The Ultimate Oahu Food Guide: Every Poke, Shrimp Truck, and Shave Ice Spot We Actually Recommend

Poke sampler

Get: The $40 poke sampler: tuna, salmon, octopus, and a spicy ahi with gochujang

Our first meal on one Hawaii trip, and worth building a day around. The $40 sampler covers a huge range, tuna, salmon, octopus, an ahi with what's clearly gochujang mixed in, a Chinese-style ginger-green-onion sauce, and more, and the wait was about 20 minutes. Samplers are limited, so it's not available all day; get there and ask for one before they're gone. We've said it before: Off the Hook, come to LA.

Poke, no lines

Get: Salmon poke bowl with sushi rice

Our go-to when we don't want to wait: almost no lines, you can order ahead, and it's walking distance from where we usually stay in Waikiki. Two poke bowls ran about $22. What sets it apart is that they don't mix the fish and toppings until you actually order, so you can customize it exactly how you want it. Cheap, consistent, and no regrets ordering here twice in one trip.

Poke and donburi

Get: A donburi bowl, ahi and salmon

Popular for a reason, poke and donburi with genuinely excellent knife skills on the fish, but budget time for it: this location took us about 30 minutes to get through. It's a similar style to Maguro Spot but with the tradeoff of longer lines since it's better known; if you don't mind the wait, both are worth trying on different days.

Garlic shrimp truck

Get: The garlic shrimp plate ($16)

The first shrimp truck you hit driving up this stretch of the North Shore, and the rice alone might be worth the drive: it's completely drenched in garlic oil, and more than one of us said we could taste more garlic flavor in that rice than in the shrimp itself. Cash only, no indoor seating, and yes, there are flies, but honestly fewer than we've seen at the more famous shrimp trucks nearby.

Musubi and bento, multiple locations

Get: The sampler pack: umeboshi, kombu, salmon, tuna, karage, and more

The main Waikiki location has a long line most of the day since it's a well-known Yelp favorite, so we've also used their Seaside Ave takeout location as a shorter-line alternative. Both serve the same excellent musubi. We came at 7am opening once and still waited about 20 minutes, but it's genuinely one of the best breakfasts on the island: kimchi and spam musubi first thing in the morning is hard to beat.

Malasadas

Get: The original, the cinnamon, and (if you're feeling adventurous) the Li Hing flavor

The main shop's line can wrap around the building, so we usually go to one of the four Malasada Mobile trucks parked around the island instead, though they carry fewer flavors than the main location. The malasadas themselves are always warm, fluffy, and not overly sweet; the Li Hing one has a subtle plum-powder dusting that's fun to try once, but we'd still default to the classic original or cinnamon.

Shave ice, alternative to the North Shore's famous spot

Get: Lily koi and guava shave ice with condensed milk and homemade mochi

Our favorite alternative to Matsumoto's on the North Shore, which usually has a serious line. This is only a 15-to-20-minute drive from Waikiki, not far from Diamond Head, and we genuinely think we enjoy it more: the mango is some of the most delicious we've had, and a medium runs about $6. No indoor dining, but there's a small seating area, or just eat in the car like we did.

Poke, local hole-in-the-wall

Get: Half limu poke, half Hawaiian style, about $11

A cute little local spot worth supporting on your way through Waialua. The limu style brings seaweed and onion, the Hawaiian style leans into garlic and chili pepper, and the owner was sweet enough to teach us about lumpia and a type of banana called "apple banana" that's local to the area. We didn't get to try the lumpia this visit, but we're planning to next time.

Bento and poke, closes early

Get: The family bento: mochiko chicken, hot dog, spam, seafood tempura, and a ube tart

Very busy and closes at 2pm, so plan around it, and go in knowing they sometimes run out of popular items (we missed out on their poi mochi donuts). The family bento alone is worth the stop: perfectly seasoned rice, mochiko chicken that isn't greasy despite being fried, and a ube tart for dessert. The whole visit took about 25 minutes even during a rush.

100% Kona coffee

Get: A straight 100% Kona coffee

Right downstairs from where we've stayed, which is dangerous when the line is genuinely ridiculous most mornings. It's more acidic than a typical cup we're used to, but not overwhelmingly so, a good option if you want real Kona coffee without driving to the Big Island.

Smoked meats, local plate lunch

Get: Smoked chicken and beef stew over papa rice (half brown, half white), plus kimchi on the side

They smoke everything over guava and strawberry guava wood sourced from the Hawaiian mountains, and you can genuinely smell it. The beef stew tastes almost like curry, the carrots melt in your mouth, and the smoked chicken is so fragrant you don't need any sauce. Duck shows up on limited days only, so call ahead if that's what you're after. The kimchi on the side is fresh, almost like a slaw.

