always busy. They don't take reservations so that's unfortunate. If you go during lunch the wait isn't too long, but I personally enjoy eating here during the evening. I usually order the AA combo shrimp tempura and miso butterfish. They have the best butterfish! The ginza roll has to be the best sushi they have, but it isn't on the menu. Might I add it is the most expensive one too. My boyfriend also enjoys the sunset roll, but I find it a bit rich for my liking. The prices are fair and the food quality is way better than gyotaku in Pearl City.
(5)Shane K.
I have been here many time before and for some reason the service was Horrible from waiting to be seated when we were over looked and two names were called before us. We were finally seated and and the waiter approached us with in 30 seconds of sitting down and the proceeds to ask if we were ready to order. I didn't even get a chance to open the menu. Now she like 10 min to come back and take our order as we are ordering I have questions about the menu and so it changes my order. So after answering my questions she turns arounand lwalks away. Hello I wanted to order so she finally comes back 5min later with no soda that was ordered 5mins ago so I put y order in and she leaves I then she her giving this table that just sat down drinks and then some food in the mean time we only have water on our table. About 15mins later she drops 2 miso soup on the table but not to anyone in specific it's at the front of the table mind you there are 3 of us so let's guess who's miso soup it is. So we finally get our food and still no soda! So we continue to eat. we got check on once and that is when I ask about the soda and finally got it more than half way thru our meal. Now we are done so it's time for desert she says the have ice cream ok that fine so we place an order simple the coffee ice creams it take about 20mins to get this ice cream I don't understand. As we complete our deserts she drops the checkS yes not 1 but 3 different checks never had that done to me before unless I asked for it and if you noticed I used "she" cause she never introduced herself. The food was ok.
(1)Chantel C.
12/24/13 I've been to Kunio's a couple times in the past (and it was fine), but after a case of food poisoning last night, I'm not sure if i'll visit again. My friend and I went for dinner, and I ordered the combo meal of miso butterfish and veggie tempura. We also ordered some sushi with ahi in it. Everything tasted fine, as usual. However, a couple hours later, I got really sick. I know it was the Kunio dinner because I didn't eat anything else the whole night. 10 hours later, I'm still feeling some nausea, and making many trips to the bathroom! Yuck. What a way to spend Christmas eve... I called Kunio to tell them about how I got sick. The manager said she was sorry, but didn't really go the extra mile (i.e., take my name/phone number, offer a refund, discount on next meal, etc.). Although I enjoyed eating at Kunio's in the past, I'm sad to say that I probably won't be returning :(
(1)Cy K.
It was my first time eating here. I've always seen this restaurant but it always seemed so busy with lines flowing out the door. My friend wanted to eat here since she loves the place so I said why not. The place is really small. That probably explains why they seem so busy. There's probably about 20 tables. Luckily we beat the lunch rush when we came at 1145. There was about 2 seats left when we got there. As we sat a bunch of people came flowing in. I ordered the combo set AA with shrimp tempura and vegetable tempura. It came with miso soup, appetizer (bean sprouts, soy beans and something else) and side toss salad with Oriental dressing which was really good. So the plate came with a scoop of rice, 2 pieces of shrimp, and the vegetable tempura made up of sweet potato, onion, bell pepper, string bean, egg plant, carrot, and zucchini. The shrimp was so good! Soft and crunchy at the same time. The vegetables were good too! I regret getting both the shrimp AND vegetables because for me all of that was just too oily. (I should've know better) I felt gross after. The service here was excellent! We were always attended to! The prices are pretty good considering all you get in a meal. Overall I had a great experience!! (:
(4)Nick U.
I've been here a few times for dinner. From my experience the food has always been pretty good. Oyako donburi has been consistently tasty even though the amount of rice in the bottom of the box is variable. On my latest visit it only had a really thin layer so it was mushy and soupy at the bottom :(... But still really tasty. It is a little pricy for Japanese food. Oyakodon is $11 (usually ~$8 at other places) But I do appreciate that they will make it without onions as well as leaving off the green onions without a problem. I don't come here too often so the price is ok for a treat, but not a weekly dinner. The service has been really good and friendly. Lots of smiles :). They were very attentive and filled our water and tea frequently when it wasn't super busy. Also, It gets really crowded around dinner time on Friday, so the wait can be really long.
(4)Trisha Y. N.
Please allow me to share my extreme disappointment in the service I received on Tuesday, March 27th. Please do send compliments to the kitchen staff; the food was great! Our party did not receive our miso soup and tsukemono with our donburi meals; when I brought this to the attention of two staffers, neither offered to remedy the situation. I would like to return to the restaurant again, but would want better service. Perhaps if the food were fast-food-value-menu-priced, lack of service would be less of an expectation. The lack of attentive and professional service saddens me because the food was delicious. My friend and I both ordered donburi. However, our server did not give us our miso soup and tsukemono as promised by the menu. I asked for the soup when our donburi arrived. The server (a young gentleman with spiked hair and black plastic frame glasses) said that the dishes did not come with soup. I told him that I recalled they did; he re-stated that there was no soup with the meal. Once we were done with our meal, I looked at the menu and told the hostess. She simply apologized and offered no solution or remedy. Disappointing.
(2)Grant S.
I've been going to Kunio for a good six or seven years now. The food has always been pretty good and makes for a good birthday dinner place without being to fancy schmancy. One of my friends pointed out that I have a real love for Japanese food and looking at my yelp bookmarks, I can see why they would think that... Okonomiyaki Chibo, the one and only teppanyaki wagon, Mitch's Fish Market and Sushi Bar, Sato's Okazuya... the list goes on. Anyways, you don't go to Kunio for amazing service, you go to eat. The servers aren't gonna win customer service awards anytime soon but they do a decent enough job (they really do work hard). I usually get the AA or AB teishoku (two columns with different offerings like chicken katsu, tempura, sashimi, beef teriyaki and depending on price it will be in A or B). The tonkatsu and chicken katsu are very good here. The breading is just right and the taste is spot on. But this time my family passed on individual meals and went with the party boat. Now I don't know if you know this, but anything involving a boat is usually quite good. For example- random boat party at Waimea Bay- pretty awesome. The Lonely Island's song and music video "I'm on a boat"- more awesome. Elian Gonzales floating to the US. Ok. that one doesn't count. That was a raft- or pallet. The party boat is a huge serving platform in boat form with lobster tails, beef teriyaki, chicken katsu, tonkatsu, shrimp and assorted vegetable tempura, sashimi, rice, miso soup, pickled veggies, soybeans and more. You split it between 4 hungry hungry people and you roll out the door. Good food at a decent price (I think it was $30 a head for the boat).
(5)Mark J.
Best sushi for the $$ on island. The spicy tuna is off the hook. My favorite spot. Good for families or couples alike. No nonsense sushi place.
(5)MariKris U.
We always leave satisfied when we come to eat here! I love their combo AA I get it with tempura and miso butterfish. The butterfish is so soft and just so good! My husband loves their mix sushi and sashimi. Good food & good service!
(5)N W.
Aside from thier service in which my company and I felt a bit singled out, the food was great! Love it!! Very clean environment! They need to make a facebook page lol Love the shrimp tempura, miso soup, salad, sushi, saba omg love all thier food although i havent tasted "Everything yet". lol I would give this a 5 star if we didnt have to try and get some attention for some ice water and our bill. On our way out one of the workers said "Have a good evening" and I said "oh sweet.....dinner on the house!". lol She was surpried...we paid our bill lol Sorry I chose not to leave a tip this time. Better luck next time.
(4)Max L.
A great find after a long day at the Waikele outlets. We had the butterfish misoyaki as a teishoku and that was sufficient, however for a slightly bigger meal, the combinations are a great idea as you can personalize it.
(5)Vincent T.
Our first time and the food was good but the menu way overpriced. You would have probably gotten double your order for the amount you spend if you went to Genki next door instead. This place is more for upper echelon in the wallet Japanese cuisine connoisseurs. Presentation are great but food is only a little above average.
(3)Bradley H.
I just went here last nite for a family dinner and it was really a mixed bag...like "what the hell is going on" mixed bag. We went with a party of eight and it took about 30 minutes to get seated...which is normal for this place at dinner time. Then it took about 15 minutes to get our order taken, then it took another 15 minutes to get our food served...well...5 of the 8 of us at least. My grandma ordered the udon, which came about 10 minutes after that. My dad and i ordered the same entree and his came about 5 minutes after THAT. Then i sat, and waited, and waited, and waited. Finally my food came out...pretty much after everyone had FINISHED eating!!! The waitress was very apologetic, but she wasn't cooking the food or running the restaurant, so you can't really blame her. My order was the combo with sashimi (not much to cook there), tempura (i can't possibly imagine that they couldn't cook this up in 30 seconds), and teriyaki rib eye. Nothing that every other single person in the joint was ordering and eating. It's hard to enjoy your meal when the rest of your table is now waiting for you to finish. The sashimi was fresh, but the portion was small. The tempura was okay, but i felt the shrimp was over battered, and my sister who had the squid tempura thought the batter was just too much for her too. The highlight was the teriyaki rib eye--perfectly cooked and delicious. To make up for my dinner coming out almost in time for breakfast, they gave me a whopping scoop of ice cream. Yay for me...bleh. I don't really know why we go here in the first place (maybe because there aren't enough overpriced japanese food places in hawaii), but in the end i'd be happy just eating somewhere where i can eat WITH my family.
(1)Nani M.
I don't get where all the rave reviews come from?! We came here on Tuesday 10/29 and after being told the wait would be 15-25 mins we waited close to an hour! But I thought surely the food would make up for it. Okay, we stared with the spicy hamachi roll and the kunio California roll. I really wanted the hamachi roll to be good but it wasn't. The presentation was poor too. The California roll had a nice presentation but the fish on it was fishy- Ewww.... For dinner, Out of the six of us, 3 of us had misoyaki butterfish and it tasted like they threw it miso right before they cooked it - so bland! I had my butterfish with the "mixed" tempura and not only was the batter greasy the veggies were gross. I also had a piece of squid which was unrecognizable and couldnt even bite through the piece - I had to ask the waiter what it was! My grandma had the tonkatsu (with the miso butterfish) which was super dry and the sauce was poorly made. My 7 year old daughter had the soba, which is her fav Japanese food, and she didn't even like it! It's pretty hard to screw that dish up. My niece had the unagi and she liked it alright but there is definitely better out there. My hubby got the teriyaki, sashimi, and tempura... The teriyaki was nothing special. It tasted like a local BBQ restaurant meat. And the rest was just.... Texture on a plate. And about 10 mins after he ate he was running to the bathroom with stomach cramps!... You know what that means....:( Also, our food took so long to come out and the dishes came out randomly and spread out. I am very disappointed especially footing a $160 bill for food that was below mediocre. And made my hubby sick! Gyotaku's food isn't 5 star but it is definitely better than this over hyped restaurant.
(1)Gina A.
I usually love to come here for dinner. We usually have to wait to be seated but not very long. Tonight on the other hand was a whole different story. I put my name on the list and was told it would be a 20 minute wait. Not bad. So we proceeded to wait and wait and wait. Tables were opening and people were being seated. We are waiting and waiting. I go in to check where we are on the list and there are a few names ahead if me. I see about 4 groups being seated so think I'm close to being seated. Well, I hear a Gail for 3 being called but no Gail. Thinking mayb she got my name wrong I go inside to check the list, Gail is above me with the same number of people. Yet, the hostess has sat 3 more people. I wait for her to return up front to ask how much longer I will have to wait pointing out that Gail was a no show so I should be next. She tells me another 20 minutes due to the people that are highlighted. Um I don't think so. We left and went to chilis and got seated in 5 min after we waited for over an hour at Kunio!!!! I won't be back for a long time if ever.
(1)Melissa L.
Very nice Japanese restaurant. Great service, from the hostess to the waiters to the bus boy. Tasty tradition Japanese fair.
(4)Steve H.
I don't understand why it is rated 4 stars and a wait? I have read the reviews and did noticed some not so radiant reviews; and have lowered our expectation significantly. We've ordered the A&B Comb (at $20), hamachi sashimi ($17), toro sashimi ($24), chawanmushi ($5.5), and an ala carte misoyaki butterfish ($11). The misoyaki butterfish tasted decent the first bite, but not to fond of luke warm food. My guess is that the butterfish have been previously cooked and then reheated in the toaster oven. The toro sashimi was good (it is toro; should it should be at least good), not excellent. The hamachi sashimi was served a bit too "warm" for my taste, and not as "crisp". This place definitely did not "wow" me. The miso soup is quite salty. I don't understand how a $8 to $10 for two pieces of nigiri cheap (not in Waikiki) Typically, I pay around $6 for two pieces of hamachi and $8 for uni, and up to $10 for ama-ebi; oh I live in Los Angeles.
(2)Dustin W.
Kunio is an excellent place for a casual but fancy japanese dinner, with good prices. Love the sukiyaki and the butterfish over here. The sushi is really fresh and delicious but don't expect local kind spicy ahi.
(4)Pearl R.
Very disappointing!!! I ordered a rib eye steak and they told me that they were out of it, but the next customer who ordered the same thing got the rib eye steak. When I told the waitress she said she didn't know!! How can you say you are out of something and then tell me you didn't know! In addition to that twice that I came here I found hair in my sukiyaki.. for sure I will never eat here again!!
(1)Masato I.
2nd trip here on black Friday for lunch, the parking was a nightmare because of all the folks going to the outlet mall across the street (I ashamedly followed suit after my meal...) This time I got the Katsudon which was harty and filling, but not quite as good as the udon. Came with the miso soup which was piping hot and delicious and my not-so favorite hot tea. The tonkatsu was a bit tough and it had a citiric taste to it which I was not getting into at all. The onions were plentiful and sweet and the egg was fine. I was starving and this sub $10 set was filling, so it wasn't bad. It was just a bit too sweet and sour for my taste, I'll stick with the udon next time. I did try the hand of the head sushi chef this round and I spoke with him a for a while. He's 28 years removed from Japan, but still a very legitimate chef. The skill is there, but I can't say the sushi here is top notch. The filets are left in the display without plastic wrap which dries it out quickly and the cuts all seem to be lean and not the fatty belly portions with the flavor. I'll stick with the more traditional sushi bars, but I haven't found a better udon place on island.
(4)Missy S.
We have come to kunios a few times now, and the food has been pretty good. But today what I ordered really wasn't the greatest. We figured we had some time before returning our rental car so we came here to kunios today and we were the first to arrive. We looked at the menus and instantly noticed how expensive the items on the menu were. I guess because the last few times we came we figured it was dinner time, but coming here for lunch? $30 and up for sashimi or sushi plates? That's ridiculous. So we decided to go their cheapest routes so my folks shared some teriyaki chicken combo and I wanted a spicy tuna roll. The waitress right away tells me that it would take 30 minutes for the sushi rice to cool down because they were only starting to cook the rice now. Why are they only making rice now? That should have been done before they opened. So I didn't want to wait that long and decided to change my order to the chicken katsu don. My parents' order came and they noted that their chicken was so so. They made the comment that they could have made something like this in their own kitchen. I also didn't appreciate my food too much. The katsu don was too salty. Bleh. I had to drink 2 full glasses of water to help me out. I couldn't even finish it so I gave the rest to my sister who works next door at subway. Im a good sister aren't I? Anyway, good place to come to for dinner time. But as a lunch place? Go to another japanese restaurant.
(2)Travis M.
Menu is decent size Wait staff are friendly Prices are not to expensive Food is good These are the reasons I always come here.
(4)Mai Y.
I gave this place 3 stars because it was PRICEY. The food was good but it felt like we were paying more for the up scale ambiance. For my husband and 2 kids, we spent $71. And we only drank water!!! We bought my son a scoop of ice cream and that was almost $4! If I had known that, i would have spent my $4 on a carton of ice cream in the supermarket instead! There were good portions of food, but overall, I feel like I got full off of the huge scoops of rice. Other than that, Great service! The girls were very sweet. The Miso Butterfish was excellent, Shrimp Tempura was huge and the kids meal was big and had a great variety that left my children satisfied.
(3)Emi H.
