For a true taste of local color, visitors can experience authentically local dining destinations at several great places in Kona, some of which are actually historic venues. From homemade Hawaiian laulau and a side of lomi salmon, to a plate of sizzling pork chops sauteed in the same pan grandmother used, the menu offerings at these best-kept secrets keep customers coming back for more.
In Honalo, just a few short miles from Holualoa Inn, Teshima’s Japanese restaurant has been in business since the early 1900s. Grandma Teshima, age 105, still visits customers in the dining room, where she and her extended family have been serving such favorites as sashimi, fried fish, shrimp tempura and plenty of tasty sides for decades. A visit to this historic restaurant is like stepping back in time, so be sure to stop by for breakfast, lunch or dinner any day of the week.
A few miles up the road in Captain Cook, the Manago Hotel restaurant, founded in 1917, is owned and operated by the third generation of the Manago family. Another throwback to an early era, the restaurant maintains its old-fashioned, laminate furniture and funky menu board on the wall. The Manago Hotel is famous locally for its pork chops, but be sure to try the sauteed ahi, freshly caught, as well as the butterfish, opelu, akule and other local fish.
For authentic Hawaiian take-out food, Kaaloa’s Super Js offers home-ground poi, steamed laulau, kalua pig and cabbage, lomi salmon, mac salad and more. This homey, little roadside destination features the cooking of the Kaaloa family of Honaunau, who take special care to treat every customer with aloha.
At Holualoa Inn, our Kona bed and breakfast boutique hotel offers homemade gourmet breakfast served each morning. Whether 100-percent Kona coffee, freshly harvested fruits and produce or fresh eggs directly from our coop, breakfast at Holualoa Inn will start your day out just right.
Innkeeper Holualoa Inn