When it comes to finding amazing places to eat, Hilo offers tons of options. There are all types of cuisine available from typical Hawaii options to some fun Thai and Mexican choices. After spending a month sampling various places, these are some of the best places to eat in Hilo. If you are interested in more things to do in Hawaii, make sure to check out this post.
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Where to Stay in Hilo
TripAdvisor is a great place to start your hotel search. Search for the best Big Island hotels here! The Hilo downtown is the most central area to stay. There are a variety of hotels scattered around the bay. The Grand Naniola, Double Tree is a good location. However, we opted to stay in an Airbnb across from Richardson Ocean Park. This ended up being a great location as we were steps from a beach!
The Best Places to Eat in Hilo
Cafe Pesto
Cost: $$
Hours: 11am-8:30pm
Cafe Pesto was one of my favorite places to eat in Hilo. It began in 1988 as a small take-out pizza place. Since then, they have expanded to serve all sorts of delicious Italian food. You have to get the Korean Cream Cheese Garlic Bread. It was seriously the best garlic bread I have ever had. Both their pizza and pasta were amazing as well. You cannot go wrong with anything from Cafe Pesto.
Hilo Bay Cafe
Cost: $$
Hours: Tues-Sat: 11:00am-2:30pm, 5-8:30pm
Hilo Bay Cafe was probably my favorite place and one of the best places to eat in Hilo. If you want a nice dinner, the Hilo Bay Cafe is one of the nicest places in town. It overlooks Hilo Bay and is a perfect place to catch the sunset. The cafe was founded in 2003 by a group of food lovers. Since then, it has continued to grow and serve seasonal and organic food. The menu does change depending on the season, so it can be a new experience every time. It can get quite popular, so a reservation is recommended.
Hilo Burger Joint
Cost: $$
Hours: Mon-Sat: 11am-9pm, Sun: 7am-9pm
Hilo Burger Joint is a great place to grab a burger and fries. They have a TON of unique burger options. Also, they offer a variety of patties, including beef, fish, vegan, and veggie options. Hilo Burger Joint also has a variety of things to add to your fries as well, from cheese to chili. Hilo Burger Joint is one of the best places to eat in Hilo.
Ken’s House of Pancakes
Cost: $$
Hours: 6am-9pm
Ken’s House of Pancakes is one of the best breakfast places to eat in Hilo. They offer some of the lightest and fluffiest pancakes I have ever had. You can get pancakes instead of toast for any of the meals. Best of all, they offer island-inspired pancake flavors, such as coconut, macadamia nut, and banana pancakes. You could also opt for a traditional Loco Moco breakfast as well. A loco moco, a traditional Hawaii dish, is a beef patty served with rice, gravy, and an egg on top.
Lucy’s Taqueria Kilauea
Cost: $$
Hours: Permanently Closed
Lucy’s is THE place to get Mexican food in Hilo. Although it may not be as good as California Mexican food, it had some seriously good burritos. Many of the ingredients are locally sourced. They also sell their margarita mix if you want to take some to go with you! It is one of the best places to eat in Hilo.
Makani’s Magic Pineapple Shack
Cost: $
Hours: Mon-Sat: 10am-6pm, Sun: 10am-5pm
Makani’s Magic Pineapple Shack is THE place to go for acai bowls. You can get a traditional bowl, or they have a ton of fun and unique combinations to choose from. My favorite was the Gorilla bowl, which had strawberries, bananas, peanut butter, and granola. They also serve some other treats, such as smoothies and Ube ice cream cones, and have some fun, magical-looking desserts. Pretty much everything you can get here is Instagrammable.
Naung Mai Thai Kitchen
Cost: $$
Hours: 11am-8:30pm
Naung Mai Thai Kitchen was not one of my favorite places to eat in Hilo. I included it in this guide because I was not that impressed with it. This Thai restaurant serves traditional Thai food. However, we felt the dishes were bland and not like the Thai food we had gotten previously. They also got most of our orders wrong. I would not recommend eating here.
Pineapples Restaurant
Cost: $$
Hours: Tues-Thurs: 11am-9pm. Fri-Sun: 11am-9:30pm, Closed Mondays
Pineapples, one of my favorite places to eat in Hilo, contains a bunch of island-inspired cuisine from fresh, locally caught fish, to fresh fruits and vegetables. This open-air restaurant has an awesome happy hour daily, from 3pm-5pm. It is a great place for a quick bite to eat and for a group to hang out. All of their cocktails were delicious. Make sure to grab a Pineapple Pow, a tropical blended drink served in a pineapple!
