Really cool atmosphere. Staff was absolutely awesome. Extremely polite, helpful and provided great service. Food was delicious. Highly recommended ?
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Fresh Catch of the Day, Thai Caesar Salad
Guy Brand
Not a bad place to eat. People are really nice.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 3
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Island Fresh Sashimi Entrée
Tina T.
Went on a Friday night and Parking lot was full but not too many customers inside. It was a rainy night and the parking lot is gravel so a lot of water puddles and not a safe walk. The food is pricey but it was good. Had the shrimp pasta and shared a couple of sushi rolls which tasted great. The half portions are big. Nice piano playing.
River Rainbow Hagg
Reservation at 5:45 sitting at the table.. No one took our order until 6.. OK, no problem, appetizer didn’t come until 615.. ok I guess. Then salad and dinner came out together at 6:30. Cobb salad made both of our bellies hurt later. We ordered a large ribeye but instead we’re sent out a rack of baby back ribs that tasted like the plywood table we were eating it on. They should’ve saved the quarters they glued into the table and hired better staff. I pointed out to the waitress that we didn’t order the ribs but by that point it was too late to send it back for the right order because we had an after dinner engagement.. I’m not a hoity-toity. I don’t expect red carpet treatment but if I go out and spend over $100 on a meal I would hope that it is at least a nice experience. Personally, I’m not the person that will demand the meal be taken off that I didn’t order. I allow that to the establishment. They can make it right or not. It’s up to them.. When I got the bill, the waitress said she discounted the bill but the ribs were still over $50 and the waitress put on a self tip of 17% Which further aggravated me. She promised us the next time we come in she’ll take good care of us to make up for this time. No thanks..
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 1
Service: 1
River H.
Reservation at 5:45 sitting at the table.. No one took our order until 6.. OK, no problem, appetizer didn't come until 615.. ok I guess. Then salad and dinner came out together at 6:30. Cobb salad made both of our bellies hurt later. We ordered a large ribeye but instead we're sent out a rack of baby back ribs that tasted like the plywood table we were eating it on. They should've saved the quarters they glued into the table and hired better staff. I pointed out to the waitress that we didn't order the ribs but by that point it was too late to send it back for the right order because we had an after dinner engagement.. I'm not a hoity-toity. I don't expect red carpet treatment but if I go out and spend over $100 on a meal I would hope that it is at least a nice experience. Personally, I'm not the person that will demand the meal be taken off that I didn't order. I allow that to the establishment. They can make it right or not. It's up to them.. When I got the bill, the waitress said she discounted the bill but the ribs were still over $50 and the waitress put on a self tip of 17% Which further aggravated me. She promised us the next time we come in she'll take good care of us to make up for this time. No thanks..
Jackie Ford
Best Ono I’ve had in years! Great service, cool ambiance, and excellent drinks.
Service: 2
Tiger F.
I wouldn't recommend this establishment based on my experience last night. Wife and I opted to give Red Water another try. We had eaten here in 2014. We were promptly seated behind the oddly large and minimally populated fish tank. We sort of remembered the interior of the establishment but it appears they've remodeled a bit. We were trying to figure out what the partition in the space was made of because it looked very familiar. Got it! It's made from two headboards repurposed from the Restore, secured with 2x4's.....ingenious. Wife really loved the decoupage and burnt plywood tables, wait for it...with spare change imbedded in the decoupage. First class. The room was cold, typical in Waimea. We asked our server if she could turn off the ceiling fan but couldn't because the fan was wired in with the lights . Later noticed the window was open blowing in cold air. Gave up at this point and went into survival mode. We made an igloo out of the old sticky throw pillows in our seating area glad I watched all those survival shows. Ok the food. Decent (appearing) menu. We DID NOT like 18% gratuity posted on the menus. We should have left at this point but opted to try it, we were in survival mode. Wife ordered an ahi roll for $31 and I ordered the rack of lamb for an astounding $75. This restaurant does not provide bread or edamame unless you fork out for it. So we waited patiently enjoying all the odd art Hanging on the wall. Finally we saw our server with food. Presentation was safe looking and we were famished so we dove in. Ahi roll: rice was mushy and mostly rice with a sliver of fish, chic veganesue? Sauce was tasty but could not make up for lack of fish, mushy rice nor the price point. Disappointing. Rack of lamb: Over cooked, under seasoned and had an odd aftertaste. Came with 4 pieces of lamb. Ate 2 before I stopped. Asked for salt from the bus guy and that didn't help. Broccolini was sautéd with old fry oil I suspect because it tasted bad couldn't eat it. Yukon gold mash: ok potato flavor but watery and under seasoned. Are the kitchen staff tasting before they put this stuff out!? Preposterously not worth it. Service: friendly but underwhelming. She saw my plate and didn't inquire as to how the meal was because she knew it sucked. Needless to say my dog enjoyed the remaining lamb. Summary: joking aside, save your hard earned money and eat elsewhere, it's not worth it. The pre fixed gratuity is insulting on many fronts. We will never return, learned our lesson. I've taken photos to show off the cool (literally) dining area, enjoy. Oh final note, 2 stars because the beer once again carries it.
