outside
Meze platter
Lahmacun
Alfresco dining at Istanbul Hawaii
interior
interior
interior
interior
sushi and sashimi, interior
food
food
menu
Junior K.
Feb 12, 2025
Food quality is amazing! Staff is very knowledgeable about the menu, and atmosphere is very cute.
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Christian L.
Jan 31, 2025
The service in this restaurant was exquisite and was the best waiter experience in my life. I have never been in a restaurant this cozy and this cultural. The food was out of this world and was flavorful and was an absolute travel to Istanbul. Even thought the restaurant is quite pricey the food and service was amazing!
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James J.
Feb 15, 2025
Creative menu options which are perfectly cooked and presented.The rice blew my mind. Yes, the rice.More delicious than $300 meals at fancy Hawaii resorts. I mean that.Service is attentive, welcoming, and intelligent.The owner is warm and inspiring.Ambience is charming, romantic, but not stuffy or pretentious.You will actually not be disappointed.Repeat customer.
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Sandy M.
Feb 16, 2025
The wait for Sunday brunch wasn't too long. Seeing as how packed the outdoor dining and dining room was, let us know we would be in for a great meal. We had one main server who was great, but it seemed all that staff helps each other. All the dishes were well presented and plated beautifully. Their craft drink menu is quite extensive and had some truly delicious drinks!
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Raymond K.
Feb 16, 2025
We're often in the vicinity, as it's right across the street from Whole Foods, but today was our first time dining here.I made a 12 pm reservation. When we arrived, the outdoor seating was nearly full. I started toward the entrance but was intercepted by a young woman outside who said she could check us in there. Given the option of sitting outside or indoors, we chose the latter.As we were led to our table, we noticed how lively the place was, with exotic decor and many occupied tables.Our server appeared and asked how hungry we were before going over the menu with us. When I had questions, I couldn't help feeling that we weren't quite communicating. I'd ask something, and he seemed to misunderstand. When I asked for suggestions, his answers weren't particularly helpful.I ordered two different hot teas - orange blossom green tea and Moroccan mint herbal tea - so my wife could choose one.We had already seen photos and opted for the Meze Platter. However, I was a bit confused about how the long list of options under Tales of Babylon's Bounty (each with its own price) translated to the platter photos I had seen online. Extracting clarification from our server was difficult. He pointed to Mosaic of Mediterranean Meze, and I gathered he meant it would be a combination of six items from the list, though I wasn't sure which ones.I understood that the meze was just an appetizer and wanted us to try a couple of other dishes - Levrek (Mediterranean sea bass) and Mercimek soup.While waiting, we had little else to do but observe what neighboring tables were having. The meze platter arrived first, accompanied by a tray of warm flatbread (pide), which we enjoyed dipping into the various spreads. After that, there was a fairly long wait before the soup arrived.The Mercimek soup had a unique flavor we enjoyed. Then came another long wait before the Levrek was served.In between, our server kept apologizing for how busy the kitchen was. A couple of times, we tried to flag him down, but my wife noticed that he just looked straight ahead while walking between tables and the kitchen, not checking on other tables.Overall, we enjoyed the food and atmosphere. The service could have been better.https://bsky.app/profile/raymondkaya.bsky.social/post/3lidkw2xxtc2y
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Leah H.
Feb 11, 2025
I have been wanting to try this place for such a long time. I am beyond excited our friends invited us out to dinner here! Service top notch! Ambience is just what you want, felt like you have been transported to another place! I almost felt like I was personally being cooked for. Every bite was so full of flavor! I had the hardest time trying to decide what I wanted to eat! I had a couple mock tails that were amazing! So flavorful! Our friends had a couple glasses of wine that they said paired perfectly with the food. Just go try and bring friends and share, you will want to try everything!!!!
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Debra N.
Jan 29, 2025
Parking can be crowded but can park adjoining other free parking lots. Noise level is medium, but a real nice ambiance, friendly servers.There's a vegan sampler for $37.50. Lots of pita bread triangles you can dip in three sauces (tomato sauce with spices, hummus, and an egg plant), spinach pastry, layered cheese pastry, small fruit salad with a balsamic sauce. It was great and shared a grill chicken (4) on sticks...great with the salad and champagne dressing. It was my first time at this Mediterranean food establishment. I want to try other food. They have a very extensive menu...plan to come back. Ciao!
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Samantha C.
Jan 26, 2025
Menu: hugeLamb: 10/10Cocktails: expensive but delicious Dessert: I DONT KNOW WHAT THIS WAS BUT IT WAS ONE OF THE BEST THINGS IVE EVER PUT IN MY MOUTH. See picture. Looks like a bird's nest with honey and a creme topping. Tastes like entering heaven.
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Catherine P.
Jan 8, 2025
Work lunch Wednesday was delivered to our office by Istanbul Hawaii. I ordered the Aleppo pepper zhug tagliatelle because I wanted to try something new. I thought the tagliatelle would be like the Cipriani brand but this pasta was much thicker. There seem to be a lot of other ingredients listed on the menu but honestly, I just got the spiciness from the peppers and a cheese in the sauce. I didn't get any pistachio and what I thought might've been pistachio was actually more like fried garlic. My coworkers got pita wraps and they thought it was very good and delicious. For the price and the size of the dish, my Aleppo pepper pasta wasn't worth $27. The food was delivered on time so that was a plus!
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Walter N.
Jan 28, 2025
Haven't been there for dinner but we've found this a fantastic place for a pleasant lunch. Excellent and friendly staff, great service and fantastic food. The decor is attractive and the ambiance can be lively if there are excited guests nearby.We love this place and highly recommend it for just about any occasion.
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