Le Nonne

Posting a review; in memorium of this awesome place.
I must be late to the dance, but I just found out that this place closed. I had my sights set on taking a date here yesterday evening… and lo and behold… we drove all the way out to Kapolei and didn’t have anywhere to go (good thing this wasn’t a first date!).
We ended up at Monkeypod and all was not lost.
But I am super bummed that Le Nonne is no more. I went here about a half dozen times (it wasn’t cheap, or it would have been much more). This was my go-​to spot to bring anyone I was dating from out west over the past year. The food was ALWAYS stellar!
In fact, it reminded me of any number of joints I would go to in SOHO or the Village, right around the corner from NYU. Not a lot of ways to describe Le Nonne other than it was just excellent, excellent Italian food.
I really think this place would have been a hit if it were in town. I always felt like the location next to Ho Ho Chinese just wasn’t doing this place justice. But that’s part of what I liked, because I enjoyed keeping this place all to myself. But I really think that if this place were in the Ala Moana or Waikiki area, they would’ve been killin’ it, for sure.
I hope they revive themselves in a new spot some day…

I just found out Le Nonne has closed, a sad day for Kapolei and the Ewa plain. Chef Pier was very personable and his food was Ono.
chef Pier if your still reading these, you will be missed! If you can let us know if you will be relocating. We will come for sure. Thanks for the authentic Italian cuisine. Buon Appetito!

Driving through Kapolei, I was craving Phở but ended up dining here. Upon arriving, there was no wait and the hostess/​server was very friendly.
She brought out the bread, which I wish was warm, with delicious tapenade instead of bread. I ordered the lobster ravioli, which was delicious and tasted as close to authentic as can be. Our drinks were no more than half empty and service was relatively quick.
The price of the meal was also not bad for a authentic Italian restaurant. I would definitely go back for dinner to try their desserts, which I heard are delicious.

We came here on a whim, it wasn’t planned. The only thing planned was our cravings for Italian food.
Staff was very friendly and attentive. We never questioned when our water will be filled or when our food will be out. Everyone, especially our server was on top of things. Our bread basket never went empty and our glasses of water/​soda were always more than half full ;)
To start we had their bread, 2 types served with an olive tapenade. It was good but I prefer butter on my bread. Our appetizer was the Bruschetta with mozzarella cheese. It was refreshing with the fresh tomatoes on top. Next our orders came out shortly after our appetizer. I ordered the Bolognese and my mates ordered the Carbonara and Pear Pasta. The Bolognese is one of the better ones on the island and I was surprised to be delighted by it. The carbonara is pretty close to authentic as it gets (at least here in Hawaii), it was very tasty and the best that we’ve ever had. Lastly the most odd of all was the Pear Pasta, it’s weird combination but awesome on taste. Mind you we are a hard crowd to please as we had our share of food adventures. Btw their pastas are fresh and there is no such thing as al dente for fresh pastas.
Overall this place deserves 5 stars in my book. Give it a try and it may surprise you.

Lunch ⁵⁄₁. The Fettuccine scampi had huge prawns and the sauce was a seafood sauce. Very flavorful and the prawns had the heads on. I am a fan of the flavorful heads but if you aren’t the just don’t eat the most flavorful part.
And the service was very easy going and friendly!
Worth it!

