Aloha Hawaiian BBQ & Asian Bistro
974 W 5th Ave, Columbus, OH, 43212
Aloha Hawaiian BBQ & Asian Bistro Menu
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Address :
974 W 5th Ave
Columbus, OH, 43212 - Phone (614) 298-9688
- Website https://www.alohahawaiianbbqasianbistro.com/
- Click To Get Directions
Opening Hours
- Mon :11:00 am - 10
Specialities
- Takes Reservations : No
Delivery : No
Take-out : Yes
Accepts Credit Cards : Yes
Good For : Lunch
Parking : Private Lot
Bike Parking : Yes
Good for Kids : Yes
Good for Groups : Yes
Attire : Casual
Ambience : Casual
Noise Level : Average
Alcohol : No
Outdoor Seating : No
Wi-Fi : No
Has TV : Yes
Waiter Service : No
Caters : Yes
WE SERVE THE FOLLOWING STATES
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Audrey H.
I haven't had anything here besides the tonkotsu ramen, but if you're a ramen fanatic like I am, this might be the best you can get in Columbus. The second time I went was not as good as the first, but still passable. I'll have to try the other types of ramen as well, but from what I've seen so far I like this place a lot more than Akai Hana or Zencha (for ramen).
(4)Dick S.
For me this was a disappointment. I am visiting Columbus for a few days and heard there was a Hawaiian restaurant. My partner was Hawaiian and we ate his mother's cooking as well as typical Hawaiian local food from lunch wagons or diners. The Hawaiian menu at Aloha is primarily teriyaki which may be Hawaiian but usually plays a small part on any menu. The macaroni and rice are right on but the small thin pieces of chicken, beef, and kalbi would embarrass any Hawaiian host. Where is the kalua pig? the laulau? the curry? the saimin? the adobo? the Portuguese bean soup? With such a limited Hawaiian menu I can foresee these items being taken off the menu. How often can anyone eat teriyaki? At best Aloha is similar to the California chains that poorly imitate the food of Hawaii. The restaurant is roomy, cheerful, clean, efficient and reasonably priced. I give it an OK rating. The service lacked nothing. When I was there Asian students lined up for bowls of ramen or Chinese food. Good for them, but not too good for anyone with fond memories of plate lunches in Hawaii.
(3)Titus T.
I have been to many different Hawaiian rests but this is the first time that i encounter really bad food n service. My GF ordered Taiwanese Pork Chop but then the rice portion is really small and the marinated tea egg hard to chew it taste like it has been in the storage for a really long time then the pork chop should be bread with panko bread crumb instead of regular bread flour. I order extra veggie which cost me $2 but what i got is only 3 broccoli n carrot so cheap on the portion. The lady was really rude on the service the funny thing is that they want a tip but the whole dining experience is actually a self serve
(1)Amanda L.
Never had a bad experience here, the food is good but nothing amazing. They have Hawaiian food, one of the few of not the only place in columbus to have it. They also have a Taiwanese/Chinese side menu. The Hawaiian combos are good, I like the shrimp especially. The spam masubi is a good side and I always get one. Nothing super special about the grilled meats but it satisfies cravings. Their Taiwanese menu is more interesting. I've gotten the pork with bamboo shops and the need noodle soup (pictured). The broth was a little light in flavor but overall it was really good. The noodles are interesting, cheaper than most. But the sour cabbage in the soup in my favor and they give you good portions of beef.
(3)Zabrina C.
We had a dinner yesterday here! The food are good, tasty and affordable! I tried the aloha bbq mix and spam musubi, my bf tried the kahlua pork! it was good! He don't eat spam but he finished the spam musubi! lol. The place are clean and neat, and big. but too quiet and the server looked shy, she's quiet and we can't hear what she's saying but we will definitely come back!
(4)Julia V.
This place is great! The service is fast and the inside is really clean. We ordered pretty standard Asian food but everything was delicious. We had a chicken egg roll, general tso's, and chicken with broccoli. We got them both with fried rice. The rice tasted fresh like it was just prepared and the chicken in both dishes was great. This will definitely become a regular on our go to Chinese food list!
(5)Abby L.
I never get anything here other than the spam musubi with a side of the macaroni salad. The spam musubi is fantastic. I love it! I come here to fulfill my spam cravings all the time. The macaroni salad is a little on the overly mushy side sometimes, but for some reason I always get it, haha. Creature of habit I guess! They also have Thai tea here, I would avoid getting it. It's very expensive for a cup that's mostly ice. You need the ice in there to melt though because the tea is also very very very sweet and this is coming from someone who loves sweet (I usually have to water it down a bit)! Parking is extremely easy to find! There's a back and front parking lot. The interior of the place is also very spacious.
(4)Helen S.
I really like the food here! BF and I split the following dishes: 1) Pork chop rice - really good pork cutlet over rice, which had a good teriyaki sauce. I often skip the rice but ate most of it here. also, the portion of greens was a good size. 2) Taiwanese beef noodle soup - soup and beef were good, noodles were a bit strange in texture (they got this weird frilly thing going on) but acceptable. 3) Spam musubi - I could order an unlimited amount of these and eat dem forevers. Or at least a week. Service is just order-at-the-counter, but they were sweet, made no mistakes with y order, and were prompt when I asked for anything (i.e. an extra bowl for soup, or takeout boxes to go). This is one of my favorite Asian-style places in Columbus, and one of the better ones located close to me.
(4)Holly C.
I get the beef noodle soup often (on the side menu with other Taiwanese items) if I'm not getting Haiwaiian bbq. It has textured noodles with a flavorful broth and veggies. It hits the spot when I want some type of noodle soup but not pho (Vietnamese noodle soup). The spam musubi is always a good choice. I've only had Hawaiian bbq here, since it's the only place in Columbus, and overall it's not too popular unless you're on the west coast, maybe east coast big cities. My boyfriend has been to Aloha Eats in Chicago since he lives there and said that it's pretty much the same except Aloha Eats has larger portions. I still think they have big portions here since I usually don't finish all my food. I've tried multiple bbq combos/platters, and I've really liked everything.
(4)B.A. T.
Probably my favorite place for random Asian cravings. I haven't had a bad thing, and their gyoza are amazingly tasty. I really recommend their beef bowl and the chicken katsu is some of the best hangover cure I have ever had.
(5)Dan Z.
Had a great Hawaiian lunch. Pork, chicken and beef are all tasty and flavorful. The macaroni salad was a highlight as well. Creamy sauce and firm noodles made a great side. We will be back!
(4)Tim A.
My Hawaiian pork had great flavor. A tad dry. The rest of our order was on the Asian side and was good. He spicy was actually spicy!
(4)Stan C.
It's a wonder place to go. Great food with wonderful customer service. Nice and clean. The place we will come back again.
(5)Richard P.
4 stars for the Taiwanese menu. I can't really speak to the Hawaiian menu, other than to say that as a kama'aina, it's not really Hawaiian food. More like Los Angeles food, where it seems like you can find a Hawaiian BBQ place on practically every street corner. We ordered two Taiwanese 'fast food' dishes when we went - the pork chop rice plate, and beef noodle soup. Both were good renditions of classic Taiwanese dishes. The pork chop is deep-fried, with a good crust, and came accompanied with homemade pickled cabbage, always a nice touch. It was frankly more protein than I need at a single meal (or two or three meals, for that matter), but it's just as good reheated, so who's complaining? The beef noodle soup had chunks of braised beef, the same pickled cabbage, and the noodles were clearly homemade - thin ribbons of wheat noodles with just enough 'tooth.' It's easy enough for a restaurant to buy factory-made noodles, so you have to give them credit when they go out of their way to make their own. So go for the Taiwanese food. It's on the markerboard to the right, if you're facing the register. That's where the really good stuff is.
(4)Madison R.
We ordered beef noodle soup, chicken katsu, bbq beef, and spam musubi. Their beef noodle soup isn't as good as what my wife makes, but it is pretty good for a restaurant in the US, especially the Midwest. It's almost as good as what the good restaurants in San Jose and Milpitas serve. The suan cai (pickled vegetables) on top was a nice touch. The noodles were a little weird..very wide and very thin. They were probably homemade, but dare I say what I liked least. I also would have preferred some small bok choy. I think they use jielan or maybe youcai instead. Just personal preference. The chicken katsu tasted ok. Portion size was pretty large. The spam musubi was fairly decent. We loved the bbq beef. It was slightly crispy and had a great flavor. It was the best dish of the night for sure. If I could add one thing to the menu, it would be stinky tofu. I'm sure that would bring tons of homesick Chinese expat customers. Please make it happen. :)
(4)Amber S.
I've only ordered a few things from the Chinese side of the menu. Mainly shrimp or chicken pad thai. I always get it for carryout and end up with enough food leftover for another lunch or dinner portion. I'm always in and out very quickly. They have an assembly system for getting out the orders.
(3)Michelle S.
Not bad. The food is pretty good but nothing amazing. I had aloha spicy chicken which tasted like sweet and sour. Gyoza was eh and the shoyu (sp?) ramen was pretty plain, had to add some sauces to the mix. Thai tea was good but pretty expensive. I did like the environment and it's a good place to stop for lunch time. I don't see anything remotely Hawaiian though all except the spam sushi lol.
(3)LJ W.
So I've had my eye on this place for a while and I finally decided to try it. The place is decent at best. The customer service is great and the establishment itself is decent but the food did not impress me. I came in search of some Hawaiian style food, but the food tastes more like regular Asian food. Hawaiian BBQ Chicken 1-5=3. Fried Rice 1-5=4.
(3)Jasmine K.
Not pleased today! I have been to this restaurant several times before and had always been relatively pleased with the food (veggie fried rice is delish!). However today a coworker and I stopped in for lunch and I ordered the Pad Thai, my coworker was almost done with his General Tsos chicken before my Pad Thai arrived and when it finally did I could tell that something was not quite right. It looked and smelled terrible, I mean really terrible like a wet dog/smelly feet smell. I took a bite and it was just disgusting. My co worker knows that I am shy about returning food so he took the plate to the counter and explained that I did not care for the food and would like to exchange it for something else. The woman at the counter explained that the second meal would have to be purchased, he graciously paid for the second plate of food, but we both were quite put off by the experience. Restaurant owners should take responsibility for poor quality food and make customers happy... unfortunately based on this experience I will not be back.
(1)Eric U.
This is the closest Hawaiian BBQ place to us so whenever we go to Columbus we make a special trip to get a plate lunch. Today I tried the BBQ chicken and beef plate. Wife always gets chicken katsu. Side order of SPAM musubi for me to complete the meal. The macaroni salad works well with the salty / sweet combinations of your meat of choice. Only suggestion I would have is to marinate the chicken / beef a little longer to make the BBQ taste even better.
(4)Ann Y.
Just like being at home except healthier and offers japanese, chineses and local favorites. Ono!
(4)Yanfei L.
I ordered ribs and it was not like what it should be... It said it had sauce but it was not.
(2)Daniel D.
Ordered the vegetable pad Thai and it was disgusting. I notified the lady that it was gross and she said that it was what she ordered. I asked her if we could trade it for vegetable fried rice, she said yes but I'd have to pay for it. I advised her that I would leave a negative review if she didn't make me happy and she shrugged her shoulders.
(1)Tom L.
This place is great with good food at reasonable prices. It is my go to lunch spot for Asian food.
(5)Jen C.
I dropped in while on a business trip because I heard they have some Taiwanese food. The main menu had Hawaiian dishes, as well as some ramen and rice bowls. I didn't feel like chowing down on so much carbs so I got a stir fried green beans and pork dish from the Taiwanese menu. Overall it was good. A clean restaurant with open kitchen, friendly staff and fast service. They have that nifty credit card machine from Apple that you can sign off on their iPad. I would've loved to find some place in town with Taiwanese dessert though.
(3)Mike G.
I recently asked for a lunch recommendation from my fellow Yelpers and got a quick response back from Sara C. She recommended that I do lunch at Aloha Hawaiian BBQ and Asian Bistro. It was a good recommendation. Like others have mentioned, it's a clean looking place with very good service. It's very casual with a slight cafeteria feel to it. You order at the counter and they bring the food out to you. I decided on the Pork Katsu, which Sara had previously mentioned in another talk thread. It's basically a panko breaded pork tenderloin on a bed of lettuce. Came out on a plastic plate with everything just like I'd order with a couple of BBQ type sauces on the side in plastic ramekins with plastic lids on them. The food was very good. It's got a good crunch to it. It's very thin as far as the meat is concerned. I would have preferred it a little thicker..... The mac and cheese frankly tasted like GFS mac and cheese, not bad, but nothing special. It was a good contrast as far as textures are concerned. There's also some white rice on the side. At only $8.01 with tax, there is enough food for 2 people. It's a great value for your money. I actually took half home and made wraps out of the pork, lettuce and sauce. I would go back again and try more, the Spam Musubi sounds interesting and the Pho sounds good too. Worth checking out if you are in the Grandview area.
(3)Troy S.
I went in expecting to be disappointed. I have told my wife we should try this place and she always just rolled her eyes at me. We drove by and then came back to give it a dry after breaking down the pros and cons of our other nearby choices. I was guessing this was going to be a one and done restaunrant. So because my expectations were exceeded, I thought this needs 5 stars. Maybe a 4 star place but I was wowed. The Pad Thai is the first thing I love as my wife ordered it spicy and couldn't even eat it all because it was huge and her mouth was burning. The spice was a latent spice as the first bite I took was "hmm, nice flavor with some spice." 20 seconds later.. "wow, that has a great kick." We both loved it and would order it again here. We also ordered the fried Gyoza which was very tasty. I would get this app again. The only downside was my order of Kalua Pork. I don't understand no-sauce-BBQ as I am a sauce guy. The pork was tender and had a decent taste but it was too dry for my taste. I just ordered the wrong thing for me. I took the leftover soy sauce from the gyoza and put that on pork and rice. The place is very clean and has an open feel for it. They have a Taiwanese menu on the side that looked pretty good. The place seemed to cater to the Asian taste as the clientele seemed to display this. I would go back and order anything but the Hawaiian side of the menu.
(5)Karyn M.
The first time I came here, I tried dishes from their american menu (the ones with the mac & cheese sides) and it was alright - not memorable. I came back and tried the porkchop rice bento dish from their chinese menu and loved it. Having been to Taiwan earlier last year, that dish is the closest to taiwanese food that I've seen in columbus. I've also tried other dishes on the chinese menu (beef noodle soup, schezhuan delight, etc) but still find myself going back to the pork chop dish.
(4)Matt W.
I love the idea of Aloha. Columbus has a lot of really fun Asian options, but Hawaiian is a cuisine that we don't really have any examples of. Spam Musubi, Kalua pork, poke, Loco Moco - these are all dishes that SHOULD be huge hits in Columbus...but Aloha is not the place to go. When we checked them out on a Saturday, the place was eerily empty despite it being right around dinner time. We went for a mix of traditional (Spam Musubi, Loco Moco) and a more "generic" Asian dish - Chicken Katsu. The Spam Musubi was OK. Not outstanding, but spam and seaweed are a surprisingly good combination, and the teriyaki sauce glaze works well with it. The Loco Moco was...meh. This is normally a really great "texture" dish. Hot steamed rice, a juicy burger, rich gravy, and the sunny side up eggs on top, with the yolk ready to be broken open and mixed into the gravy. The rice was really dry, which wouldn't be so bad if the gravy was good...but it was pasty, flavorless stuff that didn't really do anything on the plate. Worse, the burgers were basically cooked into hockey pucks, adding to the terrible, flavorless dryness. About the only good thing I can say was the eggs were pretty much cooked perfectly, and adding some sriracha made it...survivable. That leaves the chicken katsu, and oh, man. That's rough. You see, our chicken katsu came out sliced and laid out across a bed of rice with the dipping sauce on the side, which is fine...but the chicken was visibly pink and still uncooked in the center, which was not. We flagged the waiter who had delivered our food back down, and he told us he'd get it taken care of. The manager came out from behind the counter a few minutes later and said "The chef thinks it's cooked enough, but he's going to cook it again." We thought that meant they'd cook a new portion of the chicken for us. Right? Right? WRONG. What we got instead was the exact same plate returned to us (I know, because a leftover piece of Spam Musubi and some of the Loco Moco gravy were still on the side of the plate), and the chicken looked like it had been dropped into the deep fryer a second time. Badly overcooked, now, and dripping with grease, it totally killed any semblance of an appetite. In all honesty, I should have asked for my money back, but we were so disgusted that we just wanted to leave. There may not be other Hawaiian places in town, but there are sure as hell a LOT of much better Asian restaurants. If you want a meal that won't risk giving you food poisoning, I'd try one of those instead.
