Fort Street Cafe

I heard that this place has a great garlic chicken, so I wanted to try! Yes, they have real garlic chicken! Crispy outside and juicy inside, and you can taste garlic. Not a hint of garlic! They put the garlic chicken over jasmine rice. The garlic sauce unites with rice. You can enjoy all items on a plate. If you like garlic, this is your place!! We also ordered Pad Thai with chicken. The noodle was thin. I was expected some sturdy noodles and peanut flavor… The taste was good, but the noodle texture was a bit weak. This place takes credit card, it is a good plus!!

Found this little hole in the wall place and so glad I did. Right now having the Seafood Saimin which is to die for. Next I want to try the Panang curry. Great service, run by really nice family. Reasonably priced

I’ve eating here on and off for over 10 years. Fourth Street Cafe has the best food in downtown Honolulu, if you’re looking for a good plate lunch without having to wait long. Their food is consistently amazing, I’ve never been disappointed. Garlic chicken is my favorite plate here. The owners are super nice, I’ve really enjoyed chatting with them over the years. So happy to see their business is thriving! Will definitely continue to go here any chance I get!

We possibly went at the wrong time or day as it was quiet the food was mediocre there weren’t much flavour. The owners were friendly though.

Tried the green and yellow curries with chicken and sticky rice. Excellent flavor, solid amount of chicken and veggies, and awesome sticky rice that is cheap! Each order is two meals for me! Don't let any line scare you away...they are extremely fast. There was a line eight deep and from standing in line to getting my food, it only took about three minutes. I will continue to come here for lunch. The only reason I gave four stars for atmosphere is because it is at Fort Street Mall...beggar's paradise

I love their Eggs, Rice and Bacon! And it's priced right @:$6.25 + Tax you cannot go wrong - Also friendly & clean

In heart of downtown Honolulu on Fort Street Mall. Been going here for about 7 years and can't believe I haven't given a review yet. Food is really good. Pad Thai, Garlic Chicken, Green Curry with Chicken (Thursday and Friday Only) are my staples every time I go. Red curry is also the special but the green is better in my opinion.Just tried the Thai iced coffee and it was light in flavor and tasty. If you want a strong coffee flavor this is probably not your speed. They now offer Bahn Mi sandwiches so I will have to try that next. Pho is good but not like LA or Bay Area which is legit. BTW garlic chicken does not taste the same the next day but it still good. Noodles and fried rice are still good the next day. skip the fried rolls as they are good but not very meaty. Owners are friendly and they man the cash register and take you orders. If you are in downtown, you should stop by.

Nice service but the food was just OK. The pho didn't have the depth of flavor you find in other Pho restaurants. The spring and fried rolls were delicious! Tapioca was yummy.

Fort Street Cafe is such a gem. Recently worked with Vince on a catering order for a party and everything was delivered on time and tasted great. we ordered the garlic chicken, spring rolls, summer rolls (shrimp and tofu). Highly recommend for catering and such a great value for the cost!

Best bahn mi. Get the garlic chicken. Worth the 11 bucks. Lemongrass tofu is good too

Garlic chicken. A must. Highly recommended for good reason. Crisp. Tender and juicy. That garlic sauce with just a little sweet. Good stuff. But then also have curry. Also a must. Curry is nice and light. Mix it in with the rice. Then take a bite of the garlic chicken. Totally hits the spot. And fortunately, they have a garlic chicken and curry combo. Score. Friendly service. I went in with garlic chicken on my mind but then got a little side tracked when I saw they also served curry. I ask the person how I could easily remedy my conundrum and he said, just order the combo. Ambiance. Casual. So, so casual. So, so casual that I was jealous that I was dressed up. Everyone looked so very chill and relaxed and enjoying the cozy feel of the place for lunch and here I am wearing a tie. Ugh. Maybe I shoulda taken off the tie. That would be my bad. Great lunch spot. Looks like a go to place for a lot of folks since there was a steady stream of take out orders and most the tables were taken.

