Ono Family Restaurant

Ono Family has been on Kauai for as long as I can remember. It had been a long time since my last visit so I gave it a go for breakfast one morning.
This place is very popular so expect a wait… which I did but only for a couple of minutes. I ordered a pancake/​egg combo and was pleased with the results. They bring out regular syrup as well as coconut in heated mini-​pitchers which is a nice touch. Other than the heated syrup it really is a basic breakfast. Nothing bad but nothing special.

Okay breakfast. Underwhelming. Food came out warm, not hot. Hash browns soggy and not crispy. Kinda dirty inside and I wanted to redecorate and paint walls desperately — so much potential! Lots of bare lightbulbs — which was a disadvantage if you were facing one — light right in your eyes. Very busy place though so seemed popular with folks. I’d recommend Kountry Kitchen over Ono personally.

This is more of a place for locals. The service is generally okay, but some are not friendly. Frankly, I find the attitudes genuine & honest. They aren’t flat out rude, but don’t seem to care of you rest there or not.
The food is decent & typical prices for Kauai, though only slightly overpriced (as compared to the typical gouging elsewhere).

We ate at Ono Family Restaurant three times on a recent trip to Kauai. Needless to say we really liked this restaurant! The omelets were to die for. The spinach-​asparagus-​Parmesan omelet was a delight! I also liked the Ahi tuna omelet, that was wonderful. Well worth the wait to get in!

Okay, so the food is good (go for the breakfast menu – Lindsey special is still the best) and the homemade jam is not to be missed. But the service here is pretty questionable. We noticed last time that they seem to be in such a constant rush. This time after observing them, it’s pretty clear that they really just don’t find service a priority.
For example, our server asked what I’d like to drink – but ignored David and basically assumed he wanted the same thing. He eventually was able to ask for some coffee, but it never arrived. Serving the food was basically just plunking the plates down and rushing away without checking if you need anything else. And that’s the last time they check on you at all; even the bill arrives as a drive-​by.
If service is at all important to you, I’d unfortunately suggest to just skip out on Ono Family Restaurant. I’m still looking for alternatives… This area seems woefully lacking in a combination of good brunch food and decent service.

We made our way here as soon as we left the airport, as two locals said this was the best place to visit. The open air dining was a lovely first experience in kauai, and the food was good enough.
We had the bacon avocado burger which I’m told was very good. And the cold roasted turkey sandwich with french fries. This was a little bland, as I love more flavor but the turkey was high quality.
The menu is a bit confusing with plenty of typos, but what was written on the board for their breakfast menu look delicious. I’m wondering if that’s more of the way to go rather than the lunch.

I haven’t come here in along time. But I wanted to try this place again. The food was good and affordable. Except I payed $ 3.00
for a small cup
Of OJ. The service was good. The waitresses were attentiveBut honestly? They gotta change the décor. Other then that I would go back again…

Not a good experience. Food was part of that.
My husband ordered 3 poached eggs and chicken sausage and received two eggs. I am not sure what was done to the eggs. They had an odd color and taste; didn’t resemble eggs really. Nobody mentioned that he was missing an egg.
I had «tropical» pancakes and two fried eggs; both were fine. I had to request coffee three times after my initial order that included coffee. Nobody came even once to ask if I’d like more.
It would have been hard to welcome us less at a restaurant. I don’t know if it was a tourist issue or what. But between the very poor food and the lack of hospitality, I would never patronize this establishment again. I understand if a group is proud of their heritage, but if they are in a hospitality industry, such as food service, especially on an island where their livelihood relies on tourism, I don’t understand this response, and it is disappointing. We like to uphold and give value to local cultures; this sort of attitude makes this difficult.

Great restaurant, my wife had the coconut/​Macadamia/​banana pancakes & I had the banana pancakes with a side of bacon. Delicious, & more pancakes than a lumber jack could swallow. They were huge and fluffy and when covered with coconut syrup, they were to die for.

We always have at least one breakfast at Ono. We love it! And Norma, who’s been at Ono for 24 years. You can’t go wrong with anything on the menu. Spinach Mushroom Omelet and Farmers Omelet, both with fried rice… best fried rice on island. If you get pancakes or waffles, the syrup come hot on the table, both maple and coconut.

I’ve been here at least two times in the past and have always had great food. I tried something new this time and was disappointed in the Salisbury steak. It was just a super dry ground hamburger patty with bland gravy. However the fried rice was delicious! And my eggs and toast with home made jam was also yummy! So next visit I won’t get the steak again.