This place is good, but not great. When you have so many awesome restaurants to choose from in Kapolei, you need to be better than just good.
At 6 pm on a Sunday the restaurant was more than half empty. There is outside dining in the back of the restaurant, but we chose to dine inside.
I like the décor and the ambiance, but it’s not quite up to par as other Italian restaurants of comparable prices (Assagio’s – which is so close by).
The menu isn’t super extensive. Two pages. Not bad, not crazy either. The bread we got was so cold. No effort in warming before serving. The herb spread (tapenade) is unique and a nice touch.
Caesar’s salad was very good. Creamy, rich, and fresh. My issue was with the portion. Tiny. Not a heaping portion of salad by any means. They use such a gigantic plate, but only put a small portion of salad in the center. I suggest for the kitchen to use a smaller plate. A larger plate that’s only half-​filled is not appealing.
The lobster bisque special was nothing to write home about. I’ve had pre-​made lobster bisque from Costco that had more flavor.
For my entrée, I had the rack of lamb. I order lamb almost anytime I see it on a menu. I was a little disappointed. I felt it had too much herb flavoring on, just an overwhelming amount of rosemary. The picture of my food looked better than it tasted. :(
The steak (thinly sliced with sun dried tomato) was really good. I actually liked this more than my lamb.
Crème brûlée was delicious. Tiramisu was, once again, just good. Not enough flavor. Once again, it looked better than it tasted.
I liked the service. Waters never went empty. Very attentive. The issue I had was with how the servers congregated together to chit chat. I used to be a server at a country club a few years ago, and it was always stressed not to congregate and chit chat in front of customers. It takes away from the dining experience when there is a group of 5 servers/​bartenders/​bussers huddling together in a group talking and laughing and talking about things like stripper names. Not something I expect from a restaurant trying to play off a fine dining experience. It’s like they had more workers than they needed considering how empty the restaurant was.
Overall, I don’t think I’ll come back here. With Assagio’s across the street which always has consistent food and service, Le Nonne left me feeling very underwhelmed for the price.

Brought here by the raving reviews of Mark Y, Kim M, and Missy T… am glad I did. Le Nonne is the newest boutique Italian restaurant in Kapolei Marketplace, adjacent to Hoho’s Chinese Restaurant. The food is innovative, authentic Italian with a nouveau and local flair.
Party of four shared the special appetizer of the day, a smoked salmon crêpe with crème cheese and capers. Served in a generous portion and at the recommendation of our excellent server Julie. While all the food was very tasty… From the two ravioli dishes to the chicken funghi to the lobster fettucini to the salads… the service really was the star of the evening. Thank you Julie!
Still hasn’t knocked my #1 go to for Italian (which is in downtown Honolulu) down any notches… this sure does give a great alternative to driving into town, especially in traffic or frequent lane closures such as tonight. I would not hesitate to dine here again. So happy Kapolei has a quaint and casual Italian restaurant such as Le Nonne!

My wife and I did a date night here. We decided to do it right as they opened so that we may take our time during our meal, as it has been awhile since we have been out.
First, even though they will have just opened, we decided to make reservations. Though, come to find out, it was not needed at that time. We were customers number 1. The wife went in as I parked since parking is atrocious at best.
We started out with wife having wine, and I the basil and strawberry mixed drink. Wine is wine to me, the wife liked it. My drink was perfect. Lots of strawberry taste, that bite from the vinegar reduction, and refreshing basil after taste.
We ordered the bruschetta with melted mozzarella and a caprese salad. I thought the bruscheta was a little bland. The wife says I have strong taste (not 100% sure exactly what that means, but hey, ok) as she thought it was perfect. I thought the caprese salad needed some salt to enhance it, but there was not any anywhere on the tables. Think they don’t want people messing with the taste. That is OK, may be healthier for me that way.
Next was the entrée. Wife got the risotto (done as chef choice. … was seafood tonight. … What the wife went for. … Lucky her) I had the ravioli di granchio (home made ravioli with crab purée in it). Was pretty tasty. I love the homemade pasta. Great job to the chef and sous chefs. I was trying to figure out the base or slight background taste of the sauce the whole time. Tried the risotto too, it was amazing. Only complaint the wife had was it seemed the mussels needed better washing before use as she had a little grit of sand in it., but was tolerable… What I think you get with all seafood in my opinion. I LOVED it.
Dessert was tiramisu for me and crème Brulee for the wife. Both were perfect in taste. I thought crème brûlée was supposed to have a crusty top of caramelized sugar, but not sure, as I don’t eat them. This one did not have it.
For all that, our bill was 112 without tip. We were there for 1.5 hours, and it was all filled inside by the time we left. Outside was still empty, sans 1 family. Our server needed to work on his delivery on his air about him. Essentially, seemed that he was annoyed to be at work, and unsure of his specials. On the flip side, I heard the waitress behind me as we finished up, telling an elderly couple exactly what anything and everything was on the menu. She definitely knew her menu.
This did not bother me, as I understand life. The chef showed up about 15 min late to work. He was out next to the bar, finishing up his getting ready to cook.. tying apron, washed hands, etc. He looked at us and made a joke about being late, laughing asking us if we were waiting on him. He then apologized and went to work. He also said his girls in the back (sous chefs I presume) worked under him for 8 months and we’re really good. At the end of our dinner, he walked around to every table and asked everyone how their dinner was. That is dying here in America. Was nice to see a chef go solicit for live feedback.
I really loved this place, though my wife loved it even more than I did. But would definitely go back, as this was great food and service in Hawaii standards.

