Shokudo Japanese Restaurant & Bar

I had high expectations from this place; The photographs show a reputable restaurant, but it turned out to be more like a diner. The interior is old and unattractive, the toilet is in terrible condition. The food was disappointing. Despite the small number of guests, the waiters seemed overworked, forgetting to bring us food on time and generally neglecting to serve tea, to top it off they added it to the bill which was a bummer. I will not be back.

The place is still the same as it was before at its old location. However. The new location feels smaller and more cramped and it is not as nice as the old location. With the new location gone is the mixed drinks. This was a shame since some people in my party really wanted one of the mixed drinks. The food was still really good. Tons of variety for those that love meat or love seafood. The service was decent. Not the best but not the worst. The pricing is still the same. A little on the pricey side. 90 for two and 40 easily for one. They still got their famous honey toast in a variety of flavors for those that love this dessert. I suggest if you want a casual feel for your date or party. UPDATE: Please go before 6pm since the dinner rush occurs then. I did go back for a friend who has not gone before. It was much more pleasant when going before dinner because we were on the side with much more lighting and more attention from the servers. It was a much more better experience.

Took my friend here for her birthday. Everything was great. The waiter gave us a great recommendation for saki. The sushi were tasty. The mandoo was crispy and tasty too. The Honey toast is decent just for pics 5/2023 took my date here and they substituted our entree well with no problems. Everything was great. Put in your reservations a week prior. We were seated immediately.

Returned to Shokudo after a long hiatus and happy to see that the food & service are still top notch! Known for their Honey Toast & fresh seafood offerings with a casual, welcoming atmosphere Shokudo restaurant does not disappoint. At my last visit our group was greeted at the front and seated almost immediately. Our server April was very sweet and while admitting that she was new, she already had some favorite items on the menu, the Homemade Tofu Salad & Red Eye Roll. We ordered both as well as a few other dishes on the menu. Both of her suggestions were fantastic! The tofu salad is not only delicious, it's also huge and was great to share for our party of three. The service was very attentive, April as well as another server, Alex, answered our questions on some unfamiliar items. Even though April didn't know the entire menu yet, she was happy to check with senior staff and came back with answers and a beaming smile :D When our meal was winding down one of the managers, Karlo, stopped by and suggested the famous Honey Toast for dessert. He joked that some meals both begin and end with Honey Toast, suffice to say, we were sold. I was especially happy to see that it was available with two of my favorite flavors of ice cream, Cookies n Cream, and Green Tea! We will definitely be back.

They still got it with the honey toast. The service is friendly from everyone we interacted with. We had a new server so the service was a bit slower. We stopped in just for the honest toast and it was worth it. They have validated parking in the back as well.

Every once in a while we come here especially when Kawaii-Kon comes around as a somewhat tradition among friends and family during Kon, we most of the time 9 times out of 10, we come here for the prized dessert of all time, Honey Toast. ♡ But the menu tends to change from what I can tell because they use a QR Code for their menu... which to me, I find that to be very inconvenient, because it takes some people several tries to load it or download it depending on how well their technological devices work. And even for elderly who may not understand how to use technology... there should be a physical menu option available. But that's just my opinion. The food is great, the service is good, and this is a nice location to treat yourself at every once in a while

Not the usual Japanese restaurant. I heard good things about the place but it looks like they deteriorated a bit in quality. The food was mediocre and the bento box took forever to hit the table. Our company was in a hurry because of being on a lunch break and when she asked the waitress how long they hadn’t even started on her order. The rest of the table was almost done with their food. I liked all the Covid measurements they had in place but the bathroom was dirty and not cleaned from the night before made me question the rest. Would not come back again even though we didn’t get to try their amazing deserts.

We came here as a family for birthday dinners! It is always a fun dining experience at Shokudo, especially if you love Japanese Fusion. My husband and I ordered the Lobster Dynamite Roll. It was very delicious. One MUST HAVE when coming to Shokudo is the Homey Toast. I don't have a picture of it because it was so appetizing that no one could wait to eat it! Also the bread pudding is always a great option. The bimbimbop is also one of my favorites. If you are hungry and at Ala Moana, I highly recommend it!

Lobster dynamite Sushi pizza Steamed gyoza Fried gyoza Bibimbap Chicken quesadilla White tiger roll Honey toast Our favorite foods at Shokudo. Had to try these one last time, and to bid farewell to Shokudo Ala Moana location, effective tomorrow 3/31/24, they will close their doors. Thank you for the memories and delicious food.

This is the first time i've been back to Shokudo in maybe 5 years. I remember it being a top spot to dine at with friends but over the years more and more restaurants came by and replaced it. They moved into the old Pietro's spot right next to their old spot. Parking is free in the back lot and you just have to enter your license plate # to register. The shokudo menu is almost the same as before - I remember often getting garlic shrimp fried rice, spicy tuna crispy rice, and of course the honey toast. Since they were offering a anniversary 19% off special, we decided to go back and reminisce on the old days. We were seated pretty fast - some things I noticed, my seat was wet - not sure if it was water or something else and the table wasn't super clean, some leftover rice grains that I could see. My friend wanted to use their bathroom but they said that the women's was out of order so she could use the mens - when she came back she said it was disgusting like it was never cleaned. I've experienced this before when I went to the Christmas Bar which I believe may be operated by the same people - seems like they don't clean the facilities daily or even weekly by the looks/sounds of it! Anyway, we decided to make the most of it and order our food. We got the agedashi tofu, bibimbap, and spicy tuna crispy rice for the main. The food came out quick...almost too quick! But we were hungry and already ordered. Taste wise everything was good, not amazing. Agedashi tofu was a little lukewarm and I wished it was hotter. Bibimbap was in a hot stone bowl - good flavor, but you could probably order at a korean restaurant for more authentic taste. The crispy rice was decent but the rice was fried a little too much and was too crisp for my liking. We finished all the food but thought the quality was just okay. If it weren't 19% off I probably wouldn't come back! Finally, we finished with honey toast - one of Shokudo's most iconic dishes. The honey toast was really good - maybe even better than I remember. Buttery bread topped with honey and condensed milk and ice cream. Not sure if I would come back just to eat that though. All in all, it was great because the meal was 19% off - but I don't think I would recommend it to others.

