Everything we purchased was awful!! The rice cake was sour (spoiled?), gin dui was full of grease but not coconut. Gau was junk. We just threw away $30 by purchasing from Island Manapua. Nothing was edible!
Caitie Watanabe
Just went and picked up some Managua, pork hash, and half moon only to open the box to cold food and also their quality of food went way down hill. Sadly this used to be one of my go to spots and now I may not return here anymore. ?
Food: 1
Ace T.
Say what you want about Island Manapua but I really think if you've had a prior bad experience to give it a try again! We had to order the dim sum platter and chow mien every week for about two months for events and the owner was so accommodating every step of the way. He even prepared the food right on time for every pickup CONSISTENTLY!! Even if we wanted to change some of the dim sum, he helped us change the dim sum options with no additional cost. The owner is so nice and friendly, he was even accommodating when we asked if he could make us a veggie dim sum platter, he said it was no problem and he made our order come true! If you need a dim sum platter and some tasty Manapua for an event, I highly recommend ordering from Island Manapua. They also have a veggie fried rice (which was super popular) where you can ask for char Siu on the side of you're hosting guests with a variety of food intolerances.
Tran N.
Very nice experience and good food! especially the Bao with roasted pork and Peking duck! once you hold it, you cannot put it down! I came here with my husband, 3 kids and my parents, they all love it. The lady owner is also very friendly and nice. We come back again because the kids still want some more!
Darcie N.
I have checked out this place twice in the past month. The duck buns are tasty but we're cold on the table. Today, I got the regular steamed manapua. It was grainy and dry. It was in the steamer, but it had an old taste. The steamed manapua are $3 each plus tax. Pretty bummed because it would be a great after school snack pick up but it wasn't a hit with the kids.
Katt O.
On the search for Manapua... 1. Service quick and easy 2. No place to sit inside but situated in a great center so you can sit outside and enjoy your Manapua 1. Bun was soft and warm 2. Bun could have been just a little sweeter 3. Bun to meat ratio ... need more meat 4. Flavor of the filling: little more flavor I
Dwight Nishida
Parking: Shopping center doesn't have enough parking during portions of the day, making it hard to get in and out quickly.
Don't know what happened to the food at this location but compared to before we're definitely not going back again. So sad because we remember when there used to be a line of people trying to get food here.
Gerald P.
Went to Marukai on Dillingham Blvd. & went thru the back road towards King St. & came across this Manapua Factory. It was on Labor Day Sept 5, 2023about 5pm. 2 staff members were preparing food for the next morning & a gentlemen came to greet & take my order. They did not have much left in inventory, so I ordered six red pork Manapua& six pork hash. The steamers were off, so the food was cold. Nothing was said & my bill came close to $30.The place looked decent for a factory & I hope all sanitation practices are followed. From the outside their sign was enticing. Terrible cold Manapua & pork hash, microwave at home was better, but compared to Chinatown & PensacolaSt. Manapua & pork hash doesn't compare in taste or quality. Disappointed& won't go back!
Reid Okazaki
They use to have the best hot dog manapua. They changed the hot dog from Oscar Meyer to Redondos. Taste is wrong.
Sad to say I think I figured out the reason why there is a rather prominent sign that reads "No Refunds!", and that's because, I imagine, a lot of people have asked for their money back after tasting the absolutely horrid food here.I do my best not to leave bad reviews, but I would feel like I'm doing a disservice by not letting others know how terrible my plate lunch was. I've started to accept that most restaurants in Manoa are pretty sub-par (with a select few that are quite the opposite), but this place has successfully made it to my list of "worst of the year", and definitely "worst I've ever eaten". I should have taken a hint when I walked into the shop and noticed a bit of a sour smell. I didn't think much of it, aside from making a note to wait outside after ordering, which was a great idea considering the fact that my supposed 10 minute wait ended up being closer to 20. No biggie on the wait though, since I thought I'd just gobble the food down quicker once I got it. That was far from the case. As soon as I got home, unwrapped the bag and opened up the plate to take a whiff of what I had hoped would be a delicious oyster sauce chicken & cake noodle, I was greeted with the same sour scent that met me at the shop doorway. I thought to myself, "what is that? the food can't be bad, can it?" ... I sniffed the chicken, and yeah something was awry for sure. The color of the chicken looked ... off. The broccoli also looked just withered and brown; shouldn't it look fresh and green? The cake noodles were also soggy, and mind you I live very close to Manoa Marketplace, so I don't know how/why they would be in that condition.The most important part: the taste. Wow. I have NEVER (well, at least not recently) been that pissed off after having a single bite of food. The chicken was not only WAAAAAY too salty, it actually tasted bad, with an almost sour flavor ... as in if I ate more of it, I could have risked getting sick from eating it. I've tasted chicken like that before, and my day did not go well afterwards. Was it spoiled? Probably. I decided to spit the food out and take a bite of the noodles. Yep ... absolutely disgusting. I wanted to puke. I was so pissed off, I cursed and threw the entire plate into the trash. What a waste of $16 and my time. Never again.