Not bad, not bad at all. Very surprised to get such good Italian food out here. A little pricey, but well worth it. Servers were super friendly and outside seating was really nice.
Tuna tartare app is really good… tuna and asparagus is a nice combo that I’m not sure I’ve had before. Seafood risotto was awesome as well. Tons of seafood in it.
Definitely a nice date place. I’ll be back.

I am so happy that I have recently discovered Le Nonne. It is authentic Italian food prepared by a Chef PierAntonio who is from Forte dei Marmi on the northern coast of Italy.
My taste buds were literally in heaven when I took the first bite of my Ravioli All’ Aragosta. It is a homemade lobster stuffed ravioli served in a light pink sauce with garlic, chili peppers, and freshly diced tomatoes. The ravioli had a perfect filling to pasta level, and usually I don’t enjoy pasta that is smothered in too much sauce, but I couldn’t get enough of this one. With a little parmesan cheese sprinkled on top, it was an awesome eating experience.
While there, I was also tempted to try the Pesto Gnocchi. It is tiny homemade potato dumplings that are coated in a pesto sauce (but also offered to be paired with bolognese, tomato and basil, or gargonzola). The gnocchi was very light and airy; the flavors were delicious.
There is indoor/​outdoor seating, as well as a few chairs at the bar. It is well lit and I like the atmosphere with local art and a mural of a beach in Italy.
Le Nonne would be perfect for a nice lunch or even a romantic dinner.

Le Nonne is a newer Italianesque restaurant in the Kapolei Shopping Center.
(I had no idea that there were so many eateries and shops in Kapolei! I definitely need to do more exploring and gallivanting in the area…)
Anyway, I’m glad that my SS and I made it to Kapolei without getting lost. And, we found Le Nonne. Double yay. Haha.
Here’s the breakdown of what we ordered:
BRUSCHETTA
For starters, we went with the bruschetta. I mean, how could anyone go wrong with bruschetta?! What stood out about this dish was the amount of tomatoes — they really did not skimp on the portion here! :)
INSALATA DI PERE
A refreshing salad of mixed greens, sliced pears, Roma tomatoes, and Gorgonzola crumbs, topped with a balsamic vinaigrette. A truly delightful salad that I’d order again on my next visit.
*Just thought I’d note and give some props to our server and the Le Nonne kitchen for splitting this salad into two, for my SS and me to share. We didn’t request it, but they thoughtfully just did it. Thanks! :)
RAVIOLI VITELLA E TARTUFO NERO
Homemade ravioli filled with bits of veal and ricotta cheese; sauteed in a butter sauce with truffle oil and fresh Parmesan. It really didn’t look like much, but it was pretty filling. Also, both my SS and I felt that the presentation could have used some color — maybe some parsley? Not sure. But whatever. It tasted great and I would order it again.
POLLO AI FUNGHI
Pounded chicken breast, lightly floured and sauteed with champignon mushrooms and Marsala wine. Mushrooms galore. Seriously. And I really liked it. The flavor of the sauce was complementary to the earthy mushrooms and the thin, tender chicken.
CRÈME BRÛLÉE
I had to do it bc I love crème brûlée. I can’t really accurately describe the consistency of this crème brûlée, but I really enjoyed it. It was a bit different — almost kind of fluffy, but still very creamy.
BASIL N STRAWBERRY COCKTAIL
Dangerous for sure.
This delicious concoction is comprised of muddled strawberries and basil with Bombay Sapphire, fresh lemon, and some sugar. The glass is drizzled with a balsamic vinegar reduction, so it’s pretty neat how the flavors kind of change while drinking it. Anyway, it’s freakin’ good. Feels almost kind of healthy, too. LOL.
VERDICT
I would definitely dine here again, especially with some great company like my SS. Overall, Le Nonne had some good eats and draaaanks.
I’d definitely make a reservation and let them know if you’d like to sit indoors or out. I prefer indoor bc I’m not really into bugs or messed up hair (from weather)… So yeah. There’s also a bar area, so I’m sure you could probably request that or just walk in and sit there.
In essence, Le Nonne is worth a try and has definitely earned a return visit from me.

