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Ya-Ya’s Chophouse & Seafood - Steakhouse in Honolulu, Hawaii

Ya-Ya’s Chophouse & Seafood

4.5 (256 reviews)

508 Keawe St, Honolulu, HI 96813

Steak house

About Ya-Ya’s Chophouse & Seafood - steak house in Honolulu, Hawaii

Customer Review Summary

Ya-Ya’s Chophouse & Seafood receives mixed reviews. While some diners find the food to be good but overpriced, others rave about the quality of dishes like filet mignon and tomahawk steak. Service experiences vary, with some noting lapses in cocktail orders, while others commend the attentiveness of the staff. The ambiance is generally praised for its cosmopolitan feel and live music, although some mention it can feel empty at times. The restaurant is highlighted for its unique menu offerings and special occasion suitability, alongside welcoming staff and an extensive wine list. Overall, many customers recommend giving it a shot for both quality food and a pleasant dining experience.

Key Features

Service options

  • Outdoor seating
  • Takeout
  • Dine-in

Highlights

  • Great beer selection
  • Great cocktails
  • Great wine list

Popular for

  • Dinner
  • Solo dining

Accessibility

  • Wheelchair accessible entrance
  • Wheelchair accessible parking lot
  • Wheelchair accessible restroom
  • Wheelchair accessible seating

Offerings

  • Alcohol
  • Beer
  • Cocktails
  • Coffee
  • Comfort food
  • Happy hour drinks
  • Happy hour food
  • Hard liquor
  • Small plates
  • Wine

Dining options

  • Dinner
  • Dessert
  • Seating

Amenities

  • Bar onsite
  • Restroom

Atmosphere

  • Cozy
  • Trendy

Crowd

  • Family-friendly
  • Groups

Planning

  • Dinner reservations recommended
  • Accepts reservations

Payments

  • Credit cards
  • Debit cards
  • NFC mobile payments

Children

  • High chairs

Parking

  • Paid parking garage

Pets

  • Dogs allowed outside

Customer Reviews

Rating Distribution

4.5 out of 5
5
179
4
40
3
21
2
7
1
9
Based on 256 reviews

Ryan Y

4 months ago

For the price, not worth it. Food was good, but not memorable. Everything is just over priced for what it's like. Went here with a group of people (7) and had drinks. Total was almost $1,000. You get free table side taro bread and butter, and you choose a knife for the entrée. I got the filet mignon, it's was medium rare and seasoned well. Small portion of it had some fat that wasn't rendered down enough. Everyone's food was cooked to their request. Although the service was good, they forgot our cocktails and whiskey several times throughout service. Atmosphere was good too, the lights were dimmed, and they had live music playing. However, when looking around, not many people were in the restaurant. Most of the photos I took were just of the appetizers.

Iliana Alexandrova

7 months ago

Superb food and atmosphere. Celebrated my birthday and had a fantastic time. Live music. Octopus, tomahawk steak, oysters, and beignets were all exceptional. Staff is so welcoming and knowledgeable! Parking garage is right next door and they validate.

JMAC

2 months ago

They always rock it! Service is personable, and the menu is reasonable, creative, and pretty splendid. Give it a try if you've never been. The atmosphere is cosmopolitan and food ono! Really only one of a handful of places in town that have a really classy setting and menu, while having a very reasonable and tasty bar menu, in a casual, easy going, feel good atmosphere. If you wanna do it up, the dinner menu is hearty and unique. They also have a semi private room for intimate parties. Outdoor sidewalk or under cover seating is also nice on a cool evening. It's definitely a favorite! 8/09/21 They rocked it again. Stephanie, one of our servers, and her teammates, on it and quite entertaining. Thank you for the usual great service and pretty dang good grubs, too. 😉🤙✌ 9/2022 I've been back many more times before this, but I wanted to give another shout-out! They're still rocking it! The place was crowded, and still a beautiful ambiance and staff is fantabulous!! We were graced with Bo serving us at the bar as he continues to navigate these challenging times post Covid. I give him all the credit in the world. Also posted a pic of the newest item on the bar menu, a beef skewer. It was right up that onolicious alley! Rock on!! 😉🤙✌️ 5/2023 It's still awesome and rocking it! I'm just sorry I'm not able to come as often. Keep up the good work! 😉🤙✌️ 3/2024 All that jazz.....

R C

1 year ago

Service was awesome! Best dry aged steak I've had in hawaii. Just can't put my finger on it something was off as far as the atmosphere. Bar looked great maybe it was the more modern feeling, from the high ceilings, cement floors not at all a bad thing just different. We will definitely be back.