I would give this place 2 stars, if not for the female server who worked so hard tonight. She gets the star for effort. 1) The host seated us in one of those old red upholstery that was so cracked it hurt to sit on. I demanded another table 2) The service is SLOW. There were only 2 servers for the whole place- it appears they schedule their staff based on reservations. Well tonight more than 50% were walk ins 3) Tiger sushi roll was ok and $17 for just "ok" is expensive. Everything else we ordered was not spectacular either. I did like the fries. 4) it was warm inside - not sure if their AC was working. Overall I was so disappointed coming here. I told my BF to go to 7-11 after to get some pork hash. I will not be coming back. My first and last.

The service was great. We had several requests and the server was graciously accommodating. The food was subpar. For the price and wait, I had higher expectations. The bibimbap was underwhelming and a mess. I do not recommend it.

Damn. I used to love coming here every time. The menu has definitely been cut down, and the place is falling apart. We came to the smaller more recent location in the corner next to the old location. We didn't have a reservation, but was able to be seated right away. Air condition was broken, so it was HOT. The hostess said it's been like that for a while. Felt sooo bad for her because she was perspiring sooo much! Then you look at all the other staff, and they're drenched too. No AC for a while, the place was horrible and not comfortable to even be inside. We stayed though because our kids really wanted the toast, AND it was our pre-anniversary dinner since Shokudo was a place my husband and I used to go to all the time when we were in college. However, the place itself it's not even as romantic or classy anymore. Not a good date night spot. The food though. It was alright. The kids said they liked the chicken. The hamachi was good, some bites were harder then others, so you could tell it wasn't fresh at all. The quesadilla wasn't filled with chicken. I got mostly tortilla bites, then the actual chicken. Honey toast of course didn't disappoint, which we were happy about. But because it was hot and no AC, our ice cream melted so fast! Anyway, idk if we would dine in again. Place was not as nice as before, it was HOT, the bathrooms were dirty, and just the food lacks now. So sad though because this used to be a great place!

I haven't been to Shokudo in years, but my most recent visit to Shokudo, I found out that the restaurant actually moved to a new location - just next door from the original location (near the Ala Moana Shopping Center area). What can I say about the new digs? The restaurant is much smaller than the original location, and the day I came here with my ohana, the air conditioning was broken so the restaurant was using a few portable a/c units within the restaurant to try and cool down the place - (which didn't work so well). Lol! The décor of the restaurant looked kinda unfinished, as my dad was mentioning something about the unfinished concrete floors. Food here was still pretty good as I remembered it to be, but everything on the menu is pretty much ala carte, as there were no set teishoku plates. I won't mention the grub we ordered, but you can just take a look at my pics to check out some of da grindages. Service here was on point, but I guess due to Covid-19, they no longer provide menus, as one had to scan the QR code to see the menu. Not a problem for me, but for the elder folks that still uses a simple flip phone, that maybe a problem, so they should consider maybe bring back a few menus for the folks who don't have all the fancy electronic gadgets?

Some what disappointed with the quality of food. I used to go often with my family when Shokudo was at their original location, but I guess lots of things changed? ***What we ordered **Yuzu Hamachi Carpaccio (8/10) ~ This was my favorite dish! Although the fish was room temperature warm rather than it being a tad bit cold... But the flavors in the carpaccio was really good! The "marination"/"sauce" was sweet, savory, and refreshing! I definitely recommend getting this one! **Spicy Tuna Crispy Rice (2/10) ~ My entire table and I came to a consensus that this dish definitely went down in quality. Not sure how, but the Spicy Ahi tasted really bland and the crispy rice was a bit more soggy than crispy. I wasn't a fan of this. **Bibimbap Stone Rice (4/10) ~ I thought the vegetables would at least give the stone pot rice a little more flavor, but it just ended up being really bland. Even after adding the gochujang it just tasted like spicy rice. **Unagi Rice (6/10) ~ It was okay, it didn't really stand out. I did enjoy how the rice would crisp up on the sides of the bowl! I thought it was a little overall sweet though. Overall, A little disappointed and I don't think we will be coming back. Kind of miss the old Shokudo :(

This place never disappoints. My family took me here to celebrate my birthday and they were very kind to give me a complimentary dessert to take home since we had already ordered one and was too full to eat another one. Service was excellent. We arrived as soon as they opened and parking is free. Love the layout of their wooden blinds by the windows, makes the restaurant look brighter and just to have that homey feeling inside the restaurant while eating is a good thing.

Not too busy when we came by during lunch. I forgot to take a picture, but we had pretty much one of each of their lunch special menu to share between 4 people. Service was very kind and checked in on us often. Lots of spacious seating and modern vibes with the neon lights. The memorable part was the matcha honey toast! I'm not normally a fan of milk toast but this was not dry, good ice cream / toppings to toast ratio, would recc this for sure.

When we went to Shokudo on Sunday, we didn't know it was the last day before closing! We were shocked to find out when we got home. Good atmosphere, pretty good food. To go to place for the last decade when we can't figure out what to eat. And also I'll miss the classic honey toast with vanilla ice cream. Tried the coffee ice cream with honey toast for the first (and last time) but I'm glad we got the vanilla in addition.