Went to Waikele today under the guise of needing to buy kids clothes but really I just wanted to eat lunch at Kunio. I had eaten here once before and with the rainy weather I was in the mood for a hot bowl of udon. We were lucky that it wasn't very busy and we were seated right away. I ordered the Nabeyaki udon for $13.50 and added extra veggies for $2.00. My BF ordered the combo for $15.75 with miso butterfish & shrimp tempura. He got a bowl of miso soup and a tiny trio of nibbles with his combo. When I say tiny, I mean really tiny. It was yummy but are we eating at the Karen Carpenter table? Our food took about 10 minutes to come out and it was really weird because the table next to us, who had come in after us, got their food first. I just thought that this was in bad taste because they ordered combos as well. Not getting to the good stuff, our food came out and I must say their Nabeyaki Udon is the best I've had on the island. In town I usually hit up Jimbo's but I much prefer the soup that they serve with the udon. It's sweet almost like Sukiyaki and I love how noodles were perfectly cooked. So amazing! My udon came with one piece of shrimp tempura and it was the perfect amount of food. My BF really enjoyed the butterfish in his combo and couldn't finish all the tempura that came with it. I think he just has anxiety about eating deep fried food. I say eat it now while you're still long and it doesn't sit on your *ss! Because one day that's the only place it'll all go! Our meal was so good and although $40 (with tax & tip) is a bit pricey for lunch, you're in freakin' Waikele so where else are you going to get some bomb Japanese food?! I love the casual atmosphere of Kunio, and most of the staff is good, but I have to say the girl that brought out our food was not the best of servers. I asked her for a spoon for my udon and she showed me that it was on the back side of my hot steel udon pot. I thought well how did I not see that? Oh because it was on the BACK SIDE of my HOT STEEL udon pot! Bygones. Great meal and in the end as my friend Michelle B would always say "I don't eat the service!"
(5)Kalei F.
This is a review just solely on the sushi!! I do like it pretty much! If they had 1/2 stars on Yelp, I would definitely give it a 3.5! The service was pretty good, and the miso soup was really tasty :) Now to the sushi!!! We had the Rainbow roll, Spicy Ahi roll, Dynamite Roll, Unagi avocado, and the Sunset Roll. I loved all of them except for the Sunset Roll. The warm cream cheese in there just wasn't appetizing. All in all, for a restaurant in Waikele, I love it!! Whenever I'm down this side, I'll definitely come for good sushi!! I'll have to try the tempura and udon that everyone raves about as well :)
(4)Jennifer N.
This place is walking distance from my house, so we have been a couple of times when we don't feel like going to far for dinner. We have have the bento type dinner with tempura and miso butterfish. Both were delicious. We have also had a variety of sushi here and it was fresh and tasty. I recently discovered donburi which I have never had before and I now I am a fan. I had the chicken katsu donburi. With nothing to compare it to, I think it was great. Huge portion with rice, veggies, chicken cutlet, and egg on top. The sauce was not overpowering and bought the ingredients together nicely. I will get this again!
(4)Chad Y.
Kunio Restaurant in the Waikele Center is home to some of the best Japanese food I have had on the island. Period. The combination of good, high quality food, a good location, and with the good service, it is truly hard to beat! The menu features high quality Japanese food. The bento box is a good selection of items if you can't decide on just one, and after a long morning of shopping, it will be hard. The miso butterfish was wonderfully cooked and some of the best I've had on Oahu. The tempura was cooked to perfection and the sauce was nicely seasoned and a perfect complement. the sushi is incredibly good and the fresh fish just makes it great. The service was good, although they could have been just a tad bit more attentive. That being said, we never felt neglected and it was still very good. Their convenient location (well semi-convenient if you don't live in the area) is right near the freeway on-ramps and off-ramps. Parking is convenient in front and never really in short supply. All in all, home to some of the best Japanese food on the island and will be sure to keep me coming back for more and more.
(4)Tamra P.
Met up with some friends for some much needed "girl time" today for lunch at Kunio. Now when hunger pains begin during a Waikele hunt for that perfect bargain discount brand name outfit, the options generally leave me, well, still starving actually since I will wait it out to go eat elsewhere. Thankfully today I was very happy to have a good experience and be able to add this to my list of acceptable places to eat on the Westside. Service was quick and friendly. I joined the party a little late and everyone had just gotten their food. I was served water and hot tea right away, and had very little wait for my combo meal. They have quite a selection, so there should be something to please anyone. I ordered the combo with miso butterfish and sushi. It came with a salad and miso soup, and yes, like Emi H says, a trio of nibbles. The butterfish was delicious, and the sushi was very fresh--4 pieces of nigiri (salmon, ebi, ahi, and hamachi), and 3 pieces of tekka maki. When I told the server I didn't need the bowl of rice that came with it, she offered me more salad. Sweet!!! I love my veggies and that totally scored points right there. Total came to about $18 which some may say is pricey for lunch but I think it is fair for the service, quality, and the fact that I didn't have to drive into town. I will have to try more of the sushi and maybe the Nabeyaki udon when its not so hot out. Will definitely be back!
(4)Masumi K.
I have been coming to Kunio's since they first opened! My family and I are pretty much regulars here and the waitresses know us. We have also made friends with some of the waitresses that used to work there and now work elsewhere. Even till this day we still keep in touch with them. How great is that?! The entire Kunio staff is warm, welcoming, and very friendly! Now on to the anticipated review ... I have to say, out of all the Japanese eating places that are located out Leeward side, I would have to say that I like Kunio's the most. If you know where Waikele shopping center is and know where KFC and Party City is located inside Waikele then you are on the right track to eating oh-so-delicious Japanese food! --------------------------------------------------Â------------- Why I like this place; number of reasons being: 1) Service is spectacular 2) Food comes out fairly quickly! 3) Always checked on during meals (Which is a huge + for me because I always come hungry!) 4) Food here is awesome! 5) PLACE FOR REALLY GOOD MISO SOUP! (Being Japanese, I am extremely picky with my miso soup and I can tell bad tasting miso soup to a really good tasting one! --------------------------------------------------Â------------- I can honestly say that I have tried every single thing from their menu. And I like mostly everything here! What I recommend you try is: Sunset roll - This is something I always get or even order 2 orders of this to-go! It has cream cheese inside which makes it different than any other sushi I have ever tried. The outside is lightly battered and fried like a shrimp tempura. It is super good! YOU MUST TRY! Spicy ahi bowl - My regular dish that I usually get here because I love spicy stuff! Now before you all judge ... this isn't your typical spicy ahi bowl that is mixed with mayonnaise. Sushi: Their sushi here is pretty fresh. I can tell what is fresh and what has been sitting out. Every time I order my spicy ahi bowl the grade of fish is exquisite and it isn't chewy. Chewy fish is no good! You want good stuff! Now if you just want superb sushi then might I suggest you go to Mitch's Fish Market & Sushi Bar or Sasabune. --------------------------------------------------Â------------- The noise level in this place isn't too bad. I can have a great meal with family or friends and still hear myself think or even chew for that matter! They always play a nice assortment of oriental music which is soothing. From time-to-time they will even play my favorite group, The Yoshida Brothers! I own all of their albums and listening to their music in a Japanese restaurant is so fitting! I have been to some Japanese restaurants that play Jay Z music or Justin Bieber. (I really don't want to hear 'Baby, baby, baby OOOH' while I eat my food - _ -) This place is great for small parties! They do have a good sized private room located in the back that could probably seat about 10 people or less. If you do have a party then might I suggest you go out with a bang and get their party boat! It's fun, creative, and full of delicious sushi! Now for the downside to this place ... Wait for a table during dinner time or special holidays such as Valentines Day can be troublesome sometimes.
(5)Raquel R.
When I am craving Japanese food, I love to go to Kunio. My bf and I love the Salmon Sashimi. It is always fresh and yummy. There are also combo plates... I also enjoy eatting the butterfish and tempura combo. Around 6pm -8pm (especially on the weekends), there is a waiting list to be seated. The food from Kunio is definitely worth waiting for. If there is only 2-3 in your party, you may want to check out the bar... usually first come first serve unless the bar is full. ENJOY. Happy Eating!!!
(5)Lynn U.
I love Kunios! I have been coming here for years, and the only thing that has changed is the prices. This location does not take reservations, be prepared to wait about 30-45 minutes if you arrive during peak times. Do sign in on the sheet as soon as you get here or have someone jump out the car and sign in while looking for parking, which is a challenge also. There is a combination of booths and tables, and even a small room in the back with four tables (they have you take off your shoes if you go inside). I like sitting in the booth since the seats are more comfy. My favorite dish to order is the AA combo of Miso butterfish and shrimp tempura. There is a list of other items on the menu that you can combine also. They also have sushi, sizzling platters of steaks and shareable "boats". Japanese beer is also served here. My combo meal usually comes with some kind of vegetables and Miso soup before the main dish arrives. You can also ask for complimentary hot tea during your meal. The staff is very friendly and not in a hurry to get you out of there. You do have to put up with people staring at you from outside the glass windows hoping you hurry so they can come in and eat. I give this place two thumbs up for yummy food and great service!
(5)Hungry D.
Really long wait at lunch time but the food is totally worth it. Considering calling in ahead for a takeout order. I really enjoyed the Chirashi A, it was very fresh - but then considering the price ~$17 I would hope it was. Only done takeout here because of how long the line was but I'd love to sit at the sushi bar to eat one day. The Chirashi had a great selection of sashimi and even some gobo and dakuan. The scallop was delicious. I was happy my take out order came with miso soup and some sides as well. After gorging on the whole thing I've decided I'll definitely be going back.
(4)Manny M.
Stepped up in this spot due to the yelp reviews. Nice place. Lovely staff. Sushi was good, but I wanted a wow. We had the hamachi/avocado, rainbow and sunset rolls. All very fresh and just the right blend of flavors to please the palate. Was our first Sushi experience in Hawaii. Glad we came. Next time I hope to try for a WOW sushi meal. Recommendations certainly appreciated.
(4)Tiare B.
Kunio...where do I begin...LOVE. Been going here for years but unfortunately do not live on this side of the island so I only make it out here if I'm at a dance rehearsal or out at waikele for some shopping. It's honestly the best place to eat when wanting to refuel your body to do some more damage at the outlets. Fresh, authentic and conveniently located in the outlet complex, Kunio is a little gem out in waikele. Their prices are a bit steep but only due to the high quality ingredients they use. I almost always order a combination Teishoku with butterfish and sashimi. Their butterfish is always spot on and cooked perfectly! Sashimi is always fresh and well cut (not too think or too thin). Their teishoku sets also come with a starter salad, miso soup and a few sides which makes it a pretty good deal. I always know I'm at a pretty authentic Japanese restaurant when the salad dressing is a delicious miso blend. They do a great job with that here. Highly recommend if you're in the area! Definitely beats going to genki next door.
(5)Jen S.
First, let me tell you that with the exception of the sometimes long waiting line....I love Kunio's! The food is delish, small kine pricey for a Outlet Mall restaurant, but it really is nice to have a restaurant that's a notch above your typical fast food type Outlet Mall eating establishment! So this review is specifically on the "Restaurant Kunio Funamori Party Boat!" Although we've been here many times since we moved to Mililani 8 years ago, we have never ordered the Funamori Party Boat! Trust me, I've seen others order it and I've wanted to order it but our usual dinner party mainly consists of 3 adults (one that really eats like a bird, the other who eats for two and myself, who's kind of in between!) And at $32 a person (min. 4 person order) It's always something we've thought about it but never done because we were never sure if there'd be enough food although we've been told there is! Well, so I'm finally delighted to say that on my recent birthday, the Funamori Party Boat was my surprise birthday dinner! Needless to say being there was only 3 of us, (including the bird eater...hahaha), and we did order for 4, but I can honestly say, there was way more than enough food! Loved the presentation and the sushi and sashimi was so fresh! I could've ate just the sashimi and rice and would've been satisfied! But my fav is lobster which I also ate with my sashimi and a few pieces of shrimp tempura. I did however manage to also take a bite or two of everything else. Loved the ribeye, although not sure if there really was 4 normal adult eaters if there would've been enough of it for all of us. But, honestly, it was all good and I was happy, however, think it all would've been amazing (and a 5 star rating!) if the lobster wasn't slightly overcooked, the chicken katsu and pork tonkatsu wasn't a tad bit dry and the shrimp and veggie tempura wasn't cooked in overly used oil. (Did I forget to say that I love Japanese food and I'm small kine picky? haha!) But at the end dinner and with all of that said....let me just also say though that the friendly staff, piping hot delicious miso soup w/tofu (my fav!), salad and appetizers, ambiance of the restaurant, tons of parking (although maybe not right in front of the restaurant) and everything else I've ever eaten there that has always been delicious is enough for me to still highly recommend and keep returning to this awesome restaurant! We will be back!
(4)F B.
Ono delicious, especially with old friends... Butterfish, yakitori with onions & green pepper, salad, rice, miso soup and Hiyakko!! Very busy place even at 1:00 pm!!!
(5)Lori L.
Kunio Restaurant is the best place in Waikele to get a Teishoku dinner and they get busy. If you come during peak hours, expect to wait. The interior is comfortable, service is friendly, and the menu is extensive. They have sushi (sashimi, maki, nigiri), noodles (udon, soba), deep-fried entrees (tempura, prawns, katsu), broiled entrees (butterfish, unagi, chicken), plus more. The Nabayaki Udon had a nice variety of veggies along with the chicken, poached egg, and tempura which came on the side. The two choice AB Combo Veggie Tempura and Miso Butterfish was great, tempura was light and crunchy, the butterfish was nicely marinated, buttery and tender. Before both entrees, we were served Miso Soup and a trio of appetizers--a Fried Prawn and 2 Seasoned Veggies. Expect to pay about $20 per person, plus tip. If you're looking for Japanese in Waikele, you found it. Go check them out.
(3)Judy C.
I've been to Waikele Premium Outlet many times & What!! why did I not know this restaurant exist? What happen? Where have I been? Yikes!! Until, finally this week, I discovered this place.. Happiness!! I went to lunch with my great friends/co-workers & thank you to my friend for recommending Restaurant Kunio. They been here more times than I have The restaurant is nice & clean! The wait staff are very friendly! My friend's tip is to come early, around 11am. as it is always crowded. Our reservation, 11am for 5 & toddler. The table we had was just perfect. As I looked thru the menu, I have such a hard time deciding on what to order It took me awhile to finally make a decision, everything sounds so good!! I really loved Nabeyaki udon, my friend said the shrimp tempura is very good. & I wanted to eat butterfish. decisions... since I was the last to order, that gave me a little more time.. My order: 2 item combo- 17.75 Shrimp tempura & butterfish. & Wow!! as I bite in to the shrimp tempura, it is very good!! just as my friend said. very crispy as well. cooked perfect!! The butterfish, came out just as requested. ( well done) I enjoyed everything that came with the meal,( miso soup, tsukemono, rice, & salad) Nexts time when I head out to shop at Waikele, I will def. not miss out on this restaurant at all. Thank you so much to my great friends/co-worker for recommending this place!!
(5)Jessica P.
Yo! I'm not in Japan anymore. :-( Sushi rolls we ordered were oishii (Sunset Roll and Philadelphia), but my Combo AB Set was two thumbs down. The 3-part appetizer was a hint of things to come. Imitation crab salad. Over-boiled edamame. Maybe a day old bamboo shoot salad. Ehh. Bento box arrives. Salad was wilted and overdressed with the vinaigrette. The Teriyaki Chicken wasn't exactly what I had expected. It was basically a half of a chicken into large quarters with your basic teriyaki sauce. Nothing special. The Fried Oysters were better. I didn't finish it though. Nothing really to rave about. No draft beer. Just bottled. I tried the Nabeyaki Udon. The flavors were just off. Maybe the pork broth could have been marinated longer. I wasn't impressed. Wah wah wah. The last 5 reviews gave this place 5 stars each and some even said "Best Japanese on the Island." I hate to burst your bubble people, but this wasn't so great. I really wanted to like this place, too. Long wait and good reviews was deceiving IMO. I guess it's because it may just be the only Japanese restaurant on this side of the island. No need to make the drive back out here.
(3)Kat T.
