The Woodshop Gallery & Cafe

We purchased a koa wood lidded box and had a lovely chat with the shop owner while we were here last month on our honeymoon. Her son had made the box by hand, made with an abalone inlay that she had brought from her native New Zealand. It was extra-​special to know the story behind the item, and we appreciated that Jeanette took the time to chat, even though it was near closing time. We were impressed with the shop’s selection of wood crafts, large and small, glass pieces, and prints. The café next door was closed for renovations while we were there.

I ordered a Hawaiian burger. It was called that because it was described to have pineapple. I received a piece of pineapple that looked like it was sitting in the trash can for a week and finally got to me after the various local insects and small animals had a bite. The buns felt like over done toast that crumbled like sand and squeeked like Styrofoam when I bite into it. The lady was nice when you could hear her words through her rampant grumbling or pay attention when you aren’t starring at the large mole with 3 long protruding hairs varying from whitish grey to black.

Great place to grab a bite after visiting Akaka Falls. Good food for the whole family. I had the Ahi burger which was really good Ahi but a little lack luster on flavor. The Taro burger was really good with good flavor, you’ll like it if you like veggie burgers. The ginger ice cream was a hot and it’s also good if you’re a little car sick from windy roads.

After visiting Akaka Falls, we were ready for a cold treat. This place was perfect. The smoothie was a dairy free blast of deliciousness. The shave ice was average (the ice cream in the middle wasn’t worth the trouble) but the best available in the area. I don’t know if I’d eat here, but for a quick treat, it was great!

Right near the Akaka falls trail. Slow service while means each thing is made to order. My curry chicken was tasty. Wife had the fish which was terrible. Over cooked fish? Sad. Lemonade was really good. but the rest of the family’s food was almost inedible. Go elsewhere

Blerg. We were ziplining at the UmaUma Falls and this was the closest restaurant so by default, we had to choose this place despite its suspect reviews.
And just as we suspected, everything was bleh to so-​so. I had the bowl of chili which tasted like it was straight out of the can. C’mon now. Chili and rice? That’s a Hawaiian staple! I guess no one told the Woodshop Gallery & Café. Sad panda.
Other folks in our group had the Mahi Sandwich which was one of the so-​so items. Nothing special, fish was cooked properly, had mayo, some lettuce and served on a bun… yawn.
If anything, I did like their tropical iced tea… which was probably from Costco too but if you have to look at the silver lining, the tea’s it.

Tried the mahi sandwich because they ran out of ahi sandwiches. It was absolutely amazing.

This gallery has an amazing selection of local artwork, from paintings to ceramics to wood carvings to glassware. We wanted to take home so many things but settled on a couple of items that reflect the beauty and diversity of the island’s nature. You won’t be sorry you stopped by. The quality of the crafts is a HUGE step above the typical souvenir shops. My husband wanted to sample the homemade ice cream but we’ll save that for our next visit.

I’m just rating their «ice shave» It gets a 1 (even though I’d like to give it a –0-​) because it’s NOT what you call ice shave or shaved ice as we locals think of it as. It’s a poor version of a mainland style snow cone where the ice is crushed and crunch and not shaved.
I also didn’t appreciate that there were NO trash bins outside the restaurant where they have tables set up.
Stick to Itsu’s.

Went for lunch hoping to have some fresh fish (as they prominently advertised on their signs). Instead, there was a sign in the menu that they had no fish that day. I’m not sure that I understand how any eatery in Hawaii can not have fish when the ocean is never more than an hour away (and usually much closer), but so be it.
Instead we ended up getting the mango chicken (which was burnt, and had no mango flavor whatsoever), a ham sub (which my son said was ok), and the pineapple burger (which gave my wife severe food poisoning so bad that she couldn’t keep anything down for the next 24 hours).

+ smoothies made with all fruit and no dairy… delicious
+ homemade icecream

Excellent service, excellent food. Mango chicken and the ahi burger with teriyaki sauce were both delicious. Highly recommended.

My family ate here after visting Akaka falls, My wife and I had the mango chicken plate. It was a great meal, Mango chicken with a slight hint of curry. It was to die for. I would not expect this type of meal in this little shop. It took awhile to get our food but worth it. They had some pretty exotic ice creams but did not get any. They also have an art gallery in the other section of the store. Great to look around while waiting for your food.

We had an experience similar to the other reviewer who was filtered, so I suppose this one will be filtered, too, but I am not going to increase my rating or soften my criticism to avoid being filtered.
No aloha. The customer is always wrong. Most of their business comes from tourists who are coming from or going to Akaka Falls, and their attitude is, in my opinion, that of a «tourist trap.» They will never see most of their customers again, so why should they care? There are lots of wonderful restaurants within a few miles of this one. Save your money and pick one of them.

Excellent vegetarian & vegan options! I had the teriyaki tofu wrap and hubby had the taro burger (a vegan patty made of taro root). i asked for my wrap out of the wrap and instead on a plate with a side of rice. they cook was very accommodating. there were 2 flavors of sauce for the tofu to choose from and 2 types of veggie burger — a gardenburger and the homemade vegan taro. i was very impressed that such a small place in such a small town would offer anything veg.

Just before (or after if you’re headed the other way) the turn to Akaka falls, you’ll pass through Honomu — home to a handful of galleries, shops and restaurants, including the Woodshop Gallery & Café. We went here for the food, recommended in one of our guidebooks — it’s a great lunch stop along the road for the hungry tourista with discriminating tastes.
We were hungry after walking around the falls, so we started with the excellent fruit smoothies. They have a number of choices for fruit and yogurt or «energy» smoothies with various mysterious things in them. We stuck with the normal smoothies.
The staff at the lunch counter is cheerful if a bit disorganized (it took them some time to figure out how to print out our credit card receipt, but they got the order right). Robin had the tofu wrap — excellent with fresh vegetables and marinated tofu. I had the ahi burger, which was actually fresh ahi steaks and really hit the spot. The menu is mostly sandwiches and wraps, but there were lots of interesting choices.
The gallery next door is interesting to browse, too. We weren’t really in the market for art, but we enjoyed strolling through and imagining how out of place some of the things would seem in our house.

The Unilocal catagory police doesn’t allow this pleasant restaurant-​gallery to be classified by both its appealing local art and its sandwich and lunch plates. You can eat tropical ice cream, shave ice, fruit-​flavored ice tea, a nice plate of mango chicken, fresh fish sandwiches, toasted cheese — all we had were delicious. AND staffed by very nice people.
In the gallery lots of Hawaiian items: quilts, slate tiles with petroglyph motifs, prints of Hawaiian scenes, pottery, and other items in nice taste, not over-​the-​top-​kitsch.
A totally good place to stop before or after visiting Akaka Falls just up the road.