Where to Eat at Ala Moana Center

Ala Moana Center is located in Honolulu, and it is Hawaii's biggest shopping mall. It also happens to be the biggest open-air shopping center in the world! From restaurants to snack shops and desserts, this is where we like to eat at Ala Moana ^_^

Ala Moana Center is Hawaii's biggest shopping mall. Locals just call it Ala Moana.

Ala Moana is also the name of a neighborhood, but everyone will know you're referring to the mall. Ala Moana also happens to be the largest open-air shopping center in the world. The world! Very cool, yeah?

Hawaii has a lot of largest this, highest grossing that, etc (we can do a future post that covers all those things!)

Ala Moana is the most centrally located shopping mall on Oahu, just 5 minutes drive from Waikiki and 10 minutes from downtown Honolulu.

The mall wasn't always this big. I remember it being a more reasonable size when I was younger. Then the owners slowly added on more and more to the mall every year. Now it is extra big and awesome.

I don't love malls on the mainland because many can feel generic and depressing, but something about Ala Moana makes it special.

I think it's both because it's open air (and the air is nice here!) and because there's still a strong local Hawaii touch to the mall.

In addition to all the big box vendors, you'll also find many small locally owned stores and food places (though there used to be even more).

Three Main Food Courts

There are two main food courts in Ala Moana. They are very different and located on opposite ends of the mall.

Pro Tip: save yourself the extra walking and figure out what you're craving first.

Makai Market Food Court

Makai Market Food Court (opened in 1987) is the largest of the three food courts. It is the "original" Ala Moana food court and still the most popular ones.

Makai Market Food Court is where you'll find the bigger brands like Panda Express (Hawaii is the only state where Panda Express serves chow fun and it's tasty), Häagen-Dazs, Cinnabon, Curry House CoCo Ichibanya, and Jollibee.

There are also some local favorites like SingMaTei and Honolulu Cookie Co., but this food court is mainly the "big name" brands.

It is always super packed and active in here!

We like to visit places like:

• Yummy's - For Korean plate lunch.
• Curry House Coco Ichibanya - Get the kastu curry and rice!
• Ala Moana Poi Bowl - For Hawaiian plates.
• SingMaTei - For laksa, ginger chicken rice (weekends only), and steamed rice rolls with hot curry poured all over. It's called Curry Look Funn Roll and is my favorite dish in this food court. Ask for extra chili sauce, real onolicious.

Other snack and and sweets to check out this food court:

• Closed: Beard Papa's - They featured local fillings like lilikoi / passionfruit.
• Honolulu Cookie Company's - Kiosk in the center of the food court (great for picking up small gifts, you can also taste their cookies on Hawaiian Airlines)
• Holy Cow Hot Dog - Korean deep-fried hot dogs. Like a corn dog, but tastier and rolled in a bit of sugar. We usually order the Classic or the Fried Potato (has diced potato cubes on the outside).

Foodland and Longs Drugs

There is one supermarket at Ala Moana and it is called Foodland. You can get everything from fresh poke to Spam musubi, fried chicken and chi chi dango mochi here. Also fresh fruits, vegetables, meats, and cheese. That's their poke station pictured above.

There is one drugstore at Ala Moana and it is called Longs Drugs (secretly a CVS), but we all love Longs. Stock up on local snacks and food-related treats here. Think senbei and li hing mui gummy bears. Full post on Longs Drugs here.

The Lanai (aka Old Shirokiya)

The Lanai opened in 2017. It is also known as "Old Shirokiya" because this is where the original Shirokiya food court used to be.

(The old Shirokiya was AMAZING and very different from the Shirokiya Japan Village Walk. It was the spot in the 1990s. We miss the old Shirokiya greatly.)

The Lanai focuses mainly on local businesses, which is exciting!

It's also the food court I find most pleasant and convenient, especially with the mix of indoor and outdoor seating.

These are the places I usually visit:

Musubi Cafe Iyasume
For everything musubi! Here is my complete post on Musubi Cafe Iyasume. Form the classic Spam musubi to crazy wonderful musubi layered with Spam, avocaod, egg, and unagi and musubis made with multigrain rice, the options here are plenty and delicious. They also have many other locations including one at Kahala Mall).

Ahi and Vegetable
Fresh fish! Sashimi, sushi, rolls, and more. I'm a fan of this category of "casual sushi" and appreciate how quality fish and sushi is accessible in Hawaii. My go-to orders here include: spicy salmon gunkan (they also have an ahi version), the combos with a mix of sushi (spicy ahi, salmon, and ahi) and rolls, and the fun inari bombs (which is basically cone sushi stuffed with spicy ahi).