Great place to eat Japanese food. Same price as any other Japanese restaurant. The food was delish. The food was cooked good and nothing wrong. Service was good. But at some points I need to call him but wasn't able to locate him. So I had to get out of the private room and locate him by going Around. My SIL soft shelled crab was delish with he sauce that came with it. The tempura was good. I pretty much ate mine and my SIL. My rib eye was already alright I was looking for chunky pieces not sliced. Everyone loved what they ordered. Didn't complain. Food was good. The place is kinda small. It was packed when we got there so we had a 15/20 minute wait. Parking is in a plaza you share with other stores. Place is next door to 31 flavored and Party City.
(5)Jules Y.
KEY HERE IS GENUINE SIMPLICITY :) This is one of my most favorite places on this island for Japanese cuisine. It's the place I come to when I need to refine my palate back to normal from all the hype of the sometimes artsy creative food combinations some other places do. Yes, of course I love and appreciate the colorful fancy Japanese sushi rolls and dishes but there are times I just like enjoying full-bodied yet simple Japanese flavors. This restaurant does well in what it focuses on. It successfully accomplishes an uncompromising traditional taste and I absolutely love them for it: Uncomplicated, clean, yet full of great showy taste! With each bite your mouth erupts in delicious wonderment! Whether it be the crunch of the flaky tempura batter layer! Not all restaurants do this just thick enough fluffy layer just right - I love it! Can't get enough if it! All tempura should be made this way! Really! :) The mildly salty warm and very mildly oily nori taste of the tempura shoyu! The soft hot tempura shrimp nestled inside! The shrimp are always nice big, juicy pieces covered in that perfectly flaky and crunchy tempura batter! :) The al dente udon noodles! The tempura dipped in the udon soup! The taste of the nori flavoring the udon soup! The bite of the chewy yielding soft gooey mochi! The dark green choy sum veggies flavored by the udon soup! The soft crunchy red & white fishcake! The fresh sumptuous flavor of the sashimi fish! Or on the bit of sushi rice! The flavorful and tender misoyaki butterfish! Broiled to flaky perfection! So soft! So sweet yet salty! So good! Even the Miso soup with mini tofu chunks is full-bodied and miso-flavorful! What's so amazing?! Simple. Uncomplicated. Genuine. Yet somehow so absolutely and deliciously Complicated. That they do this so well :D Focusing on simplicity in taste and infusing complicated taste within each delicious bite is an art and to me is key to what makes this place so great. Flavoring correctly is so very important :) In my opinion, it is more difficult to achieve this complicated simplicity. So easy to misunderstand; so difficult to replicate! Quality here is terrific, taste is fabulous, and quantity for value is fantastic. I always feel that each dish is generously filled rather than held back the way some places can be. And while portions are generous, this is more about refined taste than it is about huge portion size. Indulge in the taste of the food by taking slow bites in order to savor and taste the goodness, and see your YUM! Over a decade I have eaten here more than a bunch of handfuls of times and the food here is always something I long for and crave! My two absolute favs: 1) 2 Choice combination bento, Miso Butterfish & Shrimp Tempura, comes with miso soup & pickled/veggie side dishes served first, and green tossed salad & white rice with bento; side order of sashimi (ahi, salmon, hamachi) 2) Udon with Mochi; side order of (2) shrimp tempura I can't seem to get away from these two. I love them so much! I wistfully always wish I could fit both in my boday but geez that's just not possible hehe :P In either case, true happiness does abound when I'm here partaking in either! :D As long as they keep things the same, I will remain a lifer! :D
(5)Roxy W.
Location: They are located in Waikele Outlet Mall near Party City and Panda Express. Parking is plentiful since its at the outlet mall but close parking does fill up quickly. Food: The sushi was fresh! I love the presentation of the party boat. The party boat included shrimp, lobster, sashimi, shrimp tempura, vegetable tempura, pork cutlet and Kalbi. They also serve miso soup, salad and pickled vegetable before the party boat comes out. Price: The party boat is $32 a person but well worth it for the variety of food. The sushi rolls averaged around $10. A party of 5 cost around $200. Service: The staff were friendly and fast. The food didn't take long to come out. Our waters were refilled in a timely manner. Overall, I love the food and the atmosphere! I will be back again.
(5)Taylor L.
My family absolutely loves Kunio! We will always find an excuse to eat here. There are many options on the menu, but I always get one of the 3 combo meals 69-72. It's the best deal and you get tons of food. The miso butterfish and sashimi are some of my favorite menu items as well. The staff is wonderful and although the wait can be long, it's definitely worth it.
(5)Randy L.
My girlfriend and I were craving some Japanese food so we decided to try Kunio. We ordered the ever so popular miso butterfish and the caterpillar roll. Let me start by saying that the butterfish was DELICIOUS! It has to be one of the best fish we've ever tried! If we lived nearby, we would definitely be regulars. And the caterpillar roll was also very good! The sushi chef knew we were tourists so he put eyes and antennae on the caterpillar which was pretty cool :) I would definitely recommend coming here if you want some Japanese food (and butterfish)!
(5)Shay K.
My family and I have been coming to Kunio's for years because it is convenient and good quality. My two great grandmas are from Japan, grew up in sushi restaurants, and one even owned a Japanese restaurants. So they have pretty high standards for Japanese food and Kunio's usually fits the bill. Lately, quality has gone down in-restaurant with the plates and sushi boards being used all buss-up, so we resort to take-out. Which has been better in terms of portion size, quality, and presentation. But this time we ordered some nigiri. My great grandma loves uni and ordered two (it's not cheap) and the uni was very pale yellow, and very watery. This she explained was the lower quality uni as opposed to the firm bright orange or yellow variety. But the price of course was the same. She felt a little sick after eating a piece and didn't finish her order. My mom also found two bones in her Saba and a bone in her salmon. When we called to mention the subpar sushi we were offered a comp the next time we come in, one free Saba and one free uni. This isn't really comparable to the food that was low quality which was 2 uni, 2 Saba, and 1 salmon - but the offer was nice enough. And they tried to tell us the uni was just a different "kind" which is true, but we're not stupid and know the uni is of lower quality than what is usually served. Needless to say, we won't be back and are sad this to this as we are long time customers who eat here almost every week. So while the comp was nice, it's not enough to have us come back and eat there again. The second star is for the waitresses only - because their service is friendly. But management and suppliers maybe need to be reevaluated.
(2)Traci H.
This is your "normal" Japanese fare that you can find in Hawaii. Very similar to Gyotaku or other Japanese restaurant. It's a great place to go if everyone likes Japanese food, but maybe not one dish specifically. Their menu is extensive! From sashimi &sushi, to udon, soba, curry, teriyaki chicken, and more! All the different dishes I've had are good, consistent, but never had a WOW moment there. The service is pretty good. My grips with this place is that I think that it is a little pricey for what your are getting, but it's a good place to eat while at Waikele. Also during prime eating times parking is tough in the area. So many eateries with such a small lot! Also they themselves can be busy and you'll often see a line for dinner. Overall, I don't really crave for this place. It's just a place to go with decent Japanese food. Often I go here with other people, and it's a place for a group of different palates. With the small selection of restaurants in Waikele, this place really shines!
(3)Miriam M.
Oh my gosh this sushi was amazing! Surrounded by a strip mall full of corporate restaurants, they are a true gem! The space is quaint, small and exactly what I expected from a Japanese restaurant. They even had a "sushi-clock" over the sushi bar. The menu was written in Japanese and English so we needed a little guidance from our server. Her recommendations were spot on! My husband got the beef udon and I chose #105 A Chirashi Bowl. The portions are very generous and the sushi was extremely fresh! We were greeted with all smiles from beginning to end of our visit and will definitely add it to our "must come back" list when we visit Mililani again!
(5)Joyce L.
I haven't been to Kunio's in a long time. I got there around 5pm and there was a little of a wait like 15 minutes. Japanese restaurant isn't so common in Waikele area. That's probably they're so busy. As soon as we were sat, a complimentary miso soup arrived. That was nice. I ordered butterfish teishoku. My order came within 5 minutes. I was impressed how speedy they were. The young man server came to our table to check on us often. He was a good server. The only thing was we ordered chawamushi and the server didn't let us know that it will take a long time. So we ended up canceling it. Server was very apologetic. No big deal. Obviously, they make their chawamushi fresh. If I can suggest anything, I hope next time I dine in they make their sushi counter area more sushi friendly. I saw random stuff in their sushi showcase like bottled water, containers of things etc.
(3)Elizabeth A.
Never walked in this place...till today..what a hidden gem in Waipahu...it is the best humble mom and pop restaurant I have been for a long time. The food, price, service, and the Japanese waiter was great we enjoyed our time. We had teishoku 3 dishes. Had so much selections and one of them being tofu steak. It was a great sauce.one of us have katsu don't which had egg fish egg and amazing sauce. We ended our meal with great rb ice cream which was a great kicker.
(5)Peter T.
I'm normally a fan of this place hitting it up every couple months when I'm driving back from that side of the island but this last time, well didn't do it for me. Not sure if the cook was just having a bad day, I just wasn't feeling it, or quality has suffered lately but wasn't impressed this last visit. Also first time hitting it up for dinner instead of lunch so maybe a quality difference there also (different cooks? higher traffic so less quality? etc) As always I got the pick three combo bento (ahi sashimi, ribeye, and tempura) and love it as always tell folk I think they have best tempura and ribeye on island with ahi being pretty good also but this last visit, the ribeye was tough and over-fatty, the tempura shrimp was overcooked and something was off taste wise .. maybe new oil or batter? and the ahi, well it was good like always though smaller portion than usually. Wife got the pick two butterfish and cooked ahi and liked them both but tasting myself, though the ahi was overcooked. Kid like the combo like always. Just an FYI in previous visits wife always get the lunch sushi combo and rants and raves about it. It's pretty solid sushi but nothing special. On the flipside I've tried to make myself eat their oyakodon twice now and always leave disappointed. Only know of two places on Oahu with great oyakodon but Kunio's, well it's not even passable. Not sure I will repeat or not. Always felt Spicy Ahi & BBQ over in Pearl gave Kunio a good run for their money on best combo bento on Oahu (I get the identical pick three there also) with Kunio slightly winning with ahi quality but after this last visit, Spicy Ahi wins hands down.
(4)Tiffany H.
If you're in the mood for some real, delicious Japanese food, this is the right place for you. They get extremely busy during lunch and dinner hours, so if you arrive during peak times you should expect a wait. My family likes to come here for special occasions, but nothing stops us from coming on a normal ol' day. I always love to get sushi here because it is just so. damn. good. Oh what I would do for some of that sushi right now. The last time I came, I got the Ebiten (hot Udon and tempura) with just vegetables tempura. The udon dashi was perfect in my opinion. The tempura was crispy, savory, and plentiful. I also ordered a california roll (I would've gotten a spicy ahi or something, but pregnancy restrictions suck). My grandpa and I were sat in the back room where you have to take off your shoes. I didn't mind at all, because it's a lot more spacious and you aren't so close to the next table that you learn about their lives while trying to enjoy your meal. The service is usually good here but I feel that the staff could be just a tad more friendly.
(5)Crys M.
So expensive ARRRGH but I love it here. I usually get a combo meal, or just some sushi rolls. Gotta have my sake. Small, quaint place for a nice japanese meal-be it lunch or dinner. I love that 4-person BOAT to share...Oh my Gooooosh. Though I HATE the wait at times. Oh and I hate taking off my shoes if we end up sitting in the back, but still respect :)
(5)Kim J.
One of the places to get miso butterfish! Very delicious! Seating is very cramped but the staff members are friendly and the food is good. It's a bit pricey but we wanted to try it. I had miso butterfish a la carte, salmon nigiri and uni nigiri. All were really good and I would definitely eat here again.
(4)Patrick S.
I don't understand the overall positive feedback and brisk business this place gets. Perhaps I'm spoiled by many quality Japanese restaurants in town? On a Sunday night, my family and I waited 45 minutes to get a table. I ordered #69 (no sick ideas now)...their teri ribeye, shrimp/vegi tempura, and sashimi for $23 something. I will say the tempura was pretty good, crunchy with a tasty dipping sauce. As for the ribeye, the teri sauce was also good, meat was tender, but it was sliced too thin and mine had TONS of fat morsels remaining. As for the sashimi, the portions were teeny/tiny and the quality was horrible as it was clearly not fresh. Overall not worth the wait nor price. Steer clear...
(2)Grace L.
Kunio, I think you are my one true love (aside from my boyfriend but I think he's on the same page as me) We've been frequenting at least once a week, twice at most for the past year or so now. I've had the chance to try a wide variety of things and I do not have a favorite. Why do I not have a favorite? EVERYTHING IS GOOD. When I crave sushi or unagi or a teishoku...they satisfy. Literally, I have not had a single thing here that I didn't enjoy fully. Some of my favorites: 1. Sushi Deluxe ($26.95): assortment of sushi with some of the fattest slices of sashimi I've ever seen. And it comes with amaebi + the fried head! So fresh, soooo good. 2. Uni Nigiri ($11.50): fresh, FAT pieces of uni. Very generous. 3. Unagi ($19 I think): Two large pieces of perfectly marinated unagi. 4. Mixed tempura: Shrimp, Squid (SO AMAZINGLY MELT IN YOUR MOUTH SOFT), Ahi (moist and delicious), veggies. 5. Chicken Katsu: perfectly fried with the best dipping sauce! 6. My boyfriend usually gets the #69 (ribeye, sashimi, and substitute shrimp tempura for veggie since he's allergic to shrimp) but he also really loves the salmon (super soft) and the sashimi. A few notes: 1. Their green tea is THE BOMB. I really really like their complimentary hot tea. 2. Most entrees come with side dishes, salad, and/or miso soup. 3. Service is AMAAAAAZING. 4. Food is a bit on the pricier side for dinner, averaging around $20 a person give or take a few depending on what you order (BUT IT'S WORTH IT I PROMISE) 5. AA combo is around $18, AB combo is around $20, and BB combo is around $22. So my boyfriend and I are pretty much regulars now. And we'd like to thank the guy who is pretty much almost always our server for always providing awesome service (not sure what your name is...but thanks again if you see this and recognize us). We've never had bad food or bad service and we would highly recommend this place to anyone who is looking for good authentic Japanese food. I mean, I drive out here from town once a week to eat...if that's not true love, I don't know what is.
(5)Jessica H.
Busy, small Japanese cuisine restaurant in waikele. Casual and family friendly but didn't look like a very good place for big groups due to the size of the restaurant. Reservations cannot be made. Weekends are usually very busy. For two, the wait at 6:00 pm on a Saturday night was about 30 minutes; however we put down for table or sushi bar and were seated within ten minutes. Our waitress was very friendly and our food came very quickly. We ordered the miso butterfish, sunset roll, and unagi kabayaki. All were ono! But my favorite was the unagi kabayaki! Moist and very generous portions for the price.
(4)Stephanie K.
Every time I walk through Waikele, I find myself glancing into this cute Japanese restaurant and always saying, "I gotta try this place". This past weekend was the chance I got when I needed to find a restaurant between Kapolei, Waipahu, and Ewa Beach. I thought, I might as well shop and eat in the same area, so Waikele it is! At first glance, I can understand why people turn away: the endless long line (they don't take reservations) and slightly pricy menu for Waikele (the surrounding restaurants are Chilis and fast food places). BUT, I suggest putting down your name ahead of time, ask for wait time, then go look around! By the time you find yourself in line with purchase, you'll be hungry and next in line. So, the heart of this review--the food--was great and wonderful for conversation. We all ordered hot tea to start and it was AMAZING. It was perfect in elements of green tea, maybe jasmine, and warmth. We all places our orders, I orders the combo set of AA (there's A and B) with the selection of butterfish and shrimp tempura. For starters, we ordered a sunset roll, which I was really interested in trying. The combo was huge for me, it included miso soup, salad, an abundance of various tempura vegetables with the shrimp tempura, rice, and a slice of butterfish. The butterfish was nice and flaky, with salty and sweetness to it. Yum! The shrimp tempura was so large I hardly finished my meal. The sunset roll was interesting, it combined salmon (which came out cooked), spicy ahi (not really spicy), cream cheese, and all wrapped then fried! It was good, but not the best. Overall, it was a great experience with amazing service!
(4)Jasra A.
