Dew Drop Inn

Dew Drop Inn, how I dream about you until my next visit home! Absolutely the best orange beef and flakiest scallion pancakes ever. Orange beef isn’t dripping in syrup, but has the perfect amount of glaze.
Came here for years until I moved away.

The best Chinese food I’ve had in Honolulu so far. Cute location off of Beretania and Pensacola, but it’s small so don’t miss it — right across from Goodwill. Their food seems to be on the healthier side, with no MSG and less oily than other Chinese places. I go here weekly. BYOB and no corkage fees. It’s pretty reasonable overall. Yum!

I love this place! Aircondition is on the house, and the owner is very friendly. The food is amazing! But expensive and pricey, but really delicious. I would go here once in a while but not all the time, only if I have a lot of money, I wish.

We had takeout because the it was packed. I had the Taiwanese noodle with intestines and sesame flat bread. The noodle was authentic but the flat bread was just ok. It was not crispy like I expected it to be (probably it was a takeout?) but not so bad for someone who is craving for it. Hubby had beef stew noodle and fried green onion beef with buns and he loved it. A little tip: go early if you want to have a seat.

This is my favorite Chinese restaurant on the island. It is authentic, homemade, and excellent value. This is a great place ordering family style. Get a group of at least 4 people here and you can have an excellent meal for $ 15 per person. Love the pita/​hotpocket, orange chicken (authentic version, not the Americanized crap), hot and sour soup (authentic), taiwanese beef noodle soup!!!, spicy eggplant, fried rice (excellent), veggies with tofu/​noodles.
This is a northern Chinese restaurant with a Taiwanese influence. The owners are from Taiwan. If you are looking for AUTHENTIC and HOMEMADE Chinese food, look no further, this is the place. It is a very small location, but they do take reservations. This is also BYOB!
I would highly recommend this restaurant to anyone looking for authentic Chinese food, but go with a group, it is a much better value doing it family style.

I saw an ad on the Chinese newspaper, did a Unilocal search, good reviews so we went last evening. 3 of us and we ordered half tea smoked duck, ginger orange beef, spicy eggplant and black sesame mochi balls for dessert. All the dishes r done with care and the flavours of the ingredients all came thru.
The duck has a nice smoky flavour, the beef not cloyingly sweet and the eggplant was not swimming in a pool of oily gooey sauce! Polite waitstaff paired with a great chef for reasonable prices, we couldn’t ask for more. Our stomach felt good after dinner with none of the highly salted, greasy feeling… we will go back soon to try other menu items!

Have you ever had a Chinese food hangover? The aching head, the niggling sensation that your blood sugar percentage is reaching precarious heights, a disturbing film of peanut oil coating your tongue and an uncomfortable fullness that reminds you of that horrible Chinese movie where a doctor is saved from prison only to die from eating an excessive amount of buns?
No?
Well, I have. Many times. But we’ll come back to this.
I have driven past Dew Drop Inn roughly five billion times.
Yet, I had not eaten food from here until last Saturday. And then we ate it again yesterday just to, ya know, make sure.
Make sure of what?
POOF! Boooooongggggggggggg! (That was the sound of a gong and confetti, yo)
DEW DROP INN IS NOW THE MOST FAVORED OF ALL CHINESE RESTAURANTS IN HAWAII BY THE RENOWN YOUNG CLAN.
And it was said.
Have you witnessed with thine eyes all of the reviews raving about the pork sesame pockets? They are right. The reviews mentioning the mysteriously delicious bean curd skin with choy sum? Also right. The salivating foodies posting glorious remembrances of that which is garlic string beans? So incredibly, beautifully RIGHT.
We have also enjoyed the hot and sour soup as well as the szechuan eggplant. Neither are as bursting with flavor as some of their competitors in other, msg and sugar laden establishments. BUT the flavors are wonderful – clean, delicate, and delicious. I didn’t care for the eggplant at first as it lacks the dark, sticky sweetness I have become accustomed to, but the more I ate it the more enjoyed it and now I crave it almost constantly so that’s… annoying. But good.
PLUS.
No Chinese food hangover. I did not have to recover on the couch for two hours post meal. I did not have to drink several gallons of water to quench the persistent msg thirst. I did not glance down at our leftovers and feel a vague wave of nausea sweep over me. In fact, I put our leftovers away downright giddy that I would be able to eat them the next day.
I will admit that both times we ordered take-​out because that is what people do when they have intentionally or unintentionally produced or acquired a number of cannot-​yet-​be-​abandoned-​by-​themselves-​at-​home children. So I don’t know what the service is like, but I DO know that whoever answered the phone was polite, patient, and spoke perfect English. It was a JOY.
I was, however, really disappointed with their lack of General Tso’s chicken and crab rangoon.
I KID. Oh Lord, I kid. If you want some amazing Chinese food that will leave you alive and peppy, this is the place for you. Though I suppose if you eat enough deep fried things you won’t be quite so peppy, but you won’t feel like crap either. That counts for something.