I gave a star each for the things I did like at Le Nonne.
Service– The service was pretty good. Our waters and beverages were refreshed before asking. Our waiter was really nice. I saw a previous comment about a waiter pacing back and forth and that he had tattoos. That was our waiter for the night, and he was great. He even made sure we had our food out on time. He seemed
Food: The food was pretty good! The house bread came with this pesto spread and it was delicious. I don’t usually like pesto or olives, but this on the bread was fresh tasting and aromatic. It The Crab Ravioli was really good and it melted like butter in my mouth. There wasn’t too much cheese or too much crab, it was a good blend of both. The crème brûlée was the best I have ever tried. It was not heavy but actually light tasting.
Overall the food was good. It wasn’t the best, but it was good. What really got me was the portions. They don’t give a lot. It was tiny.
So why is this knocked down to 3 stars? It is located in the Kapolei Shopping Center where Safeway, Quizno’s, Koa Pancake House, and other AFFORDABLE little eateries. The price for the food looks like it can belong at Koolina, but I think they forget that their population they are serving will be us local Leeward residents. It gets pricey to eat here. We left thinking that we could of had a bigger and better meal that was nicer to pockets a shop over.

I came here last night with the hubby to try this new place out. We walked in without reservations on a Thursday night but we were seated right away.
The décor is a bit cold in the restaurant. There are numerous Costco picture canvas prints on the wall. The tables are cheap but could look good with a tablecloth on it.
Service was ok but awkward. The waitress was really nice but seemed like she just started in this profession. She recommended we share our dishes. It’s nice to be able to share dishes with no extra charge but she only brought out one plate for the salad and we had to share our soup out of the same bowl. *scratches head*
I ordered the crab ravioli, while my hubby ordered the penne pasta with Bolognese sauce. The crab ravioli came with homemade pasta. The filling was good and so was the sauce. Kinda skimpy on the filling and it looked like a small mandoo or gyoza. It came with a creamy sauce but the pasta was too al dente and hard to chew.
My husband’s penne was also very undercooked. It was hard and some of the edges of the penne was crispy as if it was sitting out precooked. The sauce was good but there was hardly any meat in the sauce.
We also got the shrimp salad which was yummy and the lobster bisque which was the daily special. That was the highlight of the meal.
The bread served was just ok. A little too hard for my taste.
Overall it was just a mediocre experience for an $ 86.00 meal. I would’ve gotten a bigger portion and tastier meal at Paesano.

We went here the other night for dinner and it was very exquisite. The food was so delicious, customer service and our waiter was explicit. Having to be short staffed that evening but, watching everyone work together as a team from the bartender, to cooks in the kitchen, the gentleman continuously coming around and filling our waters amazing service! You normally don’t see this happening with minimum workers. I love it here and we’ll be back

We went here for the first time tonight. It was suggested by a few friends, in addition to all the good reviews.
I called to make a 7:00 pm reservation at about 5:30, and no problem. We got there early, and was still seated before 7.
All of the staff was friendly and very professional, especially considering they were short staffed. According to the waiter, they only had 2 servers and the cook was still in training.
However the food still came out in a reasonable amount of time, and was totally worth the wait.
We will definitely be back! #Onolicious!

