Pagoda Floating Restaurant

The Pagoda Floating Restaurant, situated next to the Pagoda hotel, earns my 4-star rating primarily for its attractions, service, and specials. I was drawn here by the koi pond attraction, which didn't disappoint. The fact that they offer breakfast, available on weekdays until 11 am and weekends until 12 pm, was a definite plus. The outstanding service truly made my day, with the attentive staff offering water and tea multiple times and assisting with all my needs. Guests staying at the hotel receive a voucher for a special waffle dish, and there's also a unique ox tail soup on the menu. While I enjoyed the distinctive coconut pancakes, I wasn't a fan of the pineapple papaya jam. I appreciated that it was served on the side. The omelet had good flavor but was slightly overcooked, and the different style of potatoes was a nice touch. We were even able to get cups of brown pebbles to feed the fish, adding to the overall experience. The ambiance was quiet, with a comfortable number of diners present. Overall, I had a positive experience and I would consider returning in the future.

The food was not hot. They need to have more items if it's a buffet. 1 chicken, 1 pork, no shrimp, and not many meat options. Not that great at all.

The buffet is out of this world, but really expensive. But I must be honest, it's really worth experiencing at least once in your life. The food choices are amazing, and if you were really have a bottom with stomach, that place would be the bomb. Otherwise I've attended events here, with Improv HI, watching some fantastic improvisational shows in the space above the restaurant.

This review is of the new location inside the International Ballroom of the Pagoda Hotel. It pains me to write this, given the many golden memories I have of the Pagoda Floating Restaurant in its long-time historic and picturesque location next door. But I am soundly disappointed in the greatly diminished new operation. Maybe if they'd just called it "Fish Neighbor Cafe," they'd get a star back. It doesn't feel like a restaurant, because it's not -- it's tables in a former hotel ballroom supported with a catering kitchen. But that would be fine if the food was good. But it's not. You know how an attentive server comes by to ask how things are going, and you just nod and make affirmative noises because no one really cares? This time, my family regretfully shared its litany of complaints with the poor employee. The rice was dry and hard. How do you get white rice wrong in Hawaii? The mahi was tasteless and dry. The oxtail soup was not "fall off the bone," it was "gnaw off the bone." The basic breakfast plate was just okay. Nobody in our party of four finished what they were served, and nobody wanted to bring anything home. I greatly miss the Pagoda restaurant. The name probably should have died with the venue. Maybe the food wasn't that great in the old location, but the location made up for a lot.

Positives - the koi pond with lots of active beautiful fish, the scenery around the restaurant, the service. Negatives - the food really was bland. And for the price of the buffet I would've paid less than $10 on the mainland for that quality of buffet food. $20 is too steep for what you are served. If I had my child with me I'm sure he would've enjoyed the variety but I was underwhelmed. Once I walked around the neighborhood and saw so many pan-asian restaurants I regretted not trying one of them.

Food was mediocre. A glass of beer broke just by picking it up and it spilled on a few of our friends and no consolation was made. Service was slow.

The servers are somewhat responsive, but they even apologize for how short staffed they are, and they have such a limited menu. We waited for 30 minutes before the server took our orders, and then another 25 minutes for our food to arrive. I had the Loco Moco, but it was really dry and salty. It tasted more like the 7-Eleven Loco Moco. Not impressive. Their coffee is also not very good at all, and it’s weak. It might be okay for tea drinkers though. There is no atmosphere whatsoever. The general feeling is of a hospital cafeteria, and even that is a stretch. I wouldn’t call this place “clean” either, as the carpet was badly stained and had an odor coming up from the floor. They also offer a small menu of breakfast items for hotel guests, but the visual on that menu is pretty pathetic, and doesn’t look worthwhile, unless you’re a super light eater. Again, it’s for hotel guests, so it appears to be an appetizer menu, and not a complete meal. I wouldn’t recommend going here if you’re interested in having a good breakfast. It’s a skeleton crew serving skeleton breakfasts. I would have given it 1-Star, but the servers were apologetic, and also the food didn’t make me sick, at least. There is extremely limited parking for the restaurant, and when the 5 spaces are full, then you have to pay for parking across the street at parking meters or Ross and pay hourly.

Honestly wasn't the best. I've had it many times before and this time the food just wasn't that great in my opinion. I mean there were many different options of food and if your big on seafood, this is a good option for you.

Not worth the time or calories. Nice setting, but food and service are awful!

The Pagoda is No Longer Open, I don't know why they haven't taken down the website or advertisements of there Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner Buffets, But its Closed, The Fish pond is no longer there, they have a separate place where they serve sub par food, but that's it,