Reviews of Chef Chai (Restaurant)

Ashlee Wheeler

Chef Chai's...what to say...let's start with the fact that we were so elbow deep in amazing food that we didn't really think about our phones until it was too late. Buffet king crab legs, grilled lobster, lamb chops and tri tip. Not to mention the oysters being devoured by me, who typically keeps clear of them, coupled with a seemingly kick worthy lemongrass sauce that made them absolutely amazing. Unfortunately, we almost skipped the reservation before heading in as we were informed that it was valet only...both of us being combat vets, we typically cannot mentally choose this option (it was a measly $6). Having our handicap placard, this makes parking always easy for us, even in a valet only situation as the valet usually allows us to park ourselves as these parking spots are within arms reach...not this time. We were turned away from the parking garage and told we could not park our own as they used the handi spots for their own valet use. We ended up having to park 3 blocks away. Right when we had fully stuffed ourselves with lamb, veggies, oysters, tritip, lobster and lamb, we indulged in a plethora of fresh fruits and detailed desserts and just when we thought we were done, a white chocolate ice cream treat emerged from the kitchen. Cant let food in front of either of us go to waste! Worth the excess fillage!

Dionne Berry

The food and staff were amazing. Atmosphere is also beautiful.

Shannon A Oribello, EdD

Best buffet I have ever had! Well worth the money! I will be coming back for every holiday!

Antonio Orozco

Love the drinks and the food was delicious!

hawaiiellen *****

Extraordinary food, friendly knowledgeable servers and the Full Moon entertainment was superb.

Andy Royce

Excellent night out. Very relaxed meal...no rush. Salmon was perfect

Karla L

I've been to Chef Chai twice for the Christmas Eve dinner. Both times were superb in food and imagination. The appetizer sampler is the best to get to try a little bit of everything. The lamb chops and pork belly entrees are excellent.

Alex Sun

Held a surprise birthday party for my mom here for a big party of 18. Chai reserved the private room & all the appetizers I pre-ordered were just complimented over & over by family. Their entrees were ono & any leftovers was quickly bagged for lunch the next day. Let us bring our own birthday cake with no additional fees. Great ambiance & everyone was happy. Thanks Chai!

Jordan Moore-Stone

Why u fire Sara? That's was bad. She told u the truth and on mystery diners she didn't do nothing.

Rosa Joaquin

Impeccable service, excellent food and gracious attention from owner Chef Chai himself!!

Gavin Lee

Great food,staff and environment

Jeremy Thorn

Had the vegetable wellington.. With a bottle of malbec. Was killa.

Leslie Ann Ang

Expensive but very nice. Food is good but not worth the price tag I think. I had the curry which was meh. I've had much better. Service was top notch and ambiance is very romantic. Better than roys Hawaii in ambiance although roys (too crowded) was a little better in food.

Steve Yetter

I don't think I have every give 5 stars! The food was exceptional, as was the service! Unfortunately, the price matches! Maybe the best meal I've had in the last 10 years! All 3 of felt that dinner was amazing...and none of us is real easy to please!

Arlene Liebman

Flavors were memorable and so delicious. A very pretty and comfortable place. Unique dishes. Kingston, our waiter, was excellent—friendly, attentive and professional. Great great great!

Charles Cerillo

Delicious...especially if you enjoy the sweeter side of dishes!

* Nina *

Prices are reasonably priced and always great.

Benjamin Wilkison

Amazing good and drinks. Another gem on the island. Call and make reservations you will not regret your visit.

Jimmy Plaster

So amazing the food was fantastic and so flavorful. Great Services and Chai and Koy are amazing people!

Dutch Touch

Great food, great service. Robbie the bartender really took care of us. Can't wait to go back.

Harold Chuang

It was a good experience. The taste of the food was nice. The service was wonderful.

Frank Freitas

Chef Chai is an Absolute Culinary Gem in Honolulu. I reccomend him, his staff, and his menu to all of my friends, family, and business affiliates... Ask for their recommendations bc Chai and his staff never fail to please. & REMEMBER: it's worth the price! Trust me on that. Thanks Again Chai! Cheers and Namaste!!!