I would have totally given this place 5 stars, had it not been for our server. She never came back to fill up our waters, never really came to check on how we were doing. for that. But other than that, the food was amazing as always, I am never disappointed.
(4)Julie D.
Been to this place many times and they've never disappointed me once. This is my favorite Japanese restaurant in Waipahu because it makes me think of the food back in Japan. I like how it's located in Waikele Shopping Center so parking shouldn't be a problem unless there are special sales. I usually get the combo with vegetable/shrimp tempura and miso butterfish. I lalalove their miso butterfish!!! It's made to perfection. The tempura is not at all oily or soggy. Their plating is just clean and organized. They give a good amount for the money you pay. They also include side dishes-tsukemono and miso soup. If you're wanting sushi, they have a sushi bar with a sushi chef making it in front of you. The fish looks really fresh. This place gets really packed at times so it's good to call ahead of time to check if they're busy. Good for lunch or dinner dates either with family or friends. They don't take reservations but I'd wait hours to eat here.
(5)Ariana M.
I hardly come out to this area. Mainly because I don't have a car, so the only times I would come here is with friends or family. For my first time here, I really enjoyed myself. The food was good, staff was good, quick to seat for lunch, and not a long of a wait for food. The Grub. [[ COMBO AA $17.75 ]] yelp.com/biz_photos/kuni… With this combo you pick two choices for your entree. I picked Miso Butterfish and Shrimp Tempura. You also get miso soup, salad, rice and a cute appetizer to start off with. The butterfish was amazing! They even pick out the bones for you, I didnt have single bone! The shrimp tempura was super yummy too!
(4)Brandy S.
In my 16 years on island, Kunio has always been on of my favorite places to eat. I first tried it because it was close to the outlet mall and the Genki sushi, Chili's and outlet kiosks didn't exist yet. Once discovered, it became my 'go-to' place for a dining experience. When you arrive, you will hear the whole staff yell "Irashaimasen!" to you as a greeting and most likely a hostess will put your name on a waiting list. The key to not being on the waiting list is two pronged, for no wait, go between the hours of 2-4pm. IF it is busy, your wait staff will be pushed to their limits, but typically there is no wait and you'll be watching people bustle in by the time you are done with your meal! The other option is to sit at the sushi bar. If you choose to sit at the sushi bar, I recommend that you plan on eating sushi. You will have direct access to the sushi chef and be able to watch him work (and it's amazing to see.) Other orders from the back will be good but you won't have much room on the bar for all the dishes and your server will often times forget to check on you. If you order a teishoku, you will receive an appetizer, miso soup and a salad either up front or with your meal. I'll go over my favorite meal options at the end. Ask for green tea at the beginning if you like it and it will rarely go empty. The staff is great about refilling green tea but can be slow at water. IF you order a soft drink, you get charged for refills, which is ridculous. Don't order red or white wine...if you do, you are paying more for a glass than you would the whole bottle. Invest in one of the specialty japanese beers or sake instead. Another good thing to know is the produce and fish are fresh and picked out by the sushi chef daily. If they run out of something like avocado, they will send someone out to get some instead of making the rest of the day's customers disappointed. There are so many amazing options for food but here are some of the most popular: Sushi Rolls: Sunset Roll: Deep Fried Tuna/cream cheese roll with Tempura sauce Caterpillar Roll: Avocado on top, very cute See Pix Rainbow Roll: See pix My FAVORITE: Yaki Negihama roll, well done with spicy sauce and tanuki flakes (tempura flakes) For Combo meals the most popular by far is the the Shrimp Tempura and Miso Butterfish Combo My FAVORITE: Tonkatsu and Vegetable Tempura For less adventurous eaters along for the ride, you can't go wrong with the ribeye steak that comes out on a sizzling patter on a bed of onions capped with a pat of butter! Kids love the Oyakodon or Tanuki Udon. For soups the most popular is the Nabeyaki and the Sukiyaki. The Sukiyaki is sweeter and larger but both are hearty and individually made. For specials, the Ahi Tower and Salmon Carpaccio are customer favorites! At the end of your meal, the only dessert worth spending your money on is the green tea ice cream. Everything else is just generic store bought ice cream. Overall, the service tends to be very good as they have a very strict training process. Kon-san, the Sushi chef is very quiet but if you an make him laugh, you'll never forget him! Still in my top three favorite places to eat on island after all these years and new options!
(4)S Q.
The boat is a must try at least once in your life. A lot of sushi selections with a Lot of rolls selection also. A Good place to have good Japanese food.
(5)Diana L.
It was a Monday night, so there was no wait. I was seated right away... Next to a bucket of dirty water on the floor from a leaky roof. Now I know that isn't something that will always be there... But I'm not so sure about the cleanliness of the place with the roof leaking right next to me... The food was okay. I expected more, considering a lot of people have said that this place was really good. I tried the Dynamite roll, which is actually pretty good, and also the Sunset roll. The Salmon in the Sunset roll was a little bit over cooked for me, maybe others will like it that way. Not quite what I had expected though. The wait staff was very friendly, but a bit slow. Overall, wasn't quite satisfied tonight. Maybe I'll need to try a different dish.
(3)Jeffrey B.
I give them five stars! The food was great and the service was fast. We got there early because we were told that we may have to wait but we got in right away. Good thing we did because a line started right after we sat down.
(5)Danielle V.
This place is pretty good, I would think that their sushu is what they're good for, but I didn't have their sushi. I had their steak and it was so fucking good. Although it took a while for me to get my food is was so worth the wait and the little side dishes you get help you wait. The waitresses and waitors were pretty nice especially since I was high and crazy and they didn't kick us out haha but anyways this place is good. It's pretty pricey, but good.
(4)Jason W.
This is Hawaii! So expectations are very high, and Kunio delivers in a big way. This is worth the time to go and find even if you are staying in Waikiki. It's hard to find a roll I haven't tried before, but the sunset roll is unique as far as I can tell, and it is very good. I generally like raw rolls better, like a rainbow roll, but this tempura roll was very good. I also orders the sashimi combo and got 2 pieces of Marlin, which I have also never had before. I can't remember the last time I found a sushi bar with a fish AND a roll that I've never had before. Outstanding quality, the pictures speak for themselves. They are why I drove out to this place. You simply can not find this quality and variety anywhere in the mainland.
(4)Marni T.
Have just recently started eating Japanese food and well this place was great. My boyfriend took me here and the place was very busy but we only waited for 10 minutes which was nice. When we finally sat down I was a little disappointed because of where we had to sit. Although the waiter was really friendly, and he brought us our waters. He also recommend some dishes that everyone gets. I decided with the butter fish, I forgot what my boyfriend got but he didn't complain about anything. We also got sashimi which was pretty good, I have had better. Overall great little Japanese restaurant found in Waipahu. Oh yeah and the parking is pretty good at night. Morning and afternoon times are hard to find parking.
(4)Joan A.
I'm surprised that I never reviewed this establishment! Well it's about time that I did! I've been coming to this Japanese restaurant since they opened and the food has been yummy and consistent since my first visit. They're located on the lower side of Waikele Shopping Outlets near the McDonald's and Chilis...next to Party City. Parking might be bad but don't let that stop you from waiting for parking... It's worth it! Every time that I've dined here I've always waited only because I usually go during their peak times of lunch and dinner. When they're busy, their customer service is a hit or miss depending on who you have serving you. As for they're food...they serve everything Japanese from sushi, to udon, to teishoku, to donburi so on and so forth...I'm sure you get the idea! Lol I usually order the Chirashi and I'm always satisfied because the fish is so fresh. I've had their misoyaki butterfish and chicken donburi which are delicious as well. They also have a sushi counter where you can sit I front of the sushi chef and order from him directly. They also serve alcohol here... What's sushi without sake or Japanese beer right!? You will definitely be satisfied with the food! I would've gave them 5 stars if customer service was consistent!
(4)Jen C.
Went here this past weekend for lunch and ordered the miso butterfish with shrimp tempura combo. I must say that the food here has greatly improved recently! Huge piece of fish, so ono, no bones and really good tempura! I've noticed changes in the look of the place as well as the quality of the food as gone from great to excellent! Love this place!
(5)Craig P.
Approximately 15 minute wait was acceptable and worth it. Don't expect fast food. Variety of options and very well blended taste together. Just wish the tea options matched. We will be back to keep trying other options.
(4)Masayoshi S.
The food quality here used to be very good until now. My last two visits has been the worst ever! Fish cuts are ALOT smaller..teishoku bento portions are not up to par. Food taste is ok but the quality they use is not the same.**Customer service really sucks**!!! They used to greet you, now they have their nose high in the air n NO WELCOME GREETING OR THANK YOU!!! Very disappointing experience! PROBABLY WONT BE BACK FOR A WHILE.
(3)Aubryn N.
One of my favorite Japanese restaurants! Things I would recommend is... Sunset roll- raw fish with cream cheese in the middle then dipped in tempura batter & deep fried. Ala carte (beef teriyaki/fried oysters)- comes with miso soup, appetizer, rice, salad, super soft and tasty beef teriyaki & perfectly fried oysters. Nabeyaki udon- the broth is so delicious it should win an award. Comes in a hot kettle pot, enoki mushrooms, soft boiled egg, fishcake, veggies, chicken & a shrimp tempura and all of this soaks up the yummy broth like a sponge. Overall, I love this place because I have came here for many years with my parents.
(5)Volley R.
I am actually giving a 0 star. A friend and I were just at Kunio last night. I went to the front counter, stood in front of the hostess, and waited for her to recognize us. Her head continued to look down at something she seemed to be reading (who knows? who cares?) and did not even recognize us at all even if we were right in front of her and on her face. I had to say hello first, she looked up with a flat affect without any words came out from her mouth as she waited for me to say more. I thought being a hostess, that was her job, yes job!, to initially greet and meet customers? At least try to recognize your customers at the door upon entering. Instead, this hostess acted snobbish and did not even say anything at all. I had to ask for her attention. Whoa! I live in Hawaii now. I have lived everywhere, let alone also travelled everywhere, I know for sure that front counter hostesses should greet you as you enter the restaurant then seat you or at least tell you status of table availability. What are they there for? Any other unknown reason why they are hired? I do not know this hostess from Adam, so why act that way to us? I just wanted to eat as a paying customer minus dealing with your ungracious welcome. Bad attitude and bad-mannered customer service from one hostess all in one- this made it personal. You can keep it all to yourself and stick it somewhere. I will not return and tell people to not come here.
(1)Kathy D.
We came on a weeknight and it was sooo busy! Service is a little slow, but they do try hard to keep up. It's probably why they have a sign out front looking for help! We started with a miso butterfish, a lot of reviews here said it was awesome.. and indeed it was awesome. Flakey fish cooked just right.. yum! We also ordered tuna sashimi, which was fresh fatty chunks of delicous! We also had the rainbow, dragon, and dynamite roll which were good as well. I was sad to see they were out of the toro as a lot of people receommend it. Definitely a great sushi place to try out!
(4)Lindsey S.
Pros: Decor, good food, excellent service, reasonable prices Cons: Wait time to get in, bathroom Honestly I would think a place this busy would have a nicer and better kept bathroom, although I am very particular about bathrooms! I absolutely loved the food and am excited to go back!
(4)Keith K.
Wife and I have visited Kunio's several times pre and post Yelp. My favorites are their Chicken Sukiyaki and Spider Roll Maki Sushi. This place is a little pricy, but if you've read more than four of my reviews, you probably know that I don't mind paying for good food. Kunios offers good food. Only downer is the wait sometimes... if you time your meal before the peak hours, you'll likely have a nice experience (and more time after to see a movie or something)
(4)Shuao Li L.
Sad to say that the service was poor. The waiter went to get my son a refill on his soda and it never came. There were little gnats (bugs) flying all over me and my food. The sushi was not the one we ordered. It is usually good here but quality has gone down.
(2)Rachel L.
The family & I (4 of us) came here for a late lunch after errands @ 2:45 on a Sunday. The ambiance & smell reminded me of my days in Japan, (I lived there for there years) and it excited me to see what this place was all about. The wait just to get in was 15 minutes, and after we were seated, it took another 15 minutes before we knew who our server was. 》The good: - My husband's meal was a solid 4 -sashimi & tempura - The keiki meal was huge & diverse... the kids liked it. 》The bad: - It took about 20 minutes to get our food... that is, my husband's meal. Mine & the kids came 20 mins later - There doesn't seem to be any kind of table assignments with the servers or waiter... we had four different guys come to our table, and it was always by the time we were totally fed up from being neglected - I can't remember the number to my order, (71 maybe?) but it was a three-plate combo with shrimp tempura, teriyaki chicken & butter fish. My husband's salad came before his meal, but I had to wait the extra 20 mins for mine to come with mine because it was a part of the set. The tempura wasnt bad... not too many ways to screw that up. The teriyaki chicken was sub par- the sauce didn't taste right & there was plenty of skin & fat all over the pieces. The butter fish was the ultimate- I guess I had my hopes up because everyone seemed to go nuts over it according to the highlights of this restaurant... maybe I ordered a different, not so good kind? Anyway, it was not good at all... the presentation was abysmal: the skin was still on it, and it was served skin up, in a puddle of some kind of juice. Also, it was riddled with bones throughout, and the work in navigating through the skin & bones wasn't even worth it because it didn't taste good at all! All in all, lunch, for the four of us took a total of an hour & a half... unacceptable. Also, we all left feeling heavy & tired, which is typical of greasy or MSG-I fused food... NOT traditional Japanese food. I'm really upset about this experience & not really willing to come back at all, but because my husband's meal was about a 4, I may give this place another shot.
(2)Grace Nicole C.
I've ate here a few times & the food is good. (Hamachi & Miso Butterfish are my fav) But today ruined it for me! My fiancé and I spent our whole meal swatting bugs/flies during our meal. Very upsetting because I do like their food. Something needs to be done about the bugs!!
(3)Steph G.
Came here for the first time the other day by recommendation from a friend. We got the party boat which is about $30 a person but you def get a ton of food, we couldn't finish everything between the 4 of us. The boat had shrimp and veggie tempura, lobster tail, steak, various sushi, chicken and pork Katsu, and fried prawns. It also came with soup and salad and 3 mini appetizers (edamame, seaweed, and something else...don remember but it was good). Definitely try this out if you are going with a group of friends, super Yums!
(4)Jerrica N.
This restaurant is very close to my grandparents house and came here for dinner with a couple of family members. It was already past 7:30 so I didn't think that this place would be busy, but I was wrong. My uncle had called to put our name down and the wait was still a good thirty minutes or maybe even longer. By the time we sat down, I was starving! The restaurant itself is pretty small, which could explain the long wait. The sides were pretty good and the miso soup was alright. I ordered the salmon teriyaki with tempura and may I add that the tempura pieces were really really big. I liked the salad dressing, it was light and refreshing. The salmon was a little bit on the dry side but still tasty. The waitress was nice and even though the wait felt like forever the food was worth it.
(4)Keoni M.
Kunio is one of my favorite spots! My favorite is the hamachi Kama. If you like cooked fish this is a must try. You won't be dissapointed. You may want to try the miso butterfish as well. The staff are always pleasant and the service is great!
(5)Manny B.
Good Food. There's always a line in this restaurant and the staff is not manning the table assignments efficiently. They have great butterfish, tempura but the sashimi is a bit overpriced and the fried oysters are overcooked all the time.
(3)Christopher C.
The food was good, maybe a little overpriced. The biggest thing was that the order took over 1hr to come out. Seriously? We put the order in for a "party boat" as soon as we arrived. It took literally 1hr+ for it to come out. Other than the time factor, it was good quality sushi.
(3)Shanena B.
I've been going here for years honestly, and it never fails to amaze me. I'm forever grateful for this place bc it is one of THE best places I could ever think of when I'm in the mood for Japanese cuisine. If you're ever in the mood for some quality made Japanese food; try KUNIO'S in Waikele.
(5)Brad K.
Gotta have the boat! Love the service and food...
(5)Kat D.