WHAT HAPPENED????!!! I used to LOVE this place when they were at their old location. At their new location which is right next door to the old location, it is much much smaller. Noise level is on moderate. The menu is so much more smaller with a lot of good things not on the menu anymore. The sushi pizza is less than half the size of what it used to be, it's so upsetting. The fact that they changed, menus, portions and size. Is the meaning for my low rating. I miss the old place. Especially those char siu and scallion appetizer they used to serve. Bring the old Shokudo back!

I'm so sorry that I am leaving a review w no food to go with this review but I had to write one!! We had a party of 15 bit some didn't make it!! 8 adults and 4 young kids!! The service was so awesome and understanding and big parties like this is hard! We said we would do a tab for food to be done family style but the adults wanted separate tabs for drinks and they were willing!!! So thankful! We were so happy that we want to have our next gathering here!! Ample parking! Central location! Ono food for all! We all were so thankful!! Thank you shokudo kapiolani!!

Tried their omakase, not sure if it's something the always offer. The atmosphere was nice and the staff was very attentive during service. All the dishes were good for the pricing, will try something off their menu next time.

Our server was so sweet and welcoming, the sushi rolls were soooo tasty(we had the surf n turf roll and the dynamite roll) and the house red was yummy! The vibe was laid back and everyone was very welcoming and friendly. Can't believe it doesn't already have at least 4.5-5 stars! Thank you!!!

Tried calling 6 times tonight between 4 and 10 pm to make a reservation as you can't make a reservation for more than 6 online. No one ever picked up. 0 stars if I could

FYI, if you're planning to come here for the new AYCE sushi menu, after 2 months, it is no longer available! We had originally made reservations here for my birthday to try the AYCE sushi. One deduction of stars due to not being told after making reservations. And also, not being able to call and speak with anyone over the phone. How did we find out? IG... however, since it was during a busy holiday season, we all decided to just keep the existing res to get our honey toast fix. Traffic is horrendous on all side streets leading up to the mall area. We were running late... like not like a few mins late but almost 30 mins late since the street we took wasn't moving! No one answered the phone lines at all. So it was a good thing our other friend got there close to our res time and he could checkin for us. Parking is complimentary for shokudo patrons for up to 2 hrs, just need to register at hostess table. It was still "early" but @ 6:30pm, it was quite packed. Our server notified us that there were a few items they ran out for the day already. One being the fresh tofu salad. Boo! Shortly after ordering, we overheard the server telling the table next to us that a handful more items were out. Geez. Menu for the most part is the same as before. Much more condensed on one menu but popular dishes are back. I will say portion sizes are much smaller than before and my sushi pizza didn't make the cut. Hahah. We ended up ordering: spicy tuna roll, garlic shrimp ishiyaki, mermaid roll, chicken quesadilla, chicken katsu, mochi cheese, agedashi tofu and lobster dynamite. Then, of course our honey toast and also received a birthday bread pudding tenpura! For the most part, the food is good and exactly how we remembered. The mermaid roll is a shrimp tempura roll with salmon sashimi on top. Ishiyaki is a hot stone bowl.. aka bi bim bap. Chicken katsu was meh. It was a little hard, dry and tasteless surprisingly. Then the lobster dynamite came. Ummm, there was absolutely no seafood in there unless it was puréed into the Mayo. This hands down was the most disappointing choice. It's basically a vegetable medley baked with Mayo. Don't get this! For our honey toast, I chose the cookies and cream cause why go for plain?! Still the same thick Japanese bread with the insides cubed and a couple of scoops of ice cream drizzled with cookie crumbs, caramel and chocolate. Still oh so good. Because we were celebrating my birthday, the server was nice to bring a bread pudding tenpura. Now this was soooooo good!!!! Warm and crispy on the outside served with a scoop of vanilla ice cream on top. Would highly recommend this. All in all the dinner part was meh. But the dessert is where it's at. Not sure if I'll be back anytime soon but maybe we'll come back for just dessert.

I am kind of sad this spot is about to be closed. My family loved their food! We loved their sushi, always tasted fresh and never disappointing to our taste buds. Service was always top notch, from entering that door, to sitting at the table until leaving, we always had fantastic servers and hostess. Tables and chairs were always clean, I'd never ate at the sushi bar but I'm sure a date night would be nice there. I didn't get a picture of all our food as we had a long day of soccer at Waipi'o Field, but we had numerous rolls of sushi, and ended our night with the infamous honey toast and we chose coffee ice cream as our topper.

We landed at around 2 pm, and after a 6 hour flight, my family and I were starving. My kids are 3 and 5 and tend to be on the pickier side so I scoured YELP to find something that would please everyone and that's when I stumbled on Shokudo. The photos of the French Toast really sold me. It wasn't busy it all (it's a Monday during off season, mid day) and we parked at the Ala Moana Center Target so we could make sure we picked up a few things after lunch. Our server Sean was such a joy. Such a nice guy. I told him it was our first time there and he gave us suggestions. We ordered two bento boxes (one sashimi, one teriyaki chicken and beef) and an order of shoyu ramen and mochi cheese gratin and a glass of kirin and a Diet Coke. While we were waiting for our food, I thought maybe we hadn't ordered enough but I was so wrong. We were all stuffed. The star of the show was truly the Strawberry Toast. It was thick and delicious. Plenty of sauces but not too much where it was drenched. The inside was cut into cubes which made it easy to share and enjoy. When I tell you, we all were silent for the 5-6 minutes that we were enjoying dessert. The first moment of silence I've had as a mom since having my children it was SO good and such a great way to start our vacation. I highly recommend coming here! Ask for Sean! And order some Honey Toast.

