Rainbow Drive-In
- Price Range: $
- Accepts Credit Cards: No
- Parking: Private Lot
- Attire: Casual
- Good for Groups: Yes
- Good for Kids: Yes
- Takes Reservations: No
- Delivers: No
- Take-out: Yes
- Waiter Service: No
- Wheelchair Accessible: Yes
- Outdoor Seating: Yes
- Good for: Lunch
- Alcohol: None
108 Reviews for Rainbow Drive-In
Plate lunch joy. The mix plate i got was mad legit, mahi mahi, chicken katsu and bbq beef, with generous helpings of mac salad and rice upon a bed of cabbage. The ppl that work there are super nice, you get ur food quick and since the weather was nice eating outside was a joy. Their specials look bomb too, the guy next to us got hot dogs with chili and there was some other stuff who's names escape me. I would check it out, it's pretty much what i want out of plate lunch. The breakfast looks good too.
Quick. Cheap. Delicious eats.
Need I say more?
This review is dedicated to zachary who loves hawaiian BBQ. I am now a believer.
So I've come out to HI to take some classes for the summer (tu/th only and it's pass/no pass!) I talked to my buddy here and asked him...what should i get? I want something traditional, something a local would eat, and something that i absolutely have to try. he said without hesitation, rainbow drive in.
Now, I've never been a fan of hawaiian bbq. no sir. the mac salad, the sweet tasting meat. However, I've only been to the hawaiian BBQ in CA, so maybe there is something I'm missing. I was right.
In Hawaii, they are called lunch plates and here they can range from pork cutlets with gravy and rice, to mixed plates (which includes BBQ chicken, mahi mahi, AND grilled beef for a whopping $6.50!), to breakfast items (which looked delicious), and tons of other hawaiian fare. I got the mixed plate without the mac salad (because of my undying fear of mayo).
1. the people in Hi are 10 times nicer than the folks in CA. everyone says hi, drives slow and there is no honking, and no one is afraid to make conversation. the ladies at the stand were no different. sweet and helpful with smiles on their faces.
2. the portions are ridiculous. we went for big breakfast so that we could go to the beach all day and not worry about eating. i think the both of us ended up eating 1/3 and were full.
3. chicken was moist, mahi was flavorful, and the beef was tasty. (beef def tasted better right out of the grill, and no so much microwaved later.)
We will definitely be coming back for more hawaiian fare (like the breakfast), but my first real hawaiian feast was delicious, the people were great, and the place got packed really fast (we got there at 9:00AM and within 15 minutes there was a line and a wait for the tables outside). i would also say that the meals can range from 3- 7 bucks. SUPER cheap, and they don't skimp out on the food. if this is what hawaiian tastes like... SIGN ME UP.
Budget plate lunch. If I lived near here, I would totally get fat. My favorite time to go is breakfast, when you can get the breakfast combo for only $4.75, complete with 2 eggs, choice of meat, and rice. The fried rice is very good as well.
The fried chicken is ok, some parts are a tad dry. The saimin noodles are a bit soft, just ok. The mahi mahi is hit or miss, I think it depends on whether you get it in a combo or not.
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OMG, i died and gone to heaven when i came to Rainbow drive in. Some of the best Hawaiian plate lunch i have ever eaten. This blows L&L and Hawaiian drive Inn off their feet! When you come here... get anything that has gravy on it... it's so good. The pork cutlet definitely hit the spot, cooked to perfection.. the pork was fried to tenderness and the gravy just made the dish even better. The mac. salad that comes with the plate lunch was so good. I've never had mac. salad that good before.... it was just different from any other mac. salad that i've eaten before. My mouth is watering just thinking about it. The price is right if you're on a budget... a bowl of siamin is only $2.75 and the chili is just about the same price.... think zippy's chili but BETTER! A must try here is the float.. which is slushy with ice cream.