After a morning of window shopping at discount outlets, the boyfriend & I scoped out Waikele Center's limited dining options. A piece of paper taped to the window advertising bento combo specials caught my boyfriend's eye & drawn us into this quaint, little Japanese restaurant. We were promptly seated at a spacious booth & good thing for that because the tables with chair seats were so close to other tables. Browsing through the menu filled with Japanese cuisine, sushi & bento options, I decided to treat myself to the Lobster & Ribeye Steak with a side of garlic dipping sauce. The sizzling platter made its way to my table in less than 30 minutes, along with a few curious gazes from other patrons quietly eating their sashimi. I don't eat lobster often, but this was juicy & succulent when doused in garlic sauce. The steak cut like butter & I swear with each little bite I made a "oh my goodness this is good stuff" face. Trust me, I chewed that slab of meat slow just to savor it. Let's just say, I was very full & very satisfied.
(4)Naiomi P.
Ate here on a Saturday evening and the wait was 30 minutes which seems normal for most places on a Saturday. This place isn't tiny but it isn't all that big. My food was so delicious though, the miso butter fish was melt in your mouth, tempura squid were big sized pieces and the miso soup was great, even the dressing on the salad was mouth watering. Boyfriend got the soft shell crab and sashimi which I didn't care for but he really enjoyed. The portions were just right to finish our food and be full but not so much that I had to take a box home. Definitely coming back soon!
(4)Rob A.
This is our favorite spot to come eat japanese but today the service was extremely slow. usually when we come the food is out within 15 minutes. It took almost 45 minutes and we came when they jus opened. They usually get 5 stars but today was bad. Don't know why. Plus other tables that came after us were serve before us. So no good time to come.
(1)George S.
This place has it all, and they serve BEER!! It just doesn't get any better than this! Like I was in Japan for the moment. The tea was perfect, the service sooo pleasant, the decor is fantastic, and the food is to DIE for! My favorite eatery, and also my wife's toooo! Da Bestest of Da Bestest!! And no broke da bank. If you want guuud Japanese food, check out this place. You'd be glad you did. And did I mention that they got BEER?!?!! No need go Japan to enjoy the best and freshest sushi & sashimi.
(5)Nat W.
Kunio is located conveniently close to Waikele premium outlet, and it seems always crowded. The waiters and waitresses are very prompt and polite. I ordered the combo with sashimi and miso butterfish. The food was tasty. My combo meal was $20 and natto maki was $6! I liked Kunio except for their prices. So for that, I guess minus one star.
(4)Richard L.
Im a normal regular here atleast once a month i try to eat here i loved it when ever i ordered the hamachi cause it would always melt in my mouth but tonight it didnt taste the same ask the server and she didnt even do anything about it just kept saying it fresh but i know my fish i am a daily fisherman and love sashimi so i know when its fresh. And i also order lobster and steak it came out good on the lobster side but the steak i order was medium rare and came out well done and i even told the server sherrie too but didnt make a big deal about it cause i was just hungry being i waited awhile for my meal. its very disappointing too because i used to love eating here but i think kunio just loss a customer.
(1)Jenna S.
This is the second time I ate here and it was disappointing. The portions are very small and the quality of food just does not match up. The miso and wakame miso soups were very salty and came in really small cups (which were not even filled up all the way), they were also warm, not hot - and didn't taste fresh. The miso butterfish was also very small (costs $10 ala cart!) and barely had any flavor. The ahi sashimi was ok, again pricy for the portion. I think this place only fares well because of the location. I'd rather drive a bit more than come back here though, sorry. The food is way overpriced for the quality, if you're craving Japanese food save yourself the bill and go to Genki next door.
(2)Jessica W.
I had a great time at this restaurant with the 4 of us. We got the cool room where you remove your shoes before entering. The good is authentic Japanese and it was decent. The place was crowded and we kinda had to wait a little while but overall it was worth the experience.
(4)David M.
I was in the area so decided to eat here since we haven't been in a while. Signed in and was told the standard 30 minute wait (if you've ever eaten here you understand that there's always a line). Once we got seated the waitress took our orders and then we waited. This is where things started to go wrong. After a little bit of wait, I got my teishoku meal. I waited a bit, then decided to start eating, assuming my girlfriend's sukiyaki would be coming out shortly. Boy were we wrong. As I was finishing up the last of my meal, the waitress brought her sukiyaki and let us know that they are cutting up our sushi now. No apology for it taking so long during the wait or when the food was served. Sushi came after we got our meals instead of before (like we asked). The food was good other than the teri rib eye. They must have run out, because I got a couple slices of thin teri style meat with some sauce on it. Very disappointed since this place normally has exceptional food and service. Maybe we caught them on an off night?
(2)Cyndy K.
Cyndy's Bottom Line: Always consistent in serving high quality grade sashimi and excellent sushi. I always go to Kunio when I'm in town because I can always count on high grade sashimi and sushi. We stopped for lunch and this is the yummy fish ate: 1. Lunch special - which is a nice selection of sushi served in a small boat. Great presentation which contains cucumber and tuna maki, a cone sushi, sake nigiri, hamachi nigiri, ebi nigiri, ahi tuna nigiri and Kalikimaka nigiri. It comes with miso soup. An excellent selection of sushi. 2. Spicy ahi bowl - comes in a bowl of sushi rice sprinkled with nori and fresh, high grade ahi tuna dipped in spicy sauce. The rice is of high quality and is delicious. Served with miso soup. 3. Ahi bowl - comes in a bowl of sushi rice, sprinkled with nori and topped with sliced ahi tuna covering the rice. Fresh and delicious! Served with miso soup. The service is great, very attentive, and always filling up water glasses and tea cups.
(4)David S.
Are we ordered we asked for the bill since we were on a time crunch. We waited for 35mins until we were informed that it will take an additional 15mins to receive our meal. We decided that the wait was too long and kindly asked to be refunded since we paid first. The employee said they can't refund me since the kitchen is making our food now. I insisted on a refund since we never received our meal. (All of the Asian customers got their food immediately and greeted with kindness) I wish I could give that restaurant a half star.
(1)D. T.
The shrimp tempura and chicken teriyaki combo is great! The only reason why I gave them a 4/5 is because the hostess took a while to seat us (too busy talking to what seemed like friends in the restaurant).
(4)Mary H.
We were there as soon as the doors open for lunch. We were one of the first tables seated. However, it didn't take long for the restaurant to fill up. I had the Combo AB = Butterfish misoyaki + sashimi, hot tea and water. I gotta tell you. It was the best lunch I've had in a long time. Everything was good: attentive and friendly service, fresh and delicious food, and clean and stylish decor. To top it off, I had good company! Wink! It seems like a small restaurant but there's even a party room to seat about 16 people. We had an enjoyable party there before.
(5)Karen B.
Came here last night for a late mother's day dinner with my in-laws. The food was soooo good! I had the #69 combo which had sashimi, teri steak and shrimp/veggie tempura. My husband had the BB combo that had unagi and mixed tempura. The unagi was delish! The food did take a while to come out, although the table next to us was seated after us and had their boat come right away. We will probably be back in the future and try the boat.
(4)Kim M.
When I think of Kunio Restaurant, I think family dinners. The food is good and appeals to most generations... The dishes are pretty straight forward Japanese, with no creative twists or culinary curve balls. "Safe Japanese Cuisine" - that's what I'll call it. There's usually a wait during peak dinner times, so I'd plan ahead. (However, the line moves at a relatively decent pace.) As for food, I usually go with the cold udon. (I appreciate the general consistent quality of the food at Kunio...) In terms of the udon, the noodles are usually cooked to my liking - still a tiny bit chewy and not soggy. The sauce is pretty mild, so I like that they provide a tiny bit of wasabi on the side. Service is genuine and nice, but kinda whack when it's busy. (Understandable.) VERDICT Kunio Restaurant is "good." Definitely some place to go when craving some decent Japanese food like tempura, udon, soba, etc. A-OK.
(3)Rissa K.
Love this place! One of the better Japanese restaurants down this side of the island! Sashimi and sushi very good and the menu is quite extensive! The rib eye steak is pretty good and I love their Misoyaki butterfish! Service is really good too!
(4)Ululani C.
I was hungry for us on noodles. Figure we try out this place. Always knew it was here but just never went in to eat. We was wait listed as the third. Wait was not a wait at all....we was seated in 5 mins. Service was excellent by waitress and delivery of food. Price is good for portion. My boyfriend got the lunch special which comes with a few different sushi, salad, & miso soup for only 15.00 dollars. Food was Ono!
(4)Theresa B.
Love this place. I've had a few places on the island and this is by far the best. Sitting at the sushi bar and watching the chefs work is amazing too.
(5)Ram K.
Bad timing, we drove around the parking lot once and no luck so we parked on the lower side. When we walked towards the restaurant there were like four stalls open! That's okay I need the exercise! LOL We got seated right away and water was brought to us. But then the wait was about 15 minutes before someone came by to take our order. They were a little busy it was around 2pm. My gf had the Comba AA, she chose salmon and shrimp tempura. She enjoyed it. I had the Misoyaki butterfish teishoku. Very tasty. Both our meals came with miso soup, edamame, some kind of pickled seaweed and a piece of fish. Very good too. Overall service was good and food was excellent. Hopefully next time we'll have room for dessert.
(4)Michie K.
This is the first time I've been to Kunio's. The service was good, but the food was not to good. It was just okay, I got the broiled salmon teishoku, the presentation was nice, but there wasn't much flavor, mostly salty. The leaves in my salad was old and limpy. The restaurant was not too clean looking there was a lot of gnats and flies buzzing around. It was not authentic Japanese food, but a typical local Japanese style food.
(3)May Jane T.
Our waiter was pleasant and the food was delicious. I had the AA Combo with Katsu and Shrimp Tempura. It was yummy! My favorite part was the wide variety of tempura vegetables (carrots, zucchini, green beans) and let me tell you, I love my tempura vegetables. The tempura roll was a bit pricey for just 5 pieces. Next time I will order the dragon roll or maybe the Avocado Roll. Their menu has a lot of choices and good variation.
(5)Ryan K.
Ordered the salmon & butterfish--very tasty with crispy skin. The service was very attentive without being overbearing. The place was also spotless.
(4)Lee G.
When a restaurant is packed for dinner, you know the place is good! My hubby and I popped in one night because I was ono for udon. So glad we walked in! Didn't think we would be seated right away because they were so busy, but they took care of us fairly quickly and was so nice. We definitely appreciated that. Nice restaurant with a great atmosphere. So happy they're just a few minutes away from home and have really good hours which works out very well. A perfect place for dinner after a late night of shopping. Portions are just right and the soup base is so good! Little on the pricey side but totally worth it. Ono food and great service!
(4)Monamarie A.
Only sushi dinner spot we go to. Mainly because it's close to home and always fresh. Prices are higher than what we were used to having lived near Little Tokyo in LA but better than Waikiki. They keep everything on the traditional side which we prefer to fusion places that just put a bunch of toppings on a basic California roll which isn't even real sushi lol. Only reason for not being 5 stars is the wait can get long on weekends so we usually go during the week when we get seated right away and they don't have a large beer selection
(4)Chris L.
The combination plates are good and the sashimi was tasty and fresh. Took my son there and he enjoyed it as well.
(4)Lai T.
We finally made it here when the wait wasn't over an hour so my bf and I decided to sit at the sushi bar and try the place out. Our server was pretty good but she actually failed to put in one of the items we ordered. The sushi chefs were only concerned with talking the people immediately in front of them. We ordered the nabe with udon, the dynamite roll, the sunset roll, and the chawanmushi. We were given miso soup to start with. It was okay. The nabe was nothing special. I think there were maybe a total of 4 bites of chicken. The toppings were somewhat sparse, in my opinion. The udon itself was good (chewy). The broth lacked real flavor because it was very very subtle. I was surprised that the tempura shrimp required an additional wait...Although it was pretty crispy. Let's talk sushi rolls-if you can call them that. This has got to be the worst place I've had sushi on Oahu. Seriously, the flavors are unimaginative and bland. The presentation is no frills. For about $10 a roll-yoy only get 5 pieces. After taking a bite of the dynamite-I left my bf to finish the rest...it was no bueno. Waste of money and more importantly waste of stomach space. The sunset roll was not any better. I was surprised that it only came with 4 pieces. After I mentioned that to my bf-the sushi chef handed us a small plate with the missing piece...seriously?!?! No I'm sorry I forgot to give you $2 of your order either. I'm not sure why they give you a special sauce for this roll because it really did not elevate it to the next level of flavor for me. What about the chawanmushi you ask? Our server did us the favor of forgetting to put in our order. Thanks, I was dying to end this horrible meal. Before coming here I had seen the pictures of the big sushi combination boat. After tonight's dinner-I'm left wanting a trip to Genki sushi next door to remedy this horrible sushi experience. I've definitely had better and paid less.
(2)Spence C.
Pretty good place. High quality food. It's Waikele so there's plenty of tourists but hey where aren't there tourists?
(4)Jessie S.
OMG!! Finally said yes to eat here with my girlfriend after she bugged me to try it out for the past 2 years. Thank God I did. I loved every part of it!! We were seated right when we walked in. Our waitress helped us after giving us a while to look over the menu. I wasn't sure how big the portions were. So I got an A-B combo as well as the sunset roll. Starting with the plate displaying 3 different appetizers along with a bowl of miso soup. That was surprisingly good. Soon after, our entrees were brought. The portions are big for all you first timers. Well big enough to make you satisfied. I enjoyed every part of my meal. EVERY part. I ate everything I ordered. My girlfriends dish was great as well. Even the service was good. Our server was younger than the rest and made laughable jokes with us. It was entertaining. She made sure to check on us every 10 mins which was nice. The prices are a little pricey, but well worth it. I will definitely be back..
(5)Alan Y.
dinner for the family plus dessert @ baskin robbins waikele premium outlets old navy k mart etc
(4)Jom K.
(Illiterate and confused management, without a sense of professionalism) While on vacation last night I decided to dine at kunio restaurant. I was greeted with mediocre service from start to finish, with mild taste and over priced dishes. But I decided to give them an opportunity so who am I to blame. Unfortunately my horrible dining experience didn't end with my back facing there door and while in the comforts of my parents home my stomach began convulsing in sharp pain. That's right folks, food poisoning. Im sure you don't want me paint a verbal visual of last nights events, but what brought me here was how management and there restaurant policy addressed my issue the next morning. I immediately contacted kunio the next morning to inform them of the situation and hoping they would take proper precaution towards other guest and at least compensate me for my meal and offer possible medical attention. (A bit hopeful but a man can dream) Overall, I was greeted with a run around. Passed off from manager to manager with open ended answers and eventually attitude. Manager Bryan or Ryan whatever his name is, referenced that he needs to verify with a physician to see if I was lying. Stating that, and I quote Hawaii is filled with people who are trying to get over on a free meal, which lead to an argument about the character of the locals of this island. If it means anything, Hawaii I had y'all's back haha but if your looking to be overcharged by disappointment and deal with managers who have a these types of opinions about there guest then endulge yourselves in kunio restaurant!!! That's all.
(1)Kat T.
We have been here before, so we expected to have to wait especially on a Sunday night at about 6pm. Nothing unusual there. Hostess was friendly and let us know that the wait was about 40 minutes. We waited an hour for our seat but we weren't upset about it. Then it took 20 minutes then our server finally came to take out order. Everything that we tried to order they ran out of. Sashimi, ahi, hamachi and salmon. Steak, none... sushi... zilch. I was disappointed because we had to walk away after being there for 1 and a half hours and find somewhere else to go when we could have been informed before we waited so long.
(1)Diane P.
There food was good as I remember it when i was younger . But whatever happen to there service . It was really poor . We had to wait for 30 min for someone to come and take our order actually we had to stop our server to take our order . Once we got our food she didn't check on us to see how we are doing to see if we need any refill .. SHE SUCK SO BAD !! To a point I didn't want to leave her a tip .. She didn't even smile !' Working a place like that she needs to have a smile on her face to get her tips . Tips don't come easy an attitude like that people could walk out and loss customers so disappointed
(1)Tania D.
I love the misoyaki butterfish here. Reasonable priced & good eats. Whenever your in the mood for Japanese food this place won't disappoint.
(4)James C.
They can't accommodate a party of 6? I know some places are busy but hour left before closing and a rude sorry, someone must not care if any party of 6 comes back in the future. Sorry but the food can't be that good.
(1)HaeRi C.
