If you think the Hawaii car rental situation is bad, you probably haven’t yet encountered what it’s like to eat out in Hawaii. We’re here to report that restaurants that accept reservations are virtually impossible to get into, and those that don’t take reservations, well, you can expect to stand in line for some time. For top-notch restaurants, think Mama’s Fish House on Maui; it is worse. We tried getting a reservation today, and the first one we could find was for July 31.
At present, restaurants in Hawaii are limited to a 50% capacity restriction. Restauranteurs say this is an impossible situation, given the influx of visitor arrivals. Maui’s mayor recently spoke up and asked the governor to return capacity at restaurants to 75%. That request was denied. But now, restauranteurs have asked again, and this time the governor has listened.
Hawaii restaurants will move from 50% capacity up to 75% capacity as soon as 60% of Hawaii residents have been fully vaccinated and/or received one dose. That is likely to happen soon, based on what we are hearing. Currently, that rate stands at 53 percent and rising.
At that same vaccination rate of 60%, social gatherings will also increase to 25 people indoors and up to 75 people outdoors.
Here’s what to do.
Until things change both in terms of capacity and visitor arrivals, it’s best to plan and book restaurants before your trip. Check the websites of your favorite restaurants or use Open Table to see what’s available on the island you are visiting. Another important thing is to book your luau early if it’s on your list of things to do in Hawaii. So that makes, at a minimum, three things to book in advance—airfare, Hawaii car rentals, and now restaurants. You might want to add Hawaii activities to your list for advance bookings as well.
Regular commenter Patrick added these helpful tips:
If you strike out at a restaurant you want to go to, call them and see if they have a waiting list and inform them of the days you would go. If they are sold out and your travel dates are well in advance, it might work out. Once you get there, you can always stop by and ask as they will see you are committed to trying or re-visisting their restaurant. If you are visiting from the mainland especially in the fist few days, trying making an early reservation since you will still be on Mainland time. Good luck.
Share your ideas too on how to find an open table on your Hawaii vacation.
Moana surfrider image courtesy of Marriott.
Thanks for pointing out that we need to check the websites of the restaurants and use open table to see what are available to visit. I’ll keep that in mind now that we are craving to go to a Hawaiian good restaurant this weekend. My husband and I have been planning to try their food for the past year now, but we are just able to do it now since we feel safer these days even if the pandemic is not yet over.
We made two advance reservations so far – At two of the nicer resorts on the Big Island – MONTHS in advance – and BOTH required a credit card in order to make the advance reservation. Never had to do that before. Neither of these were bookable via Open Table as they were before. Had to call. They have listings on Open Table but the links for booking a table don’t work.
Just hoping our auto rental is there when we get there and it is the vehicle we booked. :0)
Not sure if we will make it to Kauai this trip, Jeff. :0( Next time :0)
Hi Colleen.
Have a great time! Glad you got some good advance reservations.
Aloha.
After reading the comments about the difficulty in getting reservations for dinner at many restaurants, my husband and I spent time tonight booking dinner reservations. We will be in Kauai mid July and were able to successfully book our dinner reservations either through Open Table or by calling the restaurants directly. We booked our favorite restaurants like Dukes, Keoki’s Paradise, Gaylords and Lemongrass Grill. We filled up our 2 weeks nicely leaving a night or two available for walking into places like Coconut Fish Cafe, Smiley’s Local Grinds and Olympic Cafe that don’t take reservations. We’ve never had to plan this far in advance before but seeing that we are in unusual times with Covid-19, this is a whole new plan of attack.So, there is hope! Thank you BOH for all you do to keep us informed!
Hi Lisa.
That’s great advance planning! Thanks for letting us and others know that it can work.
Aloha.
Hello!
Does anyone know if hotel restaurants are in this mess too? If I am a guest do I get priority since I’m staying there, can show room key, etc. over the non-guests or public at-large?
Mahalo!
Hi Rob.
We are hearing that the hotel restaurants are in the same boat, unfortunately.
Aloha.
Just another nail in the coffin …. Another why not to visit
…. And may be a long time before another trip….
For places that are sold out, has take out or delivery been a viable option from places that offer that service? I am thinking primarily about just getting the Hula Pie from Duke’s since we are only on Oahu over a weekend, so there is little chance we will get in to that location. Any thoughts are appreciated!
Yes you can get take out. Duke’s has a deal on Tuesdays for Take Out. 10% off
If you have to make a reservation weeks before you even travel…skip it. I can understand that people may be traveling here for a special occasion and maybe a fine dining restaurant is planned but you are on vacation. Take it all in stride. Over Memorial Weekend, the restaurants and beaches were crammed. Mid-week not so much but we are heading into summer and schools are out so everywhere will be crowded.
