Hana Kitchen - Santa Barbara Downtown

On my visit today to the SB location, the store smelled like a stinky locker room and my mini-chicken bowl had spoiled broccoli in it that was browned and tasted nasty. On the bright side that is by far the most broccoli I have ever gotten in my bowl, unfortunate it was all rotten. I don't think I am going to go here anymore. I have been coming to the Hana Kitchen locations in IV and SB for years now. The quality has always been mediocre, but you know that is what you are getting. It is sad to see that it is only getting worse.

The food is abundant, nutritious, and very tasty. The service is unparalleled, and they make you feel at home. If you're looking for quality, this is definitely the place.

4 stars is not right. For the PRICE of this meal, it is one of the best options downtown. The mini bowl comes out to around $10, solid amount of rice and vegetables and protein. I have a friend who also went to UCSB and he drives up to LA to eat here. 5 stars and the staff is always nice and friendly

I used to eat here often and always appreciated the quick, tasty, and affordable bowls. Unfortunately, I’m not sure what happened. A regular-sized rice bowl with meat is now $17.50 before tip, and the meat portion was minimal to nearly nonexistent. Even stranger—the menu wasn’t posted anywhere visible, so unless you already knew what to ask for, you wouldn’t even know rice bowls were available. The staff seemed uninterested and offered no real guidance or welcome. It felt like they had given up. For the same price, Galanga Thai next door offers a fuller dine-in experience, and at least their portions and service reflect the cost. Hana Kitchen was once known for being a solid, inexpensive bite on State Street. I really don’t understand what’s going on now—no menu, high prices, low portions, and zero energy. I truly hope they return to the quality and clarity they used to have. Update:,’ I’ll never go here again. It’s no longer worth it.

I literally eat here at least 3 times a week. Love their chicken bowls. Delicious and healthy.

We were expecting something of a Hawaiian style BBQ sauce and the chicken was slapped on a typical BBQ sauce that appears to taste from any bbq bottle sauce, nothing special… taste like Yoshinoya- they had the red ginger for you to get in a small cup.. so this chicken taste quite dry… hubbys bday..

Terrible customer service. Didn’t greet us at all when I came in with my husband. They also got our order wrong as well as the drinks. That’s not what bothers me because food is food and we were still able to eat it. It was frustrating to see that even though the restaurant was completely empty no customers they didn’t receive us properly. No Hello, No Thank You. NOTHING. Please choose people that even if they don’t want to work they still fake it. Makes the restaurant look bad with those employees you have.

The food is incredibly mediocre. While the listing is advertised as a build-your-own bowl restaurant, the protein and vegetable options are sparse. I ordered the medium beef bowl and mini chicken bowl, both were disappointing. The beef bowl in particular tasted no different from the microwaved gyu don bowls supplied from a convenience store.

Good Hawaiian fusion place. The chicken bowl was loaded and really filled me up. The guava slushee was not good. It was very fake and processed and I would assume the rest are like that. Don't get the slushee, but the bowls are good. Overall it's not the best place I have been to and many other better places in Santa Barbara, but it gets the job done if you need a quick bite to eat over lunch. We sat outside which has great seating and shade. Service is non existent as you order from a counter and pick up yourself.

This is one of my favorite places in Goleta!! They have the best beef bowl with rice and veggies! I ALWAYS get take out here when I visit Goleta. And I always get it with a mango slush with boba! Their boba is sooo good. I 100% recommend this place! They changed ownership and recently got a remodel! If you're doing takeout, place the order online! It's easy

We came in and I noticed they'd made some changes. They don't have their prices on the large menu. Now they have it on a little menu on the side. Their movie selection was a lot better, they had a Selena movie on. Their little bar with the toppings and sauces is now by the door when you exit. I ordered the vegan chicken mini bowl. Their vegan chicken tacos are delicious.

Hana kitchen has a super basic menu and you get a decent amount of food for the price. I only give it 3 stars because they don't seem to be super knowledgeable about allergies (gluten specifically) and if you have allergies you basically just have to get bare bones chicken + rice. They didn't have any sauces that could accommodate a gluten allergy (all had soy sauce or flour in them including the spicy Mayo) Despite only being able to order a pretty basic bowl, the regular size is HUGE and easily was 2+ meals so I did like how much food you get for under $15. I used my own sauce at home to give it some flavor which made it way better. A good cheap option, best for those without food allergies.

