I recently relocated from HI to MA and had been missing authentic poke. My wife and I drove here from Cape Cod and couldn't have been happier with the food. It was genuinely a taste of home.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Max
This review doesn’t have any photos because the food was so good that we ate it immediately, then ordered more, and then also ate that immediately. Hooooly heck this is good. I don’t think I’ve ever had better fried chicken, and the poke is so authentic and perfect—we tried every kind they had. The staff are so friendly, too. Warning: your life may never be the same.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Winifred Nauda
This place is amazing. The hours are a little limited so definitely check the website before making plans. Their poke is amazing, it hits different. Generous portions and everything is delicious.
Probably one of the best mix plates I’ve had in Boston in a long time
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 4
Jenny Hong
Cute local shop with limited seating. Their poke reminds me of Hawaii - very simple, delightful, with good portion sizes. I would especially recommend their friend chicken that comes with their sweet and sour sauce. The owner was very sweet and gave us free pineapple cake which was delicious!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Kimberly
I love poke, but I've never been to Hawaii, so truthfully I do not know how the poke I've eaten up 'til now compares to authentic poke. However, I heard that Manoa serves the closest I can get to authentic poke, so I wanted to check it out. The place normally doesn't open until 5pm, but this was a special week where it opened a bit earlier at 4:30pm, which is why I decided to go since I usually eat earlier.I placed an online order for 4:30pm, but my food wasn't ready until 4:40pm. The inside was very colorful with minimal seating. There were free anime stickers at the cash register!- BBQ Gohan Bowl ($15): Smaller portion size than the ahi katsu plate for the same price but still filling. I was most excited about the soy-cured egg, but it seeped into the rice by the time I got home, so I did not get the satisfaction of popping the yolk, sadly. I definitely tasted the BBQ flavor, and the salmon was cooked well (not dry). However, there was too much sauce, so I found the dish too salty, which is a common theme as you'll continue reading.- Ahi Katsu Plate ($15): Huge portion, though largely because there was a ton of rice. I don't eat this much rice, so if there were an option to order the ahi katsu a la carte or substitute the rice with other sides, I would have done so. However, the rice was cooked well. The ahi katsu was crispy on the outside and soft and flavorful on the inside (but again, I found it on the saltier side; same for the kimchi cucumbers). I liked the refreshing lightness of the mac salad.- Manoa Dip with Wonton Chips ($9): The dip tasted similar to the BBQ Gohan Bowl: thick and creamy but salty. I did not like the wonton chips; they tasted way too oily and were too brittle to actually be used to scoop the dip.- Pineapple Cake ($7): This dessert was interesting; I liked it. It was basically a sponge cake infused with pineapple syrup. Very soft and flavorful. The cake was wrapped in thin slices of fresh pineapple, but I found the taste similar to canned pineapple.Overall, the prices were decent, and the food was flavorful but just too salty for my taste. I also didn't get any poke like I had originally planned (the stuff that I ended up ordering just sounded too good; also, I thought the dip was going to be raw, but I did not read the description carefully enough), so maybe I will enjoy the poke more.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 4
Dana Blackman Brown
Manoa Poke is truly a Somerville gem. Love the spicy tuna and the fried chicken is out of this world. The owner is kind and welcoming; he always offers free samples of his cakes, which are the best in town. Very grateful for this spot!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Nicole Foxe
I drive 45 minutes for the best, most creative, and highest quality poke I have ever had. The vibes are equally great. I feel like family every time I step in. The menu is flexible, allergy friendly, and always changing based on what is the freshest available fish. It is always worth the drive to smile far longer than 45 minutes! xoxo
This is my favorite poke in the Boston area. Everything I've had here has been spectacular, especially the mac salad and fried chicken. I wish they were open more!
I love this little Hawaiian eatery. I ordered takeaway and the food showed up within 20 minutes. The tuna was fresh and the sides of Mac salad and kimchee cucumbers were delicious and paired perfectly with the tuna. I don’t think I can ever go back to the poke bowls I’m used to. I’m really happy to have tried this place and im excited to try out the other dishes on this menu!
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Poke, Mac Salad, Spicy Tuna
Liz Guo
Food and service are top notch, always :)
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Felicity Saucier
Manoa Poke is by far my favorite local spot. Having a bad day? Order Manoa. Wanna celebrate? Order Manoa. Want to impress picky, visiting relatives? Order Manoa. Want something nice for a date night picnic? Order Manoa. Everything is always stellar. The guava cake literally has brought a tear to my eye—and every single poke I’ve tried is phenomenal. They’re also the nicest group of people ever! You truly can’t go wrong.