Menu. Haven't been here a while. Place is decent. Came here with coworkers a couple years ago. They have good food but pretty pricey

So this place is now a little spiffed up on its menu. They now offer all you can eat (AYCE) on their menu until 90 min before closing time with a 90 minute limit. Price is reasonable but I think worth if you're hungry. If you're the order two rolls to share and get an app plus dessert then you should just order ala carte. Price comparison was under $60 before tip. With their relocation, they are in their old brunch restaurant which is next door to the previous space. Parking is the same and now you enter your license Paige number on their tablet so you get covered for parking. For the past three instances I have came here with a party of 4 late night on Saturday nights and wait times were decent. Time to get food was also in a timely fashion. The servers are very friendly and checked up on my party often. I was very happy with food taste. The roll with hamachi on top was very good. The She Sweet but She Spicy roll was mid. Not a lot of spicy ahi but still pleases the palate. Chicken karaage portion was small for the pupu size. Pupu no share action but good for just dining for two I guess haha. Prices have gone up for beverages since the last time. I was also pleased to know they had all of the ice cream flavors available for their honey toast. The Japanese bread (whole) cut in squares baked to semi crispy is the go-to dessert and is what they have been known for since first opening almost two decades ago. I suggest do honey on the side especially if you're doing the matcha or Kona coffee ice cream. I miss how they had a happy hour special so hopefully when inflation fluctuates then wishful thinking they bring it back. We need pau hana drinks! If not then most business can go to nearby restaurant neighbors.

Been coming to Shokudo since high school (over 10 years now). Since my high school days, the restaurant itself has gone through many changes. They've moved locations (right next door) & I feel as if since they moved, the restaurant kind of went downhill. The last time I went, about a year ago, they were only selling beer & sake for alcoholic beverages. I was pretty bummed because I used to love their mojitos at the other location. Hopefully they have those back by now. Food wise, some of my favorites include the unagi rice, spicy tuna crispy rice, and honey toast. Service wise, the servers are pretty nice & check up on our table pretty consistently. Ambiance wise, I'd say the new location is a way smaller version of their old location. I definitely miss the old restaurant, however the new one is not too bad.

10/2022 - *Updated Review* Shokudo has definitely gone downhill from before. We did their Premium All You Can Eat, which you can order from both the premium menu and standard menu. Seemed cheap, $39.99. Tofu salad definitely always delicious! The rolls were okay. Karaage chicken was good. The chirashi bowl was meh. The sad thing, there was NO tempura, shrimp or veggie. They told us it's served at lunch but people order like crazy during dinner time. Well, raise the $40 price for dinner if that's the case. So when I ordered the shrimp tempura upon, I asked for the shrimp separate. I was told, they don't like that request. Like "who" doesn't?! I, the paying customer, doesn't like my tempura soggy. Not sure what is going on. I felt like the experience was negative because a lot of the answers we got was very negative: "no, we can't do that", "no, we don't serve that", no, we don't carry that ". Not sure how that can be fixed or altered. Also, the host was very scatterbrained. Not sure if Hostess called out and he got thrown into that position. We felt unaddressed when we approached the door, lack of communication. Restaurant wasn't even busy. The biggest upset tho, was the tempura issue. How can it be a Japanese restaurant with NO SHRIMP TEMPURA?!?!? Very unfortunate how this used to be a restaurant that was highly recommended and now I feel that won't be the case. I'm glad I knew it when it was top notch. So long, Shokudo.

It's been years since I've been to this establishment. They're located next to their prior location on Kapiolani in the old Angelo Pietro spot. It's 1/4 the size of their prior restaurant and hot as heck! Expect to sweat. I just showered before dinner there and needed another shower when I got home as I was sweating in there. No AC! The kitchen is smaller, menu not as expansive as it used to be and the service was ok. Definitely not the same Shokudo like before. Anyway, didn't want to cook dinner and was grateful they were open on Christmas Day. They also have complimentary parking validation. We ordered the sake flight which included Kikusui, Oze no yukidoko and bizen maborashi. All were good but I ended up getter more kikusui as it was very light and floral in taste. We also ordered the spicy miso ramen and shoyu ramen which I was told very tasty. I ordered the sashimi sampler which included 3 each of hamachi, salmon and tuna. The sashimi was very fresh and oishi! Also ordered was the hamachi carpaccio. Nothing special but I always order it because it's good and you can't mess up on that. I also couldn't pass up the garlic shrimp ishiyaki. Not what I remembered but, nonetheless, still good. Garlic shrimp in a sizzling stone bowl mixed with rice. Yum! And for dessert, we shared the honey toast. This has always been my favorite and still is. Other restaurants have tried to imitate but cannot compete with the original.

9-24-22 4 of us came for dinner after 3 of us had our nails done. You enter your car's license when you check in. We had a very friendly server but I didn't get his name. The runner we had was Ryan- he cleared our dishes promptly, mixed our hot black bowl of rice with limited red sauce as we requested mild. Everything was delicious. Little Sweetie chose to eat the edamame, furikake fries, white rice and dessert. We were told no somen salad. Also the shrimp tempura. The adults liked the garlic clams and tofu salad. I received a comp bread pudding with scoop of vanilla ice cream. We also had the honey toast which was outstanding last evening.

Cookies and Cream Honey Toast is why I'm rating 5 stars Lol, but really. Can't go wrong with any flavor of Honey toast from Shokudo. We ordered carry out recently, and it was perfect. Nice crispy bread, with all the toppings! Ice cold cookies and cream ice cream with caramel on the side. Noms!