I've been coming to this place for years now, it has never let me down! Don't expect fine dining here, or an incredible ambiance, but this gem is found in the heart of Santa Barbara's State St. There are few options on the menu, makes it really simple to order & there is a menu of boba tea/slushes as well. The food is so filling for the value of the portions and the price point. A Super (size) bowl is just shy of $15, but I shared a bowl with my sister and we were both full and satisfied because the quality of the food is great, you can also add toppings to your bowl which I always do. A good amount of green onion, spicy mayo, and some fire pickled cucumbers, and of course some Sriracha. The service is great, too many entitled people happen to review this place and expect some sort of Michelin star quality food when in reality this is a great spot to grab lunch or dinner any day, especially for take out and on a budget and you can even make it vegan. I will never stop coming to this place even though it's an hour drive from me and they are one of the few boba spots on state street !

Pretty good food with great plant based/ vegan options! I have been eating here for the past few years as it was one of the first restaurants in the area to offer a vegan meat option. They offer outdoor seating which was nice. The tacos are okay, it just didn't taste like they had a lot of sauce/seasoning on them.

The menu for starters looked very small to me. We ordered in and I got the sweet and sour chicken fried rice. The rice I got was just white rice not fried, some cabbage that smelt quite interesting and some chicken with sauce on it. Was not impressed to be honest.

I love the spicies! It would be great to have the tofu back but the vegan is my go to! I love the pickled jalapeños and toppings!

Absolutely terrible! The place is filthy, the food fatty and had a spoiled taste, and the "salsa bar" looked as if it was 5 days old with things spilled everywhere. We never would have eaten here if we had seen it first, but we ordered for pick-up. I also had to use the restroom which was disgusting. Probably the worst restaurant I've eaten at in the past 10 years! Never again!

Delicious, healthy, quick, great food! I had the spicy chicken bowl and it was amazing. Vegies, rice, marinated chicken, great toppings. Love it!

Ordered off UberEats after a concert; first time visiting SB. They were closing 45mins to when I placed my order. EVERYTHING I ATE WAS GREAT! "Super" Chicken bowl filled me up . Tried two of their regular tacos which were delicious. And a chicken stick, which is a teriyaki chicken kebab that was GREAT (like 1.5"x1.5" not like chicken satay at a Thai place ; CHONKS of meat haha). Got the blueberry slush boba, which had me thinking from the name and boba straw that there'd be boba in it - no ): maybe it's cuz I didn't select one of the three, I presumed add-ons/flavored boba.. so that's on me and misleading name but eh, still tastes great:) Shame I live down in San Diego county - would love to dine here. UberEats and this restaurant fulfilling my order 45mins before close and for everything to taste good - AWESOME. Good job, yall

Hana Kitchen is elite. there is no better option than hana kitchen. i see hana kitchen in my dreams. every. single. night. slap some spicy mayo and teriyaki in there, and my gosh darn you will be so so enlightened when you mix it up and gaze into that nice mixture loaded with flavor that is hana kitchen. the food is incredible. i have gotten it weekly for months now and have never been disappointed. the staff is fantastic as well, they are always in good spirits and are very accommodating. thank you hana. you have a customer for life!

I used to go to Hana's every week , but now forget it . They raised prices and begin being stingy with the food I order the "super" and nothing but rice ... definitely noth worth it anymore . They suck every time now . You have a better chance going to panda

I love this joint! I think of Hana when you want just a satisfying, savory, wholesome bowl late- night or suffering a hang over. I always would get their Super Chicken Bowl. I crave their bowls and always make sure I get their condiments: Side pickles, that heavenly orange colored sauce!! I usually would get the Large Super Chicken Bowl. The Chicken would consistently be hot and the vegetables were really fresh. Thejr boba is pretty good too and pairs well with the bowl

Friendly, fast service! The best fake chicken I have ever had. Overall this is amazing food and a great atmosphere. How anyone could give them less than 5 stars is baffling. I wish we lived closer, this would be a weekly staple for us! I can't wait to try to fake beef next time we are win town. Healthy, quick and absolutely DELICIOUS!!