This is Hawaiian fast food, you don't have to wait for more then 3 minutes for your food, unless you order the fried chicken, which takes about 10 minutes. Rainbow drive inn is definitely the spot to come to when i'm in Waikiki. I could definitely eat here everyday. Great food at a low price, with BIG PORTIONS as well.
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Quick cheap delicious local food. Minus one star because the awkward seating situation cased me to spill shoyu on hubby's new shirt.
Ok, I tried Rainbows again and this time, I shared my food. Much better! I tried the breakfast plates several times and I would say that the fried rice is one of the best things on the menu.
1 Previous Review: Show all »
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02/27/2007
Greasy. I felt my stomach getting upset and my arteries clog halfway through the lunch plate, so I… Read more »
The chicken cutlet with brown gravy on everything! The perfect meal after a day at the beach or playing basket ball on Duval.
I lived one block from here for a year.... I miss it soooooooooooooo much. The macaroni salad is in my dreams. Chili rice and loco moco and other stuffs here ARE NOT AVAILABLE IN THE SAME QUALITY ANYWHERE IN THE WORLD!!!! I miss you, Rainbow... So much....
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Local friend brought me here, since I said I wanted to try it despite mainland friends telling me "it's gross." Well, I guess I like gross since I thought it was pretty good. Upon recommendation, I had the pork cutlet with extra gravy and I was worried it was going to be too salty, but it was perfect with the rice and the mac salad. We sat and ate and I thought it was decent. It ain't no Curry House, but it's not supposed to be. I'd go back to try the other stuff.
The drive-in (there's really no drive-in) is a good place for a quick breakfast before the day's activities. They have an assortment of dishes to choose from, some of which you'll never find anywhere else.
The first time I had Rainbow's, I tried the ham and egg sandwich. They made the egg over medium so the yolk burst in your mouth as you bite into it. The mayo (weird at first) added a kick to the sandwich that I enjoyed very much. We had to come back another time before the flight home.
However, the third time around (one year later) trying the ham and egg sandwich, the egg was cooked over hard and the yolk burst was no longer there which made the whole experience a disappointment.
The BF had the chicken over rice smothered in gravy. He said it was only ok. I guess it was cold? That was weird because we ate it in the car as soon as we got it.
Anyway, Rainbow's is a must-try, just because it's different, cheap and quick. I love dingy, crusty restaurants. Something about it makes you feel good.
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Huge portions! Must share! The eggs, portuguese sausage, and rice plate is $4.50. Onolicious! Good price too. I love breakfast here. About 5 minutes from Waikiki.
Mass crowds. Never ending stream of cars trying to get in the small parking lot. Oh, I wish this place was back in SF.
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I can only speak for the slush floats here cause I am usually on my 3rd snack of the day in a row by the time I make it over here. The slush float consists of part icee (it was cherry on the day we went, I've had orange before though, too) and part ice cream. Think of a creamsicle and you got yourself a slush float. I don't believe it's on the menu either but it's yummy!
As for the other foods, I've never eaten it but the place is always packed with people of all ages and it looks like a great place to pull up to and grab a bite to eat before/after the beach, lunch break from work, any reason is a good one to come here actually. But remember to order the slush float.
How do they do it? Boneless chicken and gravy don't look so delicious on a menu. But holy moly, your mouth will say otherwise!! The slush is also a fantastic touch to an already excellent plate lunch.
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Old school plate lunch.
I wanted saimin, but it was a little disappointing. I was expecting more, but it was kinda bland. My mom had the shoyu chicken which was ono and crazy plentiful. I hear the pork is good, and it must be because they were sold out and it was pretty early in the afternoon. Next time.
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This is our Oahu local food spot! Great portions, even greater price, and some really good comfort food. Our favorites here are their bbq beef plate, chili over rice...and the fried apple pie.
This place is usually crowded from 6pm-8pm for a good reason.