Vibe Cafe
Cost: $$
Hours: 8am-3pm
Vibe Cafe is the best place to go for vegans (or vegetarians). Everything on the menu is vegan. They offer breakfast all day, salads, sandwiches, pizza, and more. They also have a coffee shop too with lots of coffee choices. It was voted one of the best places to eat in Hilo in 2019.
Zippy’s
Cost: $
Hours: 6am-9pm
Zippy’s is the place to go to get fast Hawaiian food. They offer a ton of traditional Hawaiian dishes, such as loco mocos. It is also known for its chili and other comfort food. They also have a bakery attached if you want some traditional Hawaiian pastries.
Cafe 100 and the Sweet Cane Cafe were two places I did not get the chance to try, but they are supposed to be very delicious.
The Best Snack Places to Eat in Hilo
Big Island Candies
Cost: $
Hours: Mon-Fri: 7:30am-5pm, Sat-Sun: 8:30am-5pm
Big Island Candies is the place in Hilo to get some Hawaiian treats. They are known for their shortbread cookies and chocolate-covered macadamia nuts. Although some of the goods are a little pricey, it is a great treat or gift to bring home to others.
Hilo Brewing Company
Cost: $
Hours: 12pm-6pm
Hilo Brewing Company is a great place to grab a craft beer. Established in 2018, they have 6 main beers and several seasonal options. It is a great place to hang out and chill for an hour or two.
Kula Shave Ice
Cost: $
Hours: 9am-5pm
Another shaved ice option in Hilo is Kula Shave Ice. Although not as good as Wilson’s, they have some fun add-on options. They also serve acai bowls here.
Two Ladies Kitchen
Cost: $
Hours: Tues-Sat: 10am-4pm
Two Ladies Kitchen is known for its mochi. It is a must-visit for any mochi fan. They make fresh mochi daily with all kinds of Hawaiian fruit flavors. The flavors tend to rotate, but strawberry is their most popular flavor. If you are not sure what you want, I recommend getting one of the variety packs to try out a sampling of flavors.
Wilson’s By the Bay
Cost: $
Hours: Tues-Wed: 12pm-5pm, Sat-Sun: 12pm-5pm, Closed Mondays and Fridays
Wilson’s By the Bay is THE best shave ice place in Hilo. Not only is it super affordable, they also have a ton of flavors. They also have some preset options for you as well if you cannot make up your mind. This tiny place serves really large shave ice, so you may want to share.
The Best Places to Eat in the Hilo Area
These places are not right in downtown Hilo, but they are within 30 minutes of Hilo. I really enjoyed these places, so they were worth including in this guide!
Pele’s Kitchen
Cost: $$
Hours: 7:30am-12pm
Pele’s Kitchen is totally worth the drive from Hilo for breakfast. This farm to table restaurant is located in Pahoa, about 30 minutes from Downtown Hilo. They source local Hawaiian ingredients and are known for their fresh fruit and veggies, and tropical juices. Everything we ordered was seriously SO good and made the drive worth it.
Hilo Sharks Coffee
Cost: $
Hours: Permanently Closed
Hilo Sharks Coffee is the place to go to satisfy your caffeine fix. It is located about 15 minutes from Downtown Hilo and it is a great stop if you are headed up the coast. August through November, they also offer coffee plantation tours.
Mr. Ed’s Bakery
Cost: $
Hours: Mon-Sat: 6am-6pm, Sun: 9am-6pm
Mr. Ed’s Bakery is a great stop if you want Hawaiian pastries or other baked goods. It is located a few doors down from Hilo Sharks Coffee.
Shaka Guide
Shaka Guide is a GPS self-guided audio tour that you can download to your phone. Currently, they have one for each of the Hawaiian islands. They provide great background information about the area. The best part is you do not need the internet to use them. Click below for the Shaka Guide for each island.
Hilo was such a fun place to spend time exploring, and there are so many of the best places to eat in Hilo. I recommend adding it to any Big Island itinerary as it has a ton of cheap things to do, and it is a great place to base yourself on the Big Island. If you have time, head over to Oahu to explore the fun things it has to offer, especially one of these road trips.