Rayan Wilson

Awesome atmosphere very very polite And food phenomenal could not ask for a better place to ever visit and will always return thank you for the awesome experience

Joel Moore

Extremely good food and service. I attended an event in their private room for a small wedding reception dinner and we were very well taken care of.

Michael Moore

The food and appetizers were great. They are also very accommodating with large groups or when pre-arranging use of the private room.

Pops Awana

Easy parking...Excellent friendly service...Exceptional quality of food and choices...

Matthew Boatwright

I like this place. Banger happy hour.

Maron Samuel

Food is tasty and presentation is great. Excellent choice for Dinner.

Local Artist

First time here, and the food was delish! Servers was attentive and polite. If course Chef Chai was there, making sure everything was perfect

samuel decamp

Don't waste your time or money.

Brendan Lewis

Great food and great atmosphere! It's within walking distance of the Blaisdell

Peter Garton

Absolutely beautiful and the food quality excilent.

Christina Maynarich

One of our favorite places to eat in town when catching a show at the Blaisdell. Great service, nice atmosphere, great food!

Stephanie Abeyta

Had a fabulous experience at Chef Chai. Service was so friendly and the food was divine. We had meat eaters and vegetarians in our party and everyone was very happy with their food. Highly recommend this restaurant.

Bobby Gomez

Always delicious and worthwhile... Oxtail soup spicy tasty but; Oxtail should be boiled longer so soft enough to fall off the bone.

Jason King

We came here for dinner with a big group of our family. We were seated in the very back of the restaurant in a little private area which was nice. The food was really good, but the portion sizes weren't really large. It was more on the side of fine dining, which means that it really isn't meant for kids. My kids ordered Mac n cheese, but it was fancy Mac n cheese. They did not like it and ended up just eating off of our plates. I got the steamed fish which was soft and tender. My grandpa got the whole fried fish, which he said was delicious. They have a complimentary raspberry chocolate dessert and I also got the cheesecake. It was soft and creamy. No real complaints other than the fact that it doesn't fit kids. Parking is also valet in the parking garage next to chef chais entrance. It is all paid for with validation, but there was only one guy working so there was a wait.

Jacqueline Washington

Had so much fun at this show. Very entertaining! Chief was funny and kept us wanting more. The Luau was tasty and seems like everyone enjoyed their time. I'm glad my family got to experience it. The dancers did a spectacular job and great cultural introductions. My 4 year old was amazed and enjoyed the show from beginning to end. He was clapping and laughing almost the whole entire time. Highly recommend!

hannah lee

Casual,fusion

Kevin Roisin

We did our rehearsal dinner here. It was a truly amazing experience. I would give more than 5 stars if I could. Thank you Chef Chai!

Philip Suh

poor service with average meal - unfortunately made worse by slow valet.

William Harrison

Always consistently scrumptious!

Shawna Francke

The food here is outstanding! The steak is melt-in-your-mouth, it's absolutely delicious! I want to come to Chef Chai every time I visit Honolulu! It always seems busy so I suggest you book, especially for dinner.

tina adams

Amazing appetizers! My boyfriend took me here for a great lunch date before I headed back to the mainland. Him and this place is a definite reason to return VERY SOON! Wonderful spot for memorable evening! Thank you for the great service!!

Bruce Behnke

Three visits, all excellent. Good food, good service, nice environment for a relaxing meal

Josh Short

Had a wonderful time. We made use of a Groupon deal that let us try all the appetizers. There wasn't a bad dish on our plates everything tasted amazing. Can't wait to go back again.

Thomas St.Germain

Great service great food great atmosphere. You don't know what you missing til you try this place.

Keola

Friendly people, great location, exquisite food, reasonable prices. Nuff said!

Diana luxuryretreathawaii Vacation Rental Hawaii

We had dinner for 4 on May 23rd. Our dear friends for New York did a lot of research and found this restaurant through research on line. Our dinner reservation was at 5pm. Each of our 4 courses took a long time to arrive. The food quality was pretty good, we enjoyed it. However, the service and atmosphere was horrible. They do have some work and training to do with their servers. Our server was not knowledgeable in wines at all. Secondly, they did not have Veuve Cliquot on menu, and other wines we were interested. The service was not classy nor polished. An advise for the restaurant: please do not put the "Happy Birthday CD" when somebody celebrates b-day. It does disturb the rest of the guest, and it take away from the fine dining.