Fort Street mall has changed since I worked in the downtown area 25 years ago. Happily, I found Fort Street Cafe. Wanting to eat a curry dish, I walked the in mall in search of a Thai restaurant. Well, I passed Fort Street Cafe a couple of times. Seeing pictures of Pho and breakfast items, I thought that this was a Vietnamese Pho restaurant. In the back of my mind, I thought of a review from Donna O. I went in and asked if they had made curry dishes. The young man said that they did. I ordered the red curry to take out. Bottom line. The curry was flavorful, a little on the hot spicy side, but I would order it again. The service was excellent and friendly. Enjoy

I used to frequent this place in college. One of the more affordable places with quality food to eat on mall. GARLIC CHICKEN IS A MUST! Recently came back on vacation and was staying in town so I took a trip back because I remembered how flavorful the garlic chicken is. The area is not the greatest since it's crawling with homeless, but don't let that deter you from trying their garlic chicken breakfast combo. It's cheaper than a breakfast platter at McDs. It's the best on Oahu!!! So good, even my daughter agrees, and she's picky!

Found this little gem since my college days. I used to eat here nearly every other day!!! Not as often now and over the past few years since graduating, but will often order through DoorDash or go down to pick up my order. Food isn't aaaas perfect as before but still good! I usually go for the pad thai, chicken pho, spring rolls, fried rice with garlic chicken, or the garlic chicken plate. The garlic chicken is hands down my favorite and the flavor of that never changed. Ever. The pho lately hasn't been consistent. Sometimes it's flavorful with all the spices, other times it lacks the flavor. Their pho used to be my favorite but the inconsistency of flavor makes me sad. So I just stick with my other choices. The establishment doesn't look like much, pretty much a cozy hole in the whole place. Customer service is great, especially if you go there a lot haha I never waited more than 10/15ish minutes for my food even when it's a bit crowded and food was always hot. Not a fan of the location since there's some sketchy people hanging around and parking is a bit annoying. But I always phone in my order and quickly quick it up.

Mean craving for Ramen...don't know where got at lunch downtown anymore that isn't with a Taiwanesey sauce. Luckily found Saimin at Fort Street. Pretty tasty! Got the combo which is Char Siu and Seafood and they throw in carrots and one of the Choys. I may have overdone the chili sauce, but that's my weakness and I put it on everything. Now I know where to go for my Saimin...if only they had a Saimin-Chicken Combo...

The garlic chicken is so crispy and flavorful! I usually get it with curry. It is also great w pad Thai noodles! Pretty much everything I have tried has been Ono!

So convenient and so good. I always walk past this place on the way to the gym. Today I decided to get an early lunch from fort street cafe and it was the best decision I made all day. I got the chicken curry combo and it was amazing. The chicken was tender and saucy, the curry had the right amount of flavor and the combo was a good size. It was very quick to get my food in and out in about 5 minutes. The area isn't the nicest but they have a few seats inside.

Still a great downtown spot! Recently got pho takeout and I love how the soup is still piping hot even after walking back to the office. The serving size is decent and price is affordable compared to other pho places! They provide veggies and sauces when you takeout too - and don't forget to take some of their chili oil with you too! Service is super fast and it's always popular here.

I work in downtown and we order catering from them regularly. They've never turned away an order from us and delivery to our office is timely. The service is great and food is always on point! My favorites are the bao buns, garlic chicken, and pad Thai. Thank you Fort Street!

If there is a Food Heaven there will be a Fort Street Cafe there. I was in the area so I thought I'd pick up dinner from one of my favorite restaurants. I have been coming here for over 15+ years to see Vince and his wife and am always super satisfied with the meals. Always great flavors, great value and great service!

Price hike to $8.85 for this 6 pc tuna roll. That's $1.47 a piece and they are not that big. One inch all around to be exact. I get it. Prices every where went up but I could've gotten a sandwich for $2 more that would fill me up.

So glad we decided to stop here. Not sure how they do it, but the garlic sauce with the chicken still crunchy and moist is THE best. Guaranteed crunch with every bite. Highly recommend!!