Bill Melcher

2 years ago

Our first time at this predominantly steak house. The cocktail menu was diverse and tasty. Our food was served family style. We had the bacon appetizer and two different salads. Our mains were lamb chops, pork chop, and New York steak with sides of mushrooms, mashed potatoes, and broccolini. All were great but the lamb chops were especially good. Beignets finished the meal and were good. Service was excellent. Prices were spendy, but I would say this would be a good place for a special occasion.

Martin Scott

1 year ago

I’m going to start this review off with… its never a bad idea to give a restaurant a second chance, even if the first experience was horrible.. We visited YA-YA’s in December 2023 and had one of our worst dining experiences (And we dine out a lot).. you can read that review on Everyday Eats.. After reading our review the management team at YA-YA’s reached out and insisted that next time we were on island that we must come back and give them another shot.. well here we are 3months later and we decided to stop in for dinner.. We were met at the door and sat right away, we were given food meus, the cocktail and wine list which was pleasant after our last experience.. Our Front and back servers both introduced themselves and were all over the table, again a complete 180 from the last time we were here! We ordered a few cocktails and a bottle of wine. My wife ordered the Pink Cadillac ($14) and our son ordered the “One for the road” ($16). I ordered a bottle of Robert Hall Cabernet ($50). We started with the Crab Cakes ($28), the Shrimp Cocktail ($25), and the Fat Fried Rice ($17).. The Crab Cakes were served two to the plate and were not very large in size but what they were was all Crab Meat.. No Fillers, No Binders, no Bread Crumbs… Just perfectly seasoned crab meat! The Shrimp Cocktail being a mainstream app was also surprising, the dish boasted 5pc U10 Jumbo Prawns.. again.. served with simple accoutrement just well done… Now if you have visited any island you’ll find 1000 different takes on Fried Rice.. but the Chef here cooks his with rendered Wagyu Tallow which sets the bar for fried rice in my opinion. Moving onto to entrees… My Wife ordered the Fillet topped with Foie Gras ($119), our son ordered the Lobster Pan Roast ($85), and I….Well I ordered the Prime Rib because the last time we were here I really feel that I was not able to get the true experience on the plate since they forgot to ring it in and I sat plateless across my wife as she ate her meal… But we wont dwell on that! The Filet was huge.. easily sharable between two people and the Foie was cooked perfectly! The Lobster Pan Roast was essentially a whole lobster poached in a creamy tomato sauce.. Definitely on the heavier side, and can be shared… ahh and the Prime Rib.. 12oz of perfectly cooked well seasoned beef goodness… Not one thing bad about it.. We ordered the Truffle Mac N Cheese and the Creamed Spinach as shared sides… the MNC was very good and that’s a bold statement since you can now get gourmet Mac N Cheese just about anywhere. The Creamed Spinach was on the bland side, this is one of those sides that you need to put more effort into it to make it stand out these days. The biggest take away here is that the portions are well sized.. a couple could easily order an app, a salad, one entrée and a dessert to share and have a great dinner and still not break the bank here… we are a family of Foodies and we enjoy trying what looks interesting or trying what might be just another “Shrimp Cocktail” only to be blown away… Lastly.. the Sweet Finale.. We ordered the Taro Bread Pudding with vanilla ice Cream ($12), this was a perfect end… Not too sweet and a great portion to share. The Real takeaway here is that the Food and Beverage team here cares…they read my first review and immediately reached out and wanted us to give them another shot.. We did and we were blown away.. this time around it was like a completely different restaurant… a full 180deg turn around which goes to show that they are doing it right and they were worth the second shot! We’ll be back in the future.. until then…

Annabelle Bronstein

3 years ago

Amazing atmosphere, beyond phenomenal drinks and food... cozy place that's spaced out well. Perfect lighting... great choice for romantic private dates or hanging with friends and sharing incredible apps. The wine list is extensive. I love the way everyone pitches in and makes sure to stop by your table and ask a little about you, including management. Had a blast and definitely highly recommended!

Shawn McKenzie

3 years ago

Awesome menu, and the starter of claim chowder was off the charts. Fresh ingredients along with superb culinary skills makes this place a rewarding dinning experience. I'm definitely a returning customer, and I had one of the best porterhouse steak. The creme Brule was a coffee base favor with custard.

Location

Contact Information

Hours of Operation

Friday 5–10 PM
Monday Closed
Saturday 5–10 PM
Sunday Closed
Thursday Closed
Tuesday Closed
Wednesday 5–10 PM

Price Range

$100+