Keo’s

Since you closed… …
I had lots fun except the last one on Jan 2014. I wasn’t surprised for the shutdown.

Closed 3−1−14 the food was going down and they used MSG and nothing this end of Kuhio success anymore so no mo Thai. Better go eat Siam Square on corner of Kuhio and Lewers… will make no MSG broth for Fun Yum soup base.

Simply ok. I liked the open air location, which allowed for people-​watching and a nice breeze, but the drinks were weak and the food was bleh. We tried a variety of apps — spring rolls and papaya salad — and entrees, including evil jungle w/​chicken, pineapple shrimp curry, string bean, pad Thai, and vegetable curry. Nothing really stood out except the shrimp curry and the spring rolls, which were both pretty good. Some things, like the papaya salad, were just flavorless. I’ve definitely had better Thai food.

average food and service. We are here for two weeks and will not return. Soft drinks are very small and not refillable. I how our next choice is better than average.

Pretty good food made by Lao people, well the owner is Lao from what I hear and that’s probably why the reviewer from August 2013 said her face got frozen from MSG because Lao people loveeeeee MSG more than Chinese people. I know because my ex is Lao and he hid that bag of MSG like it was crack. The owner is not very friendly tried to avoid us because he found out we were Thai. I wanted to let him know we enjoyed the décor and food but no, he kept hiding from us. The food is pretty overpriced, but hey he’s got rent to pay for right?

Food is very flavorful, portions huge. We ordered the seafood medley, and spicy fried rice to share between the two of us. More than enough for the two of us.
I loved the food, flavor, heat all of it… not crazy about the ambiance. My dinner companion loved the flavor of the food, the level of heat in the food, but his upper and lower GI were not pleased.
It was my second time eating there. Yes, I will come back when in the area.

Great location Waikiki and good for people watching. I come here every time I come to Honolulu. Ate there last night ordered curry chicken and shrimp pad thai. PadThai was excellent, nice large portion. Succulent fresh shrimp. Thai chicken was good but mostly sauce and very little chicken. There were too many potatoes and not enough chicken. They charge 3.75 extra for a tiny bowl of rice. Barely enough rice for one person Service was excellent. See panoramic photo. Large flower arrangements separate the tables.

Thank goodness this place exists, because we had all but given up on finding good Thai food on the island. We had put of this place because of the Unilocal reviews…
Big mistake. Huge.
After traveling Thailand and missing all of the delicious food, this place completely nailed it. Unlike competitors, the basil was the correct basil. The curry tasted the way the specific curry should taste. Their Thai Hot Green Papaya Salad knocked my socks off in every way!
At first I thought this place could be pricey, but then we were served… and the portions were HUGE. Between two of us, we could have been satisfied with one curry dish (and we aren’t light eaters).
Staff was super friendly, welcoming, and charming.
Can’t wait to go back and try more dishes… wish we wouldn’t have put this place off for so long!

Best Thai food I’ve ever had! We ordered crispy fried rice, panang curry, spicy fried rice, spring rolls, green papaya salad and pad thai everything was amazing. The only thing that wasn’t so good, was the papaya salad– which is one of my favorite Thai dishes:(. The atmosphere made up for the papaya salad, the restaurant was decorated beautifully. We are definitely coming back next time we visit Oahu!

Visited Oahu twice this past year, and both times spent a portion of my stay in Honolulu. While I’m sure there were plenty of better /​more authentic ethnic options off of the main drag in Waikiki, if you’re staying nearby, Keo’s is a great bet for lunch/​dinner.
Lots of vegan, vegetarian, and gluten free options!
A friend who was on an extended business trip here took us to dinner at Keo’s on our first stay. After days of sub-​par meals at places along Kuhio, we were pleasantly surprised at the freshness of the food at Keo’s. Finally, vegetables!
Even my super-​picky, Thai-​food-​hating husband had a good experience at Keo’s, where you can have the spiciness of the dishes adjusted according to your taste.
The restaurant was tidy and clean (especially compared to other places in the vicinity), and we always managed to snag a table without waiting for more than 5 minutes.
Decent wine list, with lots of specialty cocktails and smoothies.
They are closed between lunch and dinner, so keep that in mind when planning your meal.
Will definitely be back on our next trip!