Pro Tip: They have grab-and-go chirashi bowls and rolls in the refrigerated case, but if you have an 5-10 extra minutes, it's worth ordering off the menu the get a "fresh" made dish.

Teppanyaki Farmer
They make "Da Original Steak Roll!" Teppanyaki Farmer started as a food truck many years ago. It's cool to see how they've evolved and I love that we can now get their steak rolls at Ala Moana. The "rolls" are thin sliced ribeye rolled around lot of shredded potatoes, and then grilled. Served with good sauces and rice!

Seoul Mix 2.0
For Korean plate lunches and a good variety of kimbap / Korean sushi rolls!

Yung Yee Kee Dim Sum
Their sit-down restaurant on Kapiolani Blvd closed, but their takeout spot is thriving. Love being able to get a bunch of different dim sum dishes and taking it home for dim sum lunch/dinner at home. I get the sticky rice in lotus leaf, the radish cakes, the fried mashed taro balls stuffed with pork, and more! They also have bowls/plates like char siu rice and roast pork rice and jook so you can quick get one of those for lunch on the go.

Brug Bakery
A very popular Japanese-German bakery with multiple locations on Oahu including ones in Manoa and at Kahala Mall. I love the many types of sandwich bread, the raisin bread, the strawberry butter stuffed bun, the baked goods featuring local ingredients, and much more.

This bakery is especially popular with families with little kids...the spinach and ham roll seems to be THE after school snack of choice.

Mana Sandwiches
Located right next to Brug Bakery (same owners), this is a Japanese-style sandwich shop! Think beautiful sandwiches of fresh fruit and whipped cream. And a super assortment of savory sandwiches on their housemade bread, so pillowy and gentle. I usually order teriyaki chicken and avocado, the roast beef, and the katsu sandwiches. They lobster salad is also good.

If you like the bread, you can purchase just the bread by the loaf! They also have a morning special: $10 for the daily soup (usually clam chowder) and any sandwich of your choice.

The Department Store Restaurants

Neiman Marcus, Nordstrom, and Macy's have restaurants within the department store.

Neiman Marcus does the nicest job with food service. Mariposa (3rd floor of Neiman Marcus) is a long time local favorite. Everyone loves those popovers! More info on Mariposa in the section below.

For a casual/quick lunch, I'm happy to meet at Espresso Bar which is on the 1st floor of Neiman Marcus. Think soups, sandwiches, and salads. They also have a daily special and on Thursdays (ONLY Thursdays)...there's local-style oxtail soup! Yes!! Details about that here. They also have good coconut cake so you can enjoy cake and coffee in the afternoon - a tasty break spot shopping.

Nordstrom has a popular gelato shop right outside their main entrance (it's next to Uniqlo). The gelato is good! They have a coffee bar called eBar on the second floor. Plus an indoor bar/cafe called Habitant on the second floor (it's a popular meeting spot).

The main Nordstrom restaurant is called Ruscello and located on the 3rd floor. The entrance is right by the (very impressive) baby and kids department. The food at Ruscello is solid and there is something for everyone. The tomato and basil soup is a classic. Don't forget to also get fries. A great meeting spot with friends. This feels almost like the grown up version of California Pizza Kitchen.

Macy's is home to a newer location of Liliha Bakery which we'll talk about next...

Ala Moana Restaurants:

There are many stand alone restaurants at Ala Moana. They range from chains like California Pizza Kitchen and Tanaka of Tokyo to local restaurants like Liliha Bakery and Jade Dynasty. Below are my usual go-to restaurants at Ala Moana:

SXY Szechuan

Love, love this place. SXY Szechuan has many good classic Sichuan dishes like pork belly with spicy garlic (pictured above, a must order!) to dan dan noodles stir-fried shredded potato and pickled fish fillets in broth. It's great for any occasion from a quick solo lunch to dinner with friends and family. Here's a detail post on what we like to order here.

Liliha Bakery

Liliha Bakery is a famous bakery/dinner. Their original location is in Kalihi. They opened a second location on Nimitz a few years ago. Ala Moana is their third (and most convenient!) location.

They have all the local favorites including loco moco, fried chicken, and that oxtail soup. My grandma likes the saimin a lot. I love the crispy waffles (one of those if you know, you know dishes!)

It's a bright and cheery restaurant. So nice to have a touch of Liliha Bakery in town. They also have a separate bakery section where you can get Coco Puffs (original flavor is better than the green tea). Full post on Liliha Bakery here.

Mariposa

The restaurant inside Neiman Marcus. Most popular as a ladies who lunch type of a spot. Laid back but also a little fancy. Hot from the oven popovers with strawberry butter. I like to get the laksa seafood curry for my main dish.

