The Counter Honolulu

As far as sitdown restaurants for burgers, this is one of the best I've been to on Oahu. Up front, though, I have a mental barrier paying much more than $10 or so for a burger, maybe up to $15-$18 for a bougie burger? Teddy's Burgers would probably be the cheaper end of these types of places. And when comparing with my order of the Texas Bourbon BBQ burger, Teddy's 1/4lb was cheaper than Counter's 1/3lb by $2, more so when upgrading to Teddy's 7oz vs Counter's 1/2lb. This burger, though, seemed less greasy than Teddy's as well as Mahaloha Burger and definitely compared to Wahlberger (which is now closed, I hear). Mahaloha burgers are cheaper for sure, but it's not really a sitdown restaurant. Although Teddy's has much more seating, there's also no real waitstaff. So really this is the only "dedicated bougie" burger restaurant that comes to mind.The patty comes out a bit on the thinner side, but it's spread out a bit more than other burgers so that it's thinner and wider than thicker and bunched up into more of a ball. In that sense, it's a whole lot easier to fit in your mouth to bite than those impressively looking towers of a burger that you actually can't even get your teeth around. So, yeah, there's something to be said about the physics of eating a burger. We especially enjoyed the brioche buns - nice and soft but did not get soggy. The burgers themselves are savory. My bourbon bbq was served separately on the side, which I appreciated so that it didn't get served soggy all over the plate. And the bourbon bbq sauce truly had a bourbon flavor...which younger kids *might* not actually like because, you know, bourbon. I on the other hand loved it. My wife got the Old School Cheeseburger as part of the combo meal with Sweet(potato) fries. This was also very savory and came with a Thousand Island-like sauce on the side. I might have ordered that too for the fries, but as a starter for the rewards program, you get a free order of large (shoestring) fries valued at $11, which we/I devoured. Personally, I like the thicker styled fries, but these held their crispiness. And as a bougie establishment, there's not a salt shaker but a salt grinder on each table. Not sure if that's necessarily better, since finer salt probably sticks better to fries. But since the fries were still hot, it worked out just fine, and I was still able to get my 3-day's worth of sodium requirement in one sitting.I also opted for a fountain drink (served in a tall glass) that includes free refills! Our server was very attentive and made sure my soda never hit bottom. So if price isn't a factor, 5 stars for sure. A nice place to indulge yourself while being in an actual restaurant rather than some food court or takeout or a fast food feel. The Counter is located next to Whole Foods and across from Chili's, and the entrance is from the outside only. I'm sure if there were a mall access entrance (like CPK), the restaurant would get double the business. As it was, though, there were barely any empty tables by 12:30p on a Fri. and there's always...the counter.

There's a reason we keep coming back to The Counter - we've never had a bad dining experience here and always enjoy our meal. You can't go wrong with a flavorful burger that YOU choose the ingredients for!Parking can be competitive since it's next to Kahala Whole Foods, but I've never had trouble finding a spot upstairs by Ross if the lot is crazy. Prices have been steadily rising over the years, with the BYOBurger base now at $17. Seems high in a vacuum, but compare it to other sit-down restaurants, where a specialty burger can easily range from $15-25, with an upcharge for customization. The Counter lets you absolutely LOAD up your burger for $17, with exotic options like smoked gouda or pimento cheese (sooo good), quinoa, a sliced boiled egg, croutons, and green onions. This is, of course, on top of the usual suspects like lettuce/spinach/kale, fresh or grape tomatoes, grilled/fresh onions, pickles, sprouts, olives, carrots...You really can't go wrong. Like other places, I'd avoid the premium toppings, cause the upcharges add up quick, and you really don't need them to get an enjoyable experience. The Counter also has some of my favorite shoestring fries, fried crispy and seasoned perfectly. It's addictive and you get a free sauce with your burger, which offers endless combinations over 20 choices. Service has been pretty consistent, and the burger has never come out dry or under. It's one of the few places that we'll drive across the island for because we know it's gonna be a good time.My one request - it's so hard to find Hana Hou Hefe on draft, which is one of my favorite local brews. The Counter still lists it on their drink menu, but hasn't had it for a while now - bring back Waikiki Brewing Hana Hou Hefe!

Amazing BISON BURGER!! I came back from Colorado and first tried a bison burger there. Is a must try - I prefer eating the burger there than taking it out. Take out was ok. It's more of myself being neat while eating. Service was quick both for take out and eating in. There's a wait at times. Casual and they have booth seating.

The burgers here are stacked and customizable. I usually just order their Counter burger with side of sweet potato fries. Their counter burger also included crispy onions rings and mushrooms, how could it's not be a perfect burger? The burger was seasoned and the buns were good and wasn't soggy even with the amount of ingredients stacked between them. The garlic aioli sauce is my favorite. Makes the burger even more delicious. The sweet potato fries are fine and the sauce on the side was great and unique. Counter really knows how to make sauces. The only and main issue I have is the temperature of the burger and fries. It always comes out cool not hot. The fries seem like it's been sitting out for a while and the burger has been cooked before hand and just got heated up.

Dude!... I don't know what these guys put into their burgers or how they marinate the veggies that top their burgers but talk about ONO! Our burgers consisted of Classic Cheese, Teriyaki, Bbq Bacon, Patty Melt and Texas Burbon Bbq all of which were ON POINT! All cooked entirely to our desire. Service was good, restaurant was very clean and just a killer location at Kahala Mall.

Yes! We were in the mood for some good old American burgers! Love that this place is close to home in Kāhala Mall so there's lots of parking and you know it's clean and spacious enough. It was a Friday evening and we made it in time for Happy Hour (M-F till 6pm starting at $4,$6,$8 menu). Our hostess greeted us to a clean and comfortable booth. There were lots on the menu to choose from indeed especially the sides and a mix and match option, too for only $12! Our waitress was friendly and kind. Lol! I think we ordered too much though- we ordered the mix and match- shoe string fries and shoe string onions (very delicious), a purist burger that I added lettuce and tomato with mayo on the side, a bacon barbecue burger and side hickory bbq wings for $8 happy hour price. We didn't finish it all but was happy with the food in general. Ok, one thing- chicken wings were in the small and super skinny side. I don't think we'll order that again although it did come with a couple celery sticks and ranch dressing. Nonetheless, it was a pleasant meal in a clean and friendly atmosphere. Bon appetite!

Burgers here are awesome. I like you can build your own burgers, parking can be hard here. Make sure you come early to find parking , service here was good too. Very nice clean restaurant as well.

Been coming here for years. Personally I feel like service and overall cleanliness of the restaurant has taken a slight decline recently, but for the most part servers are still polite and the food is good. It's a