We thought this place had closed down but they just moved to the smaller space next door. We were disappointed that there was no renovation and that the furniture with cracking upholstery is still the same. It's uncomfortable for those who are not wearing long pants. Other detractors are that the AC did not seem to be working which made for a hot evening. Like many other businesses, they were also short staffed so our poor server was running around and seemed a bit overwhelmed. Another disappointment was that they ran out of toro- chu and O, so we could not order the dishes we wanted most. Instead we got Spicy ahi, Mochi cheese, Sushi pizza, Washugyu Ishiyaki, Agedashi tofu, and Oysters. Of course we had to end with the signature honey toast which I knew we would have to share and still had leftovers. Thankfully the food was decent. This place reminds me of a contestant on Dancing with the Stars, a Hollywood celebrity of yesteryear. Long gone are the days when it was the trendy "it" place with modern decor and novel food where folks would line up to get in. It could really use a makeover!

It's been 7 years since I dined at Shokudo. A lot has changed since then. They're in the same building but moved to the next door where old Pietro used to be. You can park in the same structure but be sure to log in your vehicle number when you enter the restaurant. They used to have extensive menu of Japanese dishes but it also got cut to pretty much 2 pages of menu and drinks are mostly beers. They don't serve cocktails like they used to and I don't think there's a bar either unless I missed it. This time around I was happy that service was good and the food tasted still the same. We order variety of dishes including mochi cheese, assorted tempura, hamachi nigiri, tofu salad, fresh oysters, bibimbap etc. We ended our dinner with honey toast with ice cream. If you dine here it's a must. It's weird to eat a toast after meal but it's so crunchy, toasty, and yummy.

***3.25 STARS*** My multiple experiences at Shokudo have been underwhelming since they first opened in 2005, therefore, they are not on my radar for me to dine at. Meager food and unfriendly service have kept me away. The other month we celebrated a friend's birthday, and the venue was Shokudo. I cringed but I wanted to see my friends, so I put my previous experiences aside and attended with an open mind. In November 2021, Shokudo moved back to its original location just next door of its previous spot. I was somewhat curious to try them as I've read the menu was revamped with a different approach. First of all, I commend the restaurant for accommodating our group of 11 hungry people. It was eventful for me that day and didn't have time to sit down for a meal. I had high hopes of exploring Shokudo's new menu. Kudos to our server as she took our food order and arranged separate checks. This is indeed tedious and I thank her for this much appreciated service. Because of our large group, the food did come out sporadically, so some had to wait longer than others. It was a full house on a Saturday and the restaurant was rocking but we waited patiently for our food. I was sadly disappointed as I initially ordered aji fry but much later our server came back to advise me the aji fry was all out. Here is what I sampled that evening. Tofu Salad (4/5) I just loved the house made tofu for its semi-firm texture and sweetness. The salad wasn't overly dressed in sauces or dressings. I also did appreciate the accompanying fresh greens, but it seemed like a commercially premade salad mix was used. The crunch bits on top provided a nice texture contrast. Mentaiko Udon (2/5) Although it did take several attempts to find out if their mentaiko udon is served hot or cold, I am glad she confirmed with the kitchen as she wasn't sure. I wasn't thrilled with her initial responses of "I think...." I've had mentaiko both cold and hot before and wanted to know what to expect if I ordered it. Overall, I did enjoy the taste but cannot overlook the execution failure. This dish came out warm, but the udon noodles were sadly overcooked - - it was soft and semi-pasty. Half-order Oreo Honey Toast (4/5) The Oreo toast was delicious and enjoyed the crunchy cookie bits here and there. I initially ordered a full order of Shokudo's famous honey toast in matcha but sadly, they were out of matcha. Again, I was disappointed. It would have been more appropriate to advise customers upon arrival of any specials for the day and to comment what is not available from the menu I was enjoying the birthday celebration but then noticed the restaurant got warm. I looked around and saw so much smoke generated from their hot stone pot (ishiyaki) items. Then I looked at some of my dining mates and noticed some beginning to perspire and some fanning themselves. We then realized there was an issue with their AC the doors were opened to allow some air to flow through. At this time, I suggested that we leave, as we were near our 2-hour dining limit and noticed a whole bunch of people waiting outside for tables. This redemption visit to Shokudo has mixed emotions as some aspects were better and met my expectations but there are some areas that need improvement. Overall, I am glad I gave Shokudo another shot, and this was a better experience. But to be frank, I wouldn't initiate getting a group to dine here.