I’m never excited about picking a place to eat in Kapolei. There just aren’t any good, much less decent places to eat or even look at in this cookie cutter city. Now, I can no longer say this. FINALLY, there’s a restaurant I can say…“hey I know a good pace, let’s go here”…and actually say it with enthusiasm!
Chef Pier runs and owns Le Nonne, an authentic Italian restaurant. I wonder if it’s too authentic. Chef Pier informed me about his black squid pasta dish, which by the way is heavenly, but no one ordered it because it sounds disgusting. Try asking to see if they still have it. He sticks to dishes that everyone knows and loves.
While perusing through the menu, fresh focaccia with olive pesto was brought out and I must say it was to die for!!! We asked for seconds and thirds =) Next, you gotta order the pasta. My fave? Try the fettucine pollo e broccoli. The pasta was cooked perfectly and it’s lightly tossed with good chunks of chicken and broccoli in a creamy, white wine sauce. The sauce was sooooooooo yummy! For the main dish, we ordered the pollo ai funghi, which is a pounded chicken breast that’s been sauteed with champignon mushrooms and marsala wine. OMG!!! This was so delish! I’m sure the other dishes are quite tasty as well, but you really can’t go wrong with these three eats.
I was so stunned by Chef Pier’s cooking, that I decided to hire his services to cater a party for me. Although he normally doesn’t work on Saturday, he agreed to come in just to cater my party. It’s nice to know that some people value their family more than money. Anyway, his food was a BIG hit. Everyone was asking me where I got the food because they haven’t had such good Italian food before! Portions were HUGE and the prices were very reasonable. =) I must admit that his menu prices are more expensive than the average restaurant in Kapolei, but it’s well worth it.
Chef Pier comes from a little town near Florence, Italy. When you enter his restaurant, you’ll see a gorgeous hand painted mural of his hometown in Italy. Not only do you get amazing food, but an amazing view of Italy, too. Doesn’t get better than that!

Excellent new place in Kapolei.
I’m going to preface this review by saying if you think places like Assagios and Verbano are the bee’s knees, then you probably won’t like this place as much. The difference at Le Nonne is the food doesn’t come out in gigantuous portions that are swimming in olive oil and buried in garlic.
Le Nonne is very unassuming from the outside but on the inside, it is quaint with a modern décor. The restaurant is long and narrow and has an outdoor seating area as well.
From the moment we stepped in to the moment we left, the service from the entire staff was top notch. Our server (Liz) explained the specials very well and answered any questions we had about the regular menu. She also made some very good drink and dinner recommendations.
What we ordered:
For cocktails, I had the Strawberry/​Basil martini and my friend had the Sparkling Galliano. My drink was great. The muddled strawberries and basil really went well together, it was a very nice mix of tart and sweet. There was also reduced balsamic vinegar drizzled on the bottom of the glass that added to the sweet tartiness. My friend unfortunately didn’t care for the his drink. Liz noticed he wasn’t drinking much of it and when she found he didn’t care for it, she offered to remove it from the bill or he could replace it with another drink, a very nice gesture. He opted to get the Strawberry/​Basil as well.
We had a late lunch so we chose to pass on appetizers and just get an entrée with the hopes of splitting a dessert.
For entrees, I ordered one of the specials which was Okinawan sweet potato ravioli, which was delicious. The filling was smooth and creamy and the homemade pasta was perfectly done. There were 8 raviolis and it came with a butter/​sage sauce. My friend ordered the Chicken with mushrooms which was also good. The chicken is just lightly dusted with flour then sauteed which makes it much lighter/​less oily than having it fried in breading like some other places do. This dish came with a marsala wine sauce.
For dessert, we ended up getting two. My friend got the Tiramisu and I got the Puff pastry filled with Chocolate/​Hazelnut mousse (I forget what it was called.) Think of it as a mousse filled cream puff, it was really good. My friend’s Tiramisu was equally as good, if not better. It was super light and flavorful. He was actually too full and only had a few fork-​fulls of it. Since he’s a very good friend, I offered to finish it for him. ;)
During the desserts, Chef Pier also came out to make sure our meal was OK. Another very nice gesture.
I’ll be looking forward to returning, there were quite a few other dishes on the menu I’d like to try.

