Ponds is a longtime family favorite for visitors and locals alike. With sweeping views of Reeds Bay and open-air charm, it's perfect for special occasions, date nite, small-group meetups or just a walk-in meal. This restaurant has a friendly & accommodating staff that takes pride in destination dining. Favorite dishes are the Southwest Chopped Salad with Blackened Chicken, Mandarin Ribs, French Dip, and a good old-fashioned Hamburger & Fries. Opt for the garlic fries: shoestring fried potatoes topped with a FRESH garlic seasoning. Ponds serves one of the best Mai Tais in Hilo Town, but the Ricorita and Hawaiian Sunshine Mojito are refreshing as well. Save room for dessert! We like to share the Brownie a la mode with Kona Mud Pie ice cream. Insider tip: make a reservation for dinner service when they have live music and request dinner rolls to help curb your hunger & soak up pre-dinner cocktails.
Parking: Off-street parking is a plus.
Kid-friendliness: Ponds Hilo's unscreened open-air windows open onto the popular swimming area, Ice Ponds which is known for the icy freshwater springs that feed the brackish waters. Guests can request koi food to feed the koi, red-eared sliders and ducks that float below the restaurant. Ponds also has a keiki menu for kids.
Wheelchair accessibility: While the restaurant is small, wheelchair access is acceptable. Call ahead to let the host know you need accessible seating to optimize your experience.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Salad
Stefanie Strong
We dined in for lunch yesterday. Our server made sure we had a great experience and took care of our keiki! He brought them fish food for the koi pond, a blended strawberry drink that was delicious, and some extra treats. The escargot was tasty! The lilikoi cheesecake is a must try!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Buster Garcia
Vegetarian options: Vegetables pesto macnut pasta
Dietary restrictions: Gluten free Dairy free
Kid-friendliness: All families n kids welcome kid love to feed the koi
What a pleasant evening. We made a reservation and got a window table overlooking the koi pond. Did not have an issue with mosquitos. The food was delicious and the music soft and delightful. The performer sang beautifully. The crab dip was amazing! Very rich and indulgent. And the crab was not overpowered by the cheese. We got the Friday night special: Prime Rib & Lobster. Indulgent but a very Good deal. Hubby had the Teri-steak sizzling platter. Meat was so tender. They had him at pineapple. Got bread pudding for dessert! So good! Flavorful & moist!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Surf and Turf, Hot Crab & Spinach Dip, Lobster
A
It was late at night and there weren't many restaurants open nearby, so I chose this one because it had good reviews. We ordered pasta, shrimp scampi, and fish and chips for three people and it was enough.
For pasta, you could choose soup or salad. The taste is average, and the shrimp are large.
Shrimp scampi tastes like garlic shrimp. Served with vegetables and mashed potatoes. The taste is ok.
And I was looking forward to the fish and chips, but unexpectedly there were only two! ! lol And this amount costs 22 dollars! It's so rip-off it's hilarious. The taste is normal.
Even when I called the staff, they never came, and worst of all, perhaps because it was close to closing time, they kept sweeping with brooms right next to me while I was eating, and I ate in the dust.
You can see outside when it's bright and the atmosphere seems to be quite nice, but I honestly don't understand why it was rated so highly. The three items listed above and one drink each cost nearly $140, so I was disappointed because the price was quite high.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 3
Service: 1
Alfred Romero
The best relaxing restaurant ever.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Rita Benoit
Always excellent food & service
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Regina Zgherea
This place is an absolute must! Food was fresh and so good and the staff was amazing. Could not recommend this place enough.
Daia Zgherea
Food was amazing!! Great service and people! I would definitely come again :)
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Aleks Dyuryagin
Amazing place, loved everything about it
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Surf and Turf, Garlic Bread, Seafood, Fish And
Super local eatery on the pond with tasty choices and excellent service
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 5
Merrin Sutherland
Delicious food. Quick service?
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Y R
Too pricey for what it is : medium quality food at best. One of the least expensive dishes was 30$ (meatloaf) and it was what you would expect - meatloaf, that for sure didn’t taste like a $30 dish. We also had a couple of steaks and some appetizers. One of the NY strips was stringy and undercooked. Im from CA and used to high costs. This is just an underwhelming experience for your $$$.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 3
Service: 4
Gnome Chomsky
Live music, surf and turf, koi fish pond where the children can feed the fish from the table so you can enjoy your food, great service and equally great atmosphere. Only demerit was the lackluster margarita our server recommended… other than that everything is very legit here. Cheers!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Lobster
Sylvain Houde
Wow great discovery 10/10 for the taste and quality Steak NY as well as the shrimp pasta. Calm atmosphere with very good service. I recommend it !
