Overview
Loco Moco Drive Inn is a casual Hawaiian plate-lunch spot in Hawaiʻi Kai / East Honolulu, operating under the identity anchored by the Google Places record at 7192 Kalanianaʻole Hwy # C117, Honolulu, HI 96825 with the listed phone (808) 396-7878 and website locomocodriveinnhonolulu.com. The Google record says it is operational, counter-serve, and focused on Hawaiian plate lunches and loco moco-style comfort food. (locomocodriveinnhonolulu.com)
For a traveler, this reads as a practical stop rather than a destination dining room: fast, familiar local food, geared toward takeout or a quick meal, with enough menu breadth to work for a family or a hungry road-trip stop. The place is clearly meant to be accessible and value-oriented, though the experience appears to be more about quantity and convenience than chef-driven polish. (locomocodriveinnhonolulu.com)
Cuisine & Specialties
The food lane is Hawaiian plate lunch and local comfort food, with a strong mix of rice-plate mains, burgers, noodle dishes, and seafood/chicken/beef combinations. The official site highlights loco moco, poke bowls, and plate lunches, while ordering menus show a much broader comfort-food spread than that branding alone suggests. (locomocodriveinnhonolulu.com)
- Overall menu style: Hawaiian counter-serve with plate lunches, mixed plates, burgers, saimin/noodles, and daily specials; this is a broad local-grinds menu rather than a narrowly focused specialty kitchen. (doordash.com)
- Notable dishes / specialties:
- Loco moco — the signature item by name, and one of the most-mentioned items across ordering platforms and reviews. (ubereats.com)
- Mochiko chicken — repeatedly surfaced as a favorite and a strong seller. (ubereats.com)
- Garlic shrimp / steak and garlic shrimp — frequently called out among top-seller items. (ubereats.com)
- Mini chicken katsu plate — one of the most liked items on delivery listings. (ubereats.com)
- BBQ mix plate, steak plate, mushroom chicken, garlic chicken — repeatedly show up in menu highlights and review summaries. (ubereats.com)
- Poke bowls — mentioned on the official site, though the broader menu signal is stronger for plate lunches than for poke specifically. (locomocodriveinnhonolulu.com)
- Price expectations: Google lists it at price level 2, and the site describes “affordable prices,” which fits a budget-to-midrange traveler meal rather than a splurge. Individual third-party menu listings and reviews suggest entrees generally sit in the mid-teens to low twenties. (locomocodriveinnhonolulu.com)
- Dietary usefulness / limitations: There are some veggie-adjacent and seafood options, but the menu is clearly meat-and-rice heavy, so it is not especially strong for vegetarian or lighter-eating diners. One secondary listing tags it as “Vegetarian,” but that appears to reflect menu breadth rather than a true plant-forward identity. (restaurantji.com)
Notable Features & Ambiance
This is a casual, takeout-friendly place with dine-in support, outdoor seating noted in secondary coverage, and a no-frills comfort-food feel. The official and third-party descriptions point to a straightforward counter-serve operation rather than a sit-down restaurant with a strong interior design story. (locomocodriveinnhonolulu.com)
- Service model and seating style: Counter-serve / order-ahead / pickup-friendly, with delivery and takeout strongly emphasized. Dine-in exists, but the experience appears optimized for quick meals. (locomocodriveinnhonolulu.com)
- Atmosphere and decor: Secondary reviews describe it as clean, comfortable, and family-friendly, but not especially fancy; the vibe is local comfort food, not destination dining. (restaurantji.com)
- Practical features: Online ordering is prominently supported, and the site plus Localicious listing both note takeout/delivery availability; Localicious also specifically mentions outdoor seating. (locomocodriveinnhonolulu.com)
- Best fit: A quick lunch, easy dinner, late-ish comfort-food stop, or a casual meal when you want Hawaiian plate lunch without a long wait or a formal sit-down. (restaurantji.com)
- Weaker fit: Travelers seeking atmosphere, a polished service experience, or a highly distinctive chef-led meal may find it too utilitarian. That is an inference from the service model and review patterns rather than a direct complaint. (locomocodriveinnhonolulu.com)
History & Background
There is some evidence that the Loco Moco Drive Inn name has had location churn and multi-location confusion in the broader web: secondary sources reference prior Honolulu addresses, another Google-style ordering page points to a different site/version, and at least one listing says the business moved to the current Hawaiʻi Kai address and opened there as a “new address.” The official current site is the best anchor for this specific location, but the brand footprint looks more like a local chain or moved operation than a single static storefront. (order.locomocodriveinnhi.com)
A deeper founder or ownership history was not clearly established from the available high-signal sources. The most useful background signal is operational rather than biographical: this is a local comfort-food brand with multiple web footprints and at least some evidence of relocation or versioning across Honolulu-area addresses. (order.locomocodriveinnhi.com)
