Makai Island Kitchen & Groggery

What happened? Everything seems different. I loved this place. Pretty bummed.

No more pulled pork nachos, both our steaks were ordered medium and came out like jerky, the taco appetizers meat was also like jerky (and red) and had no flavor, our waitress clearly didnt want to be there, the whole staff is different, the hostesses were clueless.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 2

Service: 1

A bit pricey but great drinks. Very limited menu if you don’t like fish (my son). Expensive for what you get. The best part is the revolving bar and view.

Atmosphere: 4

Food: 3

Service: 5

Recommended dishes: Coconut Prawns

They took menu items off I had been ordering with my family here for 3 years.... thousands of dollars. Looked forward to that every week. The new "head chef" is just removing all our favorite items. Will not be coming back here until they re-add pulled pork nachos to the menu. Such a bummer...

Atmosphere: 3

Food: 2

Service: 2

Best place I’ve ever eaten. The Poke Bowl is to die for. We are here two days in a row on our vacation. We loved watching the sea lions through the sections of glass floor.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Recommended dishes: Poke Bowl

I love this place!! Great food in a great atmosphere! Lucas makes the best drinks....he's very helpful recommending food and drinks...and has the best personality...no matter how busy he is!!

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

You can eat drink and watch animals including seals relaxing under boardwalk.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Always a pleasure to go to Makai. Food and drinks are excellent with lots of variety, staff is friendly and helpful. Ambiance is great - view is lovely. Make sure to get your fun drink treasure map to be stamped each time you try a drink.

Parking: Parking on the wharf costs $ and can be hard to find. If you don't mind walking a bit, park downtown somewhere and walk over.

Kid-friendliness: Allows children and gives them a fun coloring page and crayons. They have some kid-friendly food and drink options too

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Recommended dishes: Loco Moco

Came to the pier for an event, tried to order a couple drinks at the bar, but they refused to serve us. Horrible customer service!

We just had drinks so can’t comment on the food but our drinks were solid and we loved the novelty of sitting in the bar that has the rotating floor. How fun! It’s not a typical dark tiki bar where it’s dark but rather great views of the ocean from various angles as you rotate around the bar. We bought the skull mug too. Perfect for Halloween.

Atmosphere: 5

Service: 5

This place is an outstanding place for food and drink. Hawaiian themed food, drink, and decor. Their selection of cocktails is extensive and unique with many original rum-based drinks. It sits out on the Santa Cruz pier with lots of boats, surfers, sealing and birds to watch while esting/drinking.

Parking: We got there an hour before opening to get a parking space. When we left 2 hours later, there were few, if any, spaces to be found.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Recommended dishes: Poke Bowl, Coconut Shrimp, Makai Surf 'N Turf Skewer Combo, Spam Musubi, Loco Moco

Neither the poke bowl nor the margarita was impressive

Atmosphere: 4

Service: 3

Great place with great view and great drinks. I will definitely be back!

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 4

Service: 5

I'm on the Santa Cruz Wharf nearly every week, so my wife and I have been coming to Makai and it's previous incarnation Splash pretty regularly since they opened. We've always enjoyed Makai and it keeps getting better in all respects. The food and cocktail menus are updated regularly so there is always something new to try. The Tiki decor seems to get more lush each year, and I never get tired of the rotating bar area.

Cocktails are taken seriously here and at other restaurants run by the same folks. At Makai the emphasis is very much on tropical-style "punch" type drinks, in great variety, and some of them very complex. But they can make whatever you want.

Service has always tended to be leisurely (some might say slow), so just don't come if you're in a rush. Prepare to relax, enjoy the view and atmosphere, chat with the server, and sometimes remind them of what you need.

Makai's food prices are typical for the area, but the cocktails are pricey, especially the tiki drinks. So we tend to spend more here than at other places.

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 4

Recommended dishes: Poke Bowl, Poke Stack

Fantastic cocktails and food. Very cool decoration and rotating floor. And the view ?

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5

Recommended dishes: Makai Surf 'N Turf Skewer Combo, Salad

Really nice ambiance, everyone can see the ocean view, the rotating dining area is what made us come here! Overall great experience!

Atmosphere: 5

Food: 5

Service: 5