(1)SaRea S.
I eat here fairly regularly, especially on the nights I don't want to cook or have the urge to eat the world's most gluttonous meal: Loco Moco, insert Homer Simpson groan. There is no Hawaiian food in the city, so when I am feeling nostaligic about my time in Wainai, I come here. Spam musubi is an absolute must if you can get over yourself about eating Spam! I have always been greeted with a smile and courteous behaviour, they are quick and there is plenty of seating!
(3)Emily P.
Fair warning, I've never had the Hawaiian food here but I intend to try it. My friend and I would order takeout every Thursday from here. It's GREAT. The Pad Thai is delicious though we usually get extra spicy. Beef and broccoli is great and the broccoli isn't as mushy as a lot of places have. Definitely recommend but remember that they are closed on Saturdays now. :(
(4)George Y.
I've been going to Aloha more often because I've found some dishes I enjoy and my friends are exploring their Chinese food options more then their Hawaiian food options. The few dishes I get are the loco moco, Japanese beef bowl and the spam musubi (forever my favorite). The loco moco is a Hawaiian dish that I would qualify as bob evanish type of meal. 2 eggs on 2 meat patties with 2 scoops of macaroni salad. A meal that satisfies my basic food group urges, carbs, meat and eggs. The second dish I enjoy, Japanese beef bowl, is a pretty simple but tasty combo. The only drawback is there is too much rice in this dish. Either up the beef or lower the rice.
(3)Pai-Wei L.
They have a list of Taiwanese food on the white board. Best pork chop rice bento and beef noodle soup in Columbus!
(5)Tls K.
Gen tso plenty perfect heat Egg roll just ok, not again. Veggie lomein salty Tofu padtai, good spring rolls lots a wrap, very little filing
(4)Tamara M.
Nice, modern decor, a step above the standard Hawaiian fast-food chain. It seems new, and very clean. There are a variety of Hawaiian typical dishes on the menu like Kaluha Pork, Loco Moco, etc. There are also Japanese ramen and udon soups and a good number of Chinese specialties. We had one Kaluha Pork, one Miso Ramen and a side of gyoza. The food came out pretty quickly, and both dishes were very good. I was pleasantly surprised to get such a good bowl of ramen at this kind of place. If I had been hungrier, I definitely would have gone for the Loco Moco, but maybe next time. Prices were good and service was friendly.
(4)Daniel M.
This place is a knock off of L&L's Drive Inn. After ordering the BBQ mix and kalua pig I was disappointed. Not even close to the taste of Hawaii. Portion sizes are small as well. Not worth my trip out here from Pittsburgh.
(1)Marie G.
This is the only place in Columbus where I can get my chicken katsu fix! I love their menu - they offer a traditional Chinese side and then the Hawaiian side. Lots of options for soups as well - I've never had one but I kick myself for not getting one every time the staff brings one out of the kitchen. There is plenty of parking out front or in the back. Prices are extremely reasonable. Service is great.
(4)Michelle C.
I order from the asian menu on the dry erase board. I usually get the pork chop rice or the spicy beef noodle soup. The pork chop is crispy and it comes with my favorite hard boiled egg. The noodles in the beef soup are so good, not the usual skinny noodles. They are flat/thick/curvy noodles. The soup broth is excellent. The flounder with black bean sauce is awesome as well, very flavorful with lots of fish. I remember the first week it was open. I knew it was gonna be a success with its asian/taiwanese menu. Occasionally I'll have a bite of the Hawaiian menu when my friends order it. But I usually crave the taiwanese stuff.
(5)Randy S.
Considering that there are few Hawaiian restaurants in the area (maybe the only one) to compare this place too, this restaurant is definitely worth a try. It's set up like a fast casual restaurant similar to Chipotle or Noodles & Co. You order at the counter and then they bring the food out to you. The menu has several different Hawaiian BBQ options along with a Taiwanese menu. I tried the Aloha BBQ mix which comes with chicken, beef, small ribs, sticky rice, & macaroni salad. All of the various meats were good with the chicken being my favorite. I don't really like macaroni salad but my wife seemed to enjoy it. My wife tried the Aloha Seafood mix which oddly enough comes with BBQ chicken, but then it also had shrimp & mahi mahi. The sticky rice was done well. I tried my wife's dish and it was quite good, but I think I would prefer my dish. We also ordered spam musubi which most people would find disgusting. It's just spam & rice wrapped in seaweed. My wife lived in Hawaii for 4 years and spam is a very common food in Hawaii. She was very excited to find a restaurant that actually served it and she didn't leave disappointed. I was hesitant to try it myself, but it really is pretty good. I probably wouldn't eat it on a regular basis but it's worth trying it. This is definitely a place worth checking out. The food is good. If you're looking for exotic food, the flavors are not out of this world, but it is very good.
(4)Aaron A.
Delicious panko breaded mahi and shrimp. BBQ chicken is also tasty. I ordered carryout and the macaroni salad was in the container with all my hot food which warmed it up to an unpleasant temperature, did not like that. Steamed rice was good. It's been a while since I last consumed a pile of rice and it felt like a treat. Looking forward to trying other dishes, especially the chicken katsu and ramen noodles. Three stars for now.
(3)Lydia W.
I've explored the Chinese menu on the side wall and have decided to raise it to the elusive 5 stars. It's the best Chinese food in the area. You will notice by the high concentration of Asians dining here at peak meal times. My personal favorites are the beef noodle soup (legit, with sour veggies and home made noodles), the Szechuan flounder, and the black bean flounder (for those who shy away from the spice). The fish is incredibly tender and flavorful. Decently priced and each order can easily last two meals.
(5)Diana U.
I wish they just made this a Taiwanese restaurant. This Taiwanese-owned Hawaiian BBQ place has good Hawaiian food, but GREAT Taiwanese food. They have their Taiwanese food on a "secret" menu handwritten on the side. Try their beef noodle soup - it's full of flavor and the beef is nice and tender. I've also tried their pork chop rice plate and that is delicious as well. Hawaiian food is fine - I generally stay away from it but sometimes I do get their Spam Musubi (you can't mess those up). I think that their BBQ beef is pretty good, but I've never been a fan of the macaroni salad so I try to substitute that. I've also had their udon and I think it's really salty (MSG, maybe?). So...I'd stick with their Taiwanese food and non-deep-friend Hawaiian BBQ. Great prices, clean place, and good location.
(4)Stephanie K.
yumm! This place was surprisingly tasty. When I first walked in, I initially was disappointed to see so much Chinese American food like General Tso's chicken. I saw the Hawaiian menu and expected more seafood or like poi er something. Instead it looked like a lot of teriyaki type dishes. I opted for the mix plate of chicken and beef barbeque. It came with a side of rice, macaroni salad, and extra teriyaki sauce. I was very pleasantly surprised to find that the meat was really tasty. The macaroni salad was also good! (and i normally don't like macaroni salad). It was overall a really satisfying meal and was very reasonably priced. The owner took the time to walk around and introduce herself and ask how the food was.
(4)Justine L.
I am not really a fan of Hawaiian cuisine, so I come here for the Taiwanese food! I have tried the spicy beef noodle soup, fried pork chop bento box, and the spicy flounder dish. These items are not on the official menu; they are written on a blackboard! They were all pretty decent! I especially enjoyed the spicy beef noodle soup. It tasted really authentic! The boyfriend likes kalbi so he ways orders it here! It comes on top of a bed of salad, and a scoop of macaroni salad. I think the meat is just okay, but I enjoy stealing the macaroni salad off of his plate! I would like to try the ramen here next because my friend got it here once, and the broth was really delicious! The only downside was they don't give you enough meat in it. I think it was like 3 slices of pork. Overall, it's a joint where you order your food at the counter, and they bring you the food, but it's self-service. I would recommend it!
(3)Claire F.
Everything is fair. The beef noodle is special. I've been there four times. The service is good. I feel free in that place.
(3)Steven H.
Tried Aloha Hawaiian BBQ & Asian Bistro tonight for dinner (it's only been open 2 days now) and was pleasantly surprised. Little has changed from the previous design scheme of the former Panda Express that used to be here but the food is definitely better. It's a walk up to the counter and order and they bring it to you kind of place. The menu is a mix of Asian and Hawaiian entrees and features short ribs, BBQ chicken, teriyaki chicken, chicken kansu (panko crusted chicken), beef and some fried seafood specialties like shrimp and mahi mahi. The price point is super affordable - under $8 affordable. And you get a meat entree, steamed rice and a macaroni salad with the Hawaiian dishes. Tried the chicken kansu with kansu sauce. Found the macaroni salad very tasty and the panko chicken crispy and a great complement to the sweet, tangy sauce. Also tried the BBQ chicken with a really flavorful teriyaki sauce. Very much recommend this place. Hope it does well! It's also good for families and kids (there were quite a few there when I was there).
(4)Mark K.
This is, essentially, a Chinese place with a few other menu items. And after all the hype, I was a bit disappointed. The service was great. The place is very nice- new, clean, nice seating. The food is... okay. I had the Aloha BBQ Mix: short ribs, barbecue chicken and barbecue beef. The ribs were pretty good- nice Asian flavor, decent quality meat. The chicken was mediocre. The beef was tough. Neither of the last two had much flavor. I also had crab Rangoon, which was the typical Chinese restaurant type. Guess I should have gone with that special loco moco, but burgers and eggs with gravy on a hot afternoon did not sound appealing. And is the macaroni salad a Hawaiian thing? 'Cus while good, it didn't go with the rest of the meal at all.
(3)Charles N.
I think it's time they change their name to Ni Hao. Just had the loco moco and it was not right. Seems they have lost touch with Hawaii. It was on a bed of lettuce and if you are familiar with Hawaiian dishes you know loco moco should be on rice with beef gravy. Don't like to give poor reviews but it just wasn't right. The Chinese food is probably much better as there were many customers and that's what it looked like they were eating. Very clean and very friendly staff.
(2)Rachel G.
It was an average of 3 stars, considering the variation of quality of the items our table ordered. We first ordered the fried gyoza. Those were pretty good. Then we had the crab rangoon. I think these have some room for improvement: they hardly had any filling so it was pretty much a fried wonton wrapper. Entree-wise is where things get weird. My sister ordered the chicken pad thai and added pineapple. When it came out, it "smelled like wet dog". My sister is usually never one to skip a meal, and she even gave it a chance, but couldn't take more than a couple bites before deciding to just pitch it. I can't stress how much this is not like my sister to pass on food. She'll eat anything. It's partially her fault for adding the pineapple in the first place, but still... It did smell weird. I ordered the chicken combo of the kansu and Hawaiian bbq. Both meats we're good, but I have to say that the mac salad is not for me. My friend got the seafood mix and enjoyed everything about it. So over all, I will give it another chance, but probably not right away.
(3)Mae T.
Have you ever heard that at Asian restaurants there's a menu that isn't advertised but that if you know the cuisine or are looking for something authentic you can sometimes get it if you ask? Aloha takes the guesswork out. When you step inside do yourself a huge favor and look at the written Taiwanese menu on the whiteboard which is off to the side and order from there. For whatever reason its not on their website or printed menu but everything is delicious especially the beef noodle soup and pork chop rice bento.
(5)Kylie F.
I was crazy excited to eat here after waiting months for it to open, then when I called the lady who took my order was so nice and passionate about telling me about the food. I ordered take out bc it was beggars night, picked it up smelled it the whole way home and couldn't wait to tear into it, BUT when I did finally get home I was un-impressed. I ordered spam Sushi and some sort of chicken w sauce and rice, ugh. Can't say I will be back.
(2)Christina C.
I dig clean restaurants. I also dig tasty Udon noodles. To my delight, Aloha had both... plus some! Craving a good Asian-inspired meal, Aloha was one of my closet options, and one I had yet to try. After placing my order of Udon noodles, Aloha Spicy Chicken and the Aloha BBQ Mix (no, this order was for two people, not just me) I was quoted 10 minutes for my wait and arrive at that time I did. Yay - it was ready! On a Sunday night, it was dead. Not bad for me. I got a parking spot up front and there wasn't a line to wait in. To our delight, the food was still warm when we finally got it home. Triple points! No soggy, lukewarm mush here. Thank goodness! My spicy chicken was similar to all spicy, - with hints of sweet - chicken dishes I've had in the past, and a similar story comes from my bf of his BBQ mix consisting of short ribs, beef and chicken. The meat was ok quality and the first couple bites were enjoyable (they were marinated in a sweet sauce). They were satisfying, but weren't extraordinary or unlike anything we've had in the past. The most noteworthy part of the entire meal was definitely the Udon noodles. If they sound at all appetizing to you - with freshly boiled rice noodles, seaweed, scallions, tempura shrimp (optional) and tofu - do yourself a favor and start your meal off with that. I'd head back here for another meal without a doubt, but it was definitely not a place that stood out to me.
(3)Luan N.
Ordered the Family sampler for BBQ pork, chicken, and beef. Not quite as good as the L&L chains in Hawaii, not even as good as Aloha Eats in Chicago. But I welcome this addition to adding some island love to C-bus. Bring out the kalua pork, loco moco, and portuguese sausage. Pump out some fluffy malasadas, I will forever be your fan!
(3)Red D.
No complaints here at all. Good food, good sized portions, clean dining room and bathroom, friendly and fast service. Short ribs, hawaiian bbq beef, two eggrolls and two sodas= $24.00.
(4)Todd K.
I'm a really big fan of this restaurant, especially the pad thai. Decently spicy and served in one huge heaping portion, it's quite the filling meal. Hands down my favorite menu item, and full disclosure: one of the only things I get because I love it so much. Having said that I have sampled many of their Asian/Taiwanese dishes, which are all excellent. The Hawaiian menu is very good, but nothing super special. It's definitely the Taiwanese food that shines here.
(4)Jillian W.
Was not a fan of the Hawaiian bbq chicken at all. It was dry and salty. I was also expecting it to come with vegetables (since the website menu stated all combo platters come with macaroni salad, rice, and vegetables). Was sad to see that vegetables meant a bed of iceburg lettuce. The mac salad was mayo + more mayo + noodles. Although full of mayo it was lacking in flavor. It definitely could use a healthy dose of salt and pepper. BUT, we did also order the chicken pad thai which was surprisingly good. I would say it is among the best I have had in columbus and for $5.95, not a bad deal at all. If I only had their hawaiian bbq I probably would've given this place 1-2 stars and never gone back. The pad thai, however, was definitely a redeeming factor and I will probably be back to try their non-hawaiian menu items.
(3)Jason S.
I've been wholely underwhelmed by the quality of ramen in Columbus. Sushi Bistro Masa? Decent. Ba Sho? Meh. Otani? Oy vey. Sadly the best I've had in Columbus was at Honda R&D's cafeteria. I had all but given up hope. Then the other day my group leader at Honda, whose wife is Japanese, mentioned their recent trip to Aloha. His wife indicated this was the best alternative she'd found to visiting Chicago for quality ramen. Great ramen at a Hawaiian place? Hontou? (a Japanese expression for surprised disbelief, paralleled by the Engrish form, "Rearry?") Aloha offers four options -- miso, shoyu (soy sauce), tonkotsu (pork bone), and shio (salt) ramen, all at a reasonable $6.50 a bowl, along with the requisite Hawaiian barbecue and a hodgepodge of other Asian menu items. Seven hours after hearing this tidbit, and after wildly salivating all afternoon (and turning down a recommended rabies shot), I arrived at Aloha with a friend to see how good this ramen really was. At first I wondered if I had been duped. Aloha's facade made me consider whether the Asian Bistro aspect was an afterthought, with the "Aloha Hawaiian BBQ" signage in a bold red font and the "Asian Bistro" on a completely separate sign tacked below the rest of the name. Aloha, sucker! The menu actually divides itself into Asian and Hawaiian sections, and it turns out that half of the latter may as well be shoved back into the Asian section where the dishes rightly belong. Sorry kids, katsu is Japanese, and kalbi is Korean, but both show up in the Hawaiian section. One of the only dishes of truly Hawaiian origin is the loco moco. No matter -- if it's good, who cares where the eff it came from. The restaurant's interior is a low-maintenance, order-at-the-counter setup, and you bus your own dishes. I went for the shoyu ramen and an order of spam musubi, the truest form of nigiri/sushi bastardization in the industrialized world and a staple of Hawaiian food culture. (If anyone questions your sanity, you can just tell them President Obama is a fan, which may or may not help your case.) My friend ordered the tonkotsu ramen and a second round of musubi. The shoyu ramen is presented in the traditional Japanese style, with a slice of pork, a couple fish cakes, half a boiled egg, seaweed, and green onion on top. The tonkotsu is similarly adorned. You know what? Shit's good. Surprisingly good for the price. The broth doesn't lack for flavor, and the noodles are somewhat soft but not soggy (I'm looking at you, Otani). Perhaps the only negative was the level of fat versus meat on the pork, and that there is only one slice of it. A to-go order of the Aloha BBQ mix, which includes chicken, beef and kalbi, featured tender, flavorful meat with rice and an inoffensive but uninteresting lump of macaroni salad. The chicken is the best of the lot, but each has its merits. The musubi were also spot on. Spam spam rice nori teriyaki and SPAM. Three dollars gets you two hearty sized musubi, with just right level of appropriately sweet teriyaki sauce set between the warm spam and rice. One order of this and your choice of salad or other appetizer would make for a filling meal. I'm not going to run out into the streets and praise this as the best ramen in Columbus. I'll have to put in a few more visits and see if I develop an unhealthy obsession before I'd be willing to proclaim it the best. But it's good stuff, and a great value.