Good restaurant, my husband loves this place! I'm not a big fan of seafood but I do enjoy coming here occasionally when I feel like eating high quality sashimi. We ate here again last night, waited about 10 minutes to he seated on a Wednesday. Service was a little less than what I expected but overall good. It's a little pricey but definitely worth it!
(4)Fran I.
Ordered a dinner plate and sweet & sour pork had alot of fat, the oyster sauce chicken was also fatty meat. Fried rice was good. The crispy wontons & gau gee was hard as a rock! Nearly broke my tooth!!! Ughhhhhh!!!!!!! Don't bother!
(1)G I.
It was crowded tonight since it was Friday so we opted to sit at the sushi bar because there was no wait. Ordered the sunset roll which we love. No rice, just spicy ahi, salmon, tobiko, with a little cream cheese and flash fried in light tempura batter. Ono! And it comes with a delicious sauce to dip it in. We both had the teishoku's which were always satisfying. My deep fried scallops were tender and juicy. No dessert tonight but they have green tea ice cream if you have room.
(4)AsianRunningDiva S.
Very busy restaurant! We had to wait about 30 minutes for a table at around 7:30pm on a Saturday night. We took the first available table in the back area where you have to take your shoes off. Once seated we were able to quickly order drinks and food since we looked at the menu while waiting. food came out HOT!! We got the ribeye meal with the appetizer, miso soup and rice, chicken and veg udon, and chicken and egg donburi. Everything was tasty, although the ribeye was a little greasy and the meat had a lot of fat on it. Wish my udon came with more veggies. Next time we need to try some sushi/sashimi! Beer was cheap: 22oz Asahi for $6.75 and a mich ultra for $3.25. Parking was tough immediately near the restaurant (small lot), but we parked across the way in the Lowes lots. To access the bathrooms, you need to walk past the kitchen area but very clean! Notably options in this area. Convenient for us since we went to Lowes after dinner!
(3)Dean W.
Our dinner was awesome. I had the nabeyaki udon and a couple of Kirin beers. Thumbs up!
(5)John M.
The food here is excellent I highly recommend the Tempura it's great and always a good mix of vegetables with the Shrimp I am a Chicken Teriyaki fan and the Teri Sauce is real good not overpowering I do need to try some of the other main course selections all the side dishes have been really good too a great local Japanese Restaurant that is really close to home
(4)Aloha A.
Food is delicious, downside is the long waits, and the fact they won't take reservations. I wanted to have my husband's 30th birthday there and offered to pre-pay and pre-order (their famous boat for 20 people) and they wouldn't do it. In spite of that, it's a staple for us for good Japanese food on the west side. Just try to go off times!
(4)Crystal W.
Went here for the first time last week for my husband and brother in laws birthdays. First off we were told a 15-20 min wait, I came before our group to put our name in to save some time but even that didn't work we waited for nearly an hour for our table. The food was okay. We ordered a California roll which was small for the price, ninja sushi would have been better.
(4)Caryn W.
My mother-in-law wanted to celebrate her birthday at Kunio, so we ended up having lunch there this afternoon. They don't take reservations, so we got there at about 11:00 and didn't have to wait to be seated (there were 6 of us). The restaurant was pretty full by the time we sat down. We were asked about drinks a few minutes after being seated. The menu is pretty vast and I had a difficult time deciding what to order. I decided to get the sushi lunch special and HC got the 3-item combination with sashimi, tempura, and teriyaki chicken. My mother and father-in-law both ordered the combination tempura and butterfish. Brother-in-law got butterfish and salmon combo and my niece got plain udon with an order of tamago sushi. We also ordered some snow crab sushi The sushi set I ordered came with a salad and miso soup and everyone who ordered combos received miso soup and a small set of edamame, imitation crab salad, and seaweed. I was able to eat HC's crab salad and really liked it. Now, after our "appetizer" plates were taken away, we ended up waiting 35 minutes for our food. HC's nostrils began to flare when he saw that a table who had come after us got their food first. I could tell he was really hungry. My stomach was growling as well, but I didn't start seeing red like HC. Our food finally arrived and I was satisfied with my sushi. The pieces of fish were huge and just melted in my mouth. HC gobbled down every bit of his food, so I'm sure it was tasty. Overall, I thought the food was great, but the wait time for it, not so much. I wish I could give it 3.5 stars since we'd come back again, but probably during an off-time to see if the wait would be just as long.
(3)Lee D.
Good location, great japanese. family friendly.
(4)Bobby K.
Since I gave Kuni 3.5 stars, I feel that I should give this place 4 stars because for me it's just a little better than Kuni's in Waipahu. The food is consistent as far as quality goes and the service is good. Almost every time I've dined here, there's been a wait so I guess it's a pretty popular place. As far as Japanese restaurants go, I would say it's a little above average and by that I mean, that if it was on the other side of the island, I wouldn't drive there to eat. It's proximity to my home is why I return here on occasion.
(4)Jhoren C.
Why are they only located in waikele? love love this place. One of thee best Japanese foods I've tried so far. Deep fried oysters, tempura set, soba noodles, miso butterfish OMG! and spicy ahi sushi! expect to wait in line because they are always busy!
(4)Julia H.
AHI BOWL....spiciest ahi you'll ever have in your life. makes me tear from one eye! ...and trust me..i'm the queen of spicy!
(5)Elizabeth G.
Kunio is soooo good. If it's only you and a guest and you don't mind sitting at the bar, you can usually find two seats open there for immediate service. I really love the combination bento boxes. Usually I'll go for the unagi and salmon, although sometimes I'll switch it up with their very generous portion of shrimp tempura, if I'm feeling hungrier. The rice is so savory. (This was one of the first places where I learned the difference of why "good rice" is so much better than the gross processed stuff.) The staff is very attentive and knowledgeable. They quickly refill water or tea, checking on your party regularly to be sure that everything is going well. The only difficult part is getting there, since the parking lot at the shopping area is usually a zoo. However, I'm always willing to brave the traffic for such an excellent meal.
(5)Kainoa T.
Kunio is kinda like a hole in the wall. But the food is very good. The have a wide range of food you can taste. The service was good as well as the good very filling. The taste of everything was really good. And I would come back again.
(4)Sheryl G.
what: japanese cuisine in a family friendly atmosphere! something good: yum. yum. yuuuuuuuum! we came here specifically to take out sushi for a party that we were having in our home! it took us a little while to pick which rolls we wanted but the staff was very accommodating which made us feel comfortable : ) !! they don't have a sushi party platter so when we ordered all rolls we weren't sure what to expect but to our surprise they packed everything really neatly in take out boxes! they were placed beautifully and with a lot of care, which we were so thankful for! they also sent us home with a good sized container of their miso soup for making a big order! i will definitely be back to try some of the items that we weren't able to take out! : ) something not so good: one tricky thing is that you can't take out any sushi with crab, that was a little tricky to pick rolls without crab especially since everyone loves california roll :D !! but all the rolls we picked out were really good, so no complaints : ) something to try: shrimp tempura roll (12) & sunset roll (12)
(5)Shemmie M.
Came here for the first time yesterday and loved the food. The menu is in both Japanese and English. Never been to Japan so I can't say how authentic it is but I can tell you the food was delicious. I had a combo plate consisting of miso butter fish and tonkatsu. It was delicious. The prices were more than the typical plate lunch place. Overall we had a nice experience. Noise level wasn't too loud and service was great. Definitely will come again.
(4)Chanyle N.
Great service all the time.. The host is always on point! He makes my dining here soo enjoyable.. I forget about the wait! Any who foods always on point . My boyfriend loves getting the ribeye Nd lobster... I either get the combination or tenzaru soba, tonight I got tenzaru soba and a regular sushi... And got some steak from my boo lol! And my son loves there tekka maki. It's soo cute watching my son chomp in it ... Kunios is amaze!!! I love kunios! Try it if you haven't!
(5)A... M.
I love Kunio and am so glad that this restaurant is where it is on the west side. Every time we go the quality of the food is always great! The only thing that seems inconsistent is the service (whether or not they remember items requested or ordered) and the speed of the food. I always make sure to order either the spider roll or a rainbow roll at the same time as our drinks and, about half the time, our meals that were ordered after comes out either at the same time as our roll or RIGHT after. I understand that the crab needs to be deep fried but so does have the items that we order on our bento! Anyway, the only thing I suggest is to add a 3 choice or to lower the prices just for a side order of an item. I mean, if you get the 1-choice, it comes with rice, salad, soup, and oshinko... but it's the same price just to add on ONE of those even though you already get the other stuff. I dunno. Just my opinion. Obviously, the place is good enough for me to keep coming back! I always rotate between the sashimi, saba, tempura, fried oysters, or steak. Oh, and if you haven't done it yet, bring enough people so that you can order THE BOAT!!! SOOO good and totally worth it!! I've never seen everything finished on it yet!
(5)Bridget G.
Came min evening.. no wait.. our server was super friendly.. tall guy with gauges. We both had the triple bento.. sashimi, steak and tempura shrimp. Was ono!! One of our favorite places for date night.. will be back.
(4)Lorilynn L.
Food was ok, kinda pricey, the menu is busy and the bug in my water was kinda shocking. Service was good though, except for the buggy water.
(3)Nicole M.
I've been coming here since I was a little girl growing up in Waipahu. and I've lived in NYC and Cali, and I still come here whenever I visit home for the Cali Crunch roll. A simple roll, California with a rice outside and panko smoothered onto the outside. It's so simple but so hard to find ! I love it. I usually get a combo with butterfish and chicken katsu. The ladies here are always very nice, the place is clean and nicely decorated, and my mom always demands to come here. There can be quite a wait and parking sucks in that shopping center, but go at an off hour and it's well worth it.
(4)Kelsey U.
Came here on a Friday night (yes, I expected it to be crowded), I didn't expect to wait over an hour for seats to open! The wait is the killer part about coming here - no reservations allowed, so it's just a fact of dining here that you will have to be able to deal with. I would suggest that they put benches in front of the restaurant as groups of people are just clustered in the front, making it kind of a disorganized mess! Yikes! Once we were seated, a waiter quickly came to take drink orders, along with our food waiter who was very friendly and funny! As for the dinner, the food came in about 10-15 minutes, average amount of time! The prices here haven't changed too much, but it does seem a bit steep for the amount of food that they give as well as the quality - my rice had clearly been sitting for a while as the top of the bowl was not only cold, but dry - I can make better rice than this at home! The good part about it is that they put shiso leaf on top of it making it bearable! Overall, for a group of 6 and a bill of about $180 (approximately $30 a person), I was expecting better quality, but I will continue to come here as it is close to home, and convenient after a day of shopping!
(3)Paula M.
After seeing how busy kunios has been during dinner I decided to try it for the first time at lunch with my mom this past weekend. The atmosphere was great! The staff greeted us as soon as we walked in and we were seated shortly after. Our waiter, forgot her name, was very attentive and friendly throughout the whole time we were there :) When it was time to order everything looked amazing on the menu, which I can't wait to go back and try other items, but that day I settled for #71 I believe (teri chicken, shrimp tempura, and shoyu butterfish). So many flavors on one dish I couldn't even finish half of it! That and because I did not realize the portions were HUGE! Even better. Overall great everything! The service, food, etc. again I can't wait to go back! Definitely much more to try there :)
(5)Elle N.
Love it here. Food is always delicious, never been disappointed. I really wanna try the boat, but we never have enough people to get it haha.
(5)Vince F.
Went in for lunch today, bottom line the prices were high for the quality of food that we received. My Tongkatsu was luke warm and very dry, the only thing that saved it was the sauce that I had to dump on it. The Miso butterfish was average, I did however enjoy the Beef Teriyaki. My wife did enjoy her combo Shrimp and Veg tempura along with Chicken Teriyaki. I was a little upset at the poor service that we received. Kind of a combined crappy effort between both servers that ended up helping us and was given a slight attitude from the older lady when waiting roughly 15 minutes for my change. It did seem like they were a little busy but that is still no excuse for crappy service.
(2)Casey R.
My mom raves about the miso butterfish at this place. Melt in your mouth good. As for me I love their sushi. We usually sit at the sushi bar and the sushi chefs will usually cut my pieces in half if I ask them because it's easier for me to eat. Service is good. Nice place to go outside of town.
(5)Jordon W.
Service: Ok Food: Many, many choices to choose from. I had the combination plate with miso butterfish and sashimi. My wife had the miso butterfish and tempura, and my daughter had the salmon box. Overall the food was okay, but not memorable. I felt that there wasn't much miso flavor to the miso butterfish. The salmon and sashimi was fresh and tasty though. Price: A little pricier compared to other similar restaurants.
(3)Pua L.
So, I've read all the reviews & listened to all the hype about this place from family and I have to say that the food is awesome!! NOTHING negative to say about that. I have to admit that some of the staff, including the hostess needs some additional customer service training. But I agree w/some past reviews, you're really going there for the food. We had a male & female server who were great. Definitely going back!!
(4)Emy R.
Being from Japan this is the closet thing to a real ethnic Japanese food restaurant on the west side of the island. This place gets crazy busy for dinner so make sure to call ahead and make reservations. Had lunch there a couple of weeks ago so it wasn't that crowded though a steady stream of people were coming in. There is a sushi bar for people who want to just eat sushi. You can order sushi from the menu and have it served at your table. My fave has been the spicy tuna. For seating there are booths and tables. The tables are a little too close together and feels like you're sharing dinner with the people at the table next to you. Kunio's has a wide variety of dishes to choose from. My fave is the combination teishoku special. What that means is that you can choose 2 items from a select list. Varies $19.95 or $21.95. Teishoku means it comes with rice, miso soup and Japanese pickles. If you order the combination special, you'll get your meal in an open bento box. Which is kinda cool when you have out of town guests who aren't familiar with Japanese bento boxes. You can also order ala carte but if you do this, you'll have to order your rice and miso soup separately. So the combination TEISHOUKU is actually the best deal since you get to chose two items plus you get all the little extras. Portions are generous too. I ordered grilled salmon and saba (mackerel). Both were very moist and yum. My friend ordered deep fried oysters and miso butterfish. Had to try it and it was also very good. My other friend ordered the rib-eye steak which he thoroughly enjoyed. I haven't had a bad experience here. Waitress Leanne was very friendly and quite busy. I spotted her cleaning under a table after one of her tables left. First time I've seen that. Even though she was busy she was very attentive to all her tables but not overbearing. My friends and I were talking and came to the conclusion that out of all the times, we dined there, Leanne was probably the most friendliest waitress there. So if you're looking for authentic tasty Japanese food on the west side of the island, give Kunio's a try. Sometimes parking is hard to find if you're trying to park close to the restaurant. If you don't mind a short walk, park across the way near Lowe's.
(4)Milika M.
Fantastic Japanese cuisine. From sushi to teishoku dinners combinations. Fresh seafood for sushi. Always a must to visit when in Hawaii.
(4)Diane D.
It was my first time there and I must say the food is pretty good. What blew me away the most was the service there. Our waiter edison Was by far one of the best waiters I've had compared to everywhere I've been. If u do have him as a waiter u can be sure he'll take care of u. Prices were decent. They also have a sushi bar and a separate dining area where u take off your foot wear. I will be sure to come back if I'm craving a good japanese meal!
(4)Eddie A.
Havent eatten at Kunio in a few months. .I always the Miso butterfish and sashimi. They're seafood is always fresh. Straight from auction and serve fresh to customers upon ordering. The Ambience is a cozy place to eat with mediocre decor that very pleasing..Service is good, staff is friendly and eager to take your upon sitting..Waiting on food is average, cook to order basis. The smell from food alone is just tantalizing, japanese food at it best in waikele. I always order Asahi beer to compliment the fish. Whenever im craving Japanese food, Kunio is just a few blocks away..lots of parking to choose from
(4)Hawaiian G.
Wow how long has it been since I got sick eating at a Japanese restaurant? :( I went here with 2 others for lunch and ate a Katsu-Don. I came home and did not feel well and then sickness. Upset stomach, etc - I'll spare you the details but it wasn't fun. The place was full with patrons - just wondering if everyone else was okay. Was it the pork cutlet? The thinly sliced bamboo shoots placed between the katsu and the rice? The eggs? The onions? The miso soup that came wit my lunch? Not sure what got me sick, but I don't think I will be eating here again. It didn't help that there was a big HUGE cockroach (lying on its back, still alive and wiggling) in the ladies room (right by the trash can). Gross!!!