"For better than never is late; never to succeed would be too long a period." - Chaucer, G. (1386). The Yeoman's Tale from The Canterbury Tales. Recently, we joined a group of friends to celebrate a birthday at Shokudo Japanese Restaurant. The birthday dinner was planned over a month ago, but the "Birthday Boy" wasn't available during his birth month. We excitedly responded to the invitation and patiently waited for the appointed location, date, and time. Shokudo Japanese Restaurant opened in 2005 and has been one of our go-to dining spots for several years. It recently moved, in late 2021, next door in the same Ala Moana Center Pacific Building situated at the corner of Kapiolani Boulevard and Kāheka Street. Although their new space appears smaller than its original location, it's still a great casual spot for couples, families, and large groups to celebrate a night out or special occasion. They offer validated parking in the building's attached parking lot (entrance on Kona Street). We arrived at the restaurant, met with our other friends at the front of the restaurant, and waited to be seated. The hostess led us to a reserved section for our group while we waited for the Birthday Boy to arrive. A server came by to distribute beverage and dinner menus while informing us about their contact-free menu QRC. While waiting, the server offered to provide separate checks to our party instead of lumping all charges on one bill. Wow! She was very accommodating and understood how some groups might have an issue with a single tab. Meanwhile, the honoree arrived, and we placed our beverage and dinner orders with the server. My husband and I ordered a few dishes to share or graze on instead of ordering full entrées to pair with our icy cold Kirin beers. FOOD: - Fresh Tofu: Shokudo has been known for its creamy house-made yet, soft spongey-like textured tofu. The fresh soft tofu was served in a bamboo basket along with sides of green onions, sea salt, nori, and soy dashi sauce. Please don't mistake this soft tofu texture for its more custard or pudding textured silken form. We liked this soft texture, and plain flavor perked up with its refreshing savory condiments. $10 -Karaage Chicken: My husband's penchant for crispy deep-fried food was answered by Shokudo's karaage chicken. Haha. He disguised his want by saying there should be a crunchy texture and savory flavor balance with our beers, tofu, and upcoming sushi roll. The light, crisp, and crunchy breading and the chicken's deliciously marinated juicy chicken meat met his expectations. $12 -Aburi Garlic Salmon Roll: Since he cleverly disguised his love for deep-fried food, although he didn't need to, I suggested ordering the aburi (flame-seared) garlic salmon roll. Although the salmon slices were thin, the searing elevated their buttery flavor and texture with its light char while the underside of the salmon remained cool and raw. Adding to this sushi roll's crunchy yet tender tempura, shrimp and garlic chips, and smooth and cool avocado slices and mayonnaise make this sushi a pleasurable and refreshing bite. $16 -Kona Coffee Honey Toast: The Honey Toast is Shokudo's Signature dessert. Since we were celebrating our friend's birthday, everyone at our table ordered either this coffee-flavored type or its original version. Luckily, a tablemate, Donna O, mentioned that we could request a half-order since we were already stuffed. The honey toast was warm and perfectly toasted and the melting creamy Kona coffee ice cream made for a delicious coffee-flavored crème Anglaise. $7 Since we were at Shokudo to celebrate a birthday, fellow Elite Nadine C shared her yummy homemade baked mochi. The mochi brought this Japanese meal and celebration to a great end. While eating, the bustling restaurant got quite noisy and smoky from the recurring orders of food served on sizzling platters by other nearby guests. We ended our celebration within the two-hour dine-in period and to make room for other guests who were patiently awaiting their reservation times. 4.2 stars. The flavors, presentation, service, and value were on point, but I lowered my rating because of the poor ventilation (smoky, and most of our group felt warmer when the restaurant filled with more guests).

Most of the items on the menu are the same. The new interior is different and gives off a more laid back vibe. Unagi Rice - the rice and unagi was served somewhat room temperature. It could be intentional since the bowl it is served in is heated but after mixing everything up, still wasn't the temperature to my liking. Oreo Honey Toast - Bread tasted stale and the ice cream could not save it. Overall Shokudo does offer decent dishes for a decent price however quality is inconsistent.

Dinner in Honolulu, Hawaii... The birthday boy chose Shokudo for us, so we gathered and had a great time! I had been to the previous location of this Japanese restaurant/bar. This new Shokudo is still on Kapiolani Boulevard and has better parking. The garage entrance is at the back of the building. Look for the sign that states that parking is free for customers. Walk to the front of the building to get to the entrance on the ground level. Enter your car's license plate number onto their tablet for validation. Service was quite good! For our large group of eleven, the server was able to give us separate checks. We could conveniently pay by QR code, too! Nice! We were seated in a semi-private area with hardly any ventilation. I was melting... Haha! It was kind of noisy. I felt like I was yelling at everyone. The good thing was that I was able to set my gear on a table in the corner and assemble the birthday cake and candle that I had brought. Thanks for the space! I wasn't too hungry, so, I just ordered the Vegetarian Soy Paper roll. I liked the citrusy sauce that had been drizzled on the top. It looked and tasted Fresh! I liked the healthy, crisp texture! Yum! Overall, my friends enjoyed being together - some people haven't seen each other in person for a while, so, it was a very happy reunion!

I am so disappointed. SUPER disappointed. Shokudo has been around for decades. It used to be "THE" place to be. I came back after being gone for years (mainly for the honey toast) and it has changed dramatically. The 2 stars is only because the honey toast seemed to stay the same after all these years. They even added flavors. It would have been a one star overall if not for that. If you asked me 20 years ago this would have been ABSOLUTELY 5 stars. First off there is no sushi anymore, they only have sushi rolls. The menu is 1/8 of the original menu. No more sushi pizza and all the specialty apps. The bar is gone, there is no bar. (The kids working here are so young they probably don't even remember the bar being here lol). This is a JAPANESE restaurant and i am embarrassed for them because the one thing that SHOULD be right is the rice and even that was subpar at best. The rice was old and hard and we basically just threw away money because it was not edible. The sashimi was old too. We eat and buy sashimi a lot and then the ones sold at foodland was fresher than what they gave us on the sampler platter. The salmon sashimi was so old it was grey already. SMH. If you go here, just get desert and sake or beer. Bill was still $100 for food that was inedible.

TL:DR- I didn't eat there. Advertising was poorly worded/deceptive I haven't been to the new location, next door, but I follow them on social media was excited to read that they were offering All You Can Eat (AYCE) I made a reservation for lunch and rearranged mine and my husband's schedules to enjoy a day together with Shokudo AYCE being the highlight (entire reason we did it.) We arrived on time and were seated promptly. The space is nice. They have QR codes to scan at each table. After scanning the code, our server came over and asked if we were ready to order. We asked about the AYCE and were told that lunch is Ala carte only. The server was apologetic and told us it's a work in progress. Ummmmm. What????!!!!!!???? The table next to us also asked about the AYCE. No idea if they stayed but we decided to leave and go somewhere else. It would be great if they would communicate that the AYCE has been changed to dinner only. If you make a lunch reservation it would be nice to get an email/text that lets you know that it's only Ala carte. Super disappointed. Not sure I'll go back.

