Pints, Forks & Friends Field Notes

Traveling to O’ahu, Hawaii something I’ll never forget. A lot of planning went into our trip, and I actually wrote a blog post about “digital mapping apps to map a localized trip“. I don’t want to get into everything I wrote there, this is about the restaurant Haleiwa Joe’s Haiku Gardens.

We wanted to find restaurants that were local favorites, instead of eating at a chain restaurant that might as well be in Ohio. I used Google Maps and started researching “Restaurants Near Me” and the magic started.

I always use Google Maps over Yelp and some of the other review style apps. Google has a great organic program called Google Local Guides, which I’m apart of. You don’t get paid, but you contribute to level up and give back to the community. I trust their reviews so much more. So when I came across Haleiwa Joe’s their photos give me a clear story about their restaurant, without even reading the reviews honestly. The layout of the restaurant over looks a hawaiian garden, that you can walk down into, along with an amazing view of the Ko‘olau mountain range. It was a laid-back polynesian/safari type atmosphere. Very friendly, and you could tell a lot of the customers were local, and loved being here.

As for the food, we went with the fresh local catch, but their menu is very diverse ranging from ribs, spicy edamame, poke, hamburgers, steaks, chicken and more! Founded in 1998 by friends Joe Lazar, Steve McGillin and Moe Lerner who all believed in the Aloha spirit. This place is a must place to stop if you enjoy great food and atmosphere. Oh wait, the craft beer… I went with a Kona Brew – Longboard Island Lager which paired well with everything we consumed. Cheers!

Side Notes

• Halwiwa Joe’s is tucked back into a neighborhood next to the Ko‘olau mountain range
• Our server told us about the “Stairway to Heaven” Trail that runs along the top of the mountain we were looking at – also called Haiku Stairs.
• Full Menu – Click here
• Stairway to Heaven Information – Click Here
• Follow Haleiwa Joe’s on Instagram – they do a great job with their social media