Review Sentiment Snapshot
What People Love
Review patterns and ordering-platform data consistently point to fast service, generous portions, and familiar local comfort food. The items that keep getting mentioned are loco moco, mochiko chicken, garlic chicken, garlic shrimp, steak plates, and combo plates; travelers who want classic Hawaiian plate-lunch food seem to leave satisfied, especially when they value speed and quantity. (restaurantji.com)
Common Gripes
The most credible downside signal is inconsistency: some third-party reviews praise the food and service, while others note certain dishes vary in quality, and one source mentions price increases over time. Another recurring practical limitation is that this is not a refined sit-down experience; it is better understood as a convenient comfort-food stop. The strength of the negative signal is mixed to moderate, not overwhelming. (restaurantji.com)
Practical Visitor Tips
- The official site and Google record both point to daily hours around 8:00 AM to 8:45 PM at the Hawaiʻi Kai address, so it is more of a breakfast-to-dinner place than a late-night spot. A third-party ordering page shows some inconsistency on hours across older/current web footprints, so check same-day status if timing matters. (locomocodriveinnhonolulu.com)
- Walk-in and pickup expectations seem more realistic than a reservation mindset; online ordering is a major part of the operation. (locomocodriveinnhonolulu.com)
- The address is on Kalanianaʻole Highway in Hawaiʻi Kai, so it fits well as an East Honolulu stop; plan for a drive rather than a Waikiki stroll. (locomocodriveinnhonolulu.com)
- If you want the most talked-about items, the best-supported bets are loco moco, mochiko chicken, garlic chicken, garlic shrimp, and combo plates. (ubereats.com)
- This looks like a good value meal rather than a premium one, so travelers should calibrate expectations accordingly. (locomocodriveinnhonolulu.com)
Verification Notes
- Official/current identity anchor: Loco Moco Drive Inn, 7192 Kalanianaʻole Hwy # C117, Honolulu, HI 96825, (808) 396-7878, website locomocodriveinnhonolulu.com. (locomocodriveinnhonolulu.com)
- Google Places marks the business as OPERATIONAL. (locomocodriveinnhonolulu.com)
- There is location-history drift across the web: older or alternate pages reference other Honolulu addresses, while current ordering pages and the Google anchor support the Hawaiʻi Kai/Kalanianaʻole Hwy location. (order.locomocodriveinnhi.com)
Sources
- Google Places details for Loco Moco Drive Inn —
https://maps.google.com/?cid=9290066898287923541— retrieved 2026-04-02. Most useful for the baseline identity anchor: current name, address, phone, website, status, hours, rating, and category summary. - Official site: Loco Moco Drive Inn Honolulu —
https://www.locomocodriveinnhonolulu.com/— retrieved 2026-04-02. Most useful for the official current address, takeout/delivery emphasis, hours, and the brand’s own description of the menu. - Official ordering/menu page: Loco Moco Drive Inn - Kapahulu Ave, Honolulu —
https://order.locomocodriveinnhi.com/menu— retrieved 2026-04-02. Most useful for detecting address drift / alternate web footprint and for corroborating menu breadth and hours wording across a different site version. - Official ordering homepage: Loco Moco Drive Inn - Kapahulu Ave, Honolulu —
https://order.locomocodriveinnhi.com/— retrieved 2026-04-02. Most useful for corroborating the alternate site version’s hours, pickup/delivery framing, and evidence that the brand has more than one active web identity. - Localicious Hawaiʻi listing —
https://localicioushawaii.org/restaurants/loco-moco-drive-inn/— retrieved 2026-04-02. Most useful for the practical visitor view: hours, dine-in/takeout/delivery posture, and outdoor seating note. - Restaurantji listing for Loco Moco Drive Inn —
https://www.restaurantji.com/hi/honolulu/loco-moco-drive-inn-/— retrieved 2026-04-02. Most useful for recurring review themes: portions, fast service, comfort-food framing, and the mixed signal about price increases and eventual closure/location replacement on that older footprint. - Restaurantji alternate listing / current Hawaiʻi Kai footprint —
https://www.restaurantji.com/hi/honolulu/loco-moco-drive-inn-2/— retrieved 2026-04-02. Most useful for item-level favorites and the broader menu summary, including the recurring dishes people mention most. - Uber Eats listing for Loco Moco Drive Inn (Kalanianaʻole Hwy) —
https://www.ubereats.com/store/loco-moco-drive-inn-kalaniana%CA%BBole-hwy/jMp-A8bRS4KiVMOXLQM4pg— retrieved 2026-04-02. Most useful for menu popularity signals, price examples, and evidence of high-demand items like loco moco, mochiko chicken, and garlic shrimp. - Beyond Menu listing for Loco Moco Drive Inn —
https://www.beyondmenu.com/62456/honolulu/loco-moco-drive-inn-honolulu-96825.aspx— retrieved 2026-04-02. Most useful for specific menu item examples and traveler-friendly price expectations across a broad menu.