To start with, it took 10 minutes after sitting down for our orders to be taken. There was a hair in my cup of water. When they eventually remembered we were there, the waitress was in a big hurry and nearly sprinted away the moment she had our orders. We ordered fish with black bean sauce, celery with wood ears, Taiwanese noodles with intestine, and onion pancake. The fish was extremely dry, though the black bean sauce was nice. The celery and wood ears tasted really old and dry. The Taiwanese noodles were good. The onion pancake never arrived. I went to a grocery store and made my own dinner afterwards. Especially given that the prices were on the high side, it was a really disappointing experience.

My new Go-​To spot for Taiwanese food. Never really had it before this but I’m liking it 10 times more than typical Chinese food. Smaller style place with a very homie feel too it. Staff was friendly and the owner would occasionally come out too run food. it’s nice too see the owner helping out when things get hectic. Everything we ordered was crisp, fresh, flavorful and just top notch across the board. will recommend to anyone cause anyone will find something on this vast menu selection.

Having spent some time in Taiwan, I can gladly say that the food here is pretty authentic, at least as close as one would expect to get an ocean away in Hawaii. They have many of the good foods you’d want to order at a typical Taiwanese restaurant including pan fried noodles, sesame flat bread (燒餅), and beef noodle soup. They also have xiao long bao here, but last time I had them, I felt they could use a little more work to be memorable. Other than that, almost everything I’ve ordered here has been pretty good. If you’re in the mood for some good Chinese food and are willing to brave the tough parking situation here, Dew Drop Inn is a delicious, hidden treasure.

This hole in the wall place has been here for years and still consistently serves great, authentic Taiwanese food!
My absolute favorite dish here is the orange beef! Yes, beef not chicken. It’s crispy and covered with the perfect amount of sauce. It’s more on the sweet side, but not too sweet, and it lacks the obnoxiously overpowering vinegar flavor that some other places make their orange chicken/​beef with.
My other go-​to dishes are any of the spicy noodle soups, pork or chicken filled dumplings and buns, onion pancake, and the mochi rice roll thing. One day I will save enough room to try the desserts…

So we FINALLY got to eat in at DDI and we are still fans!
We had a few new dishes: the mixed vegetable with tofu, the Kung Pao Tofu, the hot and sour soup (again) and the sesame bread. Everything was delicious and we can’t wait for our next visit. We waited a long time to get seated but it was worth it!

My wife is very white and she is mostly exposed to white wash food. She loves the spring rolls and I like how polite the people are.
We had a lot of left overs and didn’t feel like brining that back to the hotel. Long story short good job!

Best chinese anywhere! Super friendly service too! Love this place & all the dishes are fantastic with mo msg! So ono!

Love this place! They serve traditional Northern style and also some Taiwanese dishes. This place reminds me of food I ate growing up since my Mama is from Taiwan. I love how the have Xiaolongbao (Shanghai dumplings), onion pancakes, sticky rice filled with Chinese pickles and meat and Ja Ja Mien to name a few! Ja Ja mien is also popular with Koreans as well because Korea borders Northern China. The way Koreans make it is a bit different though. I think in my opinion this place has the best Ja Ja Mien! Friendly staff and cute restaurant with picture menu that makes ordering easy! Parking is bit crazy though cause the parking lot is small.