(1)Jasmine C.
So overpriced. I can go to ninja sushi or sushiland for better portions and better fish for the same price. Miso butterfish was delicious but so tiny. At least it didn't taste bad. I tried their dynamite and hamachi and they definitely fall short compared to other sushi places. The service is slow but they only had 2 or 3 workers. It's very clean and ambience is nice.
(3)Christopher W.
Fast, simple , and accurate review for people who don't want to read a novel finding out if a place is good. Ordered: ( 1/3 stars) Had the Miso butterfish x2 combo. It was good, but nothing special. A bit pricey for a fast food Japanese style restaurant trying to take it up a notch in class. Food portions are smaller than expected when comparing price to portion ratio. For the price, you can try other Japanese restaurants and decide what your taste buds like. Service: (1/1 star) Good service. Cleanliness and parking (1/1 star) Located in Waikele Shopping Center, clean, and parking is plentiful. I would eat here once in a while
(3)Romy M.
My family are regular customers here. This place never disappoint. Customers service and the food are always awesome.
(5)Cara H.
Butterfish, butterfish, butterfish!! I love Miso Butterfish, I like when its a little burnt and melts in your mouth! I like getting the combination of anything and Miso Butterfish. Sushi is good here, too! It is a fun place to come when you have 4 or more for a special occasion, they you can get the party boat, with tempura, sashimi, sushi, so good and festive!
(4)Chris G.
We came here with a bunch of friends and I was surprised by the food. Being in a strip mall I didn't have high hopes, but the fish was fresh and the tempura wasn't too thickly coated. All the dishes my friends had tasted great and they were all pretty happy with their choices. I tried a new Japanese beer which is always a good thing. The only downside was once we got our dishes our service wasn't as thrifty as it had been when we first walked in. While we were there it was too busy and there were 3 servers so we couldn't figured out what was the deal for the slowness, and we were sitting a the sushi bar. The sushi chef and staff were friendly and I would go back there when I'm in the area.
(4)Rod U.
I have to eat my own words and they taste bitter. The change in quality is shocking. The food is not made ala minute, it shows, badly. - Over reduced miso soup with sour, spoiled tofu. Obviously made in a large batch and reheated again and again. - Black, rotten, pieces of lettuce hidden in the salad. Cleaned in large batches then allowed to sit? - The shoyu butter fish has been reheated multiple times, the last in a heavily diluted liquid (texture of the fish is "mushy", the shoyu flavor in the middle is strong and bitter but watered down on the outside). It's also served at room temperature. - Cold, oily, tempura, with a hard coating. Cooked in large batches (dropping the oil temperature thus trapping the oil inside and setting the coating like baked clay). The clay, is set so well that it remains hard even when served at room temperature. You could probably use the fish tempura to hammer a nail through a 2x4. Finally the service. Maybe they are all unhappy about something. Abrupt service, bordering on unfriendly. Careless. Who wipes a table so violently that bits of food get thrown on the seats and floor? How about serving water with black particles in it TWICE? They don't even check if the new water is particle free. Two back to back recent visits. Both less than stellar.
(2)Mike H.
First time for us here, the food was plentiful, delicious, the service excellent & they serve Alcohol... Two thumbs up
(4)Jimmie G.
First time here. Arrived at 615. Very busy with about 6 parties ahead of us. Got seated quick like about 10-15 minutes. Good service and great food. Will definitely come back.
(4)Cora D.
Went here last night for my son's bday! Normally we would be intimidated by the massive crowd waiting in front but this time we went a little later around 7 pm and no lines or crowds. It was a relaxing dinner with great food and service! Loved the Ginza Roll spicy ahi on a california roll topped with tobiko and drizzled with Japanese mayo. My butterfish and tempura combo was perfect! Son loved his salmon sashimi combo. Dad had the Teriyaki Ribeye/ Sashimi combo and my bro had the butterfish sashimi combo, grandma had miso butterfish ala carte. Everything was cooked well and we topped the meal off with kona coffee ice cream and azuki ice cream. Yum!
(5)S K.
I loove the food here! The service is good too. Not a fan of the high pricing but dont mind it because usually good japanese food is pricey. I usually order the steak and lobster combo with all salmon sashimi or the lunch combo aa (i usually choose the miso butterfish and shrimp tempura)...yuuum! If you are coming here on the weekends or night time in general, be prepared to wait. There is usually a lot of people waiting. I am also not a fan of the seating area in the back where you have to take off your shoes...lol its just weird and the tables are pretty close together plus its quiet in there so the people seated next to you can hear your whole conversation ugh. But overall i definitely would recommend this place
(4)Laurie P.
After a long day at Yokohama Bay that turned out to be surprisingly chillly, the crew was looking for a good joint to warm up. My friend had been craving Kunio for at least a week, so we decided to go for there. It is in Waikele basically next to the Party City. It was pretty empty for a Sunday night, but considering it was Easter Sunday, it wasn't that surprising. I really liked the fact that they have a ton to offer - sushi, steak, udon, nabe, combos - and that they are pretty reasonably priced for what you get. I ordered the Ebiten udon. Usually, I stay from ebi udon because they throw the tempura in the broth and it gets all soggy. Who wants soggy tempura?! Kunio actually keeps the shrimp (2 pieces) and veggie (~6 pieces) of tempura on a separate plate, so you can dip them at your leisure, keeping them nice and crispy. I actually really liked their tempura and think it is the best that I have had while on island. The broth for the udon could have been a little more flavorful, but the udon itself was perfect. It was a huge portion of udon and broth and I feel it was actually worth the $14 price tag, which I usually find to not be the case for ebiten udon from 99% of the places. Definitely a distinction for Kunio!! Service was great, we ordered hot tea and it seems like there is a single server whose sole duty is to walk around the restaurant making sure everyone's tea cup overflowth. The sashimi my friends got looked really good and the katsu-don that was ordered was a huge portion. I was also really impressed by the quality and size of the lobster tail that came with the sushi,lobster, and steak plate! At about $40 for a steak, lobster combo, this place definitely gives Sizzler, my go to fo reasonably priced steak and lobster, a run for its money. The only reason I can't rate it higher is because I have only been once and I haven't really tried anything else. I definitely want to come back, especially since it is so close to the house!
(3)Alan-Tiff W.
Food was very tasty and service was great. Staff was friendly and accommodating for our twin toddlers. Portions were good for the price and we were fortunate to have a short wait time - approximately 10 mins, though line was pretty long when we were done.
(5)Mahina C.
Kunio is delicious! There was a slight wait around dinner time, but honestly where is there no wait at dinner time? This place isn't big and parking doesn't come in a mass amount since it shares it with three/four other food establishment there. Come hungry! I got the combination for about 18 dollars and i had to pack it to go! Comes with salad, miso soup, and 3 small portion sides of seaweed, edamame, and what looked like potato? the only downfall is the prices...
(3)Natasha C.
The food was pretty good and the service was excellent considering it was a weekend evening and they were non-stop busy! Portions were very nice as well! I have had take out and have eaten in and definitely prefer eating in, for some reason the food just tastes better!!
(4)Michelle M.
I've been going to Kunio Restaurant for the last 4 years and it has taken me this long to write a review. I really dont know why I'm slacking but better late than never. The wait can be tremendous at times. Forget about Friday, Saturday or Sunday after 5pm because that place is slammed! If you have the time to wait, then it might be worth the wait. Sucks that they dont do reservations because I think that they really should! The last time I was there...well, every time I am there really, I have the Misoyaki Butterfish! That is the only reason why I go...it is THAT good. Wash it all down with a Echigo, and this girl is in heaven! We always hook up a Dynamite Roll, Rainbow Roll and a Sashimi platter when me and the favorite foodie friend visit. The Toro is especially tempting but the price is a bit steep. There are better places for Sushi and Sashimi, but they do their thing. The service is always great! Me and the foodie friend eat here so often that we kinda feel like on of the crew. They know what we want to eat, and have the Echigo on the ready. One star just for that! As far as price, this is where I think that they lack. The value for the price really isnt there to be honest, but it is nice to have dinner in a nice place with great service. You pay the price if that's the case. Kunio is still on my restaurant rotation and do enjoy what they do. Nice Job, Guys!
(4)Kate G.
Kunio is in my top 3 Japanese restaurants along with Maneki in Seattle and the missed Kyo-Ya in Waikiki. The boyfriend and his family would often take me here and I've never had anything I didn't like. My family now makes the trip from Hawaii Kai all the way to Waikele just to eat here. It's that good. Whenever I go to a Japanese restaurant, I like to count the ways it's better than Gyotaku. Everywhere is better than Gyotaku, but Kunio isn't even comparable. You definitely get what you pay for in both quality and quantity. It's really unfortunate they don't take reservations - the wait is usually at least a half hour, even longer on weekends. We got there around 5pm last Friday and juuuust beat the crowd. HIGH FIVES FOR: - super crispy tempura - MISO.BUTTER.FISH. - sushi selection (generous portions, always fresh, and served on pretty wooden blocks)
(4)SH M.
Yelpers disappointed me again. The miso butterfish tasted ok, but our server failed. Big time. Here are some of the reasons why: - She didn't introduce herself - She never smiled - She gave us a stink eye for not ordering one dish per person - She forgot our 2nd order (sushi lunch special) - She never refilled our water She did apologize for forgetting our 2nd order, but we had to wait a long time to get our food. It left a bad taste in my mouth so the food wasn't very enjoyable. The sushi was ok, not very fresh. A huge disappointment and a waste of money.
(1)J A.
Me: Combo set A with miso butterfish and chicken katsu Him: Combo set AB with tonkatsu and teriyaki meat Other: Shrimp Tempura Roll (5 pieces)12.50, Chawan Mushi 5.50, diet pepsi 2.50 Overpriced if you ask me. At the end of our meal we compared it to Kuni Restaurant in Waipahu and both felt that the taste of the food and price point at Kuni Restaurant is better.
(3)David B.
Don't be discouraged by the long lines you see as the food is worth the wait. I usually order the #69 combo which has various tempura, sashimi and teri beef. The combo meal always comes with miso soup and a trio of appetizers that changes each time, but usually has edamame. The teri beef is flavorful and tender. The sashimi has never failed me, as it is always fresh and melts in your mouth. Tempura is crispy and isn't too oily. On a recent visit, I ordered the #70 combo which is teri beef, chicken katsu and sashimi. I also ordered their rainbow roll, which is basically a California roll topped with various fish and avacado. The katsu here is good, but sauce could be better. I also enjoyed the rainbow roll. The combo's price is about right(around $25) for the quality of food you are getting. You MUST try the Funamori party boat form here at least once. You need to order for at least 4 people which will total over $100, but it's well worth it for the presentation alone. Everyone will be looking over at your table!
(4)Asa Y.
Pretty good food, but kinda pricey. And if you go, go early, or expect to wait loooong, especially if you go on weekends. No brown rice anymore because Jurisons next door went out of business and Kunio doesnt have room in their kitchen for another rice cooker.
(3)Les U.
Genki Sushi at Waikele is closed for renovations until summer. The crowd waiting for tables at Kunio was huge, as usual (6 pm). Me being me, I didn't want to wait and suggested the Korean place. Lose, wife and daughter wanted to eat Japanese. The hostess told wifey that wait time was 30 minutes, which eventually morphed to 50 minutes. Ok, finally got in and sat at our table only to find that the springs/cushions on the stall seats either are completely worn or they were built too low (or tables too high). While seated, the table sits quite a bit higher than most places, think almost up to the chest. My wife being less than 5' tall (short), the table was up to her eyes!, not, well, it was really high. Jokingly, I asked her if she needed a booster seat. If you are vertically challenged, opt for a regular table/chair or sit at the sushi bar. The server was prompt and very helpful. The orders came really quick considering how crowded the joint was. I had the tonkatsu and rainbow roll. The tonkatsu was thick, soft, juicy... just right, served with assorted tsukemono and tossed greens. Rainbow roll, well, nice and fresh, very tasty, too tasty. I had only 2 pieces, wife and daughter scarfed down the rest. My daughter is really into her Japanese culture. At one point, she was considering the JET program, to teach English in Japan. It was pointed out to me that after you eat Japanese food, you should feel content, not full. I was feeling stuffed, as in horizontally challenged. So why not five stars? It wasn't perfect 'cause the wait was a bit too long, I guess we need to get there by 5 pm for dinner. I normally give between 10 - 15% tip, a bit frugal maybe. The service was good, I gave more than 15%. One more thing, Jurison's is now closed, same owner as Kunio. Could it be that Kunio is going to expand into that space? That would be great!
(4)Steve T.
Great sushi and great service. Drove them crazy with all our requests but they were accommodating. High quality ingredients and a nice presentation. Kinda expensive but everything is in Hawaii.
(4)Dennis M.
Nigiri sushi takes long to make. Why?
(3)Renee-Lisa L.
I worked here a few years ago, and it wasn't pretty. I have horror stories (i.e.: spilling steaming miso soup on a customer's lap) and hilarious stories (i.e.: flying shrimp--I held the tendon box lid too tightly together and the shrimp tempura flew across the room), but that's why I'm now working clerical instead and the staff at Kunio is better off :] Staff + Food = Awesome. & BEFORE YOU STOP READING MY REVIEW BECAUSE YOU THINK I'M PARTIAL, realize that the former staff usually has the best scoops. The only reason I didn't give this restaurant 5 stars is because during peak hours you have better luck getting into Mother Teresa's pants. Oh and the food is hott, but it isn't super hott. So if you go with a group of people you risk the chance that your food will be cold by the time you eat it because you have to wait until everyone else gets their food. That said, the food is yummyyyyy. If you go as a group I recommend the Funamori Party Boat (need at least 4 people). It includes lobster tails, shrimp tempura, amaebi, vegetable and shrimp tempura, teriyaki ribeye steak, chicken katsu, pork tonkatsu, assorted sushi and sashimi. If going with a smaller party, I recommend the Shrimp Tempura. Kunio, Genko-ya, and Yanagi sushi has the best shrimp tempura on the island. For dessert: Green Tea or Strawberry Cheescake Ice Cream, and top it off with some ocha (hot tea). ENJOY! :]
(4)Kobe O.
I used to live in Waikele in the later 90's and remember when this restaurant first open. The food was awesome then and still is now. The areas is clean although some of the walls could be dusted. The place was packed and the food was great and fresh. I had the yakitori and ahi tempura (2 huge portions the size of drumsticks) combo, wife and son had the early bird special, and daughter had the unagi don. Everything was great but the unagi don was a bit pricey in my opinion ($18+). Only downer besides the little priciness is the manini rice. I like the Japanese restaurants that bring the rice in the lacquer container (although you have to wonder if this rice is recycled at times)....like all you can eat rice. Not the best for your health, but I'm the kind of guy that needs to eat rice with every bite of food.
(5)Misty S.
Kunio is my favorite place in Waikele. Good service and the food is amazing. It's a bit pricey and there is often a wait, but they have green peppers in their vegetable tempura and their miso butterfish melts in your mouth.
(5)Jamie B.
After church on Sunday, the husband and I stopped here for lunch. I was really excited because it's been a long time since we've had Japanese food (which I LOVE!) It was really busy, but we were seated quickly. The food itself was a disappointment. I ordered the shrimp tempura teishoku. It came with miso soup, tsukemono, and rice. The tsukemono dish made me really sad. There was some seaweed, 3 seasoned soy beans (not kidding, 3!), and a sad-looking shrimp. The shrimp tempura came out and it looked spectacular! There was a good amount of shrimp, and it also came with string bean, carrot, and egg plant tempura. The shrimp tempura was really salty, and the other tempura were just ok. I think the best tasting one was the carrot. I honestly didn't think it was worth it, especially since it was almost $20. What saves this place and makes me willing to come here again is the customer service. The hostess was very friendly and seated us right away. The waiter was attentive and our water glasses were always re-filled when empty. If it weren't for that, I'd give this restaurant only 2 stars.
(3)Jewelyn T.
