Overview
Cool Cat Cafe Kihei is a casual, family-style burger restaurant on South Kihei Road in Kīhei, Maui. The Google record and the cafe’s own location page align on the core identity: this is the Kihei branch of a small multi-location chain, operating at 1819 S. Kihei Rd, with the same phone number and website the candidate record supplied. The place is best thought of as a sit-down burger-and-shakes spot rather than a local plate lunch joint or a fine-dining room. (coolcatcafe.com)
For travelers, the appeal is straightforward: it is an easy, recognizable stop for burgers, fries, milkshakes, and a diner-style meal in South Maui. The brand leans on 1950s nostalgia and a “family” image, but the more useful takeaway is that this location is built for dependable crowd-pleasing comfort food, not culinary novelty. (coolcatcafe.com)
Cuisine & Specialties
Cool Cat Cafe’s Kihei menu is centered on burgers, sandwiches, fries, onion rings, shakes, and a decent list of chicken, fish, and vegetarian options. The overall lane is classic American diner food with some Hawaii-leaning touches, especially sweet Maui onions, pineapple, fish, and house sauces. The menu reads like a polished tourist-friendly burger joint: familiar, broad, and designed to satisfy a mixed group with different preferences. (coolcatcafe.com)
- Overall menu style: burgers, sandwiches, fish tacos, fish and chips, chicken sandwiches, fries/onion rings, salads, and shakes; full-service diner comfort food with a beach-town bend. (coolcatcafe.com)
- Notable dishes / specialties:
- Bogy Burger — bacon and cheese with lettuce, tomato, pickles, sweet Maui onions, mayo, and thousand island dressing. (coolcatcafe.com)
- Luna Burger — avocado, bacon, melted jack cheese, and Maui onions. (coolcatcafe.com)
- Don Ho burger — pineapple, bacon, jack cheese, and sweet Hawaiian sauce. (coolcatcafe.com)
- Fish Tacos — local fish on corn tortillas with cheese, cabbage, garlic chili aioli, and pico; blackened version available. (coolcatcafe.com)
- Cap’n Jack’s Fish & Chips — lilikoi beer-battered ono with fries and coleslaw. (coolcatcafe.com)
- Shakes / adult shakes — the menu has a dedicated shake program, including dessert-style shakes and boozy additions. (coolcatcafe.com)
- Price range / spend expectations: the Google place is in the mid-price range, and menu pricing shown on the Kihei PDF mostly lands around the mid-to-high teens for burgers and around the low 20s for fish dishes. For a traveler, this feels like casual sit-down pricing rather than fast-food pricing. (coolcatcafe.com)
- Dietary usefulness / limitations: there are vegetarian options, a Beyond Meat vegetarian hot dog, gluten-free bun substitutions, and several fish/chicken alternatives. The menu also flags common allergens and offers a few lighter choices like salads, but this is still a burger-first restaurant and not especially suited to strict specialty diets. (coolcatcafe.com)
Notable Features & Ambiance
This is a full-service, family-oriented diner-style room rather than a grab-and-go counter. The official and third-party descriptions both point to a 1950s-inspired atmosphere, and traveler writeups mention a playful old-diner feel, an arcade area, and a generally clean, lively space. That makes it a good fit for families, casual groups, and visitors who want a relaxed meal with a bit of nostalgia. (coolcatcafe.com)
- Service model and seating: sit-down family restaurant; the menu and review language suggest table service and a conventional dine-in experience. (coolcatcafe.com)
- Atmosphere and decor: 1950s diner styling, nostalgic branding, casual tourist-friendly energy; review summaries also mention a clean ambiance. (coolcatcafe.com)
- Amenities / practical features: full bar and milkshakes, with an arcade area noted in traveler summaries. (wanderlog.com)
- Best fit: a family meal, an easy lunch or dinner stop, a burger craving, or a casual place to take mixed ages and mixed appetites. (coolcatcafe.com)
- Weaker fit: diners looking for a distinctly local Hawaiian restaurant, a quiet date-night spot, or a highly chef-driven meal may find it too standardized and theme-forward. That is an editorial inference from the menu style and branding rather than a direct complaint. (coolcatcafe.com)
History & Background