Edward M.
MUCH IMPROVED SINCE THE LAST TIME I VISITED HERE. I haven't been here for several years but I must say that this place has gotten a lot better. I got the steamed char siu bao (manapua), pork hash, half-moon, rice cake, Peking duck manapua, suckling pig fried pork rinds and the duck in bao (looks like Peking duck in the half bun). Everything was good except I didn't care too much for the pork rinds. It was really hard and didn't have much taste. Also the mustard/soy sauce that they included tasted a little sour. My favorites were the Peking duck manapua and the duck bao. Service was efficient and friendly.
Sarah
Haven’t had problems in the past, but I came by this morning thinking I would get fresh Manapua and was extremely disappointed. Was not given items even at room temp, but walked out with COLD manapua and half moon. The guys at the counter were acting weird so I should’ve known. Myself and my friend felt sick after eating them and they were not enjoyable. I know preferential treatment is common but at least don’t put the customers you don’t care about at risk for food poisoning.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 1
Andrey O
This place is an anti-ad for Chinese food. Not recommended. Worst Chinese food ever. Never buy from them!
David V.
Love that this place opens early so I can get my manapua pork hash fix. They also have plate lunches as well.
Everything we purchased was awful!! The rice cake was sour (spoiled?), gin dui was full of grease but not coconut. Gau was junk. We just threw away $30 by purchasing from Island Manapua. Nothing was edible!
Just went and picked up some Managua, pork hash, and half moon only to open the box to cold food and also their quality of food went way down hill. Sadly this used to be one of my go to spots and now I may not return here anymore. ?
Food: 1
Say what you want about Island Manapua but I really think if you've had a prior bad experience to give it a try again! We had to order the dim sum platter and chow mien every week for about two months for events and the owner was so accommodating every step of the way. He even prepared the food right on time for every pickup CONSISTENTLY!! Even if we wanted to change some of the dim sum, he helped us change the dim sum options with no additional cost. The owner is so nice and friendly, he was even accommodating when we asked if he could make us a veggie dim sum platter, he said it was no problem and he made our order come true! If you need a dim sum platter and some tasty Manapua for an event, I highly recommend ordering from Island Manapua. They also have a veggie fried rice (which was super popular) where you can ask for char Siu on the side of you're hosting guests with a variety of food intolerances.
Very nice experience and good food! especially the Bao with roasted pork and Peking duck! once you hold it, you cannot put it down! I came here with my husband, 3 kids and my parents, they all love it. The lady owner is also very friendly and nice. We come back again because the kids still want some more!
I have checked out this place twice in the past month. The duck buns are tasty but we're cold on the table. Today, I got the regular steamed manapua. It was grainy and dry. It was in the steamer, but it had an old taste. The steamed manapua are $3 each plus tax. Pretty bummed because it would be a great after school snack pick up but it wasn't a hit with the kids.
On the search for Manapua... 1. Service quick and easy 2. No place to sit inside but situated in a great center so you can sit outside and enjoy your Manapua 1. Bun was soft and warm 2. Bun could have been just a little sweeter 3. Bun to meat ratio ... need more meat 4. Flavor of the filling: little more flavor I
Parking: Shopping center doesn't have enough parking during portions of the day, making it hard to get in and out quickly.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Baked Manapua Char Siu Bao, Pork Hash, Baked Char Siu Manapua
Don't know what happened to the food at this location but compared to before we're definitely not going back again. So sad because we remember when there used to be a line of people trying to get food here.