(4)Terry W.
Aloha is the best restaurant in Ohio!!
(5)Nicole W.
My first run in with Hawaiian food was Aloha and I am not sure how authentic this was? (seems to have mixed reviews) but I felt very unexcited about the whole genre after this meal. The rice...nothing special, but I can forgive a place for not having great rice (though huge bonuses for good plump and sticky rice). The macaroni salad...holy mayo o mayo! Some say this is authentic, so maybe its just not cut out for me. I got a combo platter because i was excited to try everything! The chicken was cooked adequately but the sauces did not taste anything above a Mccormick marinade that I can buy at the grocery store. My beef was very, very fatty and I eventually just gave up eating it because I had to spit so many bites out. I will look elsewhere to give Hawaiian another chance.
(2)Jen M.
First, let me say that this review only reflects the Hawaiian side of the menu, and I gather from looking around the restaurant that many other folks are eating from the Taiwanese/Chinese side. There's a lot of happy-looking Asian families with all sorts of interesting looking dishes on their tables. But as the child of a Hawaiian mother, I went to Aloha Hawaiian hoping for decent Hawaiian food. Over the years, I've come to have pretty low expectations for Hawaiian food on the mainland--basically if the Hawaiian food is even passably good, like comparable to something I could get at Zippy's or L&L in Hawaii, I'd be willing to give a 4 or 5 star rating. Aloha Hawaiian BBQ's Hawaiian menu unfortunately isn't quite there. There are two really great dishes on that side of the menu: the Hawaiian-style macaroni salad which is spot-on (I always order an extra scoop!), and the Chicken Katsu. Even though the katsu is perfect, they serve it with this weird barbecue sauce. I figured out that if I poured a ton of Kikkoman soy sauce into the BBQ sauce, I got something that more closely approximated the katsu sauce I'm used to from Hawaii. And the Spam Musubi is passable, although I don't know how you'd screw that up since it's a pretty straightforward dish. But some of the other stuff from the Hawaiian side of the menu just isn't very good. The kalua pork is dry and stringy, the Mahi Mahi is fried to within an inch of its life, the teriyaki chicken is pretty run-of-the-mill teri chicken that I'd expect from any American-style Chinese food joint. Now granted, real Hawaiian cuisine is very Asian-fusion-esque and it wouldn't be at all surprising to order a teri chicken lunch plate in Hawaii--but because Hawaiian plate lunches usually come with plain white rice and macaroni salad, the protein dish usually packs a big flavor wallop to balance it out. That wasn't the case with the teri chicken at Aloha Hawaiian BBQ. I would love to see them put some work into that side of the menu--for example, maybe offer a Hawaiian-style curry beef stew, a chicken lau lau, or a Hawaiian-style chicken long rice. Basically, if you're going there for Hawaiian food, I highly recommend the chicken katsu + macaroni salad, and I can't recommend much else. Edited to add: I visited again in January 2013 and noticed that they now have a catering menu, including catering options from the Hawaiian side of the menu. I should also mention that the chicken katsu portion is generous. $6.50 for two huge cutlets of chicken katsu is a pretty sweet deal.
(2)Ann S.
You have no idea how excited we were to see a Hawaiian place FINALLY pop up here. We have had plate lunches on every Hawaiian island for the past 15 years so we were anxious to see if this stacked up. We knew by previous reviews that they didn't have loco moco on the menu but when we called to ask for it on Saturday, they said they had it. On our way baby! For the uninitiated, loco moco in Hawaii is a layer of rice on the bottom, a hamburger patty or two, a fried egg and smothered with beef gravy. Yes, as you may have suspected, it's low fat. ;-) It was their special of the day so that was my order. The hubby ordered the beef and chicken combo that comes with the Hawaiian standard scoop of mac salad, scoop of rice. (It ain't a plate lunch without those!) We also got an order of spam musubi which is common in Hawaii...sticky rice, teri or soy sauce on top with a slice of spam on top of that and wrapped in nori. (Seaweed) The owner was in the kitchen and yelled out a cheery hello and we said hello. It was all I could do not to sop him up with a musubi...so cute. Another owner (his daughter?) said hello as she passed by and she brought our musubi out to us. It was really good and tasted just like you'll find at any convenience store on any Hawaiian island if you can get one before they sell out. The loco moco's presentation was a little off and the gravy was wrong but we give them a lot of credit for giving it a try. The patties definitely tasted pre-made so if I had to give them a suggestion to make it more authentic, I'd hand make the patties and definitely go with brown/beef gravy. It's gotta be dark. The beef and chicken were spot on of anything we'd get in Hawaii or L&L if you have to settle for fast food Hawaiian but thankfully not as salty. Both were tender and when dipped in their housemade teriyaki sauce...heaven. A little taste of aloha in the buckeye state. If you want a full opu (belly), the portions and prices are all right. We will definitely make the drive out again not only for the Hawaiian stuff but to try the chinese food too. Mahalo for a taste of Hawaii until we go back in a few months!
(4)Jenny B.
Went here the other night for dinner. I got the chicken combo plate, which was the chicken kansu and the Hawaiian BBQ chicken. All dishes are served with white rice and macaroni salad. I really really loved the chicken kansu. I was sad that I had to save some to take home for my sister to eat for dinner. But then on the other hand, it is fried, so I probably didn't need it anyway. Even though it was fried, it felt light because the panko breading. The dark brown sauce served with it was a perfect compliment. My only complaint that I have is how the sauces are served. Yes, the BBQ and kansu sauces had great flavors, but they were served cold. I would have much rather dipped the chicken into warm sauce. My mom got the short ribs. She said that they were good. She also made the comment that all Asian type restaurants that serve short ribs serve the same quality meat, so you might as well come here for the price. Overall, it was a good experience. I love fast casual (good prices, fast service, fast, no tipping). Since it is a little far from my house, I won't be making a special trip out of my way to eat hear, but I will come if I am in the area and need to grab a quick bite.
(4)Anthony K.
Great Hawaiian food found this place by accident. We use to live in hawaii brings back great memories. Great Mac and Katsu chicken
(4)Alonzo E.
Visited this place today per suggestion of a very good friend. I'm torn as I believe I should give 4 stars but I believe I need to come back and try again. I did like the food, it was pretty tasty specially the sauce, shrimp was fried well. I will definitely come back but there's something I can't put my finger to that's missing so it's bothering me as I did like the food. I like that it's new all around and very clean bathrooms. We ordered the Aloha Shrimp, I would highly recommend it and my friend got the mix chicken and beef dish and we also ordered Goyza appetizer. My dish came out first before the appetizer and wish it was the other way around as I did not get to enjoy entree before appetizer format. I would be interested in trying out the Loco Moco next time to try the Hawaiian fare.
(3)Jake P.
I had the pleasure of eating here the opening day (7-1-11). This local place is run by Taiwanese but with a Hawaiian feel to the menu. It's not totally authentic Hawaiian food but rather a mix of Asian foods but it's pretty similar. Their beef, chicken and pork is marinated Asian bbq at it's best. The dishes are 6-8 dollars - very affordable for what you get. You can get a combo with beef, chicken and pork all together to taste them all. I was very impressed with the quality of the food and the flavors. In fact, this is probably one of the best Asian restaurants I've been to in Columbus. They also have superior crab rangoon. This place is for casual dining, you order at the front, get your drink and then they bring the food to you. I'll be returning here again soon!
(5)Neko C.
Best ramen I have had in Ohio thus far. From a Hawaiian BBQ place? What. The. F?!?! I wasn't super hopeful when I first set foot in here after dropping off a friend at the airport. The interior, while clean and modern, looked more like it would house a Panera Bread than some rockin' Japanese ramen. Needless to say, I was quite surprised when I found not one type of ramen on the menu, but four! Shoyu, Miso, Tonkotsu, and Shio ramen? Really? These people know there are different kinds of ramen? Well, sh-t! I'm impressed. I went with my favorite, Shoyu (or Soy Sauce) ramen, hoping my newfound positive vibes wouldn't be crushed into ash. They weren't. The beauty that arrived at my table was perfect- flavorful broth, perfectly done ramen noodles, green onion slivers, niro (seaweed) strips, tender bamboo shoots (never thought I would be so excited to see them, ahaha), a succulent slice of chashu (pork belly), and even two cute little Naruto fish cakes! It was like I had died and went to ramen heaven! And at $6.50 a bowl! It couldn't get any better! Well, it could- this place is over an hour away from me :'( Please open up a second location in Dayton! Pretty please??
(5)Tyler W.
Wow, not my kind of food. I could not get past the smell of the raman noodles, so I couldn't eat it. I had the chicken and beef dish that came on some iceberg lettuce with a side of white rice and macaroni salad. The tables needed to be wiped off, and overall it wasn't really that great of an experience. The guy at the counter was really nice I have to say, and he tried to recommend some things he thought were good. I probably won't go back, there are just too many other options in Grandview.
(1)Richard M.
Like Kalena, I was hoping for a Rainbow Drive Inn or Zippy's, and was dismayed that their was no Loco Moco, no manapua, no lau lau, no lomi lomi salmon, no oxtail soup, no saimin, etc. Having live Hawai'i for 30 years, I was looking forward to this place! Still yet, it's a start! I couldn't decide between the mahi mahi and the kalbi ribs, so ordered both. I'll take the rest home and have for dinner. But boy. To see those pieces of mahi mahi, piled on a bed of lettuce with a scoop of rice and a scoop of macaroni salad in the styrofoam plate was just like a plate lunch off the lunch wagon at Sandy Beach! I also talked to the nice lady behind the counter, and she explained their were reluctant to have loco moco because the Five Guys place was close, but she sounded like they were going to try it for a special. And while I would have liked more real local dishes, it is the closest Columbus has until I open up my Leonard's malasada cart and eat up all the profits. And really. The food was pretty ono. I'll be back. Definitely worth a trip to try it out. Keep asking for more Hawaiian dishes, and maybe they can add more gradually. I got the feeling from them that they were trying. And if you see a black VW convertible with POIDOG license plates and University of Hawaii frames around them, parked out front, that would be me. Say hi and we can talk story. Aloha
(4)MJ L.
I love me some Aloha Hawaiian BBQ! This time last year, I was experiencing my first local food, mixed plate, from Rainbow Drive Inn in Oahu. As another reviewer said, this is not the same as the real thing, not that I expected it to be, but hey, I will take it! I had chicken, beef and galbi mixed plate and I was definitely happy as my plate brought back fond memories from past year. Beef and galbi were fantastic and well seasoned, but chicken fell short in quality and flavor, good thing it came with teriyaki sauce which was tasty. My friend had mahi mahi plate - while the fish wasn't quite as 'meaty', it was wonderfully flaky and panko crust awesomely crunchy. Flavor of mahi mahi was subtle, as was tartar sauce that came with it, but a little dunk in teriayki sauce fixed it. Scoop of macaroni salad adds awesome texture and cool temperature thing to each bite and I just love it! If it had just a tiny bit more flavor, it would've been perfect. Price is definitely right and fair - ranging around $8 per plate. If they started serving strawberry slush with a scoop of vanilla ice cream I might find myself in need of an intervention.
(4)Brandon M.
Opened the account just for this. They accidentally forgot our lettuce wraps on a to-go order and the gentleman behind the counter actually chased down our car to give them to us. Amazing. Will definitely be back. Oh, the food is really good too.
(5)Joelle N.
Do not recommend. I had an eggroll: sub-par with dry pieces of chicken. Chicken dish with 2 types of chicken. Just average. Didn't like either of the dipping sauces- teriaki sauce too sweet. Hubs got the Hawaiian BBQ beef. Liked that better than mine. And last, but not least, Pepsi products: boo! The upside was that the folks working there were super nice.
(3)Dave N.
I went there the other day and picked up food for the office, 3 of the 4 of us got the exact same thing, so there wasn't a lot to review. The three of us got the beef/chicken mix combo. This consisted of BBQ beef and BBQ (or closer to teriyaki) chicken over a bed of lettuce, served with a scoop of white rice and a scoop of macaroni salad. I noticed the multiple bottles of Sriracha sauce they had, and asked for a to-go portion of it. This was a good idea. The rice was really standard (it's rice...), and the macaroni salad was decent. It was heavy on the mayo as I've heard is the custom in Hawaii. The chicken was tender, not dried out, and had a good subtle teriyaki flavor. There was a side of sauce to go with it. It was cut up, but there was still a bit of work to do with the plastic cutlery. The beef was great! I don't know what it is about that style of preparation, but it has to be sampled to be understood. It was flavored, but not overly so. Unlike many Chinese dishes, the meat was not greasy at all. I'm almost always more of a chicken than beef guy, but this time it was the opposite. I took a piece of beef, dipped it in a bit of Sriracha, and got some rice on the fork too. I could eat a whole lot of beef that way. It was straight forward, tasty, simple and fairly cheap too. I'm going back for the beef by itself next time. Did I mention they have minced chicken lettuce wraps? No, I did not, but I'm mentioning it now, so settle down. If you've never had these, you must try them (unless you have a peanut allergy, in which case avoid these like the plague). Minced chicken wraps are possibly my favorite thing to get at a Chinese restaurant. I never feel it's worth the hassle to order pick up from a Chinese place for lunch, so I rarely get them. To be able to get them at a carryout place is a pretty big deal to myself and other lettuce wrap enthusiasts. The lady there said it was a hot seller. Aloha Hawaiian BBQ & Asian Bistro does have a website, but finding it is next to impossible, and I'm done with searching for now. EDIT: I found it alohahawaiianbbqasianbis… In addition to the food being good, the staff was friendly as can be, and the place was as clean as could be expected. I think they deserve at least one chance at giving you a great meal.
(4)Leon Y.
For an Asian student that spent over 25 hours on an airplane to study so far from home, one of the few things we miss the most is the Asian cuisines. The restaurant is owned by a Taiwanese couple and a few of the main chefs are Taiwanese as well from my observation. It is easily to be deceived that they do not serve Asian food because the word "Asian Bistro" is harder to be seen. From my opinion, their Asian food are just as good from their main dishes. Also their prices are fairly reasonable even though the restaurant it self looked middle-classed. For those who miss Asian food especially Taiwanese cuisines, be sure to visit there sometimes. They have a variety of Taiwanese trademark food which I my self missed a lot. I have been studying in Columbus for more than a year and a half and their beef noodle soup is the only one that taste just like their Taiwan counterpart. Now i have to head to their place few times a week not just because of their good food but also their friendly and efficient service.
(5)J.J. C.
I've only ordered from the Taiwanese menu. The pork chop dish is pretty good, but the price is a tinge over priced. =(
(3)Judy C.
I don't know if this review will add anything new to the mix but it'll certainly reaffirm what others have been saying, haha. I'm not the biggest fan of their Hawaiian food - chicken katsu was alright but not extraordinary, spare ribs were greasy and salty, and the macaroni salad was meh but I'm not a macaroni salad lover in the first place. And I do appreciate the presence of some very Hawaiian dishes on the menu such as loco moco. Their Taiwanese food is definitely enjoyable and I will frequently get their pork chop rice. Flavorful pork chops with rice, pickled vegetables, and a lovely tea egg to round out the meal. Highly recommended.
(3)Perry L.
Aloha! If your in the mood for some fusion food done well Aloha Hawaiian BBQ is the place for you. The atmosphere is that of an asian version of chipotle but the food is slightly more complex. The menu is robust with the flavors to back it up. They have everything from Udon to a medley of meat. The serving sizes are just right for you to feel full with an excellent price tag of around $6 per person. Do your self a favor, take a trip on your lunch break or with your family and have a taste of this mom and pop owned delectable hawaiian-Asian fusion BBQ.