What a great new find in the Kapolei area. I love good new finds in the Kapolei area!
I had a lunch meeting set up and was suppose to choose the place to meet. My other manager had thought she had seen a new Italian restaurant and Kapolei and suggested we went there. Not remembering the name we spent a minute using our trusty friend Google to point us in the right direction. We sent the info to who we were meeting for lunch and then shortly after headed to Kapolei!
Walking in to the restaurant I instantly fell in love with the décor and the quaint atmosphere of the restaurant. We were seated right away and service was not above and beyond but friendly. The bar was cute, and I could definitely see it being a nice place to grab a drink and pupus one night.
The lunch menu was smaller then the dinner menu — but still offered many what sounded delicious options. I had the penne alla arravviata which was a penne pasta sauteeed in a tomate sauce with garlic crushed chili peppers, and parsley. I can’t handle spicy but this dish had just the right about of nip for me and I found it to be quite tasty! My friend had them make her a fettuccine alfredo with chicken which wasn’t on the menu. She said they did a great job with that also. The other lady had eggplant parmesan which she also seemed to enjoy. I thought her serving amount looked a bit small, however mine was just right!
I would definitely come back here and I am glad to see a good addition to the Kapolei area!

New Italian spot in Kapolei that doesn’t disappoint!
I had their handmade gnocchi – divine! The oversized plate/​bowl it was in made it look like it wasn’t very much, but it was just enough to fill me up, and then some! At about $ 18, it was still a bit pricey, but a) Italian dining isn’t cheap; and b) once more with feeling, their gnocchi is handmade.
I don’t remember what my friend ordered – I just remember that it usually comes in a wine sauce. The server, who turned out to be co-​owner, was gracious about accommodating his requests to cook the pasta alcohol-​free, and to make sure there was no parsley on it.
Outstanding service, and I must say, I was quite pleased to see the co-​owners working alongside (as opposed to above) everyone else. I would love to come back here soon, since I actually had a tough time deciding what to eat – everything on the menu sounded delicious!

My wife and I have been meaning to try the food here since they first opened and I’m glad we finally did! One of the first things that caught my eye as we entered the restaurant was the original artwork tastefully appointing the walls as well as a unique wrap-​around mural piece on mounted canvas. The place was spotless and welcoming with just a few seated groups, but no wait during the lunch hour, which was nice. Since several tables were open our server let us choose our own table.
The lunch menu had several items of interest to and since I love penne pasta I decided to order the Penne Arrabiata. The server double-​checked to make sure I wanted that as it is a bit of a spicy dish. That was great news to me as I like a little kick. It was good though that she asked as some patrons are likely to change their mind once they know a dish is spicy. My wife ordered the Crab Ravioli, though I don’t remember what the name of that dish was on the menu.
Fresh bread and tapenade were brought out while we waited. The bread was soft and the tapenade was very flavorful. Yummy. Waters were frequently refilled and additional bread brought out as well. So far so good.
Our meals were delivered hot and fresh from the kitchen. The presentation was excellent and while it may not have looked like a large serving it was very filling and satisfying. The most important thing though: the meals were absolutely delicious… probably some of the best Italian we have ever had, and we’ve tried a lot of Italian restaurants. The Penne dish was so zesty and flavorful with just the right amount of kick for the spiciness, but not over the top. Amazing. My wife’s dish of crab ravioli was also incredible. The triple chocolate mousse dessert was literally the perfect ending to an awesome meal. So smooth, soft and sweet. Delicious!
Since chef Pier is from Italy and his family has operated a successful Italian restaurant in the mainland for years we expected great things… and were certainly not at all disappointed! We are looking forward to returning and experiencing the rest of the menu. Enjoy!