Boba here is bad got two drinks one Yogurt and one Mango Hochaya is a better option if you're willing to drive a little

Place my order online at 4:55. It says ready by 5:09. Showed up and it wasn't ready and they claimed they never saw my order come through. Finally ready at 5:35. What a joke!

Most of the staff are not nice and clearly dont enjoy their jobs! As for the food, it's pretty good quality but I would not return just because of the staff alone! Grade D Overall.

Really good food for very cheap. The chicken teriyaki is simple and tasty. My dad tried the mango tacos and really enjoyed them as well. They were also very accommodating with my food allergy. I highly recommend this place!

All I gotta say is that teriyaki chicken hit the spot ! Def going back for more Getting me large next time

Ordered for pickup. Everything was good till I opened the box. Ordered chicken and beef and all I got was chicken.

Took a chance and gave the place the benefit of the doubt...and was disappointed. Place had a weird smell upon entering, then the service was average, and the boba was absolutely horrible! My husband got the raspberry boba slushy and it literally smelled like Robitussin and tasted like straight sugar and water- so bad! Do not go here for boba!

Food was delicious! Boba iced tea was delicious. Food was enough for 2 meals. Highly recommend!!

Just ran in to get some tea...jasmine green tea with no sugar...oversteeped to accommodate excessive sugar but the tea had a nice smoked woody flavor on it, so I was happy

Quality is so bad. But I guess you get what you pay for. Greasy and chicken you can tell is the cheapest imaginable.

I always pre order online and they are fast. I love their bobas definitely recommend and their kitchen chicken bowl.

How have I missed this place until now? The most delicious meal- large portions, delivered still hot, exactly what I ordered and SOOO yummy! Go eat at Hana...or have it delivered!

Food is good when they can get my order correct. I highly recommend ordering there and not ordering ahead to make sure they do it correctly

Our friends picked us up some Hana kitchen today. I've been excited to try this place. It was eh. Chicken was good but kind of tasteless. I had a chunk of cartilage in a bite. The cabbage was good, but the rice wasn't that great. I don't regret the meal but I don't think I'll be craving going back.

This Hana is pretty on-par with the one located in Isla Vista--in fact, given the mysterious things that happen there, this one may be cleaner LOL. I took my family here to get chicken and beef bowls and they haven't stopped thinking about it since. My brother still requests for me to bring him an order home every time I make the drive. This location is downtown and accessible for anyone wanting a quick bite on State St. Teriyaki bowls are a simple concept, but I haven't had any place that's done it better than HK. There's just a specific flavor to it. I love the cabbage, the broccoli, the spicy mayo, cucumbers, jalapeños, ginger, and extra teriyaki sauce. My favorite "meat" is the vegan one because it reminds me of Vietnamese vegetarian meat. I think it's soy? The mini lasts me a meal and the regular size lasts me two. The large size is extra protein. There are limited toppings right now during COVID so I'm not going to go again until the toppings bar is open because the amount that they let you take is not satisfying.

I was craving boba in the State Street area and decided to satisfy my craving here (there weren't many options in the area). It smelled so good when I walked in, definitely teriyaki smells. For food, they sell various bowls (chicken, beef, or vegan) and tacos (teriyaki mango & spicy sweet and sour) at an affordable prices. Lots of seats/tables available inside. PARKING: Free parking for 75 mins nearby in the structures. Each hour or part of an hour after the initial 75 minutes is $1.50. Metered street parking also available, which can be free oftentimes later in the evening. For drinks, they offer milk tea (green or black), slushies/iced teas/snow, and ice milk. Toppings include boba (should write "honey boba" for clarity) and jelly (not sure which one) for an additional 50 cents. GREEN MILK TEA: Their boba drink sizes remind me of Half and Half's. I ordered this drink at half sugar, less boba, and less ice. I would probably get 25% sugar next time because their boba is honey boba and it will definitely sweeten your drink. Overall it was okay. I wouldn't mind getting it again, but wouldn't go out of my way to go here. FLAVORS: I am disappointed in their availability of flavors/syrups. I came around 6pm on a Sunday evening and they list 13 flavors (mango, strawberry, peach, pineapple, blueberry, yogurt, lychee, honeydew, raspberry, passionfruit, kiwi, guava, and green apple) on the menu...but they only had 2 available (blueberry and yogurt). I'm not sure why that is, but that's disappointing for sure!