As plate lunches go, this is the standard. Mixed plate is the best for variety. Beef stew or curry beef stew on certain days only. Saimin is a good buy.. or just order a burger and some fries. Corn beef hash for breakfast... so many choices at reasonable prices. ATM machine for those who come light.
This is always a stop for us when we're in Oahu. Their breakfasts and mixed plates rock. The portions are enormous so you may want to consider sharing.
A cheap, dirty place which I LOVED. I'll definitely come back next time I visit Oahu!
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I grew up eating their BBQ Beef Plate and sometimes Mix Plate, Beef Stew, Loco Moco, Chicken Katsu... BBQ Beef is their absolute best though! Good price, always tender beef, and they give you a ton of food! Make sure you get your large lilikoi (passion fruit) drink to down it with. I now live in California and when I crave plate lunch, I crave their BBQ Beef (I think they call it BBQ steak) plate. Ooooh how I wish I had it in front of me right now! Plates from other drive ins are not the same!
For those who's never been there, this is not a dine-in type of place. It is outdoors and there's only about seating for 20 people. You see a seat, you sit with whoever at the table. Parking is always full so be ready to park on the side street (don't park in neighbor's driveway!). It is very casual, straight out of the beach & dripping wet is acceptable. Suit & tie is NOT!
The prices are cheap!!! I'm old school Rainbow Drive-In!!! It's not quite the way I used to remember it. I went over there for a memory lane fix and this place did not deliver. Don't get me wrong, it was ok! The gravy didn't taste the same, the salad seemed to have more mayo than I remembered, and the chicken wasn't the same...can't quite put my finger on it. My friend had to dab the mac salad with napkins to make it edible...and we used a whole bunch of napkins. Does it bring back the memories? Yes, it sure does!!! After eating here though it makes me want the old Rainbow's back!!! It's a good place, just not like it used to be.
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Anyone new to the plate lunch who comes to Hawaii has to come here. It's kind of the basic and then you try others and compare. I tried the fried chicken. Don't waste your time on fried chicken. Get the mixed plate with gravy on the chicken. I hope no one kills me, but I like L&L better. You have to watch out with L&L though, 'cause each one is different and the quality differs, too.
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Yummy plate lunches, impressive menu selection. Something for everyone, really. If you don't like what you ordered, chances are they'll have something else you'll like. Parking can be a PITA.
Grindz-mah-ninez. Broke the mouth. Ono kine grindz.
A.k.a. this place is legit. Try the floats (strawberry), you won't be let down. Hell. try anything on the menu. Its all so cheap that if you don't like it, buy something else!
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2 scoops rice, chicken katsu, and mac salad
Why else would you come here?
Huge portions @ low price. Love the shoyu chicken & slush floats!
This is the place you should absolutely NOT eat at if you are on a diet. This is a great place to go and eat, however, after spending a beautiful, sunny day at the beach and burning lots of calories. Now you need to replenish yourself....
You're tired, you're hungry, and you're hot - and at Rainbow Drive-in you can carb load up on the Boneless Chicken plate with rice and gravy and mac salad or, you can get the chili with rice and of course you'll have to get the slush float!
Don't forget the slush float!!!
But drink it slow - otherwise you'll get major brain freeze. :-p
Oh Gosh, now I need a Rainbow Drive-in fix!
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Love the food here. This place is a must before or after the drive to Diamond Head. This little place has a lot of locals there and the food is Hawaiian comfort.
And do not pay for the bus tours to Diamond Head, Pearl Harbor, or the Dole Pineapple Plantation. Rent a broken down Suzuki Samurai at the "Broken Down Suzuki Samurai Lot" and you could see the whole island in a day.
This place is a drive in? I had some idea that it was going to have some sort of drive through. Anyways, gotta keep these reviews short so I have time to go to the ocean. Great place at great prices. Had the bbq mixed plate and the fried chicken! Too much food for only $13!!! Yummo!!!