Very good
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
I recently relocated from HI to MA and had been missing authentic poke. My wife and I drove here from Cape Cod and couldn't have been happier with the food. It was genuinely a taste of home.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
This review doesn’t have any photos because the food was so good that we ate it immediately, then ordered more, and then also ate that immediately. Hooooly heck this is good. I don’t think I’ve ever had better fried chicken, and the poke is so authentic and perfect—we tried every kind they had. The staff are so friendly, too. Warning: your life may never be the same.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
This place is amazing. The hours are a little limited so definitely check the website before making plans. Their poke is amazing, it hits different. Generous portions and everything is delicious.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Ahi Shoyu, Spicy Tuna, Poke Bowls
Probably one of the best mix plates I’ve had in Boston in a long time
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 4
Cute local shop with limited seating. Their poke reminds me of Hawaii - very simple, delightful, with good portion sizes. I would especially recommend their friend chicken that comes with their sweet and sour sauce. The owner was very sweet and gave us free pineapple cake which was delicious!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
I love poke, but I've never been to Hawaii, so truthfully I do not know how the poke I've eaten up 'til now compares to authentic poke. However, I heard that Manoa serves the closest I can get to authentic poke, so I wanted to check it out. The place normally doesn't open until 5pm, but this was a special week where it opened a bit earlier at 4:30pm, which is why I decided to go since I usually eat earlier.I placed an online order for 4:30pm, but my food wasn't ready until 4:40pm. The inside was very colorful with minimal seating. There were free anime stickers at the cash register!- BBQ Gohan Bowl ($15): Smaller portion size than the ahi katsu plate for the same price but still filling. I was most excited about the soy-cured egg, but it seeped into the rice by the time I got home, so I did not get the satisfaction of popping the yolk, sadly. I definitely tasted the BBQ flavor, and the salmon was cooked well (not dry). However, there was too much sauce, so I found the dish too salty, which is a common theme as you'll continue reading.- Ahi Katsu Plate ($15): Huge portion, though largely because there was a ton of rice. I don't eat this much rice, so if there were an option to order the ahi katsu a la carte or substitute the rice with other sides, I would have done so. However, the rice was cooked well. The ahi katsu was crispy on the outside and soft and flavorful on the inside (but again, I found it on the saltier side; same for the kimchi cucumbers). I liked the refreshing lightness of the mac salad.- Manoa Dip with Wonton Chips ($9): The dip tasted similar to the BBQ Gohan Bowl: thick and creamy but salty. I did not like the wonton chips; they tasted way too oily and were too brittle to actually be used to scoop the dip.- Pineapple Cake ($7): This dessert was interesting; I liked it. It was basically a sponge cake infused with pineapple syrup. Very soft and flavorful. The cake was wrapped in thin slices of fresh pineapple, but I found the taste similar to canned pineapple.Overall, the prices were decent, and the food was flavorful but just too salty for my taste. I also didn't get any poke like I had originally planned (the stuff that I ended up ordering just sounded too good; also, I thought the dip was going to be raw, but I did not read the description carefully enough), so maybe I will enjoy the poke more.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 4
Manoa Poke is truly a Somerville gem. Love the spicy tuna and the fried chicken is out of this world. The owner is kind and welcoming; he always offers free samples of his cakes, which are the best in town. Very grateful for this spot!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
I drive 45 minutes for the best, most creative, and highest quality poke I have ever had. The vibes are equally great. I feel like family every time I step in. The menu is flexible, allergy friendly, and always changing based on what is the freshest available fish. It is always worth the drive to smile far longer than 45 minutes! xoxo
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Unique, lovely
Restaurantji Recommends
Literally couldn't say enough great things about Manoa. It'd be a mistake not to go here.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Pineapple Cake, Poke, Mochiko Fried Chicken
This is my favorite poke in the Boston area. Everything I've had here has been spectacular, especially the mac salad and fried chicken. I wish they were open more!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Poke Bowls, Poke, Mac Salad, Salad, BBQ Salmon Belly, Mochiko Fried Chicken
I love this little Hawaiian eatery. I ordered takeaway and the food showed up within 20 minutes. The tuna was fresh and the sides of Mac salad and kimchee cucumbers were delicious and paired perfectly with the tuna. I don’t think I can ever go back to the poke bowls I’m used to. I’m really happy to have tried this place and im excited to try out the other dishes on this menu!
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Poke, Mac Salad, Spicy Tuna
Food and service are top notch, always :)
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Manoa Poke is by far my favorite local spot. Having a bad day? Order Manoa. Wanna celebrate? Order Manoa. Want to impress picky, visiting relatives? Order Manoa. Want something nice for a date night picnic? Order Manoa. Everything is always stellar. The guava cake literally has brought a tear to my eye—and every single poke I’ve tried is phenomenal. They’re also the nicest group of people ever! You truly can’t go wrong.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Pineapple Cake, Ahi Shoyu Poke Bowl, Poke, Spicy Salmon, Mac Salad, BBQ Salmon Belly, Spicy Tuna