When I say this is muh FAVE-​orite place to eat, I mean it! I have now visited this hole in the wall a handful of times and have become fast friends with Jimmy & Alea. They simply are the best because they treat their customers right, serve effen delish food, and make you feel like your visiting family. *cheers!*
I have become such a FAN-​atic of DDI (Dew Drop Inn) that I have a takeout menu that I play blackout bingo with. It is my mish to try practically everything on their menu. And I have not had one bad dish. *serious face* I can’t recommend any specific dish for Unilocal Nation to try because there are so many, you’ll have to decide for yourself. But, Jimmy is always willing to suggest stuff, so if you really don’t know and are undecided, just ask him!
Parking is limited, but there’s street parking at night. (However, being that it is a neighborhood Makiki joint, we walk.) I don’t know how I missed DDI after living in Makiki for so long and perusing thousands of Unilocal reviews and never seeing it. This place is a serious gem! *high-​five!*

1. Verdict: Looking for northern Chinese food in Honolulu? This might be the place…
2. Food: See pics — the spicy wontons were worth the wait and had plenty to share for two; a nice sampler on a table for four. The rice noodle cake («leen-​goh») dish was perhaps a home recipe, featuring tofu, garlic, and pork but tasty, if not on the small side. The beef and parsley egg drop soup was heartwarming without being too salty and the long green beans pan-​fried in garlic was a good cap to round out this sojourn into northern Chinese cuisine. Is it authentic? Reasonably so, especially by Hawaiian standards.
3. Service: Nice enough; the ability to speak Mandarin here helps with the restaurant staff. The staff here are actually willing to speak with you, which is a pleasant departure from many typical, small Chinese restaurants.
4. Atmosphere: Hole-​in-​the-​wall that reasonably clean (by typical Chinese restaurant standards) and without the overly-​gawdy décor a lot of Chinese restaurants in North America have — surprisingly nice. It might not be the place to chat with future in-​laws, but it is a cozy place to catch up with friends.
5. Value: $ 37 plus tip was the cost of the four dishes — quite reasonable especially when compared to other Chinese restaurants aiming for authenticity — recommended if looking for non-​Cantonese and non-​Americanized Chinese food!

Today’s lunch adventure brought us to the Dew Drop Inn. A small hole in the wall which you’ve probably driven by without noticing. Be warned, the parking lot isn’t for the faint of heart as getting out requires backing up into the street.
The décor was simple. The staff was pretty friendly and accommodating. I’ve been told that they don’t always speak English. Somehow this just added to the street cred for me: p
Fear not-​the menu has ample pictures to help guide you. We ordered four dishes and left quite stuffed.
(1) Xiao Long Baos were okay. A little bland on the flavor end (be sure to let it cool down a little bit before you toss it in your mouth and use the dipping sauce). No where near Din Tai Fung status. But then again, I wasn’t a huge Din Tai Fung fan…
(2) Tendon & Spicy Cucumber was eh. Not the best I’ve eaten, but in a pinch it will do.
(3) Sesame Pocket with Chicken and Veggies. The sesame pocket was quite delicious. The chicken and veggies were mediocre.
(4) Hot Black Sesame Mochi Balls were probably my favorite. The black sesame in the mochi reminded me of desserts my mom us to make when I was growing up :)
Overall, the portions were pretty generous. I would come back and try some more dishes. Truthfully, I cannot distinguish the different variations of Chinese food. At some point, all Asian food is kind of the same for me and the origins matter less to me than the actual execution.
I’ve been told my a trusted source that the steamed fish is a winner here so I’ll be trying that next time.

I don’t come here often enough! This is a great Northern Chinese restaurant. If you’re a little intimidated, the menu’s full of pictures and the staff is very friendly.
We had the jiang mien (always good), pan fried pork buns (freshly made, hot, and tasty), and the bean curd skin with jai and bok choy (awesome).