Whenever my Japanese friends from Japan visits I usually take them here it's a little different from your usual setting. I see that most females like this place, since I see so many females groups getting together here to celebrate! With Free Parking in the back in an busy area is a deal in itself and the food anything you pick you can't miss it's a hit with everyone If you like to drink it goes with any pupu style food on the menu and on somedays they'll have some special you can't miss. Any ways try this place I've been coming here for years and never been disappointed. More updates to come! Hopefully you and your family friends can enjoy the food and service is exceptional! ! ! Thanks again Shokudo San

I haven't been to Shokudo in years and sadly, it's definitely not what it used to be. I miss both the old, really big location and the OG items like the flavored vodka sodas. This visit was soured right from the start. We arrived and the hostess told us that our table wasn't ready yet. The whole joint was almost completely empty, and somehow the one table that they wanted to put us at, way back in that dark and dusty corner, was still being used. The hostess went to check and came back and said the people who were at our table were still having dessert. I was shocked. Empty restaurant, but for some reason there is a magical table that is the only place to put a peasant like me. I thought the hostess was going to insist that I put on a dunce hat before I could be seated. I almost walked out right there. But I stayed and the food was pretty good. Specifically, some items were really good and some weren't. The tofu salad is really good. Just like the last time I visited, back when dinosaurs roamed the earth. The honey toast is also outstanding. The lobster dynamite was ok. It was served with scallops instead of lobster because they were out of lobster. I would have preferred lobster, but accepted the mollusk-for-crustacean substitution. The rainbow roll was also ok. The beef sukiyaki don was not good. It had really stringy meat, the kind that can slap you in the face if you try to pull it to break it off when you can't bite through the fatty portion. Fortunately, I'm experienced with slap-happy beef like this, so I was able to avoid getting smacked in public. The bowl was also heavy on the rice and slim on the beef. Our server was polite, friendly, and efficient. The checks are handled through a handheld device, literally. The server will hold the thing to show you your bill on an an LCD screen, scan your credit card, and hold it for you to add a tip and sign. It is crazy fast and good if you are in a rush to leave, but I would prefer it left for me at the table. I had to ask our server to set the device down on the table because I didn't feel comfortable manipulating it with it in her hand. This could have been a 5 star experience if I only ordered the tofu salad and honey toast, and the party that was at "my table" didn't order dessert and left earlier.

It's been a while since I've been to shokudo and it's my first time back since they moved to their new location (right next door to the old one). If you park in their lot, you have to do validated parking now and there's a little tablet at the front of the restaurant where you enter in your car's license plate. The signs in the lot were a bit confusing when I went in, so I actually parked at the mall and walked over. The new place is a bit smaller but still had a nice, open vibe. The food was good as usual, but a bit pricey. And they were out of lobster (supply shortage) so some of our dishes just weren't the same, like the lobster dynamite :(. I am super happy though that their steamed gyoza that used to only be on the HH menu is now on the regular one! And you can never go wrong with their honey toast! Overall, a good experience back! But with prices like this and the supply shortage, I don't think I can be a regular like I used to.

I've dined here on several occasions, and each time the service has been excellent and the food delicious. Their honey toast is the standout item on the menu, so be sure to save room for dessert! It can get quite busy during peak hours, and finding parking can be a bit of a hassle, but it's definitely worth it for the fantastic food and friendly service. It's disappointing to hear that this restaurant will be closing; I'll definitely miss their incredible honey toast.

I haven't been to Shokudo in years and recently made it back to their new location next door to the old location. Unfortunately my overall experience was not great, although some of the food was. Service was good, and food came out quickly. I made a reservation for 5:45 on a Friday evening and am sad to say I arrived about 10 minutes late (I hate being late). I thought it'd be fine because the place was almost empty, but when I arrived I was informed that "my" table was still occupied by the prior party having dessert. Like what? The hostess excused herself to check on the table and when she came back, said they should be finished soon. So I stared at her, awaiting further instruction. What were we supposed to do, wait outside of the empty restaurant? She then offered to put us on another table. Um, yes please, how about one of the 8 open tables visible from the front door? At this point I asked if parking validation is handled now or when leaving, and she said she would recommend doing it now. Not sure what would have happened if I tried to do it when leaving, but validation was for 1.5 hours. After being seated, I got an email from OpenTable that my reservation was cancelled, so I was a little annoyed that the hostess did not tell me she was going to do that. But then I got another email confirming my points, so I presume she somehow cancelled and replaced my reservation for some reason. Not a big deal but an explanation would have been nice. We were seated at a booth in the middle of the room. It was half a 6-8 person booth but with some cloth hanging halfway down the middle to divide it into 2 2-4 person booths (see photo). Not ideal. At least there was no one next to us right on the other side of the curtain for the first half of our meal. On to the meal. First, I ordered a yuzu soda and enjoyed it. I also ordered an old favorite, the tofu salad, and it was actually better than I remember. The lobster dynamite was also delicious, although they were out of lobster so offered us the dish with scallops instead. It comes with 4 sliced of bread and you can order more for $3. The rainbow roll was ok. Nothing special. The beef sukiyaki donburi was a mixed bag. The meat was ok but not the best quality, but the sauce was tasty and there was plenty of it for the amount of rice. We ended our meal with original honey toast which was everything it should be. They brought extra toast for our lobster dynamite, and took it back when I explained we did not order it, but it was still on our bill. Also not a big deal because they took if off when we pointed it out. At some point I also watched another party come in and ask to be seated at a different table than the hostess initially offered. At first the hostess resisted, but allowed it when they requested again. This seemed odd to me because again, there were multiple tables available. Something just seems off with their table management and it's affecting the very start of the dining experience. I don't see that happen anywhere else, so it's really not a good look.