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With the proliferation of Hawaiian barbecue places in the SF Bay Area over the past few years, my once rabid obsession with plate lunch slowly evolved into indifference and apathy. On our most recent visit, I wanted to go to Rainbow Drive-In because it had been a few years and I wanted try their mix plate (and ostensibly get my plate lunch mojo back). Rainbow is a Honolulu institution and luckily, my in-laws live right up the street.
Mix plates in Hawaii are a lot more varied than on the mainland, where you tend to get only teri beef, teri chicken and kalbi short rib. At Rainbow, you get some good teri beef, a really nice fried chicken cutlet that was less like katsu and more like a boneless fried chicken breast (a good thing) and a small but good piece of fried mahi mahi. My wife's beef cutlet was really good...basically it's a thin breaded steak smothered in gravy. As with traditional plate lunch, rice and mac salad was standard.
If it's your first time eating Hawaiian plate lunch, then you must order the loco moco (hamburger patty, gravy and fried egg over rice).
The slush floats are another reason to go Rainbow. Basically it's a strawberry slush with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. These are premade, so best to let this sit for a bit to let the ice cream melt into the slush so you get this cool, fruity and creamy concoction.
Rainbow is not too far from Waikiki, so you tourists can eat like locals if you want to walk.
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Loco... Moco...
LOCO MOCO!!!! This place serves up a pretty good loco moco and is fairly inexpensive. The mac salad is essential and must be mixed with the gravy. Mmmm. Then add a slush float on the side, wow...
If you're not into that, get the mixed plate. Good assortment of meats. I've grown fond of the chicken. :)
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So good. It was very crowded when I went for lunch and when I went for breakfast. We had to circle around the block three times until we finally found parking. Too much food it's gluttony, and I love it. The spam and eggs my last day there, was the perfect cap off to the trip. Thank goodness we have friends who live there and take us to the best places.
The teri-beef is awesome. I have great memories of going to Rainbow's after paddling practice at Magic Island with my brother, i'm so happy that place is still around so I can go get some ono food when i'm go back to visit my family.
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While it's a good bang-for-your-buck, the food is nothing special. I had the mix plate lunch and ate the chicken and mahi mahi (the beef went to my carniverous bf) and it was okay.
I guess I don't have much to complain about since it was so cheap.
It's a good quick meal if you're in the area, but definitely not worth a drive.
It makes me nuts when mainlanders want to go to Rainbows.
Why?
Because I don't like the place.
Why?
Sour Rice. Do the math.
Loco Moco that is why we stopped. The original. It is also a must stop for food after beach time. The cutlets are good. You should come here after beach time and than head to Red Lion or Lulu's because you know you'll need painkiller for that burn.
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Not a place your ordinary tourist will stop at. This is a local hangout. When I dropped in it was BUSY. Lunch time a lot people were here on their lunch breaks. Some really good fatty hawaiian fast food.
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The strawberry slush float is just strawberry syrup, crushed ice and a scoop of ice cream. It tastes so good with the scoop of ice cream it's like a simplier version of korean shaved ice.
Portions for their lunch plates are huge so definitely worth the price.
I think this was my fave place to eat in our recent week in Oahu. Mixed plate was massive, with big ol slab o ribs on top of big ol chunk o chicken on top of big ol slab o fish. Ended up being a lot of meat slabs, too much for me to finish, but it was good. Fried chicken was pretty bomb as well.
But as the other reviews have said: the best thing was the loco moco. While the mainland Hawaiian bbqs like L&L and such do a pretty good job of approximating mixed plate staples and mac salad, etc, none come close to matching Rainbow's loco moco. Beef patty thin enough to be juicy throughout, delicious gravy, sloppy eggs...almost wanted to just rub it all over my face instead of eating it. If we lived here we'd go here several times a week I'm sure. Totally cravable brah.
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I totally did not mind the sewer smell while waiting in line because the food was well worth it. Portions were huge and the weather was great. What more can you ask for if you're looking for a fulfilling and laidback lunch?
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