The 18 Best Places To Eat On The Big Island Of Hawaii

Affectionately referred to as the Big Island, Hawaii Island is the largest and most unique island in the state, with a land mass spanning over 4,000 miles, (per PBS). Beaches of black, green, and white dot the island's coasts from Hilo to Hawi, Kona to Kamuela, notes South Kohala Management. Hawaii Magazine shares 10 of the 14 microclimates on earth are on the Big Island, from rainforests and waterfalls to stark lava fields flowing into the sea. The Big Island is home to five of America's volcanoes, including the world's tallest mountain, Mauna Kea, sitting at over 33,000 feet, adds NOAA.

With such diversity, the Big Island is fitting for adventure seekers and those looking to relax under a palm tree while sipping a citrusy Mai Tai cocktail, where today's forecast is likely sunny with a chance of rainbows. The island's laid-back attitude is steeped in the local belief in living aloha. For islanders, aloha is more than a greeting. Aloha is a lifestyle embracing peace, unity, and compassion, (via Surfer Magazine).

When it's time to eat, the Big Island offers a mix of enticing flavors, served with aloha for the āina (land) and kai (ocean). Locals include a melting pot of nationalities and cultures, including native Polynesian Hawaiians, Japanese, Filipino, Portuguese, and mainlanders, reports DataUSA. In Hawaii, each culture brings unique flavors and traditions to the island's cuisine. From posh resort dining to casual beach shacks and shave ice, these restaurants offer an authentic taste of the island.

Tommy Bahama is a successful clothing store and furniture brand that owns a chain of restaurants and bars across the country. We spoke with Big Island Assistant General Manager Liz Costigan about what sets the Big Island location in the Shops at Mauna Lani apart from the 20 or so other Tommy Bahama Restaurants and Marlin Bars.

Costigan says much of the Big Island's success is due to working with local purveyors who provide the highest quality produce and products grown on the island, including produce from executive chef Stennis Hirayama. Costigan adds Hirayama grew up on his family's farm, Y. Hirayama Farm, Inc., in Waimea before attending culinary school in Portland, Oregon. He returned to Hawaii, taking the leadership role at Tommy's in 2012. His family's Hirayama Farm, and surrounding Waimea farms, like Kawamata Farms, have supplied produce to the restaurant for years. Costigan says, "It is essential to Tommy Bahama to not only source and support local but also use the freshest ingredients possible."

Working by the motto that "life is one long weekend," island flavors served in a relaxing atmosphere define the island life of Tommy Bahama Mauna Lani. And don't miss happy hour from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. daily to enjoy Costigan's favorite cocktail, a grapefruit basil martini made with freshly squeezed juice, or our favorite, a heavenly coconut cloud.

In 1983, Pittsburg native Peter Merriman arrived on the Big Island to be a cook at the Mauna Lani Bay Hotel. At the time, Merriman thought he would stay a short time, enjoy a little sun and surf, and then head back to the East Coast. Instead, he made Hawaii his permanent home, becoming one of the first chefs on the island to focus on regional Hawaiian cuisine, featuring local meat, fish, and produce.

At the time, Hawaii was still an island of sugarcane and pineapple plantations. While working at the Mauna Lani, Merriman began encouraging local farmers to grow fresh produce, like berries and tomatoes, which he purchased to use in the hotel's restaurant.

When Merriman opened his signature restaurant, Merriman's, in upcountry Waimea in 1988, the island's farmers became his culinary partners. Today, Merriman's features farm-to-table dishes with 90% of the ingredients sourced on the island. Favorite dishes include Kua'aina beef tenderloin, Lehua taro cakes, and Hiraraba Farm beet and fennel salad with Hawaiian goat cheese. Locations on Maui, Oahu, and Kauai today join Merriman's original site on the Big Island.

Pasta lovers can enjoy an authentic taste of Italy thanks to chef James Babian. After years of cooking on the mainland, Babian moved to the Big Island to join the growing locally-focused chef movement of exclusively using local fish, produce, and meats. He became executive chef of the Fairmont Orchid, followed by a position as executive chef at the Four Seasons. When he arrived at the Four Seasons, he quickly implemented his regional, seasonal, artisanal approach, utilizing over 130 local purveyors on the resort's menus.

After leaving the resort, Babian and his wife started Pueo's Osteria in Waikoloa Village, focusing on Italian flavors with local flare, working sustainably and creatively with dozens of local farmers and fishermen. Menu favorites include fresh Kona abalone with agrodolce glaze, garlicky scampi-style Kona shrimp, vine-ripe tomato bruschetta, and whole wheat tagliolini with a mélange of earthy Hamakua and mermaid mushrooms.