YUMMMMM! You do not need to get the big size unless you're sharing. They do not skimp out on the small! Totally full and I went crazy for the sauces they have for free next to the pick up area. It was a great and quick stop. I'd highly suggest!

I don't even know where to start with this place. During a brief trip to Santa Barbara, we decided to order from them because they had decent vegan options. However, I only got to try the vegan teriyaki chicken and it almost made me throw up immediately. The texture is way off, they didn't put any teriyaki sauce on it, the veggies were mushy, they didn't send our drinks & then the manager hung up on me when I called to advise of the issue. So I decided to walk down there after the manager hung up. They said they would make it right because it was their mistake, didn't apologize and made me wait for 30 min and still didn't give me any food. I left. Do yourself a favor and look somewhere else for food. Unless they drastically change, they won't last much longer in business. Be kinder to your customers.

So far, everything we ordered was awesome. Dish 1- beef bowl; The beef bowl was surprisingly yummy. The beef was super thin sliced kind of like yoshinoya style, but yummier. I'm not a person who craves Yoshinoya either.. but this restaurant's beef bowl was yummy. Comes with spicy mayo on the side and teriyaki sauce if you ask but it didn't need it. Toddler liked the meat and the rice. We ended up going back to the counter and ordering a second one! Dish 2- The taco with mango salsa was surprisingly and pleasantly light and refreshing with a hint of lime wedge squeezed atop optionally as the sauce. Ambiance: Outside seating during Covid was super nice with the talented guitar street performer right there. We thanked him with a small tip after an hour and a half worth of fun music. Toddler loved it. Convenience: Right next door to another taco place which had yummy shrimp soft taco, maybe the best I've ever had. Drinks: Lastly, the guava slushy tasted like it came straight out of Taiwan. It was not too sweet and it smelled like fresh guava. Winner!!! I'm not a sweet drinks person but this one was not shabby. Of course afterwards, only a few blocks stroll away from McConnell's ice cream. ;-) Tip: the place doesn't look like much in terms of- it's hard to figure out what this place is about from the restaurant name and when you look at the menu.. especially the menu. But go for it and the food was delicious! At least those 3 things which we tried.

Ordered Hana Kitchen through UberEats. I got to say we devoured it. Was so good. We got 2 chicken bowl, 2 beef bowl, 1 side beef, and 2 bobas. They are way better tasting and better quality than Yoshinoya. The portions are huge. We love the flavor and the steam veggies were good too. The kids (elementary) enjoyed it too. We give it 5 stars.

Seriously...?? I ordered half chicken, half beef bowl. The chicken was ok. The beef, as you can see from the pictures, I wouldn't feed a dog on the street with.... Totally disgusting. I've never seen anything like it before. Also found a pretty big bone in the chicken parts, after I bit on it.... And for a tourist place, they certainly aren't very polite either.... Sad....

Food was decent but it has MSG so beware if you are allergic! Ordered mini chicken bowl. Good distribution of chicken, veggies, and rice. Extra terriyaki sauce is available for free and makes it pretty good.

I love Hana kitchen but this last time I went I was left disgusted, I got a spicy chicken bowl and was excited to eat it since it had been a while, I was enjoying my bowl when I realize theres a huge dead fly as im getting to my last bite, I was so disgusted. Please make sure this doesn't happen again and check your food

I ordered vegan chicken tacos and vegan chicken fingers and got meat in all my order! Be aware! Don't order from them!!!!!when I called they say the driver made sure it's vegan so I guess that's mean I'm laying . Don't order from them!!!!!!!!!!

Got a great recommendation for this place and am in town for the first time so I gave it a try. It's on state street in a nice bustling area and of course it's beautiful everywhere you look. Upon arrival the employee working the cash register was great and the establishment was clean. I ordered the spicy chicken in the regular size and it came steaming hot and in a very good portion size. I got the spicy Mayo and teriyaki sauce and it tasted really good with the rice, cabbage, and spicy chicken all mixed in together. The person accompanying me on this food journey got the vegan chicken bowl and they ranted and raved about how it is the best vegan chicken they have ever had!!! An Asian fusion that's definitely worth the try and you will definitely have leftovers unless you are extremely hungry! Overall the reason I'm giving a four star and not a five star rating is because of the sauce limitations, I feel like when it goes back to self serve and you're able to load up on the deliciousness this is a for sure five star spot!!

