Everything You Need to Know About Midtown Eats

Who’s there, what to eat, where to park and more insider info about the new Ke‘eaumoku food hall.

1 hour ago

Andrea Lee,

Photo: Andrea Lee

There’s a lot of buzz about the new food hall Midtown Eats in The Park on Ke‘eaumoku, and for good reason—with more than a dozen vendors, a great diversity of cuisines, tons of seating and free parking, it’s a great one-stop spot to satisfy everyone’s cravings and hang out.

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Image: Courtesy of Midtown Eats

Vendors

Here is the current vendor list:

Boba-Bing! is expected to open in March, while Dragon Burger and Bonburi are slated for May. All other vendors are open.

Boba-Bing! will serve boba, bingsu (Korean shave ice) and bungeoppang (fish-shaped waffles). Expect Japanese-inspired burgers from Dragon Burger and Japanese food from Bonburi; both of these businesses hail from Japan. The rest of the vendors are all locally owned.

Of the 15 businesses, five have opened their first brick-and-mortar restaurants here: K Park Bar, Mangiamo Gelato, Middle Eats, Ms. Nguyen and Sakurajima. Mangiamo Gelato sources its gelato from La Gelateria Hawai‘i—which only offers cups, pints and tubs—so this is where you can get scoops. Middle Eats is a popular farmers market stand. If you remember Hatsuhana Japanese Restaurant that used to be in Hilton Hawaiian Village, it has reincarnated here as Sakurajima.

Parking

Customers can park for free in the building’s garage (for now—this may change). There is an entrance on Liona St. and Rycroft St. The parking gate will open automatically, no need to pull a ticket or get validation. A few customer parking stalls are available on the first floor, but you’ll find more upstairs. Follow the signage to the ramp, go up to floor 2.5 and park in any of the stalls marked “commercial.” Then follow the Midtown Eats signs to the escalators that will take you down to the food hall on the ground floor.

The parking garage can be a bit confusing to navigate since it’s all gray pillars and walls. Take care to remember which way you came so you can find your way back to your car and the ramp to exit.

Payment

The entire food hall is cashless. Vendors accept credit, debit and contactless payments.

Photo: Andrea Lee

Ordering Kiosks

You can order at each vendor or use one of the ordering kiosks stationed around the food hall. Currently, about half of the vendors are connected to the kiosks.

You can order food on the screen, pay with card or contactless payment, then get an order number and go pick up your food at the counter. You can indicate whether you want your food for here or to go. Some of the kiosk menus have photos, but not all, so if you’re curious about a dish, best to go directly to the vendor to see if there’s a photo or ask the staff about it.

Restrooms

The restrooms are all the way at the back of the hall past Mangiamo Gelato. Ask a vendor for the door codes.

What We Recommend

Having been to Midtown Eats a few times, we’ve gotten around but not to every vendor yet. From what we have tried, here’s what we recommend.

Sergs Mexican Kitchen Flauta Pc Andrea Lee

Photo: Andrea Lee

Serg’s Mexican Kitchen is one of my favorite Mexican restaurants, so if you haven’t made it out to them because they’re in Mānoa, take this as your sign to try them here. The menu is the same. The famous flauta ($16.95) is always a good choice, and the nachos or rajas con queso are yummy shareable plates.

Photo: Andrea Lee

Middle Eats has been a farmers market go-to, and we’re happy they’ve got a spot in Midtown Eats now. The menu is bigger here. The mezze box ($20) is great for sharing with a group; it comes with cumin fries, pita, green falafel, halloumi cheese and pickles plus your choice of two dips: baba ghanoush, roasted garlic hummus, green tahini or toum garlic. The clamshell container the mezze came in was packed, and it was fun and tasty to explore all the texture and flavor combos with the different pieces.

King Thai Cuisine Grilled Pork Pc Andrea Lee

Photo: Andrea Lee

Sister restaurant to King of Thai Boat Noodles, King Thai Cuisine has one exclusive dish on the menu: the Grilled Pork, which we would definitely get again. The pork is grilled to a nice chew, and the chili dipping sauce has a good kick—an authentic taste, Frolic editor Mari Taketa notes, not sweet like locals tend to make it.

Aloha Sugarcane Juices also has locations in Waikīkī and in Ala Moana’s Makai Food Court. At this location only, you can add tapioca to your juice or slushie. Even though the drinks are made with sugarcane, they aren’t super sweet; the only sugar comes from the pure sugarcane and added fruits, all blended to order. We liked the calamansi and mango flavors.

Mangiamo Gelato Condensed Milk And Green Tea Pc Andrea Lee

Photo: Andrea Lee

Mangiamo Gelato has 24 flavors of gelato and sorbetto—a few flavors may rotate in, but generally, the offerings stay the same. Feel free to ask for samples before making your pick. The Hawaiian Honey Yogurt is the most popular, and it’s very yogurty. I got the delightfully creamy Condensed Milk and not too sweet Green Tea. It’s $5.50 for one scoop (keiki), $6.75 for two (doppio) and $9.75 for three (trio). You can add two toppings for an extra $1.50. The scoops were huge, so I’d say doppio is well worth it. Pints are also for sale for $14.50.

Photo: Andrea Lee

Tips

Midtown Eats is a food court, not a restaurant, so there isn’t free water available. Bring your own or buy a drink from your vendor of choice.
There is outdoor seating too, so if you come at a busy time, don’t forget to check for tables outside.
Free Wi-Fi is available; ask a vendor for the password.
The whole food hall is family-friendly, though there is a sports bar, K Park Bar, at the front of the space that serves beer, cocktails and bar bites. The food is prepared by Ms. Nguyen, the neighboring vendor.
K Park Bar has a happy hour during weekdays from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. with beers for $5 to $6.
Serg’s Mexican Kitchen does Taco Tuesdays with $3 to $4 tacos as well as weekday happy hour specials from 3 to 5 p.m. (excluding Tuesdays), including $7 quesadillas and $9 flautas.

Open Sunday to Thursday 10 a.m. to 10 p.m., Friday and Saturday 10 a.m. to midnight, individual vendor hours may vary, 1515 Liona St., Ke‘eaumoku, midtowneatshi.com, @midtowneats_hi

Andrea Lee is the digital editor of HONOLULU Magazine.