Gen Korean BBQ House

All you can eat Korean bbq. Make sure don't fill up on the potato salad like I do (a mistake I make over and over again...I am a complete fool for potato salad).

Shabuya

All you can eat shabu! A very popular spot with lines at both lunch and dinner.

Jade Dynasty

This is where my grandma and I get dim sum weekly! Also good for Chinese banquet dinners. Great Chinese without needing to go to Chinatown (where parking is a hassle)...this is a game changer.

Sweets and Desserts at Ala Moana:

Sweets are clearly the most important part. From cakes to drinks and mochi and more, here's where to go ^_^

La Palme D'or

Best things here:

• Coffee Jelly Drink! Coffee jelly on the bottom, a ring of whipped cream, and then milk (recommended with soy milk) and ice on top. Use the straw to break up the jelly and mix everything together. So good. They also make a pineapple jelly/black tea combo, but this coffee jelly/milk one is the best. (The Aikane Plantation stand at the Saturday morning KCC Farmers' Market makes a similar version of this drink.)
• Roll Cakes! Very Japanese. They come in four flavors (coffee - pictured below, strawberry, vanilla, and green tea) and you can it by the slice or whole roll. I often get a whole roll and slice off a piece each morning for breakfast.
• All the cakes! I like to try a different cake on each visit. I have an extra soft spot for the Strawberry Shortcake and Palme Chocolate.

Back when La Palme D'or first opened (many years ago), they offered this amazing dessert called The Parfait. The Parfait was made up of all the odds and ends from their other cakes. Think irregular slices, end pieces, etc. They piled it all into a tall cup and sold it for $3. I loved it because you could taste so many different desserts in one serving. And it was always a good and thoughtful combo of items. Sadly they stopped serving this. It was beautiful while it lasted!

Jejubing Dessert Cafe

This shop is all about Korean shaved ice, aka bingsu! They have 7 different flavors of bingsu and the most popular is the Injeolmi Bingsu. It features a big bowl of milk shaved ice with kinako, sweet red bean paste, homemade mochi, almond flakes and sweetened condensed milk.

Protip: get an extra serving of sweetened condensed milk on the side for no extra charge. You'll need it for the middle layers of the dessert (because it's only drizzled on top). So good! So refreshing!

Jejubing Desset Cafe is one of the few dessert places in Ala Moana that has a nice sit down area. A great place to meet with friends.

Minamoto Kitchoan

I first mentioned Minamoto Kitchoan in the Kahala Mall post. Kahala Mall has a smaller kiosk and Ala Moana has a full-on store. This store is filled with beautiful Japanese wagashi and snacks. Think loaves of picture-perfect castella cakes, peach jellies (also so good eaten frozen!) and dorayaki.

Great Food Spots That Have Closed:

Closed: Aloha Confectionary

Aloha Confectionary looks just like another candy store from the outside, but head inside to find a bunch of offerings like housemade cupcakes, shortbreads, and soft-serve. Soft-serve is the thing to get here and the best flavor is milk tea. They use dairy from the Big Island, and it's so rich and creamy. Pictured above is a swirl of fresh milk and milk tea.

Closed: Pierre Marcolini

Pierre Marcolini is a Belgain chocolate shop with locations all over Europe. They have only one US location and it is in Hawaii! How lucky are we? The chocolates are great, but I come for the chocolate soft-serve. It is dark and super duper velvety.

Closed: Kulu Kulu

Kulu Kulu's pastry chef was formerly at La Palme D'or, so there's a lot of overlap between the two cake shops. What's the main difference between the two? La Palme D'or has a more fancy/luxurious vibe, while Kulu Kulu is more playful/approachable. Kulu Kulu also features new cakes often...like this loco moco cake and ramen cake ^_^

Closed: Uncle Clay's House Of Pure Aloha

Shave ice! (Second photo from top of this post)

Closed: Somisomi Soft Serve & Taiyaki

Somisomi is chain with locations all over California, and now Hawaii. The lines were crazy when this place opened in 2018. Lines have calmed down a bit, but it's still packed during prime hours. Somisomi is known for two things: soft-serve and taiyaki. Soft-serve comes in flavors like ube, black sesame, matcha. etc. You can get the soft-serve and taiyaki separate or together (the taiyaki functions as the soft-serve cone).

The thing I love best at Somisomi is hardly talked about. It's the cheese taiyaki! There is no soft-serve involved. They make the taiyaki and instead of filling it with nutella and/or soft-serve, they melt shredded cheddar cheese inside the taiyaki. It's hot (the crisp taiyaki fringes are especially enjoyable haha) and slightly sweet (from the taiyaki batter) but also nice and savory (from the melted cheese). It's a must.