I'm so glad I finally got to check this place out. Everyone talks about how amazing the garlic chicken is, and it did not disappoint! The food is SO good and definitely worth the trek over. The lines are long during lunch, which can be discouraging but they are so efficient. Someone comes around to take orders from the line. So by the time you get to the cashier, I just let them know what I ordered, paid and only waited a couple minutes for the food. Other downtown lunch places should take note--it really speeds up the process. The owner is super nice and has an impressive memory. She asked my coworker where our other coworker was today and noted that it was my first time there. She made sure to say "I really hope you like it!" When she handed me my food. Excellent service, excellent food, I will definitely be back!

Ever since I worked downtown I have always enjoyed the delicious food that Vincent and his staff prepare. My absolute favorite is their Penang curry, which can't be beat by anyone else. They are currently on vacation (they have more than earned it, having been one of the few eating establishments on Fort Street Mall and the surrounding area that survived COVID).

Fort St. Cafe is within steps from where we live. We pass it every day as we head to the gym but never stop by. Well, we finally did, just days ago. I am very happy we did! The person who took our order was very polite and even brought our food over to the table while we were waiting. That first order was the Vegetarian Panang, Vegetarian Summer Rolls, Vegetarian Papaya Salad, and the combination rice noodles with BBQ chicken and spring rolls. I enjoyed and shared the veggie dishes with my Honey, who ate the combo plate. There was so much food, and he took half of that for lunch the next day. He said his food was good, too. We were both famished that we did not take pics before we ate our dinner! Lol! Everything was simply delish ;) I made another order via Door Dash this morning, and again, I was not disappointed! I just had to order 2 Vegetarian Summer Rolls (believe me, it is that good!), and for the first time, I got the Vegetarian Pad Thai. Yummmo! I even asked for extra sauce for the rolls, and it was granted. How nice! Yes, I will be ordering Vietnamese food from here again! Thank you for your delicious food!

Vincent and his team are amazing!! Ordered 35 Banh Mi sandwiches for a business meeting and he not only delivered it to our meeting place but brought a dolly and actually walked the containers (with sands labeled and separated in pans) up to our meeting room! His service was done with kindness and warm hospitality. Mahalo nui, Vincent!

It has been awhile since I ate at the Forth Street Cafe. The food has always been great, I just no longer work I the area. I just happened to be working in a project in town with my business partner and needed to grab a quick bite, when I remembered to Garlic Chicken and Panang Curry Combo plate I used to enjoy there. As always the Garlic Chicken was flavorful and crispy. It is butterflied open and boneless, which gives it a nice crunch and flavor in every bite. The Panang Curry has a great basil and coconut milk flavor, but not too much. It also has the right amount of spice, which does really well with the jasmine rice. I wish I still worked in the area or they move closer to my home.

Amazing garlic chicken. My favorite on the island maybe even the world. The nicest family own this restaurant!! I've been eating there for about 20 years. We ordered platters for my daughter's graduation party. Vince made it so easy and also delivered on time. Everyone at the party commented on how delicious the chicken was.

In the middle of a long empty street sits a hidden small Vietnamese restaurant, surrounding buildings are kinda old so first thought is should I try it out or not. So I decided to try it out and boy am I glad I did. Not only that their breakfast was only $6.25 but everything tasted very fresh and delicious. I highly recommend giving this place a try it's definitely a bang for your buck but also fresh and delicious!!

By far and away my go to place for lunch downtown when I can't decide on a place to eat. Staff is friendly enough and if you go enough they'll end up remembering your name and order. Lunch gets busy with the line sometimes going out the door, but they're always fast and will typically take your order before you get to the register. Pad Thai/Garlic chicken combo was my go to for a while but now it's definitely the /Panang Curry/Garlic Chicken combo that hits the spot every time. Everything here is fairly cheap and delicious. Restaurant itself is pretty small with only 4 or 5 booths available inside, but there are some tables with umbrellas just outside the door.