For the best ahi tuna poke bowl on the island, look no further than Umeke's Fish Market Bar & Grill for an award-winning, locally caught ahi poke made with a mix of island ingredients brought together to ignite the palate and imagination.

Meaning bowl in Hawaiian, Umeke's features an array of poke combinations, like avocado, unagi, and onions; ogo, Hawaiian chili pepper, and oyster sauce; or our favorite Hawaiian style with inamona (locally roasted nuts from the kukui tree), limu kohu (red algae), sea salt, and red pepper. If you can't decide on just one poke to enjoy, Umeke's Makai (meaning "toward the sea") platter includes a selection of three poke with ahi cakes, oysters, shrimp, and sashimi. It is an island seafood lover's dream.

Though fans of delicious food throughout the Hawaiian islands enjoy a classic plate lunch of loco moco with rice and macaroni salad, the dish has roots on the eastern side of the Big Island in Hilo. The story goes that Richard Miyashiro first assembled the loco moco in 1946 when he opened his Cafe 100 restaurant in his hometown, naming it in honor of the 100th Infantry Battalion, which he served with in World War II.

Miyashiro's loco moco brought a classic combination of rice and a hamburger patty, topped with gravy and a runny fried egg, perfect for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. Today, Cafe 100 serves a dozen varieties of loco moco, including chili, fish, spam, and sausage options. Still, for us, the original is the original for a reason; it is the best.

For vegans and vegetarians looking for elevated flavors beyond a traditional green salad, head straight to Pahoa to Under the Bodhi Tree. Former executive chef of the Fairmont Orchid, Stephen Rouelle, opened Bodhi Tree with his partner, Abraham Go, in 2014 after Rouell began eating a raw vegan diet.

By showcasing high-quality, vibrant vegan and vegetarian meals, the duo hoped to showcase the natural flavors of the island, highlighting delicious meat-free dishes. Breakfast smoothies and açaí bowls give way to an afternoon menu filled with nutrient-dense stews, sandwiches, and elevated salads. We love the happy belly salad featuring house-fermented sauerkraut and kimchi in a turmeric and ginger dressing. WebMD notes that probiotic-packed kimchi is filled with cancer-fighting antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals, making the salad as delicious as it is good for you.

Lau lau is one of Hawaii's most traditional dishes and is often the featured protein in possibly Hawaii's most popular meal, the plate lunch. Onolicious Hawaii describes the lau lau dish as pork, chicken, or beef wrapped in a lu'au and ti leaves with butterfish, then steamed until cooked. Most traditionally, salt pork is used, as the salty meat seasons the dish, with the buttery fish adding richness. Both wraps are required for traditional lau lau, as the edible lu'au leaf, coming from the taro plant, soaks in the intense flavors of the meat and fish combination, with the ti leaf encasing the proteins, ensuring the steamy flavors remain intact.

Though the lau lau is prevalent throughout the island, Kaaloa's Super J's in Captain Cook south of Kona is the best. We recommend arriving early as the dish is available daily, but only until it sells out.

At the southernmost tip of the island, near the scenic Punalu'u black sand beach and Ka Lae, lies America's southernmost bakery, Punalu'u Bakery. The commercial bakery crafts an array of Hawaiian sweets, including Hawaiian sweet bread distributed throughout the islands, as well as takeaway treats like macadamia nut shortbread and a variety of glazed and filled malasadas, Hawaii's version of a doughnut with Portuguese roots.

Visitors to the bakery can enjoy a plate lunch, sandwiches, and salads, dining al fresco with a cup of locally grown Ka'u coffee. Big Island Coffee Roasters explains Ka'u coffee is distinct from Kona coffee, as Ka'u is grown on the fertile volcanic ash-filled slopes of Mauna Loa in the southern part of the island that was formerly home to sugar cane plantations. The flavor is bold and rich with slight acidity, delivering a delicious cup of Joe.

The fire goddess Pele's power is a sight to witness at the Volcano House in Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. USGS shares that Hawaiians believe Kilauea is the home of the goddess, with her fury rumbling beneath the earth, erupting with relative consistency over the past 70 years.

Next to the summit of the Kilauea caldera surrounding the currently erupting Halema'uma'u crater, sits the Volcano House, originally built in 1846. Over the years, it has transformed into a compound of cabins, a campground, and a hotel that boasts numerous famous guests, including Mark Twain.

Sitting 4,000 feet above sea level, The Rim restaurant overlooks Kilauea's caldera, steaming and bubbling with lava in the Halema'uma'u crater for the past 40 years. The menu features local favorites like Kalua pork and macadamia nut-crusted fish, served in a white tablecloth setting. We recommend visiting for dinner, sitting at a table by the window to see the glow of the lava from the caldera under the stars of the Big Island night sky.