Chelsea Klein
To notch service! Beautiful & delicious food! We ate here after our wedding & they delivered! Thank you!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Simon Black
Rude,deceptive employees - never got to the food - never going back - beware !
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 1
Sue P.
Awesome Valentines dinner. Good drinks. Both hubby & I had fresh fish special Ono. Server was very nice. Pricey $50 but didn't disappoint. Background music was nice 18% gratuity added but server pointed it out. We were here & 2017 & will return.
Red Water is my go to for date nights or just nights I feel like eating out. The food, service and atmosphere is always great
Ron S.
Excellent food service and live music makes for a wonderful evening. The ribs are amazing
Michael C.
Very pleasant find for dinner in Waimea! Mushroom appetizer was a hit for my wife and me. My Sashimi plate was epic! Fresh Ahi and the Salmon (Smokey) were spot on. Highly recommend.
Tom E.
Food and Service was Excellent. Never a fan of 18 percent gratuity. That should be determined by the customer and not Red Water Cafe. Over all it was a wonderful evening. Thank You I will be back!!
Charles Watson
We live between the UK and HI, have travelled and eaten at great restaurants in Europe, US and SE Asia and have eaten at most of the great restaurants in the resorts here on Hawai'i. We've gone to Red Water a few times for dinner or drinks. In our view, all the good and not great things other reviewers have said are true. The food has high-highs and low lows. The music can be great and only OK. The decor and furnishings are a bit shabby. With all that said, we still think this is a GREAT place to come for drinks and small plates. It's one of our favorite bars in Puako, Kamuela, Waimea - including the really special ocean view bars in Mauna Kea, Hapuna, Mauna Lani, Intercontinental, etc. It has a friendly, warm pub feeling that most bars don't have. We will be back.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 4
Recommended dishes: Sushi, Local Beet Salad, House Sashimi Plate
Really cool atmosphere. Staff was absolutely awesome. Extremely polite, helpful and provided great service. Food was delicious. Highly recommended ?
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Fresh Catch of the Day, Thai Caesar Salad
Not a bad place to eat. People are really nice.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 3
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Island Fresh Sashimi Entrée
Went on a Friday night and Parking lot was full but not too many customers inside. It was a rainy night and the parking lot is gravel so a lot of water puddles and not a safe walk. The food is pricey but it was good. Had the shrimp pasta and shared a couple of sushi rolls which tasted great. The half portions are big. Nice piano playing.
Reservation at 5:45 sitting at the table.. No one took our order until 6.. OK, no problem, appetizer didn’t come until 615.. ok I guess. Then salad and dinner came out together at 6:30. Cobb salad made both of our bellies hurt later. We ordered a large ribeye but instead we’re sent out a rack of baby back ribs that tasted like the plywood table we were eating it on. They should’ve saved the quarters they glued into the table and hired better staff. I pointed out to the waitress that we didn’t order the ribs but by that point it was too late to send it back for the right order because we had an after dinner engagement.. I’m not a hoity-toity. I don’t expect red carpet treatment but if I go out and spend over $100 on a meal I would hope that it is at least a nice experience. Personally, I’m not the person that will demand the meal be taken off that I didn’t order. I allow that to the establishment. They can make it right or not. It’s up to them.. When I got the bill, the waitress said she discounted the bill but the ribs were still over $50 and the waitress put on a self tip of 17% Which further aggravated me. She promised us the next time we come in she’ll take good care of us to make up for this time. No thanks..
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 1
Service: 1
Reservation at 5:45 sitting at the table.. No one took our order until 6.. OK, no problem, appetizer didn't come until 615.. ok I guess. Then salad and dinner came out together at 6:30. Cobb salad made both of our bellies hurt later. We ordered a large ribeye but instead we're sent out a rack of baby back ribs that tasted like the plywood table we were eating it on. They should've saved the quarters they glued into the table and hired better staff. I pointed out to the waitress that we didn't order the ribs but by that point it was too late to send it back for the right order because we had an after dinner engagement.. I'm not a hoity-toity. I don't expect red carpet treatment but if I go out and spend over $100 on a meal I would hope that it is at least a nice experience. Personally, I'm not the person that will demand the meal be taken off that I didn't order. I allow that to the establishment. They can make it right or not. It's up to them.. When I got the bill, the waitress said she discounted the bill but the ribs were still over $50 and the waitress put on a self tip of 17% Which further aggravated me. She promised us the next time we come in she'll take good care of us to make up for this time. No thanks..