(5)Joseph T.
Spam Musubi, Taiwanese Beef noodle soup, Pork Chop rice!! Oh, I am in heaven! thank you for getting me fat! Aloha!
(5)Peter L.
The Hawaiian food is decent. It helps that there aren't many other options for Hawaiian food in Columbus. Good spam musubi. Not a bad place -- solid three stars. Until I tried the spicy beef noodle soup, one of Taiwan's most beloved dishes. I'm a fan. Excellent. Great spicy broth and generous with the beef. I recently returned from a month of eating my way through Taipei and it's hard to compare the Ohio version to the original, but I still left very satisfied. I should have read the reviews on Yelp and ditched the Hawaiian menu earlier.
(4)Jim G.
I was looking for someplace to eat near the hotel. Saw the name and thought that it sounded cool and I was on my way. Since I couldn't eat everything on the menu, I settled on the BBQ sampler plate, the tempura shrimp, and the spam musubi. They were all hits. I am partial to that great pork product from the great Midwest, so anything with spam has got to be good, and it was. Staff is very friendly. Place was nicely crowded, with a steady take out crowd.
(5)Lyndsey M.
I was really psyched for this concept, unfortunately, it didn't quite meet up to my expectations. I met a friend here for dinner this evening, when we got there we were the only diners (around 6:15pm). I ordered the BBQ chicken, she ordered the combo BBQ chicken/beef dish. For a limited time, fountain drinks are free. I don't usually drink soda, so I got water, but it seemed to taste pretty strongly of sugary pink lemonade. Ick. Get a bottle of water, if you want water. Our food came out quickly. Each dish was served on a bed of iceburg lettuce, and included sides of macaroni salad and white rice. The chicken seemed to include a lot of dark meat, which unfortunately I'm not a fan of. Overall, the food and atmosphere seemed pretty bland. I hoped that there would be some stronger flavors, maybe there are in the dishes on the Asian side of the menu. I will give them another try once they've been open for a few months, but next time I think I'll try something with spicy/hot symbols by the dish.
(2)Jamie C.
Like some other reviewers have said, I'm not sure about how Hawaiian Aloha is. However, they bring something to the plate that I've been wanting here in Columbus for a while... udon & donburi. I got the beef bowl (gyu-don). The beef was the right cut and it was seasoned well. The rice was also good. I was also happy to see that they had shichimi (seven flavor chili pepper) and soy sauce (i like a little extra drizzle) to put on my bowl also. The ambiance is lacking but the prices and menu, which includes Korean, Japanese & Chinese dishes, makes up for that.
(4)John D.
Cheap food...expectations disappointed. The name of this establishment suggests: a) dishes BBQ-like; b) dishes HAWAIIAN-like. Actually, the ambience is hyper-sanitized, cafeteria-oid, not Hawaiian even remotely. The food is vaguely Asian, mainly dry, taste-challenged, possibly Chinese of suspect origin. The Hawaiian Beef BBQ (I had anticipated beef with a savory-sweet pineapple-laden sauce) disappoints as the meat loosely approximated tasteless, gristled beef (I suspect the origin was a different animal); there was no sauce at all (certainly not BBQ), no BBQ spices, a repulsive odor wafted up my nostrils. I cautiously tasted a small piece found it inedible. The food may be perfectly safe to eat, nutritious even, but I found the experience to be stomach-churning.
(2)Andrea W.
I went when they had their grand opening and you got a free soda with your meal. The staff was super friendly and helpful but the food was just ok. I got a sampler and the short ribs were terrible but the chicken was pretty good. The boys pad thai was also ok. Just average...
(3)Heather K.
We were super picky when we lived back on the west coast, but Aloha has raised the bar for Hawaiian cuisine! Of course, I haven't been to Hawaii in years, but Aloha is the best that it gets when you're looking for a good Hawaiian meal here in on the main land. The meat is delicious, the sauces are succulent, and the service is superb-- and the pricing is SUPER affordable. It's nice that they're open until ten for when me and my boo are working late!
(5)Jason M.
food is little but expensive.
(3)Chenyang W.
LOVE beef noodles soup here. Definitely the best around campus
(5)Jack E.
Well worth the price of admission. My Japanese friends all love this place and recommended it to me as an alternative to the expensive Japanese restaurants in town. All of the restaurants in town use the same frozen noodles for their noodle dishes, only this place prices accordingly. Spam musubi, gyu don for less than 6 bucks!? Heck yeah! Great food at great prices. The only reason I didn't give 5 stars is because this review is based on only one visit, but based on it, I will def go back.
(4)Serena L.
taste very good.i really love the rice platter and udon and Raman very much.we also order salt pepper chicken. Very impressive. Strongly recommend.will definitely come back. :-)
(5)A L.
They have a few unique dishes but mostly it's the typical Asian fare. Pad Thai is subpar to other places in town. Not bad, not great.
(3)Rebecca R.
As the QUEEN OF ALOHA (duchess, whatever, I own it now i think) I believe this place is truly the hidden gem of our city. The food is served fast, delicious and CHEAP. The holy trifecta. I force myself not to go to Aloha too much anymore because I don't want them to judge me (though I always, unfortunately, crave it on Saturdays when they are deservedly closed.) They know my "usual" at this point; general tso for the boyfriend, kalbi with double rice instead of pasta salad for me (cheapest, tastiest little slice of Korean cuisine by the way.) and they seem to always remember my distaste for pasta salad. Sometimes I don't even have to ask for double rice. Bless them. See also: spam masubi, tempura udon, loco moco, pad Thai, crab Rangoon, mapo tofu. I would eat here every single day if I was shameless. I've settled on every other day....
(5)Michael B.
It's pretty good for fast cuisine. Nothing special. Has a nice dining area for a restaurant of this type.
(4)Dennis L.
This is an interesting place because of the split Asian and Hawaiian menus. I have yet to try anything on the Hawaiian side and only come here for the noodles. It is probably a better option than the other noodle place in the area (which I have reviewed) for both price and quality. I've been here four times at various times throughout the day and week. They do get quite busy in the early evening hours but the service has always been quick and friendly. Although I have never asked, it seems like a family business and they take pride in keeping the place very clean. You walk in thinking it will be a Panda Express (they have a cookie-cutter store design), steam table experience. In reality, its somewhere between a Chinese take-out and a full-service sit-down experience. For $7.50 you get a reasonable bowl of ramen, my favorite being the shoyu and miso. The ramen itself is cooked well and maintains a characteristic crunch. It is not the best ramen I've had, but given the options nearby, I would say this is the winner. I've also had their shrimp tempura udon. While the actual shrimp tempura was done well (golden and very crispy), they handed them to me in a styrofoam cup. That was incredibly disappointing. Presentation could use some work throughout their menu. However, I don't think they've ever claimed to be fancy so I can't fault them too hard.
(4)Mike B.
Hawaiian food has it right, all of the "bad for you but tastes awesome" American food cooked in an asian style. Cases in point: Spam Musubi, a triple size piece of sushi with spam instead of fish; and the loco moco, with burgers, gravy, an over easy egg, and a bed of shredded iceberg (you know, to make it healthy). The only thing I didn't like was the styrofoam cups (they had real plates, so why not cups?) The parking lot out front is too small, but you can park by four string in the back. Go here, eat hearty, return home for a food coma...
(4)Arvid Y.
Aloha has made it onto my regular take-out rotation. The strange this is, i've never tried their Hawaiian menu. I stick with their Taiwanese menu and i'm a fan. I have 3 go-to dishes. One is their Spam musubi, which is surprisingly tasty. I don't hate on spam (the food), in fact my college roommate made some amazing Spam fried rice. However, it's probably not my go-to "protein." There's just something magically delicious (not lucky charms) about a slice of grilled Spam on top of rice with a touch of sweet soy sauce and wrapped in nori. One order comes with 2, so it's a good appetizer to share. Please try it. The dish that I get for take-out the most is the fried pork chop on rice. It's a hearty meal. The breading on the pork is super crispy and this texture totally makes the dish. It's served with a hard boiled "tea egg" and some pickled vegetables. The soft egg contrasts nicely with the crispy pork and the sour pickled vegetables balance the slightly salty fried pork. All this on a generous serving (or two) of rice. This is my go-to dish. The other dish I order when i'm dining-in is the beef noodle soup. I always find noodle soup dishes tricky to carry out, so I opt to eat at the restaurant. Like others have mentioned, the noodles are a bit odd. They are wavy and ribbon-like. I've never seen anything like it. Although I prefer the traditional thick egg noodles, these add some interesting texture to the dish. The soup base is flavorful albeit a tad bit oily. Generous chunks of beef and mixed vegetables. Like another Yelper mentioned, some bok choy would be nice. Maybe one of these days, I'll get out of my comfort zone and order from the "Hawaiian" menu.
(4)Sara C.
It's been a while! I met up with Anna L. here on Labor Day to assuage our L&L BBQ cravings. They have transitioned to using actual tableware for dining in, which is great. I had the bbq chicken plate, which is still a huge amount of food and comes with the scoop of rice and the scoop of macaroni salad. The chicken is a bit like a milder teriyaki chicken, without all the weird gloopy sauce that sometimes happens in lesser restaurants. I've also gotten take-out ramen a few times as an alternative to driving all the way up to Tensuke Express or spending $$$ at Rishi. I do remember being slightly disappointed one time I ordered the mahi mahi, since the fillets had shrunk considerably in size, but that may have just been a fluke. Cheap, delicious, and will satisfy your Hawaiian BBQ cravings!
(4)Alicia R.
I can only speak for the kalbi (marinated short ribs) and Spam musubi AKA my usual. They are BOMB, but if you don't like fatty meat, you might not like the kalbi. It comes with steamed rice and macaroni salad, but I tend to get double rice instead. Spam musubi (essentially Spam sushi) seems bizarre, but it's just delicious. I wish they would build another location up north so I could go more often (HINT HINT).
(4)Gus W.
I came back here for the first time in probably a year. It seemed like every show on the Travel channel was in Hawaii, so it totally swayed my decision. I actually tried to go there yesterday, but they aren't open on Saturdays, probably should have checked that out, but I live close so no big deal. 0 I ordered the Kalbi short ribs, General Tso's chicken, gyoza, and spam musubi. My short ribs were pretty fantastic. The flavor was awesome, and I really wish they'd given me more, but I enjoyed what I had. The gyoza was pretty good as well, and that's about where it ends. The spam musubi wasn't terrible, but it just wasn't much of anything really. There was hardly any flavor to it, so that was kind of a bummer. If I ever get the chance to try it elsewhere (going to Hawaii would be nice), I'll have to see how it compares. My girlfriend had the General Tso's. She was a bit hungover and not feeling very adventurous. I have to say that it was not that great. It had a really strong fish flavor to it, as if the fryer oil hadn't been changed for awhile/using it for all their fried seafood. She couldn't finish it, and I don't blame her after I tried it. Overall, I'd stick to the Hawaiian menu at this place, especially the BBQ, because it really is quite tasty.
(3)Jared W.
After going to Aloha for the first time I have one real complaint: they give you only plastic silverware...I mean how am I supposed to properly eat my delicious beef and chicken with flimsy plastic knife and fork. All joking aside, I ordered the Aloha BBQ combo of chicken, lean beef, and beef short ribs and it was absolutely outstanding! The chicken was moist and flavorful, and the beef and short ribs were very good as well. Since it was off the Hawaiian menu it came with a ball of white rice and one of macaroni salad like any plate lunch from the islands should. (From what I've heard..I haven't exactly been to Hawaii yet) The rice was very bland until I put the side of sauce they gave me on it, and then it was delicious. The sauce is outstanding- almost like a teryiaki sauce but not exactly. Last but not least, the macaroni salad was amazing and probably the best part of the dish. The service was very friendly, and I got a plate full of really good food for $9 that only took about 5 minutes. For a fast casual type place that's as good as it gets for me!
(5)Tan W.
The tonkotsu ramen is very good. Glad we stopped by to grab a bite after working out at Sweat Box, will be back!
(5)Tiffany W.
This place is a regular for me! Their food is always ready quickly (take-out too) and their Asian menu is really quite authentic with reasonable prices. Their pork chop bento is my favorite dish on the menu, and one that my boyfriend and I probably order at least once every 2-3 weeks. Their flounder in black bean sauce and beef noodle soup are also really tasty. Nice crispy pork, deliciously flavored rice, tea egg, yum. Their American menu (the one in the front of the restaurant) is alright, nothing particularly notable; however, their asian menu is located off to the side and has not yet disappointed! Love this place.
(4)Agustin A N.
Aloha! Ono means good grub in Hawaiian and this place has it. It's clean, fast, cheap and friendly. Portion was big enough for two. We shared the Loco Moco. Two ground beef patties doused in gravy and topped with two fried eggs. Comfort food Aloha spirit. Comes with a scoop of white rice, perfect to soak the egg yolk, and the gravy. It also comes with a scoop of creamy macaroni salad, just like I had it in Kauai, heavy on the mayo. They had spam musabi but I had no room after dinner so I'm glad I did not have it as an appetizer. It gives me a reason to come back. I only wish they had lilikoi shaved ice. Mahalo!
(4)Cherie R.
I've said it once and I'll say it again. I'm a sucker for a good bowl of noodles. I love Hawaii - it's a happy place with happy people and good food. That being said, I'm not a huge fan of "plate lunch" which consists of a meaty entree, a scoop of rice, and a scoop of macaroni salad. It's good, but not my style. You'll see a lot of this on Aloha's menu, but it was the Taiwanese food that brought me here. And it's always the glut of Asian food that makes me happy in Hawaii. Especially noodles. The place is very clean - you walk up, make your order, and sit down with your number. They bring you your food and when you're done, you put your dishes away. I ordered the beef noodle soup, listening to my trusted friends on Yelp. And on a cold drizzly day, it was wonderful. The beef chunks were plentiful and tender, the pickled cabbage added the right note of tang, and the noodles were toothsome. I've never seen noodles like that before, but they were yummy - a thicker band in the middle with frilly edges. Get it, you won't be disappointed if you're a noodle lover like me. The ramen is next on my "to try" list!
(4)John L.
Only place around that has the closest to Taiwan food. Staff was extremely nice and food was served quickly. Would highly recommend this place to anyone that wants to try Taiwan food!!
(5)Brian K.
Our home base, always spectacular! Owners treat you like family, food and service always stellar without question. Chicken mix, Udon, and chinese dishes always impress. Mahalo!
(5)Jim G.
I was looking for someplace to eat near the hotel. Saw the name and thought that it sounded cool and I was on my way. Since I couldn't eat everything on the menu, I settled on the BBQ sampler plate, the tempura shrimp, and the spam musubi. They were all hits. I am partial to that great pork product from the great Midwest, so anything with spam has got to be good, and it was. Staff is very friendly. Place was nicely crowded, with a steady take out crowd.
(5)Jennifer E.
Went here for lunch with the husband and his boss last week. Really enjoyed it! It was recommended to me by Sara C. as a good place to go for lunch. We got there a little after noon, and it wasn't overly busy. I was glad that I looked at the menu the night before because the pictures and names had no description on them. I got the mixed Chicken plate, the husband got the Aloha BBQ mix, and his boss (who had been before) got the Aloha Seafood mix as well as the Spam Musubi. Everything was really really good. I loved my chicken mix, the regular BBQ chicken having a great flavor that's not like most BBQ (not usually a fan of BBQ). The Chicken Katsu was also good, and I loved the dipping sauce for it. The husband really enjoyed his BBQ mix, and pretty much devoured it all. His boss shared the Spam Musubi (which I politely declined), and they both seemed to really enjoy that. If you aren't sure what Spam Musubi is and you like Spam, order it. It looks cool, but I just do not like my meat being a mystery. Another fun part was that they serve the Hawaiian BBQ plates with a scoop of steamed rice, and a scoop of macaroni salad. I guess this is traditional in Hawaii. I thought the macaroni salad was delicious and ate all of it. I really want to go back and try additional items on the menu. It was a fun, clean (oh my goodness so clean!) little place that I will definitely go back to whenever I'm in the area.
(4)Bethany K.
This was a fun experience to break up some very last minute Christmas shopping. My husband and I ordered somethings to share (seems to be a theme ;-) ) We ordered Crab Rangoon, Aloha Crispy Shrimp, Aloha BBQ Mix, and the infamous Spam Musubi. 1. The Crab rangoon was good, but not awesome.... the wrap was a little heavy for my tasting. 2. The Aloha shrimp was a little bland. I think I just ordered wrong. 3. Aloha BBQ Mix comes with BBQ chicken, BBQ beef, and kalbi short ribs. This was a very good meal. The chicken was good, but the beef and shorts ribs were awesome! 4. The Spam Musubi was such a pleasant surprise. The sauce that is used between the rice and spam makes the meal. I am defintely interested in returning to explore the menu further.... especially the soups.