I've been coming here for years while a resident on the island... and recently came here in August 2009 while visiting Oahu for the summer. I'm a fan of their miso soup, combination shrimp tempura & teriyaki chicken, crunchy roll. I have also ordered their oyakudon. My bff is a fan of their steak that comes on a sizzling platter! It's really yummy. They do no take reservations. So just show up and wait. Sometimes there's no wait and other times, I ended up waiting 30 mins. Parking is free and sometimes can be a little hectic. Casual dining. Okay prices. Indoor seating. Kunio's is one of my favorite places to get my japanese fix on Oahu. If you're visiting the island or haven't been... stop by Kunio's! I miss Kunio's and will be back when I return for vacation.
(5)Kellie O.
Whenever I have my butterfish cravings, Kunio is my holy grail place to go! I don't know what I'd do if they stopped serving it! The misoyaki butterfish is so yummy that my tummy thanks me for eating such yummilicious food and my mouth has an orgasm. The meal comes with salad, miso soup, rice, 3 types of side dishes (unsure of the names of some & sometimes it changes; I know seasoned edamame is one of the three). It's so delicious that just thinking about it right now as I'm writing this review leaves me drooling.....you should just try it yourself so you'll understand what I mean. :) One thing they have that's unique is the Funamori Party Boat. Oh boy, don't be deceived by the picture on the menu! It's not as small as it looks! When we first ordered it, all of our eyes came out of its socket, our mouths dropped, and we drooled again. A minimum of 4 people is required to order the boat, for $99 (total). Don't expect too much from their customer service. It's not the best but it's not the worst. There are couple of waiters/hostesses that are great and there are others that could use the happy pill. But for some reason that doesn't bother me because the delicious misoyaki butterfish overpowers customer service. Lol. Kunio is located at the lower part of Waikele Shopping Center where Genki Sushi, Party City, and McDonalds are. If you plan on going during the weekend (Fri-Sun), I highly recommend going early because the wait can be up to an hour unless you don't mind the wait.
(4)Julie M.
Love this place; delicious traditional Japanese food!! This is a must-go every time we're on Oahu. Love the tempura and the various sushi. There is always a wait, and I don't think they take reservations, but it is worth the wait! Also, if are lucky enough to sit in the back room, it's a lot quieter....
(5)Dane G.
Had the Ribeye, Rainbow Roll and the Tempura Roll. Miso soup, and a little bit of vegetables. The meat and sushi were great. So was the miso soup. Their food is good enough to stand on its own. I don't think they should continue giving the vegetables, because when I say little bit, I do mean little bit. If I was them, I wouldn't even bother. I will go back and not for the vegetables either.
(4)Mac J.
Great quality in their dishes. Wasabi was weak so ask for more. Their sushi is little pricey but you can taste the difference when compared to Genki sushi next door.
(3)Chelsie S.
I love Kunio for one major reason: MISO BUTTERFISH. I never wonder what I'm going to order, because I already know that I NEED to get the MISO BUTTERFISH. Okay, I know what you might be thinking. "Wow, this girl is really obsessed with MISO BUTTERFISH." But it's true! The fish is just marinated so perfectly in that amazing miso-goodness. When they bring it out for you to eat it always comes out hot and moist - never dry and chewy. I also love the sushi and sashimi. It's definitely pricier, but you get what you pay for. The quality is great and the fish is always fresh. I love the way the ahi melts in my mouth whenever I bite into it. The restaurant is always clean, the staff is friendly, and the food is usually pretty quick to come out. I've never been disappointed. However, you should know that this place is VERY popular! Be aware that on any given day during lunch hour, it definitely fills up fast! There may be a wait. Just remember, patience is a virtue and the food is so worth the wait!
(4)Lindsay J.
YUM! great food... came in after lunch time... no line, no wait. our server was very quick, friendly and efficient at taking our order. nice atmosphere too. i got the A & B combo (choice of 1 item from the "A" portion of the menu, and 1 item from the "B" menu): vegetable tempura and sashimi. the vegetables consisted of (ranked in order from fave to least fave); green bell pepper, onion, green beans, okinawan sweet potato, and carrots. i liked that the tempura was crispy and not, i repeat, not greasy whatsoever. 2 pieces of mentioned veggies were given, which i consider a really good amount. the sashimi came with 8-9 pieces of 3 different types of fish. the portions were definitely worth its price of $18... seemingly steep, but trust me, its hard to place a price on quality. the hubby got the soft shell crab roll. pretty tasty, having diverse textures; crunchy crab, soft avocado, creamy mayonnaise, and a slight bitter from sprouts. with drinks, our total came out to less than $40. great birthday lunch indeed. :)
(4)Shane C.
Very average at best. Went there for dinner with my wife and three children. We were looking forward to eating there due the reviews from other Yelp users. My personal opinion, we, as yelp users, should reserve four and five star ratings for those establishments providing exceptional food and service. If this is a four or five star experience, we should have higher expectations. The food presentation was nice and portions were large. Food taste and preparation was average. The service, friendly fast but rushed. Price was way too high for the quality of food.
(3)Catherine A.
I had wanted to try this restaurant for a long time. Finally got the chance. Yummy! Sharon N. is right, the butterfish is ono! I am so glad I finally tried Kunio Restaurant!
(4)Glenn L.
Well? Let's start of it's nice to Have a Japanese restaurant that stays open past 9pm. On this occasion one of those nights when one doesn't want to cook dinner! So can go all the way to town and get some "Authentic-From-Japan" Restaurant with "Kaiseki" or "Itzakaya" or "Robata" or "Tepanyaki" Whatever! But if you live Leeward and want a Japanese restaurant you have a handful of choices. Say five: Kapolei:Hana Sushi and Restaurant, Ewa Beach: Restaurant Saito, Waipahu: Kuni Restaurant and Futuba, Waikele: Kunio Restaurant. So ranking by degrees: I would give Hana a 3 star for dinner menu a little heavy handed with the flavors. but sushi not bad. Kuni food is leaning to Kama'aina Japanese-style/Local. and is a great deal and excellent as classic local Japanese taste goes but don't really like the slightly pushy manager/owner?too much Hard sell for the Desserts that he doesn't make! Wassup with that? If your from Waipahu long Futuba is an "Icon" of Japanese local cuisine with Aloha service is always impeccable with the Momma-san very sincere and the consumate hostess. Did I say the food is ono and a great deal. But they have the strangest Hours and can't always remember some nights their closed some days their closed.. Oh Whaaa??? and then there is Kunio I am going to say that our Hostess and waitress Kelsi were excellent and very accomodating since we got there at 9:30pm and they "Yes" are open to 10pm. Nuff said. She was working the floor like a pro and kept on top of everything. We got our water and Tea and before you knew it we received our food. Tonight Ribeye Steak(Teri-style) teishoku came on a sizzle platter with onions that caramelized beautifully. and Sauce on the side (so the meat wasn't over marinated like most take-out bento restaurants), which I prefer so you don't just taste "Sugar n' Shoyu" effect. A perfect Medium. Mom got here favorite the Misoyaki Butterfish the best outside of paying an arm and a leg say at Roy's Ko'olina/Morimoto's/Nobu's etc. and great portions so we could share. This night truly was a 5-star night, and make sure to ask for fresh Butterfish we've had a couple of portions that came out cold to just warm not how we like our fish. So I am giving them a 4-star for the other times sometimes the food was less than perfect, but Overall restaurant is clean and service is excellent, yes can get busy but don't go those times. There are benches outside now so waiting shouldn't be too big a problem. Have had the Tempura(Excellent when we've had it), just make sure to let em know you want them fresh! Solve the problem of soggy food! BTW! Make it at home not that hard just Flour, ice water(preferably Seltzer) salt pepper and an egg(Optional) So make at home make sure cold the batter. can even put on a Ice bath to keep it from sliding off! Shootz! Ez brah!!! anykine tempura stuff! So I'd say without a doubt one of the Best without having to go into town or pay an arm and a leg tourist-like-Waikiki prices! Say comparable to Yanagi's on Kapiolani! So go whack em! pretty ono grindz!
(4)Natasha T.
The butterfish here is so damn good! Expensive place but if you love japanese food, it's good!
(4)Quijana B.
The food Is fine, and the service is passable, but for the prices they charge it simply is not worth the trip. Seven of us ate dinner, only one of us was truly satisfied with his meal, and the bill was $180. At $25 per person, I want more than "eh".
(3)Angela B.
I took my daughter for a Girl's Day lunch celebration. After we checked in with the hostess, we were told to wait outside to be called. Tacky. But it was a special occasion and I didn't want to argue. So we found a bench out of the sun and waited. And waited. Finally we were called inside and walked past three clean, empty tables before being seated. I ordered soba, no fish cake and no green onion. Considering it's a Japanese restaurant, I was courteous and used the Japanese terms: naruto and negi. The waitress had no idea what I meant. I even said kamaboko (fish cake), still nothing. So I ordered in English. (I really have to wonder how she serves customers who do not speak fluent English.) I even mentioned we were celebrating Girl's Day and she was clueless. Again, Japanese restaurant, you'd think she'd know a little something about the culture, especially since she was an older lady and had probably worked there for a while. She asks if we can manage chopsticks (Yes, I think we've established that we know what we're doing.) and takes our order to the kitchen. She returns with our food and puts a bowl of udon in front of me. When I tell her she brought me the wrong noodles, she proceeds to argue. I'm sorry but I know the difference and I'm not eating udon when I ordered soba. She takes the bowl away and, after a while, another person brings me the correct order. However, it was pretty disappointing that my tofu was nothing but cut up inari age. Seriously? How hard is it to prepare some proper tofu? For what we paid, I expected a lot better. And I've had a lot better for just a few bucks in some pretty humble noodle shops. This was $30 wasted on bad food and even worse service. The fact that she wouldn't even bring the correct order to the table said a lot about how we were being treated. We won't be back.
(1)Gary M.
So we come to this restaurant several times a year, and the food is always good. There is always a wait because they don't take reservations...usually about 10-15 minutes. It's clean, not too noisy, and the waitresses are always friendly. The prices are reasonable, except for certain dishes...I think their sushi side dishes are expensive. The portions are filling without being too small as some japanese places. But, their toss salads are always disappointing. What's with japanese restaurants and their inability to make a good toss salad? They also don't serve tea, you have to ask for it.
(4)Gretchen Q.
Husband introduced me to this place 6 years ago and I fell in love with the place. I've sampled Gyotaku and Shokudo and I must say Kunio tops it all. The ambiance is nice. Very casual, nothing fancy. There's are tons of choices to choose from the menu but I always get my favorite every time I visit, beef teriyaki and miso butterfish combo. Shrimp tempura is also very popular here (from what I noticed the majority of the people order around me). I also like the pork katsu donburi and the sukiyaki. This place can get very busy so be ready for the wait!
(4)Debbie K.
This was the first time my husband and I tried this restaurant. For as long as we've seen it there, we never tried it. After looking at the reviews on Yelp, suggested to my husband that it's about time we try it! Entrance: We got there at about 8:30 p.m. and the restaurant was still packed, but there was no one on the sign in sheet before us. We signed in and the hostess greeted us and she smiled, she told us it would be a 5-10 min. wait. She was accurate, within 10 min. we were seated. The one thing I thought was weird was that there was nowhere to wait for your table, you had to go outside and wait or you would be blocking the door. Atmosphere: Moderately noisy but not to the point of irritation. Quite a few tables and chairs as well as booths. We got to sit at the table right next to the door, thank goodness it was later in the evening because if it was at peak dinner hour, I would have been irritated with the door constantly opening and closing right behind me and people huddled inches away from me signing in or waiting for the hostess to seat them. Our table was sticky and upon grabbing the menus, they sure felt like they needed to be wiped down with some Clorox wipes. But the busboy was apologetic and immediately wiped up our table, as for our menus....after ordering I immediately grabbed my hand sanitizer that is always in reach! Food: Their menu is pretty extensive...lots of choices. I ordered a teishoku I guess it was called..it had Sashimi, Ribeye steak & Asst. Tempura and my husband ordered a 2 choice entree with Ahi tempura & teriyaki chicken. It came with miso soup, rice, green salad. This is the breakdown...Sashimi was okay, had lots of that stringy stuff in it, I don't know what that's called, but I like my sashimi to melt in my mouth not have to chew the hec out of it. Ribeye had a good flavor, but lots of fat and it was almost cold, tempura...the shrimp was warm, not hot and the vegetable tempura was cold, like they pre-cooked it a while ago. My husband said his was the same..that is the worst thing to eat cold fried food..YUCK! In my opinion too pricey for the quality. Service: Our server was polite and efficient..I don't know what else to say about her...she was not outstanding or did anything out of the ordinary for us to say, "She was a great server!" Just doing her job. Overall: At least we've tried it and know now that we probably won't go there again. In our opinion you get way better food for your money at Kuni's Japanese Restaurant in Waipahu!
(2)Amanda L.
I've been going to this place for years. I couple years ago I would have given them a five but now there seems to be something that is just a little off each visit. The last time - the rice was a little mushy but only half way through the bowl?!? Not sure why. I always get the combo plate with tempura and butterfish. I love it! There is normally a wait so bring some good company. Some of the tables are a little crowded so try for a booth. Parking is a little crowded in that corner so we normally park further away and just walk in - plus you are going to leave super full so you might as well walk it off! If you are craving Japanese - well worth the wait.
(4)Rob T.
Got to get there early(first come, first served) the sushi is always fresh and the taste is always consistent. Combo meals and teishoku are the way to go. And there's always room for green tea ice cream. And the prices are reasonable.
(4)Kathryn D.
I love Kunios! Every time I go there I always get an excellent meal with excellent service! My favorite eats here has to be the sushi. All the sushi is fresh and made to order. This isn't like the sushi joint a couple of shops down, this sushi is for real! I love that they don't skimp of the fish either. All the raw fish is cut super thick, so you're definitely getting what you pay for! My second fav is their combo plates. I love getting the shrimp tempura and salmon. The salmon is nice and moist, not fishy at all, and the shrimp tempura is light and crispy, not heavy and greasy. They also have this great lunch special between 3-5p (I think). The hours are not very "lunch" but maybe more so "early bird special". If you go make sure you try it! It's sushi with a side of your choice for a great price.
(5)Rise D.
The food was good but the prices are pretty high. I think the lunch special sounds like a good deal but the day my parents and I went here, they ran out of the items so we had to order from the regular menu. The waitress was really nice. The food was tasty but I think there are still better options for Japanese food in terms of price and quantity. Kunio is the best restaurant in Waikele though, so I'm giving them four stars. :)
(4)Kalani C.
After President's Day shopping, came here for some Japanese delights. Been here several times and only now reviewing. It was about 3pm, so place wasn't crowded. I usually order their combo AA selection, however opted instead for their Tenzaru Soba that came with shrimp and vegetable tempura. My buddy ordered the Ahi Teshoku broiled with ponzu sauce. Everything was delicious, beautifully presented and so satisfying with our Asahi dry beers. We ordered their green tea ice cream that was just alright; so now I'm craving some from Dave's. Service friendly and efficient as always. By the time we left the usual line was already growing. Perfect timing.
(4)Cerise M.
I love kunio! I live in mililani so its really close to get a really great japanese meal. Im not much of a fish eater so a combo bento with teri chicken and veg tempura is perrrfect for me! My boyfriend is a 'fish expert' and he says everything always tastes so fresh! We recommend anyone in the area to stop by whether its lunch or dinner they will not disappoint!! Only downside is that if its busy, you will wait a while.. its because the food is so good!! Everyone wants to get a table!
(4)Mark O.
The restaurant is initially hampered by a small parking lot, shared by multiple stores, which makes it necessary to drive around on occasion to find a stall. You will also need to wait during peak dinner times, since there is no reservations. If you are patient with parking and waiting, the food is authentic in its Japanese preparation and taste. The decor and atmosphere is very pleasant. The service is always impeccable with friendly servers, who are courteous and responsive to requests. The sashimi is fresh and their assortment of sushi is very nice. The sukiyaki is full of flavor. We mostly eat the combination dinners, which include miso soup, salad, and rice. Recently, their shrimp tempura had more batter than shrimp, but the batter is flaky and not doughy; the vegetable tempura is much better. Prices are moderate, about $15-$20 per person. If we have the budget, this is one of our favorite Japanese restaurants.
(5)