Anna K

Appetizers were delicious.

Yoni Levy

Great service, delicious food, beautiful restaurant layout. We were very pleased and will be back.

Christopher M Yasuma

I expected a little more from this restaurant given the decor. The restaurant looks beautiful but the service is mediocre. We sat down at our table and started eating our food and the manager had asked us to move tables because another party was coming in. I didn't object to it, but it was a little awkward given that we had already started eating. There was no free dessert or discount after doing this. I would have expected a little more from this restaurant.

Dan Vandevenne

Always a great experience at Chef Chai's. Love the food, and the atomosphere. Price is reasonable for what you get too.

Matthew Chan

A true gem of a place! One of the very best restaurants in all of Hawaii and with exceptional value! I visited this restaurant during my last trip to Oahu from a friend's recommendation. We came down with a large group and wanted to have a nice dinner together. Chef Chai did not disappoint! The food here is simply amazing! Chai has a way of blending flavors together and everything was cooked to perfection. Some of my favorites and 'must haves' are the Miso Chilean Sea Bass with pickled vegetables, Thai style oxtail with spicy lemongrass broth and Chinese celery and the Braised Kurobuta Pork Osso. Prices Bucco with Five Spice Demi. Will definitely be coming back on our next visit!

Jill Miller

One of the best dinners I've ever experienced... the food was amazing, the company was outstanding. Definitely worth trying!!!

Kaydia Smith

Such a lovely ambiance. The service was excellent and fast and the food options s were great

Travis Saffery

Food and service was Excellentay

Carlene Lau

The food was excellent. It was very tasty and not something you can not just get at any restaurant. The seating and ambience was a turn off. We had a 530 seating in an empty restaurant but hostess sat us next to an already occupied table. It was obvious they treated us like a "number". Cause the next couple that walked was seated on the other table right next to us and again...in an empty restaurant! So they had a total if 4 groups all crammed into 4 tables in one corner of the restaurant, when the rest of the tables in the restaurant were EMPTY. The tables are so close together that you can hear everyone's conversation around you. Not my idea of an intimate dinner. Instead I was left hearing others talk about their family problems or their next real estate adventure. I get that the restaurant is small and they want to get as many tables as they can, but the seating ruined a nice dinner out. My hubbie loved the food, but I won't go back. The price we paid for a nice dinner should be a dining experience.

Johnathon O'Hagan

Great happy hour specials!

idan Bitansky

Amazing food amazing presentation

OSVALDO MORDASINI

Great food , pricey but good service

Miriam Palavicini

Great food, great service

Tania Lui-Kwan

It was great!

Rene Reiner

Great service. So delicious Alaskan king crab cakes, coconut cheese cake, vanilla creme anglaise.

STEVEN S DANNA DDS

Excellent fixed menu and Entertainment.

Amy Moran

Awesome experience. Great service. Food is great!

Melissa

My review is solely based on the coconut cheesecake. It was so light and airy and was absolutely DELICIOUS. Highly recommend this dessert

Conrad Cregor

Lamb chops were amazing.

Phil Stripling

The dining room is beautiful. The food, not so much. We had roasted chicken with Thai red curry, okay but not quite good, & filet mignon, which I don't remember. There are better places to get a steak. The service was good, but it didn't make up for the so-so food. Chef Chai gets good reviews, so I'm not sure whether we hit a bad night or what.

Sandy Rezentes

Great Father's day buffet. Love their steamed butterfish.

Saofai Lowe

this is our second time here for anniversary. 4 course meal is excellent. food is super tasty and waitress is very nice. our kids took their entree home because they were full! great left overs. the atmosphere is intimate.

Leigh Peterson

This review only applies to the Ala Moana location: You should go here. Favorite of all the restaurants I ate at in Waikiki for 8 days, with the best prices too. Shrimp is huge. Loco Moco divine. Not sure why they don't get more traffic, but enjoy!

Allen Vinta

Get the Groupon. It is an awesome deal! The food is excellent. You will not be disappointed.

Shane Rogge

Had a great experience celebrating my wife's birthday. The food was fantastic in taste and artful presentation. Very cool street art around. Waiter helped me surprise my wife with a jewelry gift at desert. Also the duck taco's are fantastic. No misses on taste, quality, presentation, or service.