I used to come here quite often when I was working in town. My favorite is the Pad Thai Noodles with Garlic Chicken. Since we were in town, decided to order our lunch from here to have my husband try it. I ordered 2 of my favorite...didn't want to share...lol! Just when they had it packed and ready to go, I gasped and said "Oh, no!" The owner asked me what's wrong. I told her that's okay because they already got my order ready. She insisted so I informed her I forgot to order one without peanuts because my husband was allergic. She let me know it was no problem and had another one made. I was totally grateful that she did that...so awesome! My husband enjoyed it...loved the garlic chicken the best! We had a lot of Pad Thai Noodles left so we ate it for dinner. This place is located on Fort Street Mall. There's no parking so you can look for metered stalls close by or for me, my husband drops me off on Pauahi Street and Fort Street Mall and waits in the car. The workers are so nice and helpful, food is good and reasonable...can't go wrong! Never ordered breakfast from here before but looking at the prices...very enticing! Will try it if I'm in town before 11 am.

Great place for affordable delicious food! Absolutely love their crispy fried egg noodles and saimin special. Highly recommended!

Solid local eatery and possible the best value lunch in downtown. There's not much seating but if you get a table you'll get real plates and decent service. Otherwise it's takeout. Most dishes are $13-$14. That's less than your average fast food meal these days. Taste is good. It's not the best local/Viet food buts it's pretty good, cheap and fast.

I have been going to this place since attending HPU-downtown campus. Nice staff and food and portions are great. However, it may have changed a little But as it's somewhat salty now. Nonetheless still brings back my college days while eating their food .

My coworkers and I always order from here on DoorDash for the last 8 years. The service is exceptional. Tuna rolls are always hit the spot, spring rolls over rice noodles and garlic chicken curry combo. Their lemongrass chili sauce is beyond this world and if you like spicy sauce this is not to be missed.

Fort street cafe has been around for decades BECAUSE their food is phenomenal. This hole in the wall restaurant in the center of downtown business district can be a pain to get to, but man, is their garlic chicken with sticky rice (request this) well worth it! Not much to say about service as it's pretty much hi and bye, and the ambiance is old and lacking but I'm there for the food.

We eat here a few times a month - very good food - the BEST garlic Chicken in Honolulu; Bahn Mi are excellent; Spring rolls on vermicelli are a favorite; the curries are great. Great people own the shop and are very pleasant. Orders are usually quick to be served.

I am a food delivery driver in downtown honolulu so I am very familiar with all the restaurants and I gotta say, hands down, the best food in downtown honolulu is Fort Street Cafe!!! This place is no joke!!! If you didn't know, you might walk right passed it. Trust me, every dish is straight up BOMB!!!!

We LOVE to cater from Fort Street Cafe! We always order their Pad Thai w/Kalbi Ribs and Spring Rolls for our employee parties. We try to support local when we don't want to cook as we cook all day for everyone else!

I love it when small businesses can look like hole in the wall restaurants but have the most phenomenal food and customer base. It's even better to know that Fort Street Cafe has been doing this since our parents were young! We've been here twice now for lunch and they've been slammed every time. Lots of people waiting in line for their food, whether it was from phone order or in person, and you can FEEL the bustle of the kitchen from outside. Our favorite has to be the garlic chicken. The first time we were here, we each got the garlic chicken and panang curry combo and it was way too much food. The container they serve the curry in makes it look like they're skimping out but it's honestly too much curry for one serving! The garlic chicken is just so tasty - crunchy on the outside and juicy on the inside, with a yummy sticky sauce on top. The second time we got smarter and ordered a regular size of chicken and rice, but we were too tempted by the bbq pork baos to refuse. It was like banh mi but on a soft bao bread! Delicious. Support local businesses! We'll be back next week for the third time this month!

Best panang chicken curry on Oahu. This curry is not thick but more coconut milky along the lines of Vietnamese Ca ri ga. I would go with either the garlic chicken and curry combo over sticky rice or get a whole order of panang chicken curry with a side of baguette. Their char siu pork bao buns are phenomenal and I'm going back to try their shrimp pad Thai which looks delicious. Really friendly and quick service. The owner, Allison, is a sweetheart. The only issue is parking if you're not already in town working but definitely worth the trek.