Cool Cat Cafe traces back to Yazoo’s, a hamburger stand created in the late 1980s by Steve and Sean Corpuel, with the first Cool Cat Cafe opening in San Luis Obispo in 1992. The company describes the brand as a mix of California Central Coast roots and Hawaiian values, and it says the Kihei location is part of a four-location system that also includes California sites and another Maui location. The broader Maui story matters because the company’s Lahaina branch is listed as closed on the official site, which helps explain why Kihei has become the relevant Maui anchor. (coolcatcafe.com)
Review Sentiment Snapshot
What People Love
Review summaries and traveler commentary consistently point to the burgers, especially the Bogy Burger, as the main draw. People also frequently mention the fish tacos, fish and chips, milkshakes, generous portions, and the overall friendly, family-friendly service. The “old diner” atmosphere and clean, casual feel come up as part of the appeal. (wanderlog.com)
Common Gripes
The strongest downside signal I found is occasional billing or check discrepancies in traveler summaries; that complaint appears, but it is not dominant and should be treated as a light-to-moderate caution rather than a major pattern. Beyond that, the complaints are more about fit than quality: the place is fairly standardized, burger-centric, and not especially adventurous. The evidence for negatives is mixed, so there is no strong consensus of serious problems. (wanderlog.com)
Practical Visitor Tips
- Official hours on both Google and the company site show daily service from 10:30 AM to 9:00 PM. (coolcatcafe.com)
- It appears to be a walk-in-friendly, full-service casual restaurant rather than a reservations-first place. I did not find a clear reservation push on the official Kihei pages. (coolcatcafe.com)
- The restaurant is on South Kihei Road in a busy visitor corridor, so expect normal South Maui traffic and parking realities rather than a destination with easy spare parking. That’s an inference based on the location, not a directly stated fact. (coolcatcafe.com)
- If you want the most typical experience, this is a good lunch or early dinner stop for burgers, fries, shakes, and a casual family meal. (coolcatcafe.com)
- The menu includes GF bun substitutions and vegetarian items, but the core identity is still burgers and diner food, so travelers with strict dietary needs should verify specifics before ordering. (coolcatcafe.com)
- If billing accuracy matters to you, it may be worth checking the ticket before paying, since that is the one recurring caution that surfaced in secondary review summaries. (wanderlog.com)
Verification Notes
- Official name, address, phone, and website all align across the candidate record, Google Places, and the official Kihei page. (coolcatcafe.com)
- Business status appears operational, and the Kihei location is listed as open daily 10:30 AM–9:00 PM. (coolcatcafe.com)
- No major verification issues found. (coolcatcafe.com)
Sources
- Google Places record for Cool Cat Cafe Kihei —
https://maps.google.com/?cid=1558370072404175661— retrieved 2026-03-31. Useful for the baseline identity anchor, status, rating, price level, and posted hours. - Official Kihei location page, Cool Cat Cafe —
https://www.coolcatcafe.com/kihei/— retrieved 2026-03-31. Best source for the official address, phone, hours, and the restaurant’s own positioning as a family-style dining restaurant. - Official About Us page, Cool Cat Cafe —
https://www.coolcatcafe.com/about-us/— retrieved 2026-03-31. Useful for founder story, origin timeline, and brand background. - Official Kihei Food and Drink Menu PDF —
https://www.coolcatcafe.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Kihei-Food-and-Drink-Menu.pdf— retrieved 2026-03-31. Primary source for menu structure, signature burgers, fish items, vegetarian options, gluten-free bun options, and price examples. - Official Shake Menu PDF —
https://www.coolcatcafe.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/Shake-Menu-1.2024.pdf— retrieved 2026-03-31. Useful for confirming the dessert/shake focus and adult shake program. - Wanderlog place page for Cool Cat Cafe Kihei —
https://wanderlog.com/place/details/11146369/cool-cat-cafe-kihei— retrieved 2026-03-31. Used selectively for recurring traveler sentiment, ambience notes, and the billing discrepancy caution. Treat as secondary editorial evidence, not a hard authority.