(4)Josh C.
I think of this place as a great Taiwanese food restaurant that happens to have Hawaiian-BBQ style food. As a Hawaiian restaurant it's not as good as the ones available on the west-coast. Yet, the dishes are enjoyable and I usually go for a seafood mix plate. My one major gripe with the plates is the iceberg lettuce garnish. It's horrible, they should think about going with cabbage (which actually has some nutritional value and will take to heat much better) instead. The Taiwanese items really shine. The Taiwanese popcorn chicken for instance is excellent. The pork-chop rice dish is also great and comes with a soy-sauce egg and the expected Taiwanese pickled sides. Overall, this is one of the best Chinese restaurants in Columbus.
(5)Amanda L.
Never had a bad experience here, the food is good but nothing amazing. They have Hawaiian food, one of the few of not the only place in columbus to have it. They also have a Taiwanese/Chinese side menu. The Hawaiian combos are good, I like the shrimp especially. The spam masubi is a good side and I always get one. Nothing super special about the grilled meats but it satisfies cravings. Their Taiwanese menu is more interesting. I've gotten the pork with bamboo shops and the need noodle soup (pictured). The broth was a little light in flavor but overall it was really good. The noodles are interesting, cheaper than most. But the sour cabbage in the soup in my favor and they give you good portions of beef.
(3)Abby L.
I never get anything here other than the spam musubi with a side of the macaroni salad. The spam musubi is fantastic. I love it! I come here to fulfill my spam cravings all the time. The macaroni salad is a little on the overly mushy side sometimes, but for some reason I always get it, haha. Creature of habit I guess! They also have Thai tea here, I would avoid getting it. It's very expensive for a cup that's mostly ice. You need the ice in there to melt though because the tea is also very very very sweet and this is coming from someone who loves sweet (I usually have to water it down a bit)! Parking is extremely easy to find! There's a back and front parking lot. The interior of the place is also very spacious.
(4)Zabrina C.
We had a dinner yesterday here! The food are good, tasty and affordable! I tried the aloha bbq mix and spam musubi, my bf tried the kahlua pork! it was good! He don't eat spam but he finished the spam musubi! lol. The place are clean and neat, and big. but too quiet and the server looked shy, she's quiet and we can't hear what she's saying but we will definitely come back!
(4)Helen S.
I really like the food here! BF and I split the following dishes: 1) Pork chop rice - really good pork cutlet over rice, which had a good teriyaki sauce. I often skip the rice but ate most of it here. also, the portion of greens was a good size. 2) Taiwanese beef noodle soup - soup and beef were good, noodles were a bit strange in texture (they got this weird frilly thing going on) but acceptable. 3) Spam musubi - I could order an unlimited amount of these and eat dem forevers. Or at least a week. Service is just order-at-the-counter, but they were sweet, made no mistakes with y order, and were prompt when I asked for anything (i.e. an extra bowl for soup, or takeout boxes to go). This is one of my favorite Asian-style places in Columbus, and one of the better ones located close to me.
(4)Joseph T.
Spam Musubi, Taiwanese Beef noodle soup, Pork Chop rice!! Oh, I am in heaven! thank you for getting me fat! Aloha!
(5)Holly C.
I get the beef noodle soup often (on the side menu with other Taiwanese items) if I'm not getting Haiwaiian bbq. It has textured noodles with a flavorful broth and veggies. It hits the spot when I want some type of noodle soup but not pho (Vietnamese noodle soup). The spam musubi is always a good choice. I've only had Hawaiian bbq here, since it's the only place in Columbus, and overall it's not too popular unless you're on the west coast, maybe east coast big cities. My boyfriend has been to Aloha Eats in Chicago since he lives there and said that it's pretty much the same except Aloha Eats has larger portions. I still think they have big portions here since I usually don't finish all my food. I've tried multiple bbq combos/platters, and I've really liked everything.
(4)Tim A.
My Hawaiian pork had great flavor. A tad dry. The rest of our order was on the Asian side and was good. He spicy was actually spicy!
(4)Mike B.
Hawaiian food has it right, all of the "bad for you but tastes awesome" American food cooked in an asian style. Cases in point: Spam Musubi, a triple size piece of sushi with spam instead of fish; and the loco moco, with burgers, gravy, an over easy egg, and a bed of shredded iceberg (you know, to make it healthy). The only thing I didn't like was the styrofoam cups (they had real plates, so why not cups?) The parking lot out front is too small, but you can park by four string in the back. Go here, eat hearty, return home for a food coma...
(4)Agustin A N.
Aloha! Ono means good grub in Hawaiian and this place has it. It's clean, fast, cheap and friendly. Portion was big enough for two. We shared the Loco Moco. Two ground beef patties doused in gravy and topped with two fried eggs. Comfort food Aloha spirit. Comes with a scoop of white rice, perfect to soak the egg yolk, and the gravy. It also comes with a scoop of creamy macaroni salad, just like I had it in Kauai, heavy on the mayo. They had spam musabi but I had no room after dinner so I'm glad I did not have it as an appetizer. It gives me a reason to come back. I only wish they had lilikoi shaved ice. Mahalo!
(4)Rebecca R.
As the QUEEN OF ALOHA (duchess, whatever, I own it now i think) I believe this place is truly the hidden gem of our city. The food is served fast, delicious and CHEAP. The holy trifecta. I force myself not to go to Aloha too much anymore because I don't want them to judge me (though I always, unfortunately, crave it on Saturdays when they are deservedly closed.) They know my "usual" at this point; general tso for the boyfriend, kalbi with double rice instead of pasta salad for me (cheapest, tastiest little slice of Korean cuisine by the way.) and they seem to always remember my distaste for pasta salad. Sometimes I don't even have to ask for double rice. Bless them. See also: spam masubi, tempura udon, loco moco, pad Thai, crab Rangoon, mapo tofu. I would eat here every single day if I was shameless. I've settled on every other day....
(5)Dennis L.
This is an interesting place because of the split Asian and Hawaiian menus. I have yet to try anything on the Hawaiian side and only come here for the noodles. It is probably a better option than the other noodle place in the area (which I have reviewed) for both price and quality. I've been here four times at various times throughout the day and week. They do get quite busy in the early evening hours but the service has always been quick and friendly. Although I have never asked, it seems like a family business and they take pride in keeping the place very clean. You walk in thinking it will be a Panda Express (they have a cookie-cutter store design), steam table experience. In reality, its somewhere between a Chinese take-out and a full-service sit-down experience. For $7.50 you get a reasonable bowl of ramen, my favorite being the shoyu and miso. The ramen itself is cooked well and maintains a characteristic crunch. It is not the best ramen I've had, but given the options nearby, I would say this is the winner. I've also had their shrimp tempura udon. While the actual shrimp tempura was done well (golden and very crispy), they handed them to me in a styrofoam cup. That was incredibly disappointing. Presentation could use some work throughout their menu. However, I don't think they've ever claimed to be fancy so I can't fault them too hard.
(4)Arvid Y.
Aloha has made it onto my regular take-out rotation. The strange this is, i've never tried their Hawaiian menu. I stick with their Taiwanese menu and i'm a fan. I have 3 go-to dishes. One is their Spam musubi, which is surprisingly tasty. I don't hate on spam (the food), in fact my college roommate made some amazing Spam fried rice. However, it's probably not my go-to "protein." There's just something magically delicious (not lucky charms) about a slice of grilled Spam on top of rice with a touch of sweet soy sauce and wrapped in nori. One order comes with 2, so it's a good appetizer to share. Please try it. The dish that I get for take-out the most is the fried pork chop on rice. It's a hearty meal. The breading on the pork is super crispy and this texture totally makes the dish. It's served with a hard boiled "tea egg" and some pickled vegetables. The soft egg contrasts nicely with the crispy pork and the sour pickled vegetables balance the slightly salty fried pork. All this on a generous serving (or two) of rice. This is my go-to dish. The other dish I order when i'm dining-in is the beef noodle soup. I always find noodle soup dishes tricky to carry out, so I opt to eat at the restaurant. Like others have mentioned, the noodles are a bit odd. They are wavy and ribbon-like. I've never seen anything like it. Although I prefer the traditional thick egg noodles, these add some interesting texture to the dish. The soup base is flavorful albeit a tad bit oily. Generous chunks of beef and mixed vegetables. Like another Yelper mentioned, some bok choy would be nice. Maybe one of these days, I'll get out of my comfort zone and order from the "Hawaiian" menu.
(4)Sara C.
It's been a while! I met up with Anna L. here on Labor Day to assuage our L&L BBQ cravings. They have transitioned to using actual tableware for dining in, which is great. I had the bbq chicken plate, which is still a huge amount of food and comes with the scoop of rice and the scoop of macaroni salad. The chicken is a bit like a milder teriyaki chicken, without all the weird gloopy sauce that sometimes happens in lesser restaurants. I've also gotten take-out ramen a few times as an alternative to driving all the way up to Tensuke Express or spending $$$ at Rishi. I do remember being slightly disappointed one time I ordered the mahi mahi, since the fillets had shrunk considerably in size, but that may have just been a fluke. Cheap, delicious, and will satisfy your Hawaiian BBQ cravings!
(4)Alicia R.
I can only speak for the kalbi (marinated short ribs) and Spam musubi AKA my usual. They are BOMB, but if you don't like fatty meat, you might not like the kalbi. It comes with steamed rice and macaroni salad, but I tend to get double rice instead. Spam musubi (essentially Spam sushi) seems bizarre, but it's just delicious. I wish they would build another location up north so I could go more often (HINT HINT).
(4)Tan W.
The tonkotsu ramen is very good. Glad we stopped by to grab a bite after working out at Sweat Box, will be back!
(5)Gus W.
I came back here for the first time in probably a year. It seemed like every show on the Travel channel was in Hawaii, so it totally swayed my decision. I actually tried to go there yesterday, but they aren't open on Saturdays, probably should have checked that out, but I live close so no big deal. 0 I ordered the Kalbi short ribs, General Tso's chicken, gyoza, and spam musubi. My short ribs were pretty fantastic. The flavor was awesome, and I really wish they'd given me more, but I enjoyed what I had. The gyoza was pretty good as well, and that's about where it ends. The spam musubi wasn't terrible, but it just wasn't much of anything really. There was hardly any flavor to it, so that was kind of a bummer. If I ever get the chance to try it elsewhere (going to Hawaii would be nice), I'll have to see how it compares. My girlfriend had the General Tso's. She was a bit hungover and not feeling very adventurous. I have to say that it was not that great. It had a really strong fish flavor to it, as if the fryer oil hadn't been changed for awhile/using it for all their fried seafood. She couldn't finish it, and I don't blame her after I tried it. Overall, I'd stick to the Hawaiian menu at this place, especially the BBQ, because it really is quite tasty.
(3)Jared W.
After going to Aloha for the first time I have one real complaint: they give you only plastic silverware...I mean how am I supposed to properly eat my delicious beef and chicken with flimsy plastic knife and fork. All joking aside, I ordered the Aloha BBQ combo of chicken, lean beef, and beef short ribs and it was absolutely outstanding! The chicken was moist and flavorful, and the beef and short ribs were very good as well. Since it was off the Hawaiian menu it came with a ball of white rice and one of macaroni salad like any plate lunch from the islands should. (From what I've heard..I haven't exactly been to Hawaii yet) The rice was very bland until I put the side of sauce they gave me on it, and then it was delicious. The sauce is outstanding- almost like a teryiaki sauce but not exactly. Last but not least, the macaroni salad was amazing and probably the best part of the dish. The service was very friendly, and I got a plate full of really good food for $9 that only took about 5 minutes. For a fast casual type place that's as good as it gets for me!
(5)Tiffany W.
This place is a regular for me! Their food is always ready quickly (take-out too) and their Asian menu is really quite authentic with reasonable prices. Their pork chop bento is my favorite dish on the menu, and one that my boyfriend and I probably order at least once every 2-3 weeks. Their flounder in black bean sauce and beef noodle soup are also really tasty. Nice crispy pork, deliciously flavored rice, tea egg, yum. Their American menu (the one in the front of the restaurant) is alright, nothing particularly notable; however, their asian menu is located off to the side and has not yet disappointed! Love this place.
(4)Cherie R.
I've said it once and I'll say it again. I'm a sucker for a good bowl of noodles. I love Hawaii - it's a happy place with happy people and good food. That being said, I'm not a huge fan of "plate lunch" which consists of a meaty entree, a scoop of rice, and a scoop of macaroni salad. It's good, but not my style. You'll see a lot of this on Aloha's menu, but it was the Taiwanese food that brought me here. And it's always the glut of Asian food that makes me happy in Hawaii. Especially noodles. The place is very clean - you walk up, make your order, and sit down with your number. They bring you your food and when you're done, you put your dishes away. I ordered the beef noodle soup, listening to my trusted friends on Yelp. And on a cold drizzly day, it was wonderful. The beef chunks were plentiful and tender, the pickled cabbage added the right note of tang, and the noodles were toothsome. I've never seen noodles like that before, but they were yummy - a thicker band in the middle with frilly edges. Get it, you won't be disappointed if you're a noodle lover like me. The ramen is next on my "to try" list!
(4)John L.
Only place around that has the closest to Taiwan food. Staff was extremely nice and food was served quickly. Would highly recommend this place to anyone that wants to try Taiwan food!!
(5)Brian K.
Our home base, always spectacular! Owners treat you like family, food and service always stellar without question. Chicken mix, Udon, and chinese dishes always impress. Mahalo!
(5)Jennifer E.
Went here for lunch with the husband and his boss last week. Really enjoyed it! It was recommended to me by Sara C. as a good place to go for lunch. We got there a little after noon, and it wasn't overly busy. I was glad that I looked at the menu the night before because the pictures and names had no description on them. I got the mixed Chicken plate, the husband got the Aloha BBQ mix, and his boss (who had been before) got the Aloha Seafood mix as well as the Spam Musubi. Everything was really really good. I loved my chicken mix, the regular BBQ chicken having a great flavor that's not like most BBQ (not usually a fan of BBQ). The Chicken Katsu was also good, and I loved the dipping sauce for it. The husband really enjoyed his BBQ mix, and pretty much devoured it all. His boss shared the Spam Musubi (which I politely declined), and they both seemed to really enjoy that. If you aren't sure what Spam Musubi is and you like Spam, order it. It looks cool, but I just do not like my meat being a mystery. Another fun part was that they serve the Hawaiian BBQ plates with a scoop of steamed rice, and a scoop of macaroni salad. I guess this is traditional in Hawaii. I thought the macaroni salad was delicious and ate all of it. I really want to go back and try additional items on the menu. It was a fun, clean (oh my goodness so clean!) little place that I will definitely go back to whenever I'm in the area.
(4)Bethany K.
This was a fun experience to break up some very last minute Christmas shopping. My husband and I ordered somethings to share (seems to be a theme ;-) ) We ordered Crab Rangoon, Aloha Crispy Shrimp, Aloha BBQ Mix, and the infamous Spam Musubi. 1. The Crab rangoon was good, but not awesome.... the wrap was a little heavy for my tasting. 2. The Aloha shrimp was a little bland. I think I just ordered wrong. 3. Aloha BBQ Mix comes with BBQ chicken, BBQ beef, and kalbi short ribs. This was a very good meal. The chicken was good, but the beef and shorts ribs were awesome! 4. The Spam Musubi was such a pleasant surprise. The sauce that is used between the rice and spam makes the meal. I am defintely interested in returning to explore the menu further.... especially the soups.
(4)Josh C.
I think of this place as a great Taiwanese food restaurant that happens to have Hawaiian-BBQ style food. As a Hawaiian restaurant it's not as good as the ones available on the west-coast. Yet, the dishes are enjoyable and I usually go for a seafood mix plate. My one major gripe with the plates is the iceberg lettuce garnish. It's horrible, they should think about going with cabbage (which actually has some nutritional value and will take to heat much better) instead. The Taiwanese items really shine. The Taiwanese popcorn chicken for instance is excellent. The pork-chop rice dish is also great and comes with a soy-sauce egg and the expected Taiwanese pickled sides. Overall, this is one of the best Chinese restaurants in Columbus.
(5)B.A. T.
Probably my favorite place for random Asian cravings. I haven't had a bad thing, and their gyoza are amazingly tasty. I really recommend their beef bowl and the chicken katsu is some of the best hangover cure I have ever had.
(5)Dan Z.
