Aloha Hawaiian BBQ

After eating here several times, I just realized it’s not the Aloha I was recommended to.
Ordered to mix and the steak had so much fat. Chicken was better but still fatty.
Wow! Just saw them charge a guy .75 cents for three cups of water.
Service is cold & sterile as many reviewers wrote.
My last time here

Been coming here for a couple years and never got around to writing a review. This is one of our go to places for Hawaiian food. Our usual order is the Loco Moco, Hawaiian BBQ or Chicken Katsu. All 3 have never disappointed. Really love the BBQ or Katsu with their teriyaki sauce. The rice is good and their salad is too. Oh and my bf always orders the spam musubi. By the way, forgot to mention my bf was born and raised in Hawaii. So I guess it says a lot of this is our go to place :) check me out for good sized servings and ono food.

The Santa Ana location is great! Good service, good food, overall a good experience. If you want the complete opposite, bad service, decent food at smaller portions, then this is the location for you! There’s a reason this location has fewer stars. This is my second time coming here, only because the Santa Ana location is closed today. I live closer to this location too. Word of advice for management: don’t have the grumpy old Asian lady in front, she’s the downfall of your business. Fire her immediately.

Stopped here for dinner to wait for traffic to die down. Plus it had been a while since I ate spam musubi which is not good for you, but makes your taste buds and appetite really happy. It’s something I can make at home but requires prep and time.
Also ordered the Hawaiian barbeque chicken. This I cannot make at home. I’ll never get the flavor right; especially for the macaroni salad. Leaving it to the experts! My order was grilled while waiting. A W E some! When I opened the container… you know how much chicken was in there !!! Cool the college kids can have some too. But I got first dibs. Lips don’t lie that was really delish!!!
But here’s a funny: When I walked in, a man was on a ladder cleaning the ceiling vent. Had another man «spotting». Good practice of safety measure. Except why was the man cleaning, wearing a plastic bag as a face mask? He didn’t suffocate thank goodness.
One other thing somewhat unpleasant was they were mopping while I was eating — didn’t like the Clorox smell with food. Good intent but does not mix well with an awesome meal. The young lady at the register was sweet though. No issues with the customer service or food. Parking lot is very narrow and hectic so it’s crowded — not the restaurant owner’s fault of course.
Would’ve given 3.5 stars if the mopping didn’t occur. Barbeque chicken wins the crown!

The food is good and the portions are Huge!!! The service is cold and sterile. Did I mention the portions out way the service.

This is definitely the tastiest and default Hawaiian food place around here. Other places skimp on the food, and usually isn’t too amazing. My usual is the Katsu chicken, and this place gives you a heaping load of it. It’s literally enough to fill both me and my wife up with one order. Good stuff!

I’ll be be honest (as I always am) this is based entirely on the loco moco I just ordered. I have been to every Ono, Aloha, and L&L in South Orange County… And this is the first Loco Moco I get with perfect eggs. I want my eggs as runny as the gravy, with fried crispy bottoms.
Taste and textures on hit.
Was it a lil run down with tables not cleaned off? Yeah, but so is almost every local spot on the Island
We’ll see how they fair if I stop in again and try their bbq plates and katsu.

This location does not measure up to the other Aloha locations throughout Orange County. Food is just not as good… I saw the reviews, but being a lover of Hawaiian bbq, I wanted to give this place a change anyway.
For about $ 10, you can get a combo plate of chicken, beef or kalbi with rice, pickled cabbage and mac salad. Aloha is known for stuffing that box till it can’t fit no more. This location just disappoints… For $ 10, I’m not expecting a feast, but the amount I received for lunch was barely enough for one meal. I went with the Hawaiian combo, and subbed out the kalbi for more chicken… Instead I got no kalbi, and one piece of chicken and one slab of beef. Where is my extra piece of chicken? So I got less food for the same price.
The food is also not as flavorful, and the mac salad is made with a lot more mayo… On top of that, the cabbage is pickled instead of boiled… the flavors don’t mix very well with the meat.
For $ 10, it’s a bit pricey for lunch… Drive a mile down to hit up the Aloha in the shopping plaza on Callen instead. They really hook it up there.

If you like mayo, come here.
Mac salad — lots of mayo. No flavor. Small ice cream scoop portion
Honey shrimp — Cut off tails, okay batter, mayo, no honey taste. Large shrimp.
Walnuts — Good, likely pre-​made.
Refills — Free. Stupid to nickle and dime .50 a refill after wasting $ 12 here.
Filler — Cabbage and scoop of rice — didnt eat.
Still hungry.
Inside — Crowded, barely enough indoor seating space during weekday lunch rush. Not air conditioned.
Service — Gruff, not friendly.
I have had much better.

