Vegetarian in Hawaii (Oahu, Big Island, Maui)

[soxchik]

Next week I'll be visiting Hawaii for the first time. Hooray! I'll be staying in Oahu (Honolulu), Big Island (Kona area), and Maui (Hana and Wailea). I'll have a car and hope to see as much of the islands as possible. I haven't found much written recently about vegetarian options, so I was hoping for some good recommendations. I did find this link in another post http://www.vsh.org/index.html, but I'm hoping to find out what's good, not just what is available. Dairy and eggs are ok, but seafood is not. Also, no Indian, please.

Another question... I'll be traveling with a non-vegetarian who would like to experience the island cuisines, so would I be able to find anything at a plate lunch kind of place?

Thank you!

[MRMoggie]

The restaurant Town, which concentrates on fresh and local, and sister spot Downtown in downtown Honolulu, both have good vegetarian options. The most "San Francisco" - like spots on Oahu.

Not much Indian food in the islands, anyway, but lots of Vietnamese and Thai, which provide plenty of vegetarian dishes.

[KaimukiMan]

There are a few Indian places that do have vegetarian dishes.
Hymalayan kitchen is reall quite good, but the OP said "no Indian."

[soxchik]

Thanks! Town sounds great, but I'm having a hard time finding a website online that will show me where they are, or a menu. I think I found Town (a link to make reservations but little information), but not Downtown.

I'm sure we'll be doing Vietnamese and Thai as well.

[KaimukiMan]

Town is on Waialae Avenue at 9th in Kaimuki. Downtown is in the old Armed Forces YMCA at the corner of Hotel and Richards Street.

[garrett]

I had dinner at Town for the first time just a few weeks ago; they don't have an online menu. FYI I'm not vegetarian, but I was really disappointed with my visit. On a weeknight, the service was slow and inattentive while my steak was unevenly/over cooked.

They have a great concept (fresh, local ingredients), but their execution was extremely poor.

I have heard from one friend that she preferred Downtown to Town:

http://hawaii.gov/sfca/artmuseum.php?...

[KaimukiMan]

wow, sorry to hear that. town usually gets very good reviews in here, and I have always had good experiences there. i do have to admit that the service is a bit more relaxed than it might be, but usually more on the slow than inattentive side.

[soxchik]

Good to know, thanks! I'm sure we'll hit Downtown in the next couple days.

[soxchik]

Thanks for the Honolulu recommendations! Are there any for Maui or the Big Island?

[curiousgeo]

Andy's in Manoa Valley, above the University of Hawaii is a popular place.

http://www.andyssandwiches.com/

For a plate lunch, I Love Country Cafe might work, but I'm not sure if they have re-opened after the fire there a while back. Besides chicken, fish and meat entree's they have vegetable stir fry's with tofu that come with brown rice and tossed greens. Best to call and check.

[mynimooose]

Can't speak for the other islands or the far reaches of Oahu but the places in town that I can recommend are:

Hale (macrobiotic japanese influenced vegetarian. option of a fish dish for non veg.)
Well Bento (vegetarian plate lunches takeout only fish and meat dish available)

Also many Thai restaurants have vegetarian menus as well.