Carlos R Montenegro

Excellent food and service. Location is kind of out of the way

Char McGinnis

Amazing food! I ordered the vegetarian menu set and it did not disappoint! Even my daughter loved her appetizer sampler and she's six!

Crystal Jackson

I would recommend not doing the early bird special, and checking out the rest of the menu.

Sarah Blankets

I watched the show mystery diner on tv of this and it looks like a nice place althought I never been there yet.. so I don't know..

Herman Guevara

Excellent highly recommended

Ban Vachala

recommended...

Kevin Porter

Best Buffet in the world

Eddie Chen

Taste good feel good

Nick Miceli

We were pleasantly surprised! Very chic and warm atmosphere, and excellent service. Food was fresh and delicious. The waiter got caught in conversation with another table causing us to wait for dessert, so he comped both of ours by pretending it was our anniversary. Amazing time, we'll definitely be back.

Joseph Reyes

Excellent, Food, service, location! Chef Chai took the time to thank my wife and I for celebrating our 42nd! So very busy but took time to say thank you and also got a few pics. Incredible Human!!!

PREMIUM CARS

Food is delicious, atmosphere is amazing, service is exceptional. They have private room also. Super great place, would recommend to everybody!

Jim Landers

Excellent as always.

Raymond Yuen

Groupon special is great (esp. if you got the groupon as a gift)! Appetizer sampler is preselected on the menu, and you still have a choice of entree and dessert.

sping Nash

This pecan nuts are amazing. I've never been there, but this souvenir was awesome.

Jeff Pompadur

#perfection

Mark Charles

The special was a lot of food. 5 sample appies, salad, main (we had filet mignon), plus dessert. We chose 2 of the desserts and the waiter gave us the third 1 for our anniversary. Impressive for 69 each.

Steph Zoltewicz

Amazing experience!Chef Chai never disappoints!! Try the shrimp in phylo dough strands...or Poke in cones...the salmon was cooked perfectly . The ambiance is understated yet elegant..

Eldon Costanios

Wonderful ambiance. Great service. Delicious food.

Wailua Brandman

Beautiful and creative presentation. Sea Bass is exquisite. Ahi cone is delicious. Don't miss this venue.

Jinette Vincent

We stopped in and we loved the food! Amazing flavors, friendly staff, I recommend!

Thalia Lei Palakiko

Always An Awesome Experience Chef Chai n Bartender Anthony R Truly Da Best At Wat Dey Do!!! <3

Ernesto Lopez

Awesome food. Must visit.

Andrew Sato

Everything Chef Chai touches...is delicious. I’ve been a fan of Chai/Chef Chai for years, and ‘til this day, it’s obvious the thought and care that is put into his food, but also his guests.

Jessica Wan

The food and service at Chef Chai is always top notch. I highly recommend the ahi cones, duck tacos, crispy fish, and the lamb. If you can't decide what appetizers to get, the sampler features solid favorites. Chef Chai is often at the restaurant assisting diners and clearing tables too, which is cool to see. Quick tip: If you go to Costco (we go to the one in town), they sell gift cards at a discounted price ($100 for $80).

Yui Christophe

One of the best restaurant in island! you can never go wrong in any kind of menu here!

Collette Mattos

We ordered from the appetizers menu......remembered their goat cheese won ton n pineapple salsa, sloop onto. So we decided to try as much from that menu. Was not disappointed, everything was to die for especially the foie gras.....worth every penny. They were also very accommodating....we had 2 of us that were on a wheel chair n rollator......THANKS GUYS....HAD A GREAT EVENING...THANKS CETTA LY

Kay Lee

Wow! Chef Chai is amazing! We had our rehearsal dinner here and it couldn't have been any better. The service was top notch and the food was absolutely perfectly cooked! Wish we had our reception meal here! Can't wait till we're back in Hawaii to go back!

Matthew Baggett

Great food!

Katie Lewis

attended the father's day buffet tonight and although the menu sounded awesome by the time we got to eat about 8pm all the "all you can eat" headliners was no more. prime rib, sashimi, crab, lobster, and lamb was no more. the restaurant tried to accomodate with other items like 2 full pans of fried shrimp and say 10 scallops but that does not par up.