Best Ono I’ve had in years! Great service, cool ambiance, and excellent drinks.
Service: 2
I wouldn't recommend this establishment based on my experience last night. Wife and I opted to give Red Water another try. We had eaten here in 2014. We were promptly seated behind the oddly large and minimally populated fish tank. We sort of remembered the interior of the establishment but it appears they've remodeled a bit. We were trying to figure out what the partition in the space was made of because it looked very familiar. Got it! It's made from two headboards repurposed from the Restore, secured with 2x4's.....ingenious. Wife really loved the decoupage and burnt plywood tables, wait for it...with spare change imbedded in the decoupage. First class. The room was cold, typical in Waimea. We asked our server if she could turn off the ceiling fan but couldn't because the fan was wired in with the lights . Later noticed the window was open blowing in cold air. Gave up at this point and went into survival mode. We made an igloo out of the old sticky throw pillows in our seating area glad I watched all those survival shows. Ok the food. Decent (appearing) menu. We DID NOT like 18% gratuity posted on the menus. We should have left at this point but opted to try it, we were in survival mode. Wife ordered an ahi roll for $31 and I ordered the rack of lamb for an astounding $75. This restaurant does not provide bread or edamame unless you fork out for it. So we waited patiently enjoying all the odd art Hanging on the wall. Finally we saw our server with food. Presentation was safe looking and we were famished so we dove in. Ahi roll: rice was mushy and mostly rice with a sliver of fish, chic veganesue? Sauce was tasty but could not make up for lack of fish, mushy rice nor the price point. Disappointing. Rack of lamb: Over cooked, under seasoned and had an odd aftertaste. Came with 4 pieces of lamb. Ate 2 before I stopped. Asked for salt from the bus guy and that didn't help. Broccolini was sautéd with old fry oil I suspect because it tasted bad couldn't eat it. Yukon gold mash: ok potato flavor but watery and under seasoned. Are the kitchen staff tasting before they put this stuff out!? Preposterously not worth it. Service: friendly but underwhelming. She saw my plate and didn't inquire as to how the meal was because she knew it sucked. Needless to say my dog enjoyed the remaining lamb. Summary: joking aside, save your hard earned money and eat elsewhere, it's not worth it. The pre fixed gratuity is insulting on many fronts. We will never return, learned our lesson. I've taken photos to show off the cool (literally) dining area, enjoy. Oh final note, 2 stars because the beer once again carries it.
To notch service! Beautiful & delicious food! We ate here after our wedding & they delivered! Thank you!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Rude,deceptive employees - never got to the food - never going back - beware !
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 1
Awesome Valentines dinner. Good drinks. Both hubby & I had fresh fish special Ono. Server was very nice. Pricey $50 but didn't disappoint. Background music was nice 18% gratuity added but server pointed it out. We were here & 2017 & will return.
Restaurantji Recommends
Red Water is my go to for date nights or just nights I feel like eating out. The food, service and atmosphere is always great
Excellent food service and live music makes for a wonderful evening. The ribs are amazing
Very pleasant find for dinner in Waimea! Mushroom appetizer was a hit for my wife and me. My Sashimi plate was epic! Fresh Ahi and the Salmon (Smokey) were spot on. Highly recommend.
Food and Service was Excellent. Never a fan of 18 percent gratuity. That should be determined by the customer and not Red Water Cafe. Over all it was a wonderful evening. Thank You I will be back!!
We live between the UK and HI, have travelled and eaten at great restaurants in Europe, US and SE Asia and have eaten at most of the great restaurants in the resorts here on Hawai'i. We've gone to Red Water a few times for dinner or drinks. In our view, all the good and not great things other reviewers have said are true. The food has high-highs and low lows. The music can be great and only OK. The decor and furnishings are a bit shabby. With all that said, we still think this is a GREAT place to come for drinks and small plates. It's one of our favorite bars in Puako, Kamuela, Waimea - including the really special ocean view bars in Mauna Kea, Hapuna, Mauna Lani, Intercontinental, etc. It has a friendly, warm pub feeling that most bars don't have. We will be back.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 4
Recommended dishes: Sushi, Local Beet Salad, House Sashimi Plate