Went to Marukai on Dillingham Blvd. & went thru the back road towards King St. & came across this Manapua Factory. It was on Labor Day Sept 5, 2023about 5pm. 2 staff members were preparing food for the next morning & a gentlemen came to greet & take my order. They did not have much left in inventory, so I ordered six red pork Manapua& six pork hash. The steamers were off, so the food was cold. Nothing was said & my bill came close to $30.The place looked decent for a factory & I hope all sanitation practices are followed. From the outside their sign was enticing. Terrible cold Manapua & pork hash, microwave at home was better, but compared to Chinatown & PensacolaSt. Manapua & pork hash doesn't compare in taste or quality. Disappointed& won't go back!
They use to have the best hot dog manapua. They changed the hot dog from Oscar Meyer to Redondos. Taste is wrong.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 3
Service: 4
Restaurantji Recommends
Sad to say I think I figured out the reason why there is a rather prominent sign that reads "No Refunds!", and that's because, I imagine, a lot of people have asked for their money back after tasting the absolutely horrid food here.I do my best not to leave bad reviews, but I would feel like I'm doing a disservice by not letting others know how terrible my plate lunch was. I've started to accept that most restaurants in Manoa are pretty sub-par (with a select few that are quite the opposite), but this place has successfully made it to my list of "worst of the year", and definitely "worst I've ever eaten". I should have taken a hint when I walked into the shop and noticed a bit of a sour smell. I didn't think much of it, aside from making a note to wait outside after ordering, which was a great idea considering the fact that my supposed 10 minute wait ended up being closer to 20. No biggie on the wait though, since I thought I'd just gobble the food down quicker once I got it. That was far from the case. As soon as I got home, unwrapped the bag and opened up the plate to take a whiff of what I had hoped would be a delicious oyster sauce chicken & cake noodle, I was greeted with the same sour scent that met me at the shop doorway. I thought to myself, "what is that? the food can't be bad, can it?" ... I sniffed the chicken, and yeah something was awry for sure. The color of the chicken looked ... off. The broccoli also looked just withered and brown; shouldn't it look fresh and green? The cake noodles were also soggy, and mind you I live very close to Manoa Marketplace, so I don't know how/why they would be in that condition.The most important part: the taste. Wow. I have NEVER (well, at least not recently) been that pissed off after having a single bite of food. The chicken was not only WAAAAAY too salty, it actually tasted bad, with an almost sour flavor ... as in if I ate more of it, I could have risked getting sick from eating it. I've tasted chicken like that before, and my day did not go well afterwards. Was it spoiled? Probably. I decided to spit the food out and take a bite of the noodles. Yep ... absolutely disgusting. I wanted to puke. I was so pissed off, I cursed and threw the entire plate into the trash. What a waste of $16 and my time. Never again.
MUCH IMPROVED SINCE THE LAST TIME I VISITED HERE. I haven't been here for several years but I must say that this place has gotten a lot better. I got the steamed char siu bao (manapua), pork hash, half-moon, rice cake, Peking duck manapua, suckling pig fried pork rinds and the duck in bao (looks like Peking duck in the half bun). Everything was good except I didn't care too much for the pork rinds. It was really hard and didn't have much taste. Also the mustard/soy sauce that they included tasted a little sour. My favorites were the Peking duck manapua and the duck bao. Service was efficient and friendly.
Haven’t had problems in the past, but I came by this morning thinking I would get fresh Manapua and was extremely disappointed. Was not given items even at room temp, but walked out with COLD manapua and half moon. The guys at the counter were acting weird so I should’ve known. Myself and my friend felt sick after eating them and they were not enjoyable. I know preferential treatment is common but at least don’t put the customers you don’t care about at risk for food poisoning.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 1
Service: 1
This place is an anti-ad for Chinese food. Not recommended. Worst Chinese food ever. Never buy from them!
Love that this place opens early so I can get my manapua pork hash fix. They also have plate lunches as well.