14 Best Restaurants in Kauai, Hawaii

Hip and pricey, this tapas bar is a top place in Hanalei in terms of flavor and creativity, with food that's often organic and consistently remarkable. The dining room is super-casual but chic, with a welcoming bar and a nice porch for outdoor dining. Owner-chef Jim Moffat's brief menu changes regularly, but favorites include honeycomb with goat cheese and sea scallops or Hawaiian ahi with pineapple and scallions. The adjacent sister restaurant, Ama, serves ramen and other Asian-style dishes in an upscale outdoor setting.

This place is back, with both dine-in and takeout, at a cozy storefront where family recipes bring a mix of local cultures to the table. Meats are grilled over kiawe, Hawaiian mesquite. Read the menu's fine print so you don't miss BBQ sauce options like tangy lilikoi or guava pepper. Main dishes can be prepared in numerous ways, so don't be shy about asking for substitutions. Seating is limited; takeout is popular and well organized.

Fresh fish caught in local waters by local fishers take star billing at this upscale, tropical-theme restaurant and sushi lounge on the banks of the Hanalei River. There are also many land-based dishes on the menu, including Hawaiian and haole (white-person) chicken, beef tenderloin, and steaks. The Dolphin doesn’t take reservations—if there’s a wait, order a cocktail or glass of wine and hang out in the lush riverside garden. The on-site market sells fish and seafood as well as sushi rolls, steaks, and organic greens.

Located in the laid-back Waimea Plantation Cottages hotel, this equally casual eatery has a veranda that's a great place to sit with a beer and watch the sunset while the kids run around on the lawn. The fare is simple and hearty: barrel-smoked barbecue chicken, pork, brisket, or ribs; plus salads, tacos, burgers, and pizza. Breakfast burritos, eggs, granola, and pancakes start the day. Barrel Taps, the sports bar in front, features a self-serve beer wall.

Folks love this roadside café—especially at breakfast and lunch, though it's good for dinner, too—for its casual neighborhood feel and lengthy menu with omelets, sandwiches, burgers, and plenty more. Lots of Kauai products are used here, including Anahola Granola, fruit for smoothies, fresh-caught fish, and coffee, which you can also buy by the pound. Takeout is an option. This is a solid choice, with vegetarian and gluten-free options, in an area with limited restaurants.

Open from 6:30 am, the bakery serves coffee drinks, delicious fresh pastries, bagels, and breads in the morning, but late risers should beware: breads and pastries sell out quickly. Pizza (including a gluten-free dough option), soup, and salads can be ordered for lunch or dinner. Service is leisurely. There's free Wi-Fi and a cute courtyard with covered tables.

Order freshly prepared Hawaiian and American meals—breakfast, lunch, and dinner—snacks, beer, and wine at the counter at this casual, contemporary restaurant, coffee bar, and beer and wine bar in an upscale grocery store. The extensive and eclectic menus include something for everyone, from loco moco (white rice topped with a hamburger patty, brown gravy, and fried egg), plate lunches, and fresh-catch fish-and-chips to pizzas, burgers, salads, and sandwiches.

Don't let the name fool you; they don't open at sunrise (more like 7:30 am, so come here after you watch the sunrise elsewhere). And it's not just a fruit stand: fill up on bagels, pancakes, smoothies, and coffee drinks in the morning; homemade salads, burritos, panini, and sandwiches for lunch; and tropical-style fresh juices, such as pineapple, carrot, watermelon, and guava, anytime.

The signature restaurant of the Westin Princeville Ocean Resort Villas has casual, open-air seating that perfectly complements an island-style menu sure to please a wide range of diners. Grilled rib eye is served with bacon and sour cream mashed potatoes, while the chicken—smoked kalua style—is accompanied by Molokai sweet potatoes. Lunch options include a plate lunch. At this writing, the restaurant was serving its pool bar menu but may transition to a fuller menu. The food is well executed and service is friendly. 

Attached to a gas station and small-items store, this classic hole-in-the-wall has the best deals for a take-out breakfast or lunch on the North Shore. Darron's local-beef burgers have a loyal following, and you may have to get in line for his lunchtime favorite, chili-pepper chicken. He also parks his food truck at Anini Beach every weekday from 11 am to 2 pm.

This plantation-cottage restaurant has a menu full of seafood but also offers additive-free vegetarian and vegan options. Top menu picks include crispy leek salad with buckwheat noodles, miso-chocolate beef short ribs, and grilled yucca. Desserts are made without refined sugar. Try the chocolate Marquesa with berries and pistachios or the chèvre cheesecake, topped with lilikoi (passion fruit) gel and apple-pear compote.

Pick up some of Kauai’s tastiest made-to-order rolls, sushi burritos, and poke bowls with ahi, smoked salmon, and (sometimes) ono at this modest trailer. Dine in the adjacent courtyard (snag a table with an umbrella) or picnic at the beach. This is a popular place, so be prepared to wait in line.

Hanalei's restored old schoolhouse holds an airy restaurant offering dolphin-safe tuna, low-sodium meats, fresh-baked breads, and house-made desserts, as well as a casual atmosphere where both families and the sports-watching crowd can feel equally comfortable. Lunch and dinner menus feature sandwiches, burgers, hearty salads, a variety of pupus (appetizers), and nightly specials of fresh local fish. They also will prepare a picnic and give it to you in an insulated backpack. A full bar and frequent live entertainment keep things hopping even after the kitchen closes. Monday and Thursday evenings fill up for fish taco night, which begins at 6:30.

A tiny café with a huge local following, Trilogy serves artisanal coffee, tea, chai, adaptogenic elixirs (with ingredients that may reduce the effects of stress on the body), and other blends, plus an array of sweet and savory treats, from avocado toast with macadamia nut pesto and za’atar seasoning to cakes and cookies.