Xiaokun Qian

Decent Asian infused food with a fine dining atmosphere. Price was decent, server was attentive with proper recommendation on liquors. Defiantly recommended for a casual date or just enjoying your vacation here at Hawaii.

TINA ADAMS

I will definitely be back!

Khoi Le

A bit pricy but food and service are exceptional

Alex Celes

Been here maybe 5 times. The service is really good.The food is ok/good depending on what you get,but they need to work on their cocktails drinks, the way the drinks are made does not taste that great

Patti Arakaki

Someone gave us a gift card and twice we tried to use it and we were very disappointed that we couldn't use it one for early bird food and another for a take out order. I would never buy a gift card from Chai's!

J Kwan

This is a fusion restaurant with creativity and great presentation. It is like eating on 5 stars cruise ship. If you like poke, ahi cone is a must. The taro prawn is best shrimp I ever tasted. White chocolate amore gelato truffle is to die for.

Albert B

I don't really know where to begin.... If there were ever an experience quite as beautiful and magical as this, then I don't know where else this can be found other than at Chef Chai. Truly authentic asian fusion crafted with the skill of a pioneering chef! Sea bass taste was fantastic, the apps were vibrant, and the freshness was out of this world. But what made this experience even more amazing was the level of service by our server Mr. J and his team. If not for them, the experience would be half of what it would have been. We left the restaurant wanting more, and I would have to say bar none, the most amazing experience I have even had in a restaurant. Should I decide to re-visit this gorgeous island again, Chef Chai would be part of that reason why I would. Thank you Chef Chai for an amazing memory and thank you Mr. J. for being so authentic and kind. BRAVO and we can't wait to see you again soon.

Fred Coleman

Excellent food. Modern, but elegant environment. Excellent fried tiger shrimp with sweet chili sauce. Coconut butternut squash soup is phenomenal.

Michael Sete

Everything was excellent. Can't say anything was lacking.

Sandra Honl

We absolutely love this restaurant! Their happy hour cannot be beat. We come here every time we are in Honolulu

Odessa Choppo

Top 5 on Oahu

Doug Walker

This is one of the best restaurants in Hawaii. Having Robert Cazimero was a moving experience.

Lynn Oshiro

Love the food and atmosphere here

Anthony Nole

All show no Go!!

Lynne Kipi

We have frequented this restaurant often but after our experience on Saturday, no more. We took our friends to celebrate a birthday. Our waiter was inattentive and lacked professional customer service expected at a "fancy" restaurant. When we were about to pay the bill with $500 worth of gift cards from Costco, we were advised we could only use $300. Where is this disclosed? NOWHERE!!! We spoke to the manager and he reiterated this "Chai" rule. He said it was put into place for large parties. We asked, "What is a large party?" The manager said 6 or more. Oh my, did not know that a party of 4 equated to a party of 6 or more. The manager also advised us that this has happened often but rules are rules. We mentioned to him that if it happened before, why did they not do something, like disclose this limitation? His resolve was to say, "you can talk to Chai. By this time, our special dinner with friends was ruined. We did not want to make it worse. Obviously, Chai' s does not want our business. We will oblige.

Luz Money

Awesome Mother's Day Buffet!!!

Robert Kaleikula

Everything we ordered was amazing but the Scallops and lobster risotto was the BEST! The staff was very helpful and offered some amazing appetizer options and wine selections.

Wil Chang

The food is the best of the best. No other place makes it like this place. It's own unique flavor.

Sharon Johiro

Excellent food, service. Party of 18 in private room. Ordered range of appetizers & entree. Everyone loved each dish! Ryan was awesome in service! He had his hands full and kept a huge smile throughout dinner. Just awesome! Chef Chai is so hands on & helped to make everything hap pen according to our many different needs. Will definitely return. Our party of 18 ranged from 3 1/2 years old to 90 years old. Everyone really enjoyed food, service & experience!

Bob Hemmway

Great food . Best oysters best waiter . A must go if your in Hawaii

John Vang

Great food and presentation! Service was amazing! Food is a fusion of Hawaiian and Thai cuisine. My wife and I got a Groupon as a gift and it was well worth it. Definitely worth it for a date! :)

Thomas Gross

Beautiful setting surpassed by wonderful full anb excellent service!