Setting:
This restaurant faces the busy Kuhio Ave., along the bus line. I know they try to have the open concept, but it is nothing peaceful and clean about eating next to a busy street. There are only some ceiling fans and it is very uncomfortable to eat when it has no breeze or AC in a restaurant like this and by the dusty busy street.
Price:
I hate to say but this is a typical Waikiki tourist trap establishment. If you walk a few blocks down, you can find a cooler and quieter Thai restaurant called Siam Square. The prices there won’t break your bank and they taste more authentic.
We had fried tofu and spring rolls for appetizers. The fried tofu was covered with peanut sauce. The presentation looks a pile of xxxx. I really cannot say it here, can I?
The taste is the food was mediocre, neither the ambience or the food was worth the price. My shorts were literally wet when I left that place. Outside on the street was way cooler than the restaurant.
If it weren’t my friend who wanted to eat there, I would not recommend anyone if they want authentic Thai food since I live here and know where I can find better Thai food.

So, the first few times I went here, the food was good. Then one day, I decided to order the tom yum soup. After eating my little cup of soup, my face started to feel weird. My cheekbones felt numb and tingly at the same time. I told my family, «my cheekbones feel weird…»
Then my parents told me I was probably having an MSG attack! Ever since this incident, we have not gone back. I’ve eaten at cheap chinese restaurants before, where I’m pretty sure they use MSG, but never have I experienced this sensation in my face before! Keos must be using a lot of MSG for me to be feeling like that.

Friendly staff. I had the panang chicken curry. It was really good. A lot of food! First time eating Thai food and it was delicious :)
My husband had the cashew and peanut chicken. He also enjoyed it.
The sticky rice, is STICKY. An acquired taste I guess, not bad.
Service was really good.

For years, Keo’s has been on my list of restaurants to try– so I was super excited to check it out one evening.
The restaurant is beautiful but the food is extremely overpriced and only so-​so. We ordered a green curry and another entrée, as well as an appetizer. I wasn’t impressed at all.

Some out of town friends were visiting and suggested dinner at Keo’s. I’d never been before, but Thai food is always a good idea in my mind, so I jumped all over that like a big, bouncy trampoline.
Parking for Keo’s is a dream. Just down the street from the restaurant (on Kuamoo) is a small garage with FREE parking. Don’t be scared off by the large «Private Parking» sign as you enter the garage– we confirmed with the restaurant that it was okay to park here – just make sure you’re out by 10:30!
Our service experience at Keo’s was not the best, however our friends tell us that they’ve never had any problems before, so I think it was just this particular waiter. I will say that the waiter was friendly; he probably just needed a crash course in customer service.
For example: as we were ordering our food, hubby asked if splitting the bill into separate checks was possible. The waiter’s response was that he was expecting a large party to arrive at any minute so he was going to be very busy and didn’t think it would be possible to do separate checks for all of us. Woa… did he just say that this other party would take priority over us? Hmmm. At least he’s honest? He decided that he would have time to split the bill in half, so that was somewhat helpful.
Later, at the end of dinner, the waiter charged us for two extra sides and it took him two tries to get the bill correct. It turns out that Keo’s does not have a POS system, which I found surprising as it is a fairly large Waikiki restaurant.
As for the food, it was pretty good. In fact, everyone seemed to enjoy their dishes. I ordered a traditional Pad Thai, while hubby had the Evil Jungle Prince. Both were yummy. Also, one friend ordered the Yellow Curry, which I’m pretty sure was one of the best yellow curries I’ve tasted! I will say that the tofu wasn’t amazing – which of course is a big deal to me, as a vegetarian.
I’d like to give this place more stars, but the service just rubbed me the wrong way. My suggestion to Keo’s is to consider investing in a POS system, which could help eliminate bill confusion with future customers.

Very disappointed in my last visit. We went with family who were on island for our daughter’s wedding. Hubby and I had previously had wonderful, delicious dining experiences there, but always with fewer than 6 people in our group. This night we had 10 people, so they automatically stick you with the 18% gratuity. They absolutely did not deserve it. First, they stuck us way in the back and we had to meander through other tables to get to our seats. Then, the waiter seemed to forget about us. Once the food finally arrived, some was cold, and others were not very tasty. I would not willingly go again, just because of the cavalier way they treated our group. Also, there are plenty of other great restaurants in Honolulu.