Love this place. No matter how packed it is on lunch time they still have your food hit and ready fast! Amazing macaroni salad gotta try the combo that comes with chicken steak and ribs so good! I come here for lunch every week

Called for pickup since this location is closer to my beau’s work and didn’t want to fight with traffic to get to the one on Bristol/​Sunflower. This location is tiny and one guy cleaning it was bleaching the floor. Made my stomach hurt with the crazy ammonia. Anyways, nice guy ringing me up.
When I grabbed my order, I realized that the bag was light compared to the orders at the Bristol/​Sunflower location. They only give one scoop of rice, the cabbage looks like leftover crumbs, and the chicken portions were meager. I wanted to give this location a try but I will pass and drive further up Bristol.
In terms of portions and overall ambience for the locations I’ve frequented:
1. Bristol/​Sunflower
2. Tustin
3. This location

Mmmmmm SPAM n Eggs. Perfection. Served with smiles! Thanks guys! Exactly what I needed before getting on the road!

Posted online and on their door that they close at 9PM. It’s 8:30 right now and the guy just said they are closed.
Go to the other one down the street at 3814 S. Bristol. They say they’re open until 9 and actually stay open until 9. It’s also cleaner and friendlier people.

Typical Hawaiian food in mainland. The menu kinda looks like Ono’s. Anyway, I got the Hawaiian chicken BBQ plate.
Macaroni, rice, BBQ chicken on a bed of cabbage. Nothing to boast about.
Portions were awesome for the price. And that’s about it. Quick food to go.

NOT ALOHA HAWAIIAN BBQ. I started eating Aloha HI BBQ first at The District in Irvine/​Tustin. That Aloha is so amazing. That one has another location down the street from this place as well right across from South Coast Plaza. I’ve now been to all three. This location is bad. Portions were decent by «Hawaiian» standards. Not that I am from Hawaii but that my eating experience with Hawaiian culture tells me portions are big. And the food was honestly gross. I didn’t eat half the short ribs on my plate because one was all gristle and inedible. The shrimp was basically a shrimp corn dog and did not have good nor natural flavor at all. I do not recommend this place. Go to the real Aloha Hawaiian BBQ down the street off Bristol and Sunflower across from South Coast. You will be happy you did.

Bad service by the counter worker, the cook seemed like he wanted to try to be nice. The food was not very good… The one past the mall is better and the people are nicer

This location is mediocre compared to the location off of Bristol and Memory Lane.
Portions were the same but the quality of my chicken Katsu wasn’t up to par. Also, the service was so-​so. Unfortunately, I won’t be coming back to this location.

This location SUCKS! Please go to the Aloha Hawaiian BBQ a little further down by the shopping center, they have WAY better quality food than this one!
I came here tonight because the other one was closed due to power outage. I usually get the combo mix with chicken, beef and short ribs. The old guy who works the kitchen was talking on his Bluetooth in Chinese while making the food, very unprofessional. I ordered my to go so I didn’t have chance to open the box before I left.
When I opened the box when I got home, I was a little disappointed that the portion wasn’t as huge as the one from Santa Ana location. Both the beef and short ribs were chewy, the lettuce looks like some left over portion, definitely not as fresh as the other location. The macaroni salad doesn’t really taste as good either.
So do yourself a HUGE flavor, go to the Snata Ana location by McDonald’s a little further down on Bristol. That location is more cleaner.

Ambiance:
–Parking | The place is in a small plaza. Space is pretty limited, it’s generally a pick up and order place with timed parking
–Seating | Once again, generally a pick up place with seating for about 16 – 20 people.
–Feels | On a Tuesday evening, it wasn’t busy at all. It is a very small space with a few hawaiian décor and music.
Food:
— SPAM Musubi | More rice and a thin piece of spam. It gets the job done to fulfil you but I personally prefer more flavor than fulfillment. If you’re a UCI student and familiar with the SPAM Musubi on ring road. I prefer PUSO’s or Hawaiian club Musubi’s.
— Chicken Katsu | Delicious! Great flavor of panko and chicken. Can’t go wrong with this choice.
— Macaroni Salad | This is usually the deal breaker with my Hawaiian foods and this one passed the test. Simple macaroni ingredients with a heavy dose of mayonnaise. Have I had better, yes? But is it satisfying. Yes.
Customer Service:
The servers helped me with my order and described it best to their detail and my food came in at a respectable time.
Overall:
This place earns a 3 stars. The food gets the job done however not that above and beyond memorable feeling. It is a great place if you are in dire need of Hawaiian food and aren’t around the Irvine or Santa Ana area.
Advice:
— Great go to place for Hawaiian if you’re in the Costa Mesa area.

4 stars. Why? Because the portions they give are HUGE. I’m always given enough to keep me full for the whole day and possibly leftovers for the next. Also, this location is not too far away from my house… less than 10 minutes!
Right on the corner of Bristol/​Baker in the same little strip as ⁷⁄₁₁. Parking is a bit tricky here as the lot is kind of small (there’s parking on the side) but it’s also right smack dab on a pretty busy intersection.
I always opt for their bbq chicken, rice, veggies (instead of macaroni salad) and of course SPAM MUSUBI! Such comfort food and so filling!
They’re very generous with their chicken. The rice is a little wet and stickier than the usual rice you would have.
A few things I don’t like about this place… 0.50 for refills? and they charge for the extra cups to put the condiments in… what the heck? Can’t a girl get a little more than a teaspoons worth of siracha ???