Had a great Hawaiian lunch. Pork, chicken and beef are all tasty and flavorful. The macaroni salad was a highlight as well. Creamy sauce and firm noodles made a great side. We will be back!
(4)Stan C.
It's a wonder place to go. Great food with wonderful customer service. Nice and clean. The place we will come back again.
(5)Julia V.
This place is great! The service is fast and the inside is really clean. We ordered pretty standard Asian food but everything was delicious. We had a chicken egg roll, general tso's, and chicken with broccoli. We got them both with fried rice. The rice tasted fresh like it was just prepared and the chicken in both dishes was great. This will definitely become a regular on our go to Chinese food list!
(5)Michelle S.
Not bad. The food is pretty good but nothing amazing. I had aloha spicy chicken which tasted like sweet and sour. Gyoza was eh and the shoyu (sp?) ramen was pretty plain, had to add some sauces to the mix. Thai tea was good but pretty expensive. I did like the environment and it's a good place to stop for lunch time. I don't see anything remotely Hawaiian though all except the spam sushi lol.
(3)LJ W.
So I've had my eye on this place for a while and I finally decided to try it. The place is decent at best. The customer service is great and the establishment itself is decent but the food did not impress me. I came in search of some Hawaiian style food, but the food tastes more like regular Asian food. Hawaiian BBQ Chicken 1-5=3. Fried Rice 1-5=4.
(3)Richard P.
4 stars for the Taiwanese menu. I can't really speak to the Hawaiian menu, other than to say that as a kama'aina, it's not really Hawaiian food. More like Los Angeles food, where it seems like you can find a Hawaiian BBQ place on practically every street corner. We ordered two Taiwanese 'fast food' dishes when we went - the pork chop rice plate, and beef noodle soup. Both were good renditions of classic Taiwanese dishes. The pork chop is deep-fried, with a good crust, and came accompanied with homemade pickled cabbage, always a nice touch. It was frankly more protein than I need at a single meal (or two or three meals, for that matter), but it's just as good reheated, so who's complaining? The beef noodle soup had chunks of braised beef, the same pickled cabbage, and the noodles were clearly homemade - thin ribbons of wheat noodles with just enough 'tooth.' It's easy enough for a restaurant to buy factory-made noodles, so you have to give them credit when they go out of their way to make their own. So go for the Taiwanese food. It's on the markerboard to the right, if you're facing the register. That's where the really good stuff is.
(4)Titus T.
I have been to many different Hawaiian rests but this is the first time that i encounter really bad food n service. My GF ordered Taiwanese Pork Chop but then the rice portion is really small and the marinated tea egg hard to chew it taste like it has been in the storage for a really long time then the pork chop should be bread with panko bread crumb instead of regular bread flour. I order extra veggie which cost me $2 but what i got is only 3 broccoli n carrot so cheap on the portion. The lady was really rude on the service the funny thing is that they want a tip but the whole dining experience is actually a self serve
(1)Madison R.
We ordered beef noodle soup, chicken katsu, bbq beef, and spam musubi. Their beef noodle soup isn't as good as what my wife makes, but it is pretty good for a restaurant in the US, especially the Midwest. It's almost as good as what the good restaurants in San Jose and Milpitas serve. The suan cai (pickled vegetables) on top was a nice touch. The noodles were a little weird..very wide and very thin. They were probably homemade, but dare I say what I liked least. I also would have preferred some small bok choy. I think they use jielan or maybe youcai instead. Just personal preference. The chicken katsu tasted ok. Portion size was pretty large. The spam musubi was fairly decent. We loved the bbq beef. It was slightly crispy and had a great flavor. It was the best dish of the night for sure. If I could add one thing to the menu, it would be stinky tofu. I'm sure that would bring tons of homesick Chinese expat customers. Please make it happen. :)
(4)Amber S.
I've only ordered a few things from the Chinese side of the menu. Mainly shrimp or chicken pad thai. I always get it for carryout and end up with enough food leftover for another lunch or dinner portion. I'm always in and out very quickly. They have an assembly system for getting out the orders.
(3)Jasmine K.
Not pleased today! I have been to this restaurant several times before and had always been relatively pleased with the food (veggie fried rice is delish!). However today a coworker and I stopped in for lunch and I ordered the Pad Thai, my coworker was almost done with his General Tsos chicken before my Pad Thai arrived and when it finally did I could tell that something was not quite right. It looked and smelled terrible, I mean really terrible like a wet dog/smelly feet smell. I took a bite and it was just disgusting. My co worker knows that I am shy about returning food so he took the plate to the counter and explained that I did not care for the food and would like to exchange it for something else. The woman at the counter explained that the second meal would have to be purchased, he graciously paid for the second plate of food, but we both were quite put off by the experience. Restaurant owners should take responsibility for poor quality food and make customers happy... unfortunately based on this experience I will not be back.
(1)Ann Y.
Just like being at home except healthier and offers japanese, chineses and local favorites. Ono!
(4)Eric U.
This is the closest Hawaiian BBQ place to us so whenever we go to Columbus we make a special trip to get a plate lunch. Today I tried the BBQ chicken and beef plate. Wife always gets chicken katsu. Side order of SPAM musubi for me to complete the meal. The macaroni salad works well with the salty / sweet combinations of your meat of choice. Only suggestion I would have is to marinate the chicken / beef a little longer to make the BBQ taste even better.
(4)Yanfei L.
I ordered ribs and it was not like what it should be... It said it had sauce but it was not.
(2)Daniel D.
Ordered the vegetable pad Thai and it was disgusting. I notified the lady that it was gross and she said that it was what she ordered. I asked her if we could trade it for vegetable fried rice, she said yes but I'd have to pay for it. I advised her that I would leave a negative review if she didn't make me happy and she shrugged her shoulders.
(1)Tom L.
This place is great with good food at reasonable prices. It is my go to lunch spot for Asian food.
(5)Jen C.
I dropped in while on a business trip because I heard they have some Taiwanese food. The main menu had Hawaiian dishes, as well as some ramen and rice bowls. I didn't feel like chowing down on so much carbs so I got a stir fried green beans and pork dish from the Taiwanese menu. Overall it was good. A clean restaurant with open kitchen, friendly staff and fast service. They have that nifty credit card machine from Apple that you can sign off on their iPad. I would've loved to find some place in town with Taiwanese dessert though.
(3)Mike G.
I recently asked for a lunch recommendation from my fellow Yelpers and got a quick response back from Sara C. She recommended that I do lunch at Aloha Hawaiian BBQ and Asian Bistro. It was a good recommendation. Like others have mentioned, it's a clean looking place with very good service. It's very casual with a slight cafeteria feel to it. You order at the counter and they bring the food out to you. I decided on the Pork Katsu, which Sara had previously mentioned in another talk thread. It's basically a panko breaded pork tenderloin on a bed of lettuce. Came out on a plastic plate with everything just like I'd order with a couple of BBQ type sauces on the side in plastic ramekins with plastic lids on them. The food was very good. It's got a good crunch to it. It's very thin as far as the meat is concerned. I would have preferred it a little thicker..... The mac and cheese frankly tasted like GFS mac and cheese, not bad, but nothing special. It was a good contrast as far as textures are concerned. There's also some white rice on the side. At only $8.01 with tax, there is enough food for 2 people. It's a great value for your money. I actually took half home and made wraps out of the pork, lettuce and sauce. I would go back again and try more, the Spam Musubi sounds interesting and the Pho sounds good too. Worth checking out if you are in the Grandview area.
(3)Troy S.
I went in expecting to be disappointed. I have told my wife we should try this place and she always just rolled her eyes at me. We drove by and then came back to give it a dry after breaking down the pros and cons of our other nearby choices. I was guessing this was going to be a one and done restaunrant. So because my expectations were exceeded, I thought this needs 5 stars. Maybe a 4 star place but I was wowed. The Pad Thai is the first thing I love as my wife ordered it spicy and couldn't even eat it all because it was huge and her mouth was burning. The spice was a latent spice as the first bite I took was "hmm, nice flavor with some spice." 20 seconds later.. "wow, that has a great kick." We both loved it and would order it again here. We also ordered the fried Gyoza which was very tasty. I would get this app again. The only downside was my order of Kalua Pork. I don't understand no-sauce-BBQ as I am a sauce guy. The pork was tender and had a decent taste but it was too dry for my taste. I just ordered the wrong thing for me. I took the leftover soy sauce from the gyoza and put that on pork and rice. The place is very clean and has an open feel for it. They have a Taiwanese menu on the side that looked pretty good. The place seemed to cater to the Asian taste as the clientele seemed to display this. I would go back and order anything but the Hawaiian side of the menu.
(5)Karyn M.
The first time I came here, I tried dishes from their american menu (the ones with the mac & cheese sides) and it was alright - not memorable. I came back and tried the porkchop rice bento dish from their chinese menu and loved it. Having been to Taiwan earlier last year, that dish is the closest to taiwanese food that I've seen in columbus. I've also tried other dishes on the chinese menu (beef noodle soup, schezhuan delight, etc) but still find myself going back to the pork chop dish.
(4)Matt W.
I love the idea of Aloha. Columbus has a lot of really fun Asian options, but Hawaiian is a cuisine that we don't really have any examples of. Spam Musubi, Kalua pork, poke, Loco Moco - these are all dishes that SHOULD be huge hits in Columbus...but Aloha is not the place to go. When we checked them out on a Saturday, the place was eerily empty despite it being right around dinner time. We went for a mix of traditional (Spam Musubi, Loco Moco) and a more "generic" Asian dish - Chicken Katsu. The Spam Musubi was OK. Not outstanding, but spam and seaweed are a surprisingly good combination, and the teriyaki sauce glaze works well with it. The Loco Moco was...meh. This is normally a really great "texture" dish. Hot steamed rice, a juicy burger, rich gravy, and the sunny side up eggs on top, with the yolk ready to be broken open and mixed into the gravy. The rice was really dry, which wouldn't be so bad if the gravy was good...but it was pasty, flavorless stuff that didn't really do anything on the plate. Worse, the burgers were basically cooked into hockey pucks, adding to the terrible, flavorless dryness. About the only good thing I can say was the eggs were pretty much cooked perfectly, and adding some sriracha made it...survivable. That leaves the chicken katsu, and oh, man. That's rough. You see, our chicken katsu came out sliced and laid out across a bed of rice with the dipping sauce on the side, which is fine...but the chicken was visibly pink and still uncooked in the center, which was not. We flagged the waiter who had delivered our food back down, and he told us he'd get it taken care of. The manager came out from behind the counter a few minutes later and said "The chef thinks it's cooked enough, but he's going to cook it again." We thought that meant they'd cook a new portion of the chicken for us. Right? Right? WRONG. What we got instead was the exact same plate returned to us (I know, because a leftover piece of Spam Musubi and some of the Loco Moco gravy were still on the side of the plate), and the chicken looked like it had been dropped into the deep fryer a second time. Badly overcooked, now, and dripping with grease, it totally killed any semblance of an appetite. In all honesty, I should have asked for my money back, but we were so disgusted that we just wanted to leave. There may not be other Hawaiian places in town, but there are sure as hell a LOT of much better Asian restaurants. If you want a meal that won't risk giving you food poisoning, I'd try one of those instead.
(1)SaRea S.
I eat here fairly regularly, especially on the nights I don't want to cook or have the urge to eat the world's most gluttonous meal: Loco Moco, insert Homer Simpson groan. There is no Hawaiian food in the city, so when I am feeling nostaligic about my time in Wainai, I come here. Spam musubi is an absolute must if you can get over yourself about eating Spam! I have always been greeted with a smile and courteous behaviour, they are quick and there is plenty of seating!
(3)Emily P.
Fair warning, I've never had the Hawaiian food here but I intend to try it. My friend and I would order takeout every Thursday from here. It's GREAT. The Pad Thai is delicious though we usually get extra spicy. Beef and broccoli is great and the broccoli isn't as mushy as a lot of places have. Definitely recommend but remember that they are closed on Saturdays now. :(
(4)George Y.
I've been going to Aloha more often because I've found some dishes I enjoy and my friends are exploring their Chinese food options more then their Hawaiian food options. The few dishes I get are the loco moco, Japanese beef bowl and the spam musubi (forever my favorite). The loco moco is a Hawaiian dish that I would qualify as bob evanish type of meal. 2 eggs on 2 meat patties with 2 scoops of macaroni salad. A meal that satisfies my basic food group urges, carbs, meat and eggs. The second dish I enjoy, Japanese beef bowl, is a pretty simple but tasty combo. The only drawback is there is too much rice in this dish. Either up the beef or lower the rice.
(3)Pai-Wei L.
They have a list of Taiwanese food on the white board. Best pork chop rice bento and beef noodle soup in Columbus!
(5)Tls K.
Gen tso plenty perfect heat Egg roll just ok, not again. Veggie lomein salty Tofu padtai, good spring rolls lots a wrap, very little filing
(4)Tamara M.
Nice, modern decor, a step above the standard Hawaiian fast-food chain. It seems new, and very clean. There are a variety of Hawaiian typical dishes on the menu like Kaluha Pork, Loco Moco, etc. There are also Japanese ramen and udon soups and a good number of Chinese specialties. We had one Kaluha Pork, one Miso Ramen and a side of gyoza. The food came out pretty quickly, and both dishes were very good. I was pleasantly surprised to get such a good bowl of ramen at this kind of place. If I had been hungrier, I definitely would have gone for the Loco Moco, but maybe next time. Prices were good and service was friendly.
(4)Daniel M.
This place is a knock off of L&L's Drive Inn. After ordering the BBQ mix and kalua pig I was disappointed. Not even close to the taste of Hawaii. Portion sizes are small as well. Not worth my trip out here from Pittsburgh.
(1)Marie G.
This is the only place in Columbus where I can get my chicken katsu fix! I love their menu - they offer a traditional Chinese side and then the Hawaiian side. Lots of options for soups as well - I've never had one but I kick myself for not getting one every time the staff brings one out of the kitchen. There is plenty of parking out front or in the back. Prices are extremely reasonable. Service is great.
(4)Michelle C.
I order from the asian menu on the dry erase board. I usually get the pork chop rice or the spicy beef noodle soup. The pork chop is crispy and it comes with my favorite hard boiled egg. The noodles in the beef soup are so good, not the usual skinny noodles. They are flat/thick/curvy noodles. The soup broth is excellent. The flounder with black bean sauce is awesome as well, very flavorful with lots of fish. I remember the first week it was open. I knew it was gonna be a success with its asian/taiwanese menu. Occasionally I'll have a bite of the Hawaiian menu when my friends order it. But I usually crave the taiwanese stuff.
(5)Jillian W.
Was not a fan of the Hawaiian bbq chicken at all. It was dry and salty. I was also expecting it to come with vegetables (since the website menu stated all combo platters come with macaroni salad, rice, and vegetables). Was sad to see that vegetables meant a bed of iceburg lettuce. The mac salad was mayo + more mayo + noodles. Although full of mayo it was lacking in flavor. It definitely could use a healthy dose of salt and pepper. BUT, we did also order the chicken pad thai which was surprisingly good. I would say it is among the best I have had in columbus and for $5.95, not a bad deal at all. If I only had their hawaiian bbq I probably would've given this place 1-2 stars and never gone back. The pad thai, however, was definitely a redeeming factor and I will probably be back to try their non-hawaiian menu items.
(3)Peter L.
The Hawaiian food is decent. It helps that there aren't many other options for Hawaiian food in Columbus. Good spam musubi. Not a bad place -- solid three stars. Until I tried the spicy beef noodle soup, one of Taiwan's most beloved dishes. I'm a fan. Excellent. Great spicy broth and generous with the beef. I recently returned from a month of eating my way through Taipei and it's hard to compare the Ohio version to the original, but I still left very satisfied. I should have read the reviews on Yelp and ditched the Hawaiian menu earlier.
(4)Serena L.
taste very good.i really love the rice platter and udon and Raman very much.we also order salt pepper chicken. Very impressive. Strongly recommend.will definitely come back. :-)
(5)Randy S.