Aloha BOH,
Just returned from beautiful Maui. Loved the beach time and the amazing restaurant dining experience. Of course my wise wife made our reservations months in advance. Mamas FH, WOW, Ruth Chris Steak House, Haliimaile General Store, wine tasting at Maui Wine and a tour of the Haliimaile Distillery. All are special and unique. Put your name in and hope for a spot, make a reservation as far in advance as possible. Food trucks can also dish up some savory dishes “ Kinaole in Kihei” one-off the best, no reservation required. Thanks for keeping us up on all the current happenings.
Mahalo Nui Loa
Greg H
Hi Greg.
Thanks. We appreciate the report from your recent trip to Maui.
Aloha.
We visited the Big Island in April and were advised of the restaurant situation by friends who has visited Maui the previous month. We did as you advised, and made reservations before leaving home. There were 1 or 2 restaurants we couldn’t get into, even after offering a week or 2 of possible dates, but had a really positive dining experience. Since I have limited walking and standing capability, it was essential to get reservations ahead of time. PLAN AHEAD !
We are currently in Maui, staying in Kaanapali. I can confirm that it is impossible to get a reservation at the better restaurants unless you booked several months ahead of your stay
At Duke’s the earliest reservation is in August. There are long lines to the popular Wharf area restaurants where reservations aren’t taken. There are food trucks where many of the tourists are visiting for their meals. With regard to car rentals, many tourists don’t have cars. I had to book two separate reservations to cover my 24 day stay with rental companies offering older vehicles. Right now I driving a 2009 Toyota Corona that I have for 20 days for a cost of $910. I’ve met a resident here who has rented his Cadillac out to a tourist paying $2,000 for the privilege! The timeshare resort I staying at has pre covid occupancy yet services and toiletries provided are at a minimum. The excuse given is that many of their laid off staff prefer to continue to collect unemployment benefits getting about 80 % of their wages and enjoy spending time with their families through the summer. However, vendors are very happy to see tourists back again and having the opportunity to earn a living.
In May we tried booking a Zipline adventure on the Big Island for any day between June 16 – 28 with no luck. We have been placed on waitlists.
If you strike out at a restaurant you want to go to, call them and see if they have a waiting list and inform them of the days you would go. If they are sold out and your travel dates are well in advance, it might work out. Once you get there, you can always stop by and ask as they will see you are committed to trying or re-visisting their restaurant. If you are visiting from the mainland especially in the fist few days, trying making an early reservation since you will still be on Mainland time. Good luck.
Hi Patrick.
Thanks. We added your helpful tips to the post and credited you.
Aloha.
Thanks for the update. WOW! Another hurdle. :0(
We aren’t going until later this year. Tried using Open Table for our favorite restaurant(s) and it appears they are not taking reservations. Went to restaurant website and submitted an inquiry – hoping to reserve that way.Waiting for response.
Do these restaurants have adequate staffing? Perhaps that’s an even greater problem. If occupancy is increased but the restaurants have inadequate staff – there is still a very large problem. Looks like we may be eating in our Condo more than we planned. :0(
Hi Colleen.
We’ll cook for you. LOL. Yes, staffing is definitely still a problem. We’re hopeful that will improve soon as things change with unemployment.
Aloha.
Plate lunch places are fabulous, and you can’t get a better dinner spot than a blanket on the beach
Aloha Guys
Thank you for the timely info.
Aloha,
Wow, we just came back from Waikiki on Sunday, June 6th and you are not kidding about getting a table. It’s a waiting game for sure if you were not able to get reservations ahead of time. Saturday, May 29th of the Memorial Day Holiday Weekend was PACKED. The only strategy we used that night was to move off of Kalakaua and onto Kuhio. Luckily we are frequent travelers (and although a lot of places did not make it through COVID) we were still able to find somewhere for a drink and a bite to eat (Rivals, btw 2 thumbs up to them!) Duke’s was able to accommodate us(during the week) after a 1hour 45 min wait. But totally worth it! So, you just have to settle down, don’t go hungry and hopefully you can get a MaiTai or 2 while you wait. We also had a nice meal at Tropics at the Hilton Hawaiian Village after about a hour wait. Weekends are much busier, so I would hit up the favorite places during the week and go to the off beat places on weekends.
Wishing all you travelers the best!
Thanks for the info on Tropics. That is our favorite place for lunch in the HHV. We’ll be there next week, so I hope mid-week it’s not so bad.