I don't normally do bad reviews but I felt this one necessary. . Unfortunately, the quality of their service and food has gone down since moving next door. I'm pretty chill and flexible when it comes to eating out, but gave this new location a 3rd try - found a roach crawling on our booth mid-meal. . Loved the original Shokudo. It used to be my "go to" sushi place after work. Nonetheless, I'm thankful for the mems and the fact Honolulu has a surplus of sushi options. . \m/

Food wasn't as good as I remember it. It also seems smaller. Service was sufficient - it was busy so understandably slower.

Since when did Shokudo change their menu, and why!? Not to mention their website information reflecting this is not up to date. They got rid of all of our favorite dishes. So disappointing! It's now mostly AYCE with a limited menu.

Shokudo is a classic, we used to come here in high school. We tried it again with my family, the new location is smaller but the food is still solid. The waiter was very accommodating to our kiddos. I really like the garlic shrimp ishiyaki - so simple but delicious and of course you can't beat the honey toast for dessert!

The miso butterfish is the most delicious fish ever. It's not always on the menu so I branch out, I favor their agadashi tofu and lychee cocktails!

Besides our dinner (which was ok) we ordered a fresh tofu salad take out. the kitchen did not seal the Shoyu type dressing properly and it spilled all over the bottom of the package without us being aware of it. Dripped in my car (thank goodness I placed it on the rubber mat) but also on our off white fabric sofa that we placed the package on and over our off white carpet when we noticed it was leaking and tried to take it to the kitchen! Worst part was when I called the manager to report the matter and that the kitchen should be extra careful to secure the covers, I received a rather non chalaunt "sorry about that".

Amazing food, I got the Dynamite roll and Spicy Tuna, they were both great. The location is nice and food is fairly priced. Our server was incredibly nice and helped ur around the menu, overall 4/5.

We came here twice on our trip, we loved it so much. I got the garlic shrimp and was not disappointed, it was perfect and the stone bowl presentation was really cool. I tried the cookies & cream honey toast and the Kona coffee honey toast and they were both delish, especially that Kona coffee ice cream. The second time we came in the staff recognized us and they were so happy to see us back--it really made it feel special. Everyone was so kind and answered every question we had about the menu. This location is smaller than there old one but honestly we didn't mind because the food was so good I barely noticed what was going on around us.

My friends and I were super excited to try this place upon recommendation from a friend of ours. We were seated fast and were given enough time to look over the menu. Our order consisted of 8/10 beef udon, 8/10 steamed and fried gyoza, 6/10 crispy rice with tuna, 6/10 miso soup, and 3 dynamite rolls 2/10. Friend said udon was delish! The gyoza were really good! Had thin wrappings and a good sauce. Unfortunately not one of us liked the dynamite roll AT ALL. Rated a 2/10. I would say I am a sushi snob, but all 5 of us said it was not appetizing. The sauce was just weird and had a thick consistency. We will probably never come back. We also had to pay in cash because it was taking our server so long to pick up our card. (Pay through toast wasn't working for us).

So I wanna start off by saying I was Somewhat disappointed with our visit to shokudo. If you haven't been there in a while, they actually moved into the restaurant place next door so the venue is A LOT smaller. I made reservations through the open table website with ease, we got there at 6pm, our reservation was at 6:15pm and they seated us right away, that part was a plus. I also thought that the staff was very nice and friendly, but the reason I'm rating my experience so low is because of how LONG everything took to come out. So long that we had to renew our parking because the 1.5 hours expired. We were also seated in a corner which was fine, because we like our privacy but the downfall was that there were fruit flies flying around our table and we had to keep killing them. Food: We actually ordered a bunch of things, multiple rolls, and a poke bowl. They didn't have ahi tonight so we couldn't order ahi poke. That's fine though, also my sons dynamite roll didn't come with lobster instead they subbed the lobster with scallops, again that was fine (the waitress told us before hand which was cool). I honestly just don't know why everything took so long. How our beautiful rolls came out before my mother in laws poke bowl? I don't know. If I had to choose the tempura bread pudding over the honey toast I would. The honey toast just isn't what it was before. The taste of the food was pretty good though I'll give them that. Overall, food was good. Place was clean. If you don't mind waiting for your food I suggest you try it out.

Food and service Quality and portions definitely dropped from what it was before. Sushi pizza was burnt. Crispy rice spicy ahi was hella crispy...more like hard. The garlic shrimp stone bowl was too oily and seemed soupy and wet. Chicken karaage was over cooked and hard!! Service was slow. Very disappointed as we always recommended Shokudo to friends and family. Not any more unfortunately.

Shokudo moved to where Angelo Pietro used to be. With COVID, I'm assuming that it was more financially stable to be in a smaller footprint with a streamlined menu. Late lunch, so it wasn't as crowded. The appetizers are probably the star. The hamachi was tasty, esp with the vinegary onions. Nice way to start it off. Light, but enough where you can wait for more to come. The washugyu nigiri was tasty too, although the beef was a little chewy. We had the garlic salmon roll. That was tasty and had lots of fillings. Would get it again. The garlic claims came almost last, not sure why. The garlic was quite more than you would expect (not in a good way) and tasted raw too (also not in a good way). It was on the salty side. However, the toast points (?) that came with it was probably the best part of the dish (unfortunately). Had two ramens since it was a little on the colder side. The shrimp tempura, and then the beef. Essentially, same broth so don't expect anything different except for the toppings. Shrimp tempura was good, although lots of batter. Beef was slightly chewy. The food was different than what I remembered. A good example is the sushi pizza. I always got it, but it didn't taste good. The topping was more mushier than I remembered (and didn't taste good). It kept sliding off when you tried to bite into it. At least the rice was crispy-ish. I also don't remember the pizza being that small, but again that could just be a sign of the times (or bad memory on my part?). Service was good - the young male (never got his name) was attentive as expected and checked in on us appropriately. I have good memories of Shokudo, so I am hopeful that this was more of an abberation, and not a sign of things to come.