Kauai Travel Guide – Food & Lodging

Welcome to our Kauai Travel Guide Food & Lodging page, where we will share information and tips regarding some of the best local food specialties, restaurants to dine in, and lodging options for overnight stays.

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Lodging

In Kauai, we stayed at two different locations. The first was a small but comfortable studio apartment in Princeville master-planned community of homes and condos on the north shore of the island). We were about a 5-min. wall from the coast and a 2-min. drive to the local grocery store. 

We, later on, moved to the east coast in Kapaa to stay with some friends. We were initially attracted to the Kauai BeachHouse hostel because of its proximity to the beach, affordability, and most importantly its spacious rooftop terrace. While the rooftop terrace did not disappoint, the hostel turned out to be rather disappointing. It was extremely run down, with windows that wouldn’t shut completely (at least this was the case in 2015). The rooms were excessively dark and washrooms in desperate need of some renovations. Moreover, there were roosters EVERYWHERE that made sure that you were up bright and early in the morning – though, truthfully, the roosters could be found all over the island.

Food

As mentioned earlier, we often dined on Ahi tuna Poke in various restaurants and snack bars, or fresh from the grocery store, particularly in Oahu. If it’s fresh, you can’t really go wrong – it’s just delicious! 

Another source of great snack food was the awesome food trucks selling fish tacos. Around Kapaa, there were several that served melt-in-your-mouth savoury fish tacos. Another food truck worthy of mention in Oahu is Ono Steaks and Shrimp Shack, where the fish tacos and coconut shrimp are just to die for. 

In Oahu, the most memorable restaurant was Buho Cantina, which served good but unremarkable Mexican food but that also had a humongous rooftop terrace.

The best sit-down restaurant we ate at during this trip was the Bar Acuda, specializing in Hawaiian-inspired tapas dishes with a nice outdoor terrace, and is located just off the main drag in Hanalei Bay in Kauai.

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