Came here early and avoided the line. Got some sweet parking in front!
Had to try the Loco Moco x 2. We ordered the classic Loco Moco and the Pork Loco Moco special.
Loco Moco — Hamburger + rice + egg over easy + gravy. What’s not to like? All were good. The gravy in particular reminded us of Filipino gravy, which sometimes can be a little bit bland and lack some spice to it. That was the case here. Hamburger wasn’t too special, didn’t do anything magical with beef. But, to their credit, perfectly cooked egg!
Pork loco moco — I would say tastier than it’s original version. The Kahlua pork was tender and flavorful. Same gravy however. Additionally, came on a bed of fried rice. Great egg.
Overall, not too shabby. Check out my review on the Kountry Kitchen for comparison.

Came with several friends. I had the special cherry pancakes. The dried cherries weren’t as special as o was hoping. The house made coconut syrup was not something I’ll be buying to take home with me either. Swmbo had the Florentine breakfast, tasty but cold. The fresh papaya was good
My side of Portuguese sausage was OK. The Manhattan Beach omelet was rated as very good. The bacon avacado omelet plus mushrooms was rated very good along with the hash brown side. Coffee is not their thing, avoid it unless you are in serious need of a watered down caffeine fix

The service was very welcoming but we were on the look for a former Ono restaurant–
The fried rice as a side dish was the highlight if the meal! The Tropical pancakes were good but needed a little something to make them delicious!
My wife desperately needed a coffee and it was on the light side, a McDonalds coffee would ve been welcomed at this point!
Again, the servers are hard working but the food needs a little more Hawaiian touch!

Upon our arrival on Kauai, my family and I went out in search for a meal with some local flair to get our short vacation started off right. The caveat was that it HAD to serve hamburgers (thanks dad).
We drove for a few minutes into Kapa’a and on the right side of the road, we found exactly what we were looking for: Ono Family Restaurant.
They have most everything one might want from a local diner: hamburgers (check — although my dad did wind up getting the meatloaf sandwich instead … same, same), fries and grilled cheese (for my twin daughters), mahi mahi sandwich (me), teri chicken sandwich (for my bride). Forgot what my mom ordered, but it came with portuguese bean soup — delicious! Everything came out in an acceptable time and all were as promised. YUMMY !!!
The service was excellent (VERY friendly and attentive). Although it was slower than I care for (but I’m NOT a patient man by any stretch of the imagination), I realize that it is the neighbor island and things work on SUPER aloha time here.
The décor was classic local diner, very eclectic and «homey.»
Prices were reasonable — not super cheap, but not the budget buster that one might expect on an island catering to tourists.
They DO take plastic and even checks I think (local banks only I’m sure).
They serve breakfast all day and shaved ice and halo halo outside. Sadly, we didn’t get to try out their shaved ice (as we were too full from lunch). Guess that’ll have to wait till next time :-(

As a hesitant breakfaster, I usually cringe when the topic of picking a breakfast location comes up. Darling man loves traditional breakfast, and when we Unilocaled diners near us, the descriptions and photos were enough for me to concede that this place was exactly what he wanted.
Conveniently located in the heart of downtown Kapa’a, Ono is a bustling business with friendly faces and fast service. On our first visit, I ordered the Mahi Mahi burrito, which the waitress told me didn’t have egg, but it did (eating egg makes me have a sad face). Regardless, it also had savory fried rice and avocado inside, and it was actually a pretty solid, albeit pricey breakfast (market price, $ 14.50). Wonderful man ordered the special with fried rice, eggs, spam and toast, which was accompanied by Auntie’s MINDBOGGLINGLY delicious tropical jam. Oh my gosh it’s so good.
Coffee was a little on the burnt smelling side, and my tea both times was musty and old tasting. On the second visit, darling man revisited his previous order with gusto, and I opted for half a papaya which set me back as much as purchasing a whole papaya at the store across the street ($ 3.50). It was delicious, but like the burrito, was overpriced.
On our second visit we were seated by the owner, to whom we chatted with at length about their shaved ice store attached to the restaurant (see my review of Ono Shave Ice). He was informative, outgoing, and personable, and it was obvious the family is as much a hit with the locals as they are with the visiting tourists.
Parking can be a hassle, as well as leaving the parking, due to it being on the main street of Kapa’a, so I’d recommend parking on the side street near the Filipino market or near one of the churches. If I were to return, I’d order the tropical pancakes which looked and smelled pretty dang good, but were much too daunting a portion for me to tackle on Kauai humidity.