Overview
Kings BBQ is a casual Maui restaurant in Haʻikū that sits in a straightforward local-dining lane: Chinese-American and Hawaii-style comfort food, plus barbecue-leaning plates and breakfast/lunch/dinner service. The Google record and the restaurant’s own site both point to the same place at 810 Kokomo Rd in Haiku, and the business is shown as operational. (kingsbbqhaiku.com)
For a traveler, the appeal is less about destination dining and more about dependable, broad-appeal food in a North Shore community setting. The menu is built for mixed groups and easy ordering: noodles, fried rice, saimin, chicken plates, burgers, and a few “healthier plates” options, with takeout and outdoor seating signaling a practical, no-frills stop rather than a polished sit-down experience. (kingsbbqhaiku.com)
Cuisine & Specialties
Kings BBQ’s menu mixes Chinese-American staples with Hawaiian local-plate comfort food. The strongest theme is variety: saimin, chow mein, fried rice, egg rolls, banana lumpia, chicken plates, teriyaki steak, hamburger steak, loco moco, meat jun, pork plates, burgers, and catering trays. The restaurant’s own site also describes the concept as a fusion of BBQ and Chinese flavors, and the menu supports that more as a broad comfort-food lane than as a single narrow specialty. (kingsbbqhaiku.com)
Notable items are well supported by the menu and review patterns:
- Saimin, including plain, chicken, teri beef, and Aloha versions. (menurestaurants.net)
- House Fried Rice and Char Siu Fried Rice. (menurestaurants.net)
- Egg rolls, banana lumpia, crispy wonton, and cheese wonton. (menurestaurants.net)
- Chicken katsu, mochiko chicken, orange chicken, beef broccoli, teriyaki steak, hamburger steak, and meat jun across lunch and catering sections. (menurestaurants.net)
- Burgers, which reviewers repeatedly call out as a surprise strength, especially the cheeseburger/double cheeseburger. This is a review-pattern note rather than an official menu signature. (restaurantji.com)
Price expectations look budget-friendly to moderate. The Google record has no price level, but the menu PDF shows many core dishes in the roughly $6 to $18 range, with plates and catering items going higher; traveler reviews also describe it as reasonably priced and affordable. (menurestaurants.net)
Dietary usefulness is mixed but practical. Secondary sources mention gluten-free and vegetarian choices, and the menu’s “healthier plates” section suggests some lighter ordering paths, but the core offer still leans heavily toward rice, noodles, fried items, and meat-based plates. (restaurantji.com)
Notable Features & Ambiance
The setting reads as casual and workmanlike rather than scenic or polished. Review summaries describe a covered patio with picnic tables and outdoor seating, and the overall impression is of a simple local spot where people come for quick, filling food rather than a formal meal. (restaurantji.com)
- Service model and seating style: takeout is explicitly offered, delivery appears on third-party listings, and the place does not accept reservations. Outdoor seating is mentioned in secondary listings. (kingsbbqhaiku.com)
- Atmosphere and decor: casual, humble, and unfussy; the setting is more about convenience than ambiance. That is an inference from the source descriptions and the lack of upscale signals, not a direct official claim. (restaurantji.com)
- Amenities or practical features: hours are broad, the menu is all-day with a lunch window noted separately, and the site supports online ordering. (kingsbbqhaiku.com)
- Best fit: breakfast, lunch, dinner, a casual family meal, or an easy North Shore stop with broad menu appeal. (restaurantji.com)
- Weaker fit: a destination meal for atmosphere, a romantic dinner, or a place where reservations and polished service matter most. This is an inference from the cited service model and review language. (restaurantji.com)
History & Background
There is little meaningful backstory available from the sources reviewed. The most concrete background signal is that the business presents itself online as a Haʻikū local restaurant with a fusion comfort-food identity, but I did not find a reliable founder story, chef biography, or relocation history in the sources used here. (kingsbbqhaiku.com)
Review Sentiment Snapshot
What People Love
Review patterns lean toward convenience, value, and generous portions. Travelers repeatedly mention quick service, affordable pricing, a huge menu, and food that comes out fast after ordering. Specific dishes that get repeated praise include char siu fried rice, chicken katsu, mixed BBQ plate, honey walnut shrimp, mochiko chicken, teriyaki steak, and the cheeseburger/double cheeseburger. (restaurantji.com)
Common Gripes
The downside evidence is lighter than the praise, but a few cautions recur: limited parking, a humble atmosphere, and no reservations. Some reviewers also note a language barrier at the counter, though the same reviews usually frame staff as attentive rather than unfriendly. Overall, the negative signal looks more like practical limitations than a strong complaint pattern. (restaurantji.com)
Practical Visitor Tips
- Hours on the Google record and the restaurant site align closely: Monday, Wednesday through Sunday from 9:30 AM to 9:00 PM, with Tuesday closed. The best-supported read is that this is a daylong casual spot, not a late-night operation. (kingsbbqhaiku.com)
- Online ordering is supported, and the restaurant appears to lean toward walk-in/takeout convenience rather than reservations. (kingsbbqhaiku.com)
- Parking may be limited, so arrive with a little flexibility if you are coming at a peak lunch or dinner window. (restaurantji.com)
- If you want the broadest range of choices, the all-day menu is the main framework; lunch has its own posted window on the site. (kingsbbqhaiku.com)
- For a first visit, the most traveler-friendly order path is probably a plate or combo built around fried rice, saimin, teriyaki/chicken items, or one of the burgers, since those are the most consistently surfaced items across the menu and review summaries. This is an inference from the menu and review patterns. (kingsbbqhaiku.com)
Verification Notes
- Official name and address align across Google and the restaurant’s own site: Kings BBQ, 810 Kokomo Rd, Haiku, HI 96708. (kingsbbqhaiku.com)
- Phone number aligns across Google and the site: (808) 575-7828. (kingsbbqhaiku.com)
- Website is active and appears to be the business’s official ordering/menu site. (kingsbbqhaiku.com)
- Business status is operational; no major closure signal found. (kingsbbqhaiku.com)
- No major verification issues found
Sources
- Kings BBQ official website homepage —
https://www.kingsbbqhaiku.com/— Retrieved 2026-03-31 — Most useful for confirming the restaurant’s own identity, hours, online ordering posture, and the site’s description of the concept as a BBQ/Chinese fusion place. - Kings BBQ official menu page —
https://www.kingsbbqhaiku.com/dzcefxih/restaurant/menu— Retrieved 2026-03-31 — Most useful for the menu structure, lunch window, and the broad categories that define the restaurant’s food lane. - Kings BBQ menu PDF mirror —
https://menurestaurants.net/pdf/3893cd92c903d64f8cbb51c68aabdf85.pdf— Retrieved 2026-03-31 — Most useful for specific dish names and approximate price expectations; it supports the traveler-facing read that the restaurant is budget-friendly to moderate. - Restaurantji listing for Kings BBQ —
https://www.restaurantji.com/hi/haiku-pauwela/kings-bbq-/— Retrieved 2026-03-31 — Most useful for recurring review themes, service model notes, outdoor seating, no-reservations signal, and commonly mentioned favorites. Review summaries here are secondary and should be treated as pattern evidence rather than hard fact. - Tripadvisor listing for Kings BBQ & Chinese Restaurant —
https://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurant_Review-g60629-d10123014-Reviews-Kings_BBQ_Chinese_Restaurant-Haiku_Maui_Hawaii.html— Retrieved 2026-03-31 — Useful as a secondary confirmation of the location, operating hours, meal coverage, and general cuisine framing, though the page was not fully openable in tool output.
