Sone’s Deli & Catering

Good plate lunches, friendly staff always got customers is a good sign.
Home made chicken or pork lau lau.

Located inside the Kukui Grove Mall (a great mall, by the way), Sone’s Deli is a convenient place for a quick lunch.
The prices are fair, especially if you choose to go with their mixed plates that come with a variety of fixed items. We didn’t. Instead, we picked our own entrees, including nimono-​type vegetable stew and a few chicken and beef dishes mixed with vegetables. Instead of the macaroni salad, we got the pickled cabbage, which was quite delicious. All tasted very home cooked, and we walked out full and satisfied.
Okay service — I think they’re too busy. Too bad there was only one high chair in the whole restaurant, and our kid had to remain in his stroller as it was being used by another family.
SUM: We don’t mind goig back to try some other entrees.

My husband likes it here, but for me it’s just so-​so. The pros are that there are a ton of choices and a lot of them change daily. The cons are that I don’t feel like you get a whole lot (no leftovers) and nothing I’ve ever had was fantastic but nothing lousy either. One choice is $ 7.00, two choice $ 7.50 and a three choice is $ 7.75. Your plate comes with either namasu (pickled cabbage) or mac salad, one scoop brown or white rice and your choices. My husband likes the lemon caper fish, he chooses that one all the time and I always make sure to choose nishime, although it’s far from the way Grandma makes it. A few tables inside or you can take it outside near the mall’s center stage.

kauai kukui grove mall. Best place to eat everything is fresh and Clean

Getting there: Easy to find in the Kukui Grove Shopping Center in Lihue.
Ambiance: Diner feel, wood table has personality and seen a lot of use which is neither positive or negative.
Service: Friendly and helpful.
Food: Unfortunately this is where diners tend to disappoint me. I had the small combo plate, which albeit has a variety of meats and two big rice balls, left me wanting a more flavorful and healthy veggie side than just cabbage.
Spam musubi, while flavored with shoyu and sized to a good portion, was just sitting out to cool to room temperature. Spam was not as cooked as I’m used to but that’s a personal preference.
How much to bring: Reasonably priced. You do get a lot of food for what you pay.
Verdict and Takeaway: Despite friendly service and amount of food per price, the food is lackluster. «Local style» food is hard to impress me with anyway given the type of food that constitutes «local» but If they stepped up the heat on the dishes (or perhaps I just tried the wrong ones) then the experience would’ve been different. Definitely an eat for fuel only joint. If they bring back the sushi choices that they have whited out it would be a good thing. Sushi choices almost always benefit the menu.
Final notes: Haven’t found a good hot tray lunch/​dinner place yet, tray places (including some lower end buffets) always seem to be lukewarm on the food.

We went over to Kukui Grove to walk around and burn some time. We were debating where to eat. We saw a sign that I think said something about authentic Hawaiian food, so we walked into Sone’s.
We were greeted quickly by the friendly staff. We had such a hard time deciding what to eat, so they gave us some samples.
The hubby and I both got some Korean chicken… YUM! I had the fish as well. The hubby had the pork. I tried it… sooo good and I’m not a huge pork fan.
Great food, friendly staff. Will def come here again when we go back.

Stopped off at Kukui Grove Center after we got off the plane. Everyone was starving, especially myself since I hadn’t had breakfast or lunch. Sone’s line was out the door with customers, which is always a good sign.
The food options varies on different days. We happened to stop by on a Friday:
Audree mentioned that the TERIYAKI MEATLOAF was pretty good so I decided to get the 2-​item combo plate with the meatloaf and the LEMON SHOYU FRIED CHICKEN. For $ 7.25, it comes with a generous scoop of rice and potato macaroni salad.
The meatloaf was delicious but a bit on the salty side due to the teriyaki sauce.
The chicken was cooked perfectly but under-​seasoned. I couldn’t really taste the the lemon-​shoyu glaze. Maybe they gave me the plain fried chicken on accident.
Our other friend Aileen got the SHRIMP TEMPURA. She said it was mostly batter and the shrimp was rather small.
I wouldn’t mind trying these other items the next time I visit:

Loved it. Ended up at the mall to get coffee and actually went back to Sone’s! Black Bean Fish– yes. Traditional Japanese pumpkin– ABSOLUTELY. Some creative twists on traditional fare, but the owner is friendly and generous with samples so you know you’ll love what you get!

Came here because the bf swore up and down that the roasted pork was awesome. We ate at Lihue BBQ the night before and he actually ordered roasted pork so when he said he wanted to eat at Sone’s for lunch I said «ok, but I don’t want to eat roast pork.»
When you walk in it’s like any ol’ plate lunch place where you choose how many items you want (1=$ 6, 2=$ 7, 3=$ 8) and the entrees are lined up and you look through the glass case and point to what you want… you know what I’m talking about yah?!. As I was visually eyeing up the food and deciding what I wanted to eat I found my eyes looking at the roast pork. Boy did it look appealing. So we decided to get the roast pork and a baked fish casserole.
The casserole was ok. It was some sort of a white fish moxed with tofu and imitation crab and then baked with cheddar cheese. My bf told me that he was actually bummed when I said I didn’t want to eat roast pork… and I would be too if I didn’t get to try the roast pork from here… because it is SPECTACULAR! It is absolutely amazing. What makes it amazing? The gravy. I’m not sure what the specific recipe is but I’m pretty sure they infuse garlic in it somehow and something they add I never would’ve thought of? Capers!
I’ve only tried those two menu items and I’m sure there are other good foods (like they had Korean chicken, chicken long rice, chow fun, pork and peas, etc.), but if you’re a newbie trying this place out for the first time DEFINATELY get the roasted pork. You can thank me later…

Sone’s was a serendipitous find during a getaway trip to Kauai. We stayed in Poipu but ventured into Lihue to eat and shop. When we found Sone’s in the Kukui Grove Shopping Center, we knew we’d be back… and we did go back, almost every remaining day of the trip! Good plate lunch selections (deli or okazu-​ya style ordering) and the amazing thing is that there are different specials every day, made fresh that morning by Sone himself. He’s also seems to be a really nice guy and genuinely enjoys what he does. I prefer eating at these local, mom-​and-​pop style places rather than the chains — the quality and love shows. Ono eats!