Hubby & I normally enjoy eating at the many local Chinese restaurants, which are predominantly Cantonese/​Hong Kong style of cooking in Southern China, due to the majority of the Chinese population here are from that area. Typical foods in Cantonese cuisine include dim sum & fresh meats/​veggies stir-​fried in light, fragrant sauces. A significant staple is rice, as it is a major crop grown in that region.
Over the years, we’ve taken a liking to a small Chinese restaurant named Dew Drop Inn in Makiki that’s been in that same location since 1988. What a cute name for a restaurant! It specializes in Taiwanese & Northern Chinese cuisine. Taiwanese cuisine is a variation of the Fujianese style of Chinese cooking which includes shellfish, fish, water plants, oil, vinegar, sugar, sweet bean paste, bean curd, & rice ale; many vegetarian dishes & soups have evolved in Taiwan due to the long tradition of Buddhism in the area. Northern Chinese cuisine is influenced by the lack of sufficient water in the region, so rice is not easily grown; instead, people there have adapted to making their own noodles, dumplings, & bread-​based foods.

We enjoy their tasty dishes, which are a change to the normal Cantonese dishes that we’ve been accustomed to. Colorful picture menu is useful when ordering. Dishes are made to order & are always served piping hot. We’ve enjoyed the following:
— Chicken & chive dumplings (shui jiao). Fillings are wrapped in perfectly textured pi (not too thick, not too thin). Served hot & dipped into a fresh ginger/​garlic/​vinegar sauce. Delicious!

— Spicy sauce won tons w/​shrimp or pork. Soft won tons served in a delightful seasoned spicy garlic sauce. The sauce is so flavorful that you want to use it for anything else you can dip it in, including rice.

— Hot sour soup. The soup has tofu, bamboo shoots, mushrooms, fungus, Chinese parsley (no meats). It is spicy, peppery, & vinegary w/​a flavorful bold taste.

— Orange chicken. Lightly breaded/​fried, slightly crisp chunks of chicken served in a tangy sweet sour sauce w/​an orangey flavor. Yes, a winner & absolutely better than Panda Express!

— Stir-​fried mochi slices w/​chicken. Delicious, chewy mochi stir-​fried w/​chunks of chicken, choy sum, shiitake mushrooms, garlic.


— Spicy sizzling garlic shrimp & scallops. Very much sizzling when it’s served, this dish is perfectly seasoned w/​round/​green onions, bean sprouts, broccoli.

— Ground pork & tofu in sesame pita bread pocket (shao bing). A signature dish — seasoned ground pork & dried tofu w/​a hint of hoi sin sauce. Spoon it into the sweet, crusty, piping hot bread pocket covered w/​black & white sesame seeds. An amazing taste!

— Vegetarian bean curd ball w/​choy sum. Long rice, mushrooms, carrots, bamboo shoots wrapped in bean curd (foo jook) sitting in a light sauce. Another signature dish that will pop open your sensory experience! Very different & so tasty!

— Hot black sesame mochi ball. Mochi balls filled w/​silky black sesame paste & served in warm water. Excellently prepared, not too sweet.
We’ve also tried their Mongolian beef, Szechuan eggplant, & tofu/​egg drop soup — all are excellent!
Condiments include shoyu, white vinegar, garlic chili sauce, house-​made chili oil. No msg is used. Choice of white or brown rice. Complimentary hot jasmine tea. BYOB too!
Husband/​wife owners Charlie & Becky Tsai have been the 2^nd owners of this restaurant for the past 21 years. Their son, Jimmy Tsai, will likely continue its legacy of unique, quality menu offerings that are generally not duplicated elsewhere.
The small restaurant seats 32 people; interior is charmingly decorated w/​many interesting things, such as Chinese art, fish tank, faux grapes, wood carvings.

Small parking lot on premises w/​8 spaces, but you’ll have to reverse out. Free parking on mauka side of Beretania after 6 pm (no meters); metered parking on makai side of Beretania is free from 6pm.
Such a delightful, charming restaurant that is one of our favorites. Do drop in or Dew Drop Inn (pun intended)! (UYE 6÷26÷14)