Ponds is a longtime family favorite for visitors and locals alike. With sweeping views of Reeds Bay and open-air charm, it's perfect for special occasions, date nite, small-group meetups or just a walk-in meal. This restaurant has a friendly & accommodating staff that takes pride in destination dining. Favorite dishes are the Southwest Chopped Salad with Blackened Chicken, Mandarin Ribs, French Dip, and a good old-fashioned Hamburger & Fries. Opt for the garlic fries: shoestring fried potatoes topped with a FRESH garlic seasoning. Ponds serves one of the best Mai Tais in Hilo Town, but the Ricorita and Hawaiian Sunshine Mojito are refreshing as well. Save room for dessert! We like to share the Brownie a la mode with Kona Mud Pie ice cream. Insider tip: make a reservation for dinner service when they have live music and request dinner rolls to help curb your hunger & soak up pre-dinner cocktails.
Parking: Off-street parking is a plus.
Kid-friendliness: Ponds Hilo's unscreened open-air windows open onto the popular swimming area, Ice Ponds which is known for the icy freshwater springs that feed the brackish waters. Guests can request koi food to feed the koi, red-eared sliders and ducks that float below the restaurant. Ponds also has a keiki menu for kids.
Wheelchair accessibility: While the restaurant is small, wheelchair access is acceptable. Call ahead to let the host know you need accessible seating to optimize your experience.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Salad
We dined in for lunch yesterday. Our server made sure we had a great experience and took care of our keiki! He brought them fish food for the koi pond, a blended strawberry drink that was delicious, and some extra treats. The escargot was tasty! The lilikoi cheesecake is a must try!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Vegetarian options: Vegetables pesto macnut pasta
Dietary restrictions: Gluten free
Dairy free
Kid-friendliness: All families n kids welcome kid love to feed the koi
Wheelchair accessibility: Yes
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Salad, Escargot, Shrimp Chardonnay, Teriyaki Steak 10oz
What a pleasant evening. We made a reservation and got a window table overlooking the koi pond. Did not have an issue with mosquitos. The food was delicious and the music soft and delightful. The performer sang beautifully. The crab dip was amazing! Very rich and indulgent. And the crab was not overpowered by the cheese. We got the Friday night special: Prime Rib & Lobster. Indulgent but a very Good deal. Hubby had the Teri-steak sizzling platter. Meat was so tender. They had him at pineapple. Got bread pudding for dessert! So good! Flavorful & moist!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Surf and Turf, Hot Crab & Spinach Dip, Lobster
It was late at night and there weren't many restaurants open nearby, so I chose this one because it had good reviews.
We ordered pasta, shrimp scampi, and fish and chips for three people and it was enough.
For pasta, you could choose soup or salad.
The taste is average, and the shrimp are large.
Shrimp scampi tastes like garlic shrimp. Served with vegetables and mashed potatoes. The taste is ok.
And I was looking forward to the fish and chips, but unexpectedly there were only two! ! lol
And this amount costs 22 dollars! It's so rip-off it's hilarious. The taste is normal.
Even when I called the staff, they never came, and worst of all, perhaps because it was close to closing time, they kept sweeping with brooms right next to me while I was eating, and I ate in the dust.
You can see outside when it's bright and the atmosphere seems to be quite nice, but I honestly don't understand why it was rated so highly.
The three items listed above and one drink each cost nearly $140, so I was disappointed because the price was quite high.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 3
Service: 1
The best relaxing restaurant ever.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Always excellent food & service
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
This place is an absolute must! Food was fresh and so good and the staff was amazing. Could not recommend this place enough.
Food was amazing!! Great service and people! I would definitely come again :)
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Amazing place, loved everything about it
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Surf and Turf, Garlic Bread, Seafood, Fish And
Restaurantji Recommends
Super local eatery on the pond with tasty choices and excellent service
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 4
Service: 5
Delicious food. Quick service?
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Too pricey for what it is : medium quality food at best. One of the least expensive dishes was 30$ (meatloaf) and it was what you would expect - meatloaf, that for sure didn’t taste like a $30 dish. We also had a couple of steaks and some appetizers. One of the NY strips was stringy and undercooked. Im from CA and used to high costs. This is just an underwhelming experience for your $$$.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 3
Service: 4
Live music, surf and turf, koi fish pond where the children can feed the fish from the table so you can enjoy your food, great service and equally great atmosphere. Only demerit was the lackluster margarita our server recommended… other than that everything is very legit here. Cheers!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Lobster
Wow great discovery 10/10 for the taste and quality Steak NY as well as the shrimp pasta. Calm atmosphere with very good service. I recommend it !
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
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