My all time favorite take out place in Downtown! I've been here multiple times and I love all their dishes that I've tried. My go to are: -Pad Thai with chicken (the chicken is their popular garlic chicken! Super crispy, lots of flavor, and a must try!) - Lemon grass chicken -Garlic shrimp -summer rolls -spring rolls -papaya salad All their dishes are flavorful and I can seriously eat here everyday! The staffs are all very friendly, and the service is nice and fast. It can get crowded during lunch, and I know some people order in advance and go pick it up, but if you do order at the store, again the service is fast and you wont be waiting too long. I love this place!

Always love a quick, fresh & healthy lunch. The owners are super nice and friendly. There were plenty of ready to grab, super fresh and delicious food on the counter. We grabbed tuna rolls, spring rolls, pork buns and spring rolls. The dipping fish sauces and peanut sauce that came inside the package were delicious. The tuna rolls are my favorite. Super Fresh and tasty: Very Healthy too. If you are look for a place for delicious fresh South Asian food with le tu of vegetable and herbs, come here. You won't regret it!

We ordered take out from here via uber eats - everything was delicious and the best part was that it was delivered to us, so that we didn't have to go through the trouble of finding parking in downtown. The garlic chicken is a must! It's delicious and not overly garlicky. If you like Thai curries, you can get Panang Curry and Garlic Chicken as a combo. We also really enjoyed the Crispy Fried Egg Noodles, which came with stir fried mixed veggies, shrimp, squid, and chicken in a gravy served on the side. It was enough for several people to share and we still had leftovers for lunch the next day. Reasonable prices, generous portions, flavorful food!

This awesome restaurant catered another event for us and we are so pleased! Nearly every guest wanted to k ow where the food came from! A huge hit for sure! You won't have to worry if you order from here, the food and service are excellent!

My office ordered takeout from Fort Street Cafe. The vegetarian pad thai was super flavorful and filled with a lot of veggies. The portion was humongous! It literally lasted me three meals. I will definitely need to check out what other items they have.

Everything about this place was great. It's a literal "hole in the wall" in pedestrian Fort St with only a couple of tables. I had breakfast--eggs, Portuguese sausage, and rice. My fiend had garlic chicken. Super ono all around. The breakfast was ample and good, and friend raved about the garlic chicken. We had a nice chat with the owner who took our order, which made for a friendly time. This will be a go-to when we're in the area and in the mood for food they serve.

I have been coming to Fort Street Cafe since I started working full-time in Downtown.... it's been many years and I still love their food. My personal favorite is the tuna summer rolls..... gosh it is genius creation and pairs so well with that sauce. It is healthy and delicious. Every time I am around the downtown area, I would always make an attempt to stay by for the tuna summer rolls. The owner is so friendly and remember me from the good old days of working in Downtown when I stopped by one weekend for lunch.

I always snubbed this place for piroski's and Filipino food. In my mind the entire fort street is riddled with bums, baked urine, rats, and roaches. But, I also believe the roach and rat riddled restaurants also serves the best tasting food. That being said I only been here two times but color me impressed!! I ordered the panang chicken curry extra spicy, lo and behold this might be the best tasting panang since Mekong on beretania. Whomever the cook is kudos to you!! The next week we ate there I ordered the pre made charsiu bao on the counter, and this, this is pure culinary genius!! Flavors popping everywhere with some sort of aioli looking sauce that was just the cherry on top, I swear this bao is something straight out of Leeann wongs mind, there's magic in this! Either that or crack. When you eat it you're like oh my fn gawd!!! Then you just don't want it to end. Chewing is no longer a chore when you eat this, it's a desire.