Kaya toast and coffee

Get: Kaya toast with a soft-boiled egg

The last time we wanted this specific style of toast, we had to fly to Flushing, New York for it, so finding it on Oahu was a genuine surprise. The bread is impossibly fluffy and they're generous with the kaya jam; we said out loud that it might be the best version we've had, and we've been to Singapore.

Hawaiian-inspired dinner

Get: Garlic butter prawns, ulu chips (breadfruit), kampachi, and ahi tartare

Our birthday dinner spot, on a friend's recommendation, and one of the best meals of any Oahu trip. You order through an app with a running tab, which felt like a fun gimmick, but the food is what sold us: garlic butter prawns that might be the most elevated version we've had on the island, crispy ulu (breadfruit) chips that taste like a cross between a fry and a pizza crust, and a citrusy, savory kampachi we didn't want to stop eating. The ahi tartare, built with egg yolk, ume gel, crispy shallots, Thai chili, and a shrimp cracker, was unlike anything else we tried in Hawaii.

Shave ice, made to order

Get: The best-seller: peach, with condensed milk and peach syrup

We hadn't planned on stopping, but we needed shave ice and this was close by. It's made to order (about a 5-minute wait) using canned peaches, and the result is what we'd call peach overload in the best way: refreshing, not overly sweet, and only about $7. They have plenty of other flavors if peach isn't your thing.

Kalua pork, garlic shrimp, and Filipino-fusion pasta

Get: A $10 kalua pork mini plate, Kahuku garlic shrimp, and an ube pasta with crispy pork (lechon)

Three low-key local spots worth seeking out together on a North Shore-bound day. The kalua pork mini plate is easy to miss (you have to actually look for the building) but the pork is tender, savory, and not overly salty or sweet, the kind of balance we said felt unmatched. The garlic shrimp nearby might be the most elevated version we've had on the island. And the ube pasta with crispy lechon at the third spot is genuinely unique, a homemade Hawaiian-Filipino fusion pasta we don't think you can find anywhere else; they'll even mail you their dry noodles to the mainland if you ask.

Poke bowl, inside a historic 1904 market

Get: Ahi and salmon poke bowl with sushi rice (a $1.50 upcharge, worth it)

Tucked inside Honolulu's Oahu Market, open since 1904 and worth a walk-through on its own. It's a one-person operation, so expect it to take about 20 minutes even though the poke itself is excellent and clearly gets the local stamp of approval. Worth the short wait.

Classic plate lunch

Get: A mixed plate (kalbi, chicken, and fish) and a loco moco with sunny-side-up eggs

Perfect late-night food, and a genuine Oahu classic. The mixed plate lets you try three proteins at once, and the chicken in particular came out well-seasoned with a lot of flavor. Two full plates ran us around $22, a lot of food for the price, and it's the kind of order we'd get again on every trip.

Saturday market

Get: Whatever looks good; this market has a bit of everything

Two full parking lots of vendors on Saturdays: food, clothing, coffee, pastries, and a farmers-market section. It's very popular locally, so go hungry and budget more time than you think you'll need to actually walk the whole thing.

Poi donut

Get: Two poi donuts and a croissant (about $5 total)

The poi donut looks unassuming, a bit brownish on the outside, but it's surprisingly fluffy on the inside and not nearly as sweet as we expected. A cheap, easy add-on if you're already bakery-hopping.

Garlic shrimp truck

Get: Garlic shrimp plate

Our usual go-to shrimp truck, right across the street from Jenny's. We go back and forth between the two on different trips; if one has a long line, just cross the street and try the other.

Shave ice, Taiwanese chain

Get: The mango shave ice

A reunion for us after two years away, and just as good as we remembered. The mango flavor tastes like genuinely high-quality mango, not artificial syrup, and Hawaii mangoes in general just taste better than what we get back home.

Coffee

Get: A large honey lavender latte, no milk

A solid coffee stop for something a little more floral than a standard latte; the honey lavender comes together well without tasting like potpourri, which floral drinks can sometimes veer into.

Soft serve

Get: Ask what's seasonal

One of several viewer recommendations we got after posting our first Oahu video; on our list to go back and cover in full detail.

Tonkatsu

Get: Ask for their katsu set

Recommended to us by viewers after our last video; we haven't had a chance to fully cover this one yet, but it's on our list for next time.

Coffee and brunch

Get: Ask what's fresh that day

Another viewer recommendation from Kaimuki, a neighborhood worth exploring on foot if you have the time. Still on our list to fully cover.

Shave ice, North Shore

Get: Ask for their best seller

A North Shore shave ice spot recommended by viewers after our last video; we're planning to give it a full write-up on our next trip through Haleiwa.