Came here to eat after a friend had absolutely raved about their chicken bowls. Not the most polished of spots but on par with other lower State take-out dining. It was late and both the downtown club goers and vagrants had taken the stage out front. There was a man walking around the front of the restaurant yelling at himself. Another was going through the trash cans in search of recycling. The cooks were singing to a Banda song on the radio at the TOP of their lungs. Describing the overall vibe as a bit quirky would be an understatement. My chicken bowl was good but nothing I'd write home about. It was a large portion and reasonably priced. I ate a good amount at the restaurant and saved the rest for later as it came in a to-go container. Hana wouldn't be my first choice, but if it were the only place open on a late night, I wouldn't mind coming back.

The mango chicken taco is BOMBB. As someone who rarely likes chicken, I could eat these every single day and be ecstatic each time. You need them Guava iced tea was overly sweet but I didn't mind since the tacos were so amazing

I trusted this location with lunch for my company outing and boy was it a disaster. We ordered on the website using the choices that were listed - we added names to every order. When we picked up the food it was not ready on time and they gave us 32 of the same order without being able to tell us which one was the allergy. The food itself was fine, but I would never risk my reputation on this place again.

The restaurant is simply chic, not expensive the main thing, they give discounts for happy hours from Wednesday to Friday. unlimited variety of sauces, fresh vegetables. And best of all, they have vegan chicken and beef that many others don't.

Hana is must stop for me whenever I'm back home in Santa Barbara. I became addicted to the vegan bowls during my pre parent "clubbing days" . My go to is the Vegan chicken bowl with all the condiments! Remember, add spicy chipotle Mayo to ALL things HANA! -805-

First off this place should be called the Haunted kitchen, I got a chicken teriyaki bowl yesterday and I have been throwing up and been on the toilet all night. This might be the greatest fight of my life. I would not recommend. This place sucks.

I'm originally from LA, the land of tons of amazing and authentic boba. When you live in SB and have a late night craving, where do you go? To Hana Kitchen if you want a giant boba like Half & Half in LA. We got the his and hers lychee boba because why not? Fragrant, cold and the boba was cooked to perfection. Thanks HK! You did it right!

I rarely go to this location, the one in Isla Vista is more convenient for me. However, the service here is better. The inside is pretty awkward, with the cashier on one side of the wall and the pickup area on another side. There's a few chairs and tables, along with counter seating. There's also a side bar where you can get extra sauce and vegetables. If you want, you can try the black milk tea for free near the register. I came at 1, and there was a decent amount of people. It's not as crowded as the IV location, it was more relaxed. Service was fine, they didn't look too welcoming though. The regular chicken teriyaki bowl is huge. I was going to order a mini but I decided otherwise. There's a lot of chicken and vegetables, it was a good ratio compared to the rice. I had plenty leftover to bring home and eat the next day. The milk tea was good, reasonably priced and very sweet. You definitely get your money's worth for a quick delicious meal. HK is also open quite late compared to other places in Santa Barbara, so it's the go-to place for late night cravings.

Ok after 2 years I am updating my review- the customer service could improve but this review is for the great comfort food. The best boba drinks I've had in Santa Barbara and very generous drink size. I had their chicken teriyaki bowl and it was very delicious! I had the regular size, very generous portions I shared my regular with someone and it was perfect for 2. They don't drench the bowls with sauce so you need to request extra teriyaki on the side if you want more. Great vegan options! My daughter loooooves the vegan chicken bowls from there.

Popped in for a quick lunch after reading the reviews and it did not disappoint. The menu was simple and the service was nice and quick. We shared a regular order of chicken teriyaki and it didn't disappoint. The serving was huge and just enough for us to share as a light lunch. There's a self serve bar for their condiments; pickled ginger, sliced cucumber, siracha, etc. We watched as they served up a beef bowl and kind of wished we had ordered it. So if you're in the area, it's worth the time to find this little hole in the wall. Not fancy, but definitely worth the effort!