Fort St Cafe was recommended to me by my new coworker, and it was a good one! Food: I ordered the beef panang curry, very hot, very peanut-y, and very large portion! There was leftovers, so I'll have the rest for lunch tomorrow. My only complaint is that it was on the soup-y side, while I prefer a ever-so-slight thickness to my curry. If you're in a hurry, I recommend arriving just before 12pm. I walked in at 12:10 with no one in the restaurant, but as soon as I finished paying a line out the door appeared out of nowhere! One worker ringing out orders, while another went down the line with a notepad to get the food started in the kitchen. Super efficient place! Will be back soon to try the garlic chicken, also a popular recommendation. (Just didn't want to smell like curry AND garlic for the rest of the work day so I had to choose just one today LOL)

Next to Red Pepper on Fort Street Mall, I tried this place a few times before I wrote a review. I've gotten their garlic shrimp and garlic chicken, both of which were amazing. The garlic shrimp is one of my favorites, the portion is generous and the flavor competes with the garlic shrimp plate of Ted's Bakery. Give it a try and let me know you thoughts. I will continue to come here for my garlic shrimp fix so far the plates I've tried were amazing, I would consider this place as a "hole in the wall" type business.

Great value for such delicious food. Had a friend take me out for a picnic and ordered green curry w/sticky rice and a side of tuna spring rolls. Everything was on point. So flavorful! Sauces were to die for, great ginger spicy dipping sauce, great balance of salt, tang and sweet in spring roll dipping sauce. I want to go back and try everything.

The mini garlic chicken and green curry combo is my fave! The Penang curry is also good. Love how fast the food comes out even when there is a line and the lady who works there is super friendly. It's no wonder Fort Street Cafe has been a downtown lunch spot for years! I always take my food to go during my lunch break, there is some seating but it gets crowded during the lunch rush.

I work in downtown and my office is freezing cold. I get the craving often for something that will warm my body and soul. Fort Street Cafe is my goto place to get my Pho on. The broth is what makes a the pho and they have great, tasty broth here. The people are nice here, reasonable prices and there is never a line. Their garlic chicken and curry combo is also winnahs.

I placed an order through Uber eats. I thought it did not go through, so I placed the order again. When I saw that the first order went through, I cancelled the 2nd order. I was charged for both orders and only received one. I was charged a cancellation fee of $29 because they said they had started the order. Now, do you think that's fair to charge me for the 2nd order and not give me the food? This is a major rip off and I would not eat at a place that does this. BEWARE of this ripoff place!!!

I cannot express how happy I am that I never left Fort Street Café a review after my first dining experience here which consisted of the Pad Thai with Garlic Chicken. You see that meal caused me to have the worst heartburn of my life and I had pretty much sworn the place off determined to never have to be breathing fire to the point where I had to eat a tub of Tums ever again.... A few weeks ago, the smell of pho wafted into my office and like a cartoon character I followed the smell until I found out which coworker was eating it. Their takeout container was overflowing with fresh looking garnishes and the broth smelled divine. After hearing that this tempting meal was from Fort Street Café, I decided to give them another try and I am so glad I did. Since the weather has been rainy and cool, the other day was the perfect day to take a stroll on over and grab some pho for lunch. I ordered the beef and meatball pho and was pleasantly surprised with the amount of meat that came with the order. The broth was absolutely delicious and did not need any additional flavors added to it, but I can't resist putting sriracha in it anyway. The vegetables were well packed and fresh and comes with hoisin sauce and individual packets of siracha. The counter also has additional sauces that you can take to season your meal as you like. Despite this being a popular lunch destination for people who work in the area, the staff at Fort Street Café has their system down ensuring that you do not waste your lunch time standing in line. Staff will take orders from those in line and often upon reaching the register to pay, your meal is already packaged and ready for you to go. Minimal seating is available if you're choosing to dine in. As others have mentioned, this place is a dive, but in the best sense of the way. Staff is friendly and this restaurant is a prime example of local restaurants that need our support during these trying times.

I've had Fort Street Cafe multiple times before I'm not sure why I haven't written a review. I love ordering from here for delicious cheap thai food. I had gone today on a Friday during lunch rush, ordered a Pad Thai with Garlic Chicken on the spot, and it was ready in a few minutes! Awesome! I do think the prices went up slightly but that's to be expected with this inflation. My friend and I decided to sit down and eat in their little shop since there was a table available, I'm glad they checked our vaccination cards and did their part. I will definitely come back as always!