Marvin Y

Been following Chai since he opened at Aloha Tower in the 90's. Their current location is beautiful. Always excellent service & food. Their signature huge katafi prawns, deep fried snapper & rack of lamb are my favorites. Highly recommend Chais.

Keola Makaiau

The most amazing Mother Day Buffett hands down. Amazing quality. Definitely a repeat.

Maria Teresa Domingo

My husband and I celebrated our 33 years wedding anniversary

A Smith

Food was excellent as was the service and ambience. We used our Groupon deal and we got a nice sized portion of food for two people. Chef Chai is very talented with his use of exciting flavors and spectacular food arrangement. It's like eating delicious art! I'll definitely return!

Randy Hudspeth

Probably one of the best four course (prefix) meals I have ever had! Service (Dillon)was amazing as well!

Randy Medina

Delicious food and generous portions

Francisco Leotte DoRego

A little over priced but good. Relaxed atmosphere

Rio Bravo 254

If I could give more stars I would. Delicious!

Mike W

I had the most wonderful pork osso buco at Chef Chai's restaraunt......best I have had!! Everyone's meals were fabulous, and I would highly recommend having dinner here!!!!!

Benzo B

We purchased a Groupon and it offered a limited menu. Starter was tastey. Thai peanut with chicken. Appetizer was delicious and had wonderful flavors and a great sample selection. The prawns and duck taco were particularly good. My wife's deconstructed Wellington was tender and seasoned well but she ordered medium well and it was closer to mid rare. My chicken plate was tastey but nothing special. The next table over had salmon and it looked very good and they said it was one of the best they've had. Dessert was very good. Staff were wonderful. Definitely recommend!

David Hall

Best restaurant I've eaten in my 4 years on island... Absolutely phenomenal staff

Emily Whitehouse

Great food, great service. Best "bread course" on the island. Their salmon is one of the best meals I've ever had. Ever.

Cathy W

Amazing service, ambience, and food. I thought I had tried everything, coming from a city with abundant food. Chef Chai outdid himself. The level of service and care was phenomenal. From the greeting to our server, I could not have had more friendly interaction. The food, wow...I had the Chilean Sea Bass. Mind you, the fish is so perfect it's hard to screw it up! My husband had the pork osso bucco and he is a BIG foodie and home cook. He was blown away by the flavour profile!! We will be back here for sure next time we are in Waikiki!!

Michael Sato

I was very impressed by the food and ambiance at Chef Chai's. We had a very large group visiting from Vancouver and one of our local friends set up the reservation for us. Chef Chai was very gracious to accommodate us. I had the Pan Seared Fresh Jumbo Hokkaido Scallop with Lobster Reduction which was delicious, but what really impressed me was the broth from my friend's Thai Style Oxtail with Spicy Lemongrass Broth and Chinese Celery. The flavors just blew me away! My one regret is not buying a box of Chef Chai's pineapple cakes. Whoever reads this review please feel free to mail me a box!

Lisa-Marie Plaster

Great ambiance and the food does not disappoint. The tiger prawns appetizer is a must. Finishing off with espresso in the beautiful demi tasse, perfect!

Lee Unrein

Amazing food and atmosphere!

Mark Benson

We always enjoy Chef Chai. Great menu, staff, facility!

Therese B Bianca

I was on vacation in Honolulu and got to try this place with a groupon voucher. Pretty good value. The service was great and fast. Food was delicious and big serving sizes. Ambience and decor is elegant. I will definitely come back when I visit Oahu again.

Kenneth Cribbs

Meh. Just okay, not great food (except for the very yummy desserts). Service was spotty and slow. I won't give this restaurant another try.

Noriko Vail

Very unique and tasty. I had a great experience and delicious meal. I'd love to go again.

Gary Wong

Great food and atmosphere

Steven Bennet

Great service. Great food. Unique. Would go again.

Kevin Cook

If you are looking for a truly 5 star dining experience this is the place you need to go. My server Brian helped us choose what to get on the menu. Next time I hope we have enough people to get one of everything on the menu. Make the most out of your time and visit Chef Chai!

Chuck Fields

Nice place, good food. Just a bit noisy.