Highly disappointed; I would give them half a star. «Don’t judge a book by its covers» — true enough, this is how I will describe this restaurant.
Apparently, this restaurant has been in the Waikiki area for nearly 35 years, but I ran into a lot of problems.
Inside «looks» nice, but it’s run down. Chairs need to be replace, fake flowers needs to be thrown out, paintings need cleaning, tables are wobbly, too much cheapy lights, and the music doesn’t match the Thai theme with it’s pop rock.
Service: There were two waiters. Both boring, forgetful, and ultra slow (they aren’t old at all).
Food: Overall– poor quality, very small portions, expensive (not worth it) you’re better off at Panda Express.
Appetizer– a mild spicy fried chicken. The chicken tasted bland. It was stuffed with like egg roll stuffing with no spices. Cheap breading and not nearly crispy. The lettuce wasn’t washed right; it had some small brown tips all over. The sauce comes from a sweet & sour bottle, but watered down to the point you can’t taste it. Peanut sauce is nothing special.
Entrée: honey glazed boneless chicken. It looks a lot like chicken strip, lightly marinated, found tiny pieces of bone, cheap chicken and very small. Veggies taste packaged and «left out to withered». Found a lot of large amounts of inedible lemongrass. My cabbage was tasteless and physically very dull. No trace of any sweetness or actual sauce. To top it all, my chicken was overcooked to dryness. Told the waiter about it, and said they can get me a new dish for an extra charge.
More turnoffs:
–soda is $ 2 and you get about 8 fl oz of it but filled mostly with ice, NO REFILLS.
–rice is $ 7 extra and they give you a small bowl — very dry and some raw parts.
–not even Thai or at least gourmet
–everything was over priced
Will not come here ever again!

This place is ok.
The service is good, but the food is «meh.»
If you’re dying for Thai and can’t think of anywhere else to go, then this is a good spot. However, I’d suggest doing a little more research and hitting up another place with better quality and lower prices.

#1…
I have been Unilocaling for a really long time now… Not sure why keo’s gets my first review… Timing I guess. The restaurant definitely needs some updating in the décor department. Cool seating along the window for people watching.
We had the spring rolls and rolled them up in the lettuce that accompanies them along with the cucumbers, peanut sauce and chilies that are on the table. I think the peanut sauce has fish sauce in it… Not a huge fan of that BUT and a huge one… This dish was awesome!
We also got Penang chicken and spicy fried rice with shrimp… The chicken was slightly overcooked as well as the rice but flavor was on point. We really liked the food. We had 1 drink each and between the 2 of us our tab was under 60 $. It was an easy walk from our resort at Hilton Hawaiian village so it was super easy to get to when you don’t want hotel food.

Okay, I know — when you’re in a place like Hawaii, you can’t really complain too much about things. Still, I thought Keo’s would be better. The place looks pretty interesting from the outside, and the ambiance is quiet and relaxing (by the windows, it kinda feels like you’re eating in a garden). But with the way they describe themselves, you’d think you’re getting some top notch Thai food rather than something so mediocre.
My friends and I ended up at Keo’s since we were at a loss for what to eat otherwise. Things started out well enough, as they were able to seat the nine of us immediately. When it came time to order, I was torn between a typical sort of curry dish and something a little more specific to Keo’s. After asking the waitress for her recommendation, I went with the Crispy Mahi Mahi with Satay Sauce since it was one of her favorites. In hindsight, I should have gone with a curry dish.
Just from how the food looked when it was brought out, it already didn’t excite my tastebuds. In my mind, I imagined lightly fried fish, topped with satay sauce. Instead, I got dry, battered fish with a cup of satay sauce on the side for dipping. The batter had no taste and felt a little powdery/​chalky, which took away a bit of the flavor from the mahi mahi. Considering it didn’t taste like the fish nor the batter were even seasoned, that’s flavor the dish really couldn’t afford to lose. And even though you have the cup of sauce, it gets to be a bit much having to dunk each bite just to get some flavor. It’s too bad — if it was cooked with some kind of sweet chili glaze instead (or if they had at least added some salt/​pepper/​spice), the dish could have been decent.
Despite my dish being a total miss though, I can’t say that Keo’s totally failed us. The service was great for the most part and our waitress was really friendly. Plus, a couple of the other entrees I tried were decent enough (including the curry my friend got… dammit), so it’s not like all of their food was bad. Hard to say I’d come back even if my fish had been okay though. Pay $ 20 for mediocre Thai food when I could find better for less money around home? No thanks, I’ll pass.