Considering that there are few Hawaiian restaurants in the area (maybe the only one) to compare this place too, this restaurant is definitely worth a try. It's set up like a fast casual restaurant similar to Chipotle or Noodles & Co. You order at the counter and then they bring the food out to you. The menu has several different Hawaiian BBQ options along with a Taiwanese menu. I tried the Aloha BBQ mix which comes with chicken, beef, small ribs, sticky rice, & macaroni salad. All of the various meats were good with the chicken being my favorite. I don't really like macaroni salad but my wife seemed to enjoy it. My wife tried the Aloha Seafood mix which oddly enough comes with BBQ chicken, but then it also had shrimp & mahi mahi. The sticky rice was done well. I tried my wife's dish and it was quite good, but I think I would prefer my dish. We also ordered spam musubi which most people would find disgusting. It's just spam & rice wrapped in seaweed. My wife lived in Hawaii for 4 years and spam is a very common food in Hawaii. She was very excited to find a restaurant that actually served it and she didn't leave disappointed. I was hesitant to try it myself, but it really is pretty good. I probably wouldn't eat it on a regular basis but it's worth trying it. This is definitely a place worth checking out. The food is good. If you're looking for exotic food, the flavors are not out of this world, but it is very good.
(4)Aaron A.
Delicious panko breaded mahi and shrimp. BBQ chicken is also tasty. I ordered carryout and the macaroni salad was in the container with all my hot food which warmed it up to an unpleasant temperature, did not like that. Steamed rice was good. It's been a while since I last consumed a pile of rice and it felt like a treat. Looking forward to trying other dishes, especially the chicken katsu and ramen noodles. Three stars for now.
(3)Lydia W.
I've explored the Chinese menu on the side wall and have decided to raise it to the elusive 5 stars. It's the best Chinese food in the area. You will notice by the high concentration of Asians dining here at peak meal times. My personal favorites are the beef noodle soup (legit, with sour veggies and home made noodles), the Szechuan flounder, and the black bean flounder (for those who shy away from the spice). The fish is incredibly tender and flavorful. Decently priced and each order can easily last two meals.
(5)Stephanie K.
yumm! This place was surprisingly tasty. When I first walked in, I initially was disappointed to see so much Chinese American food like General Tso's chicken. I saw the Hawaiian menu and expected more seafood or like poi er something. Instead it looked like a lot of teriyaki type dishes. I opted for the mix plate of chicken and beef barbeque. It came with a side of rice, macaroni salad, and extra teriyaki sauce. I was very pleasantly surprised to find that the meat was really tasty. The macaroni salad was also good! (and i normally don't like macaroni salad). It was overall a really satisfying meal and was very reasonably priced. The owner took the time to walk around and introduce herself and ask how the food was.
(4)Diana U.
I wish they just made this a Taiwanese restaurant. This Taiwanese-owned Hawaiian BBQ place has good Hawaiian food, but GREAT Taiwanese food. They have their Taiwanese food on a "secret" menu handwritten on the side. Try their beef noodle soup - it's full of flavor and the beef is nice and tender. I've also tried their pork chop rice plate and that is delicious as well. Hawaiian food is fine - I generally stay away from it but sometimes I do get their Spam Musubi (you can't mess those up). I think that their BBQ beef is pretty good, but I've never been a fan of the macaroni salad so I try to substitute that. I've also had their udon and I think it's really salty (MSG, maybe?). So...I'd stick with their Taiwanese food and non-deep-friend Hawaiian BBQ. Great prices, clean place, and good location.
(4)Charles N.
I think it's time they change their name to Ni Hao. Just had the loco moco and it was not right. Seems they have lost touch with Hawaii. It was on a bed of lettuce and if you are familiar with Hawaiian dishes you know loco moco should be on rice with beef gravy. Don't like to give poor reviews but it just wasn't right. The Chinese food is probably much better as there were many customers and that's what it looked like they were eating. Very clean and very friendly staff.
(2)Justine L.
I am not really a fan of Hawaiian cuisine, so I come here for the Taiwanese food! I have tried the spicy beef noodle soup, fried pork chop bento box, and the spicy flounder dish. These items are not on the official menu; they are written on a blackboard! They were all pretty decent! I especially enjoyed the spicy beef noodle soup. It tasted really authentic! The boyfriend likes kalbi so he ways orders it here! It comes on top of a bed of salad, and a scoop of macaroni salad. I think the meat is just okay, but I enjoy stealing the macaroni salad off of his plate! I would like to try the ramen here next because my friend got it here once, and the broth was really delicious! The only downside was they don't give you enough meat in it. I think it was like 3 slices of pork. Overall, it's a joint where you order your food at the counter, and they bring you the food, but it's self-service. I would recommend it!
(3)Claire F.
Everything is fair. The beef noodle is special. I've been there four times. The service is good. I feel free in that place.
(3)Steven H.
Tried Aloha Hawaiian BBQ & Asian Bistro tonight for dinner (it's only been open 2 days now) and was pleasantly surprised. Little has changed from the previous design scheme of the former Panda Express that used to be here but the food is definitely better. It's a walk up to the counter and order and they bring it to you kind of place. The menu is a mix of Asian and Hawaiian entrees and features short ribs, BBQ chicken, teriyaki chicken, chicken kansu (panko crusted chicken), beef and some fried seafood specialties like shrimp and mahi mahi. The price point is super affordable - under $8 affordable. And you get a meat entree, steamed rice and a macaroni salad with the Hawaiian dishes. Tried the chicken kansu with kansu sauce. Found the macaroni salad very tasty and the panko chicken crispy and a great complement to the sweet, tangy sauce. Also tried the BBQ chicken with a really flavorful teriyaki sauce. Very much recommend this place. Hope it does well! It's also good for families and kids (there were quite a few there when I was there).
(4)Mark K.
This is, essentially, a Chinese place with a few other menu items. And after all the hype, I was a bit disappointed. The service was great. The place is very nice- new, clean, nice seating. The food is... okay. I had the Aloha BBQ Mix: short ribs, barbecue chicken and barbecue beef. The ribs were pretty good- nice Asian flavor, decent quality meat. The chicken was mediocre. The beef was tough. Neither of the last two had much flavor. I also had crab Rangoon, which was the typical Chinese restaurant type. Guess I should have gone with that special loco moco, but burgers and eggs with gravy on a hot afternoon did not sound appealing. And is the macaroni salad a Hawaiian thing? 'Cus while good, it didn't go with the rest of the meal at all.
(3)Rachel G.
It was an average of 3 stars, considering the variation of quality of the items our table ordered. We first ordered the fried gyoza. Those were pretty good. Then we had the crab rangoon. I think these have some room for improvement: they hardly had any filling so it was pretty much a fried wonton wrapper. Entree-wise is where things get weird. My sister ordered the chicken pad thai and added pineapple. When it came out, it "smelled like wet dog". My sister is usually never one to skip a meal, and she even gave it a chance, but couldn't take more than a couple bites before deciding to just pitch it. I can't stress how much this is not like my sister to pass on food. She'll eat anything. It's partially her fault for adding the pineapple in the first place, but still... It did smell weird. I ordered the chicken combo of the kansu and Hawaiian bbq. Both meats we're good, but I have to say that the mac salad is not for me. My friend got the seafood mix and enjoyed everything about it. So over all, I will give it another chance, but probably not right away.
(3)Kylie F.
I was crazy excited to eat here after waiting months for it to open, then when I called the lady who took my order was so nice and passionate about telling me about the food. I ordered take out bc it was beggars night, picked it up smelled it the whole way home and couldn't wait to tear into it, BUT when I did finally get home I was un-impressed. I ordered spam Sushi and some sort of chicken w sauce and rice, ugh. Can't say I will be back.
(2)Mae T.
Have you ever heard that at Asian restaurants there's a menu that isn't advertised but that if you know the cuisine or are looking for something authentic you can sometimes get it if you ask? Aloha takes the guesswork out. When you step inside do yourself a huge favor and look at the written Taiwanese menu on the whiteboard which is off to the side and order from there. For whatever reason its not on their website or printed menu but everything is delicious especially the beef noodle soup and pork chop rice bento.
(5)A L.
They have a few unique dishes but mostly it's the typical Asian fare. Pad Thai is subpar to other places in town. Not bad, not great.
(3)Perry L.
Aloha! If your in the mood for some fusion food done well Aloha Hawaiian BBQ is the place for you. The atmosphere is that of an asian version of chipotle but the food is slightly more complex. The menu is robust with the flavors to back it up. They have everything from Udon to a medley of meat. The serving sizes are just right for you to feel full with an excellent price tag of around $6 per person. Do your self a favor, take a trip on your lunch break or with your family and have a taste of this mom and pop owned delectable hawaiian-Asian fusion BBQ.
(5)Christina C.
I dig clean restaurants. I also dig tasty Udon noodles. To my delight, Aloha had both... plus some! Craving a good Asian-inspired meal, Aloha was one of my closet options, and one I had yet to try. After placing my order of Udon noodles, Aloha Spicy Chicken and the Aloha BBQ Mix (no, this order was for two people, not just me) I was quoted 10 minutes for my wait and arrive at that time I did. Yay - it was ready! On a Sunday night, it was dead. Not bad for me. I got a parking spot up front and there wasn't a line to wait in. To our delight, the food was still warm when we finally got it home. Triple points! No soggy, lukewarm mush here. Thank goodness! My spicy chicken was similar to all spicy, - with hints of sweet - chicken dishes I've had in the past, and a similar story comes from my bf of his BBQ mix consisting of short ribs, beef and chicken. The meat was ok quality and the first couple bites were enjoyable (they were marinated in a sweet sauce). They were satisfying, but weren't extraordinary or unlike anything we've had in the past. The most noteworthy part of the entire meal was definitely the Udon noodles. If they sound at all appetizing to you - with freshly boiled rice noodles, seaweed, scallions, tempura shrimp (optional) and tofu - do yourself a favor and start your meal off with that. I'd head back here for another meal without a doubt, but it was definitely not a place that stood out to me.
(3)Luan N.
Ordered the Family sampler for BBQ pork, chicken, and beef. Not quite as good as the L&L chains in Hawaii, not even as good as Aloha Eats in Chicago. But I welcome this addition to adding some island love to C-bus. Bring out the kalua pork, loco moco, and portuguese sausage. Pump out some fluffy malasadas, I will forever be your fan!
(3)Red D.
No complaints here at all. Good food, good sized portions, clean dining room and bathroom, friendly and fast service. Short ribs, hawaiian bbq beef, two eggrolls and two sodas= $24.00.
(4)Todd K.
I'm a really big fan of this restaurant, especially the pad thai. Decently spicy and served in one huge heaping portion, it's quite the filling meal. Hands down my favorite menu item, and full disclosure: one of the only things I get because I love it so much. Having said that I have sampled many of their Asian/Taiwanese dishes, which are all excellent. The Hawaiian menu is very good, but nothing super special. It's definitely the Taiwanese food that shines here.
(4)Audrey H.
I haven't had anything here besides the tonkotsu ramen, but if you're a ramen fanatic like I am, this might be the best you can get in Columbus. The second time I went was not as good as the first, but still passable. I'll have to try the other types of ramen as well, but from what I've seen so far I like this place a lot more than Akai Hana or Zencha (for ramen).
(4)Jason S.
I've been wholely underwhelmed by the quality of ramen in Columbus. Sushi Bistro Masa? Decent. Ba Sho? Meh. Otani? Oy vey. Sadly the best I've had in Columbus was at Honda R&D's cafeteria. I had all but given up hope. Then the other day my group leader at Honda, whose wife is Japanese, mentioned their recent trip to Aloha. His wife indicated this was the best alternative she'd found to visiting Chicago for quality ramen. Great ramen at a Hawaiian place? Hontou? (a Japanese expression for surprised disbelief, paralleled by the Engrish form, "Rearry?") Aloha offers four options -- miso, shoyu (soy sauce), tonkotsu (pork bone), and shio (salt) ramen, all at a reasonable $6.50 a bowl, along with the requisite Hawaiian barbecue and a hodgepodge of other Asian menu items. Seven hours after hearing this tidbit, and after wildly salivating all afternoon (and turning down a recommended rabies shot), I arrived at Aloha with a friend to see how good this ramen really was. At first I wondered if I had been duped. Aloha's facade made me consider whether the Asian Bistro aspect was an afterthought, with the "Aloha Hawaiian BBQ" signage in a bold red font and the "Asian Bistro" on a completely separate sign tacked below the rest of the name. Aloha, sucker! The menu actually divides itself into Asian and Hawaiian sections, and it turns out that half of the latter may as well be shoved back into the Asian section where the dishes rightly belong. Sorry kids, katsu is Japanese, and kalbi is Korean, but both show up in the Hawaiian section. One of the only dishes of truly Hawaiian origin is the loco moco. No matter -- if it's good, who cares where the eff it came from. The restaurant's interior is a low-maintenance, order-at-the-counter setup, and you bus your own dishes. I went for the shoyu ramen and an order of spam musubi, the truest form of nigiri/sushi bastardization in the industrialized world and a staple of Hawaiian food culture. (If anyone questions your sanity, you can just tell them President Obama is a fan, which may or may not help your case.) My friend ordered the tonkotsu ramen and a second round of musubi. The shoyu ramen is presented in the traditional Japanese style, with a slice of pork, a couple fish cakes, half a boiled egg, seaweed, and green onion on top. The tonkotsu is similarly adorned. You know what? Shit's good. Surprisingly good for the price. The broth doesn't lack for flavor, and the noodles are somewhat soft but not soggy (I'm looking at you, Otani). Perhaps the only negative was the level of fat versus meat on the pork, and that there is only one slice of it. A to-go order of the Aloha BBQ mix, which includes chicken, beef and kalbi, featured tender, flavorful meat with rice and an inoffensive but uninteresting lump of macaroni salad. The chicken is the best of the lot, but each has its merits. The musubi were also spot on. Spam spam rice nori teriyaki and SPAM. Three dollars gets you two hearty sized musubi, with just right level of appropriately sweet teriyaki sauce set between the warm spam and rice. One order of this and your choice of salad or other appetizer would make for a filling meal. I'm not going to run out into the streets and praise this as the best ramen in Columbus. I'll have to put in a few more visits and see if I develop an unhealthy obsession before I'd be willing to proclaim it the best. But it's good stuff, and a great value.
(4)Nicole W.
My first run in with Hawaiian food was Aloha and I am not sure how authentic this was? (seems to have mixed reviews) but I felt very unexcited about the whole genre after this meal. The rice...nothing special, but I can forgive a place for not having great rice (though huge bonuses for good plump and sticky rice). The macaroni salad...holy mayo o mayo! Some say this is authentic, so maybe its just not cut out for me. I got a combo platter because i was excited to try everything! The chicken was cooked adequately but the sauces did not taste anything above a Mccormick marinade that I can buy at the grocery store. My beef was very, very fatty and I eventually just gave up eating it because I had to spit so many bites out. I will look elsewhere to give Hawaiian another chance.
(2)Jen M.
First, let me say that this review only reflects the Hawaiian side of the menu, and I gather from looking around the restaurant that many other folks are eating from the Taiwanese/Chinese side. There's a lot of happy-looking Asian families with all sorts of interesting looking dishes on their tables. But as the child of a Hawaiian mother, I went to Aloha Hawaiian hoping for decent Hawaiian food. Over the years, I've come to have pretty low expectations for Hawaiian food on the mainland--basically if the Hawaiian food is even passably good, like comparable to something I could get at Zippy's or L&L in Hawaii, I'd be willing to give a 4 or 5 star rating. Aloha Hawaiian BBQ's Hawaiian menu unfortunately isn't quite there. There are two really great dishes on that side of the menu: the Hawaiian-style macaroni salad which is spot-on (I always order an extra scoop!), and the Chicken Katsu. Even though the katsu is perfect, they serve it with this weird barbecue sauce. I figured out that if I poured a ton of Kikkoman soy sauce into the BBQ sauce, I got something that more closely approximated the katsu sauce I'm used to from Hawaii. And the Spam Musubi is passable, although I don't know how you'd screw that up since it's a pretty straightforward dish. But some of the other stuff from the Hawaiian side of the menu just isn't very good. The kalua pork is dry and stringy, the Mahi Mahi is fried to within an inch of its life, the teriyaki chicken is pretty run-of-the-mill teri chicken that I'd expect from any American-style Chinese food joint. Now granted, real Hawaiian cuisine is very Asian-fusion-esque and it wouldn't be at all surprising to order a teri chicken lunch plate in Hawaii--but because Hawaiian plate lunches usually come with plain white rice and macaroni salad, the protein dish usually packs a big flavor wallop to balance it out. That wasn't the case with the teri chicken at Aloha Hawaiian BBQ. I would love to see them put some work into that side of the menu--for example, maybe offer a Hawaiian-style curry beef stew, a chicken lau lau, or a Hawaiian-style chicken long rice. Basically, if you're going there for Hawaiian food, I highly recommend the chicken katsu + macaroni salad, and I can't recommend much else. Edited to add: I visited again in January 2013 and noticed that they now have a catering menu, including catering options from the Hawaiian side of the menu. I should also mention that the chicken katsu portion is generous. $6.50 for two huge cutlets of chicken katsu is a pretty sweet deal.
(2)Dick S.
For me this was a disappointment. I am visiting Columbus for a few days and heard there was a Hawaiian restaurant. My partner was Hawaiian and we ate his mother's cooking as well as typical Hawaiian local food from lunch wagons or diners. The Hawaiian menu at Aloha is primarily teriyaki which may be Hawaiian but usually plays a small part on any menu. The macaroni and rice are right on but the small thin pieces of chicken, beef, and kalbi would embarrass any Hawaiian host. Where is the kalua pig? the laulau? the curry? the saimin? the adobo? the Portuguese bean soup? With such a limited Hawaiian menu I can foresee these items being taken off the menu. How often can anyone eat teriyaki? At best Aloha is similar to the California chains that poorly imitate the food of Hawaii. The restaurant is roomy, cheerful, clean, efficient and reasonably priced. I give it an OK rating. The service lacked nothing. When I was there Asian students lined up for bowls of ramen or Chinese food. Good for them, but not too good for anyone with fond memories of plate lunches in Hawaii.
(3)Chenyang W.
LOVE beef noodles soup here. Definitely the best around campus
(5)Jack E.
Well worth the price of admission. My Japanese friends all love this place and recommended it to me as an alternative to the expensive Japanese restaurants in town. All of the restaurants in town use the same frozen noodles for their noodle dishes, only this place prices accordingly. Spam musubi, gyu don for less than 6 bucks!? Heck yeah! Great food at great prices. The only reason I didn't give 5 stars is because this review is based on only one visit, but based on it, I will def go back.
(4)Judy C.
I don't know if this review will add anything new to the mix but it'll certainly reaffirm what others have been saying, haha. I'm not the biggest fan of their Hawaiian food - chicken katsu was alright but not extraordinary, spare ribs were greasy and salty, and the macaroni salad was meh but I'm not a macaroni salad lover in the first place. And I do appreciate the presence of some very Hawaiian dishes on the menu such as loco moco. Their Taiwanese food is definitely enjoyable and I will frequently get their pork chop rice. Flavorful pork chops with rice, pickled vegetables, and a lovely tea egg to round out the meal. Highly recommended.
(3)Alonzo E.
Visited this place today per suggestion of a very good friend. I'm torn as I believe I should give 4 stars but I believe I need to come back and try again. I did like the food, it was pretty tasty specially the sauce, shrimp was fried well. I will definitely come back but there's something I can't put my finger to that's missing so it's bothering me as I did like the food. I like that it's new all around and very clean bathrooms. We ordered the Aloha Shrimp, I would highly recommend it and my friend got the mix chicken and beef dish and we also ordered Goyza appetizer. My dish came out first before the appetizer and wish it was the other way around as I did not get to enjoy entree before appetizer format. I would be interested in trying out the Loco Moco next time to try the Hawaiian fare.
(3)Ann S.
You have no idea how excited we were to see a Hawaiian place FINALLY pop up here. We have had plate lunches on every Hawaiian island for the past 15 years so we were anxious to see if this stacked up. We knew by previous reviews that they didn't have loco moco on the menu but when we called to ask for it on Saturday, they said they had it. On our way baby! For the uninitiated, loco moco in Hawaii is a layer of rice on the bottom, a hamburger patty or two, a fried egg and smothered with beef gravy. Yes, as you may have suspected, it's low fat. ;-) It was their special of the day so that was my order. The hubby ordered the beef and chicken combo that comes with the Hawaiian standard scoop of mac salad, scoop of rice. (It ain't a plate lunch without those!) We also got an order of spam musubi which is common in Hawaii...sticky rice, teri or soy sauce on top with a slice of spam on top of that and wrapped in nori. (Seaweed) The owner was in the kitchen and yelled out a cheery hello and we said hello. It was all I could do not to sop him up with a musubi...so cute. Another owner (his daughter?) said hello as she passed by and she brought our musubi out to us. It was really good and tasted just like you'll find at any convenience store on any Hawaiian island if you can get one before they sell out. The loco moco's presentation was a little off and the gravy was wrong but we give them a lot of credit for giving it a try. The patties definitely tasted pre-made so if I had to give them a suggestion to make it more authentic, I'd hand make the patties and definitely go with brown/beef gravy. It's gotta be dark. The beef and chicken were spot on of anything we'd get in Hawaii or L&L if you have to settle for fast food Hawaiian but thankfully not as salty. Both were tender and when dipped in their housemade teriyaki sauce...heaven. A little taste of aloha in the buckeye state. If you want a full opu (belly), the portions and prices are all right. We will definitely make the drive out again not only for the Hawaiian stuff but to try the chinese food too. Mahalo for a taste of Hawaii until we go back in a few months!
(4)Jenny B.
Went here the other night for dinner. I got the chicken combo plate, which was the chicken kansu and the Hawaiian BBQ chicken. All dishes are served with white rice and macaroni salad. I really really loved the chicken kansu. I was sad that I had to save some to take home for my sister to eat for dinner. But then on the other hand, it is fried, so I probably didn't need it anyway. Even though it was fried, it felt light because the panko breading. The dark brown sauce served with it was a perfect compliment. My only complaint that I have is how the sauces are served. Yes, the BBQ and kansu sauces had great flavors, but they were served cold. I would have much rather dipped the chicken into warm sauce. My mom got the short ribs. She said that they were good. She also made the comment that all Asian type restaurants that serve short ribs serve the same quality meat, so you might as well come here for the price. Overall, it was a good experience. I love fast casual (good prices, fast service, fast, no tipping). Since it is a little far from my house, I won't be making a special trip out of my way to eat hear, but I will come if I am in the area and need to grab a quick bite.
(4)Anthony K.
Great Hawaiian food found this place by accident. We use to live in hawaii brings back great memories. Great Mac and Katsu chicken
(4)Jake P.
I had the pleasure of eating here the opening day (7-1-11). This local place is run by Taiwanese but with a Hawaiian feel to the menu. It's not totally authentic Hawaiian food but rather a mix of Asian foods but it's pretty similar. Their beef, chicken and pork is marinated Asian bbq at it's best. The dishes are 6-8 dollars - very affordable for what you get. You can get a combo with beef, chicken and pork all together to taste them all. I was very impressed with the quality of the food and the flavors. In fact, this is probably one of the best Asian restaurants I've been to in Columbus. They also have superior crab rangoon. This place is for casual dining, you order at the front, get your drink and then they bring the food to you. I'll be returning here again soon!
(5)Neko C.
Best ramen I have had in Ohio thus far. From a Hawaiian BBQ place? What. The. F?!?! I wasn't super hopeful when I first set foot in here after dropping off a friend at the airport. The interior, while clean and modern, looked more like it would house a Panera Bread than some rockin' Japanese ramen. Needless to say, I was quite surprised when I found not one type of ramen on the menu, but four! Shoyu, Miso, Tonkotsu, and Shio ramen? Really? These people know there are different kinds of ramen? Well, sh-t! I'm impressed. I went with my favorite, Shoyu (or Soy Sauce) ramen, hoping my newfound positive vibes wouldn't be crushed into ash. They weren't. The beauty that arrived at my table was perfect- flavorful broth, perfectly done ramen noodles, green onion slivers, niro (seaweed) strips, tender bamboo shoots (never thought I would be so excited to see them, ahaha), a succulent slice of chashu (pork belly), and even two cute little Naruto fish cakes! It was like I had died and went to ramen heaven! And at $6.50 a bowl! It couldn't get any better! Well, it could- this place is over an hour away from me :'( Please open up a second location in Dayton! Pretty please??
(5)Richard M.
Like Kalena, I was hoping for a Rainbow Drive Inn or Zippy's, and was dismayed that their was no Loco Moco, no manapua, no lau lau, no lomi lomi salmon, no oxtail soup, no saimin, etc. Having live Hawai'i for 30 years, I was looking forward to this place! Still yet, it's a start! I couldn't decide between the mahi mahi and the kalbi ribs, so ordered both. I'll take the rest home and have for dinner. But boy. To see those pieces of mahi mahi, piled on a bed of lettuce with a scoop of rice and a scoop of macaroni salad in the styrofoam plate was just like a plate lunch off the lunch wagon at Sandy Beach! I also talked to the nice lady behind the counter, and she explained their were reluctant to have loco moco because the Five Guys place was close, but she sounded like they were going to try it for a special. And while I would have liked more real local dishes, it is the closest Columbus has until I open up my Leonard's malasada cart and eat up all the profits. And really. The food was pretty ono. I'll be back. Definitely worth a trip to try it out. Keep asking for more Hawaiian dishes, and maybe they can add more gradually. I got the feeling from them that they were trying. And if you see a black VW convertible with POIDOG license plates and University of Hawaii frames around them, parked out front, that would be me. Say hi and we can talk story. Aloha
(4)MJ L.
I love me some Aloha Hawaiian BBQ! This time last year, I was experiencing my first local food, mixed plate, from Rainbow Drive Inn in Oahu. As another reviewer said, this is not the same as the real thing, not that I expected it to be, but hey, I will take it! I had chicken, beef and galbi mixed plate and I was definitely happy as my plate brought back fond memories from past year. Beef and galbi were fantastic and well seasoned, but chicken fell short in quality and flavor, good thing it came with teriyaki sauce which was tasty. My friend had mahi mahi plate - while the fish wasn't quite as 'meaty', it was wonderfully flaky and panko crust awesomely crunchy. Flavor of mahi mahi was subtle, as was tartar sauce that came with it, but a little dunk in teriayki sauce fixed it. Scoop of macaroni salad adds awesome texture and cool temperature thing to each bite and I just love it! If it had just a tiny bit more flavor, it would've been perfect. Price is definitely right and fair - ranging around $8 per plate. If they started serving strawberry slush with a scoop of vanilla ice cream I might find myself in need of an intervention.
(4)Dave N.
I went there the other day and picked up food for the office, 3 of the 4 of us got the exact same thing, so there wasn't a lot to review. The three of us got the beef/chicken mix combo. This consisted of BBQ beef and BBQ (or closer to teriyaki) chicken over a bed of lettuce, served with a scoop of white rice and a scoop of macaroni salad. I noticed the multiple bottles of Sriracha sauce they had, and asked for a to-go portion of it. This was a good idea. The rice was really standard (it's rice...), and the macaroni salad was decent. It was heavy on the mayo as I've heard is the custom in Hawaii. The chicken was tender, not dried out, and had a good subtle teriyaki flavor. There was a side of sauce to go with it. It was cut up, but there was still a bit of work to do with the plastic cutlery. The beef was great! I don't know what it is about that style of preparation, but it has to be sampled to be understood. It was flavored, but not overly so. Unlike many Chinese dishes, the meat was not greasy at all. I'm almost always more of a chicken than beef guy, but this time it was the opposite. I took a piece of beef, dipped it in a bit of Sriracha, and got some rice on the fork too. I could eat a whole lot of beef that way. It was straight forward, tasty, simple and fairly cheap too. I'm going back for the beef by itself next time. Did I mention they have minced chicken lettuce wraps? No, I did not, but I'm mentioning it now, so settle down. If you've never had these, you must try them (unless you have a peanut allergy, in which case avoid these like the plague). Minced chicken wraps are possibly my favorite thing to get at a Chinese restaurant. I never feel it's worth the hassle to order pick up from a Chinese place for lunch, so I rarely get them. To be able to get them at a carryout place is a pretty big deal to myself and other lettuce wrap enthusiasts. The lady there said it was a hot seller. Aloha Hawaiian BBQ & Asian Bistro does have a website, but finding it is next to impossible, and I'm done with searching for now. EDIT: I found it alohahawaiianbbqasianbis… In addition to the food being good, the staff was friendly as can be, and the place was as clean as could be expected. I think they deserve at least one chance at giving you a great meal.
(4)Leon Y.
For an Asian student that spent over 25 hours on an airplane to study so far from home, one of the few things we miss the most is the Asian cuisines. The restaurant is owned by a Taiwanese couple and a few of the main chefs are Taiwanese as well from my observation. It is easily to be deceived that they do not serve Asian food because the word "Asian Bistro" is harder to be seen. From my opinion, their Asian food are just as good from their main dishes. Also their prices are fairly reasonable even though the restaurant it self looked middle-classed. For those who miss Asian food especially Taiwanese cuisines, be sure to visit there sometimes. They have a variety of Taiwanese trademark food which I my self missed a lot. I have been studying in Columbus for more than a year and a half and their beef noodle soup is the only one that taste just like their Taiwan counterpart. Now i have to head to their place few times a week not just because of their good food but also their friendly and efficient service.
(5)J.J. C.
I've only ordered from the Taiwanese menu. The pork chop dish is pretty good, but the price is a tinge over priced. =(
(3)Terry W.
Aloha is the best restaurant in Ohio!!
(5)Tyler W.
Wow, not my kind of food. I could not get past the smell of the raman noodles, so I couldn't eat it. I had the chicken and beef dish that came on some iceberg lettuce with a side of white rice and macaroni salad. The tables needed to be wiped off, and overall it wasn't really that great of an experience. The guy at the counter was really nice I have to say, and he tried to recommend some things he thought were good. I probably won't go back, there are just too many other options in Grandview.
(1)Brandon M.
Opened the account just for this. They accidentally forgot our lettuce wraps on a to-go order and the gentleman behind the counter actually chased down our car to give them to us. Amazing. Will definitely be back. Oh, the food is really good too.
(5)Lyndsey M.
I was really psyched for this concept, unfortunately, it didn't quite meet up to my expectations. I met a friend here for dinner this evening, when we got there we were the only diners (around 6:15pm). I ordered the BBQ chicken, she ordered the combo BBQ chicken/beef dish. For a limited time, fountain drinks are free. I don't usually drink soda, so I got water, but it seemed to taste pretty strongly of sugary pink lemonade. Ick. Get a bottle of water, if you want water. Our food came out quickly. Each dish was served on a bed of iceburg lettuce, and included sides of macaroni salad and white rice. The chicken seemed to include a lot of dark meat, which unfortunately I'm not a fan of. Overall, the food and atmosphere seemed pretty bland. I hoped that there would be some stronger flavors, maybe there are in the dishes on the Asian side of the menu. I will give them another try once they've been open for a few months, but next time I think I'll try something with spicy/hot symbols by the dish.
(2)Jamie C.
Like some other reviewers have said, I'm not sure about how Hawaiian Aloha is. However, they bring something to the plate that I've been wanting here in Columbus for a while... udon & donburi. I got the beef bowl (gyu-don). The beef was the right cut and it was seasoned well. The rice was also good. I was also happy to see that they had shichimi (seven flavor chili pepper) and soy sauce (i like a little extra drizzle) to put on my bowl also. The ambiance is lacking but the prices and menu, which includes Korean, Japanese & Chinese dishes, makes up for that.
(4)Andrea W.
I went when they had their grand opening and you got a free soda with your meal. The staff was super friendly and helpful but the food was just ok. I got a sampler and the short ribs were terrible but the chicken was pretty good. The boys pad thai was also ok. Just average...
(3)John D.
Cheap food...expectations disappointed. The name of this establishment suggests: a) dishes BBQ-like; b) dishes HAWAIIAN-like. Actually, the ambience is hyper-sanitized, cafeteria-oid, not Hawaiian even remotely. The food is vaguely Asian, mainly dry, taste-challenged, possibly Chinese of suspect origin. The Hawaiian Beef BBQ (I had anticipated beef with a savory-sweet pineapple-laden sauce) disappoints as the meat loosely approximated tasteless, gristled beef (I suspect the origin was a different animal); there was no sauce at all (certainly not BBQ), no BBQ spices, a repulsive odor wafted up my nostrils. I cautiously tasted a small piece found it inedible. The food may be perfectly safe to eat, nutritious even, but I found the experience to be stomach-churning.
(2)Heather K.
We were super picky when we lived back on the west coast, but Aloha has raised the bar for Hawaiian cuisine! Of course, I haven't been to Hawaii in years, but Aloha is the best that it gets when you're looking for a good Hawaiian meal here in on the main land. The meat is delicious, the sauces are succulent, and the service is superb-- and the pricing is SUPER affordable. It's nice that they're open until ten for when me and my boo are working late!
(5)Jason M.
food is little but expensive.
(3)Joelle N.
Do not recommend. I had an eggroll: sub-par with dry pieces of chicken. Chicken dish with 2 types of chicken. Just average. Didn't like either of the dipping sauces- teriaki sauce too sweet. Hubs got the Hawaiian BBQ beef. Liked that better than mine. And last, but not least, Pepsi products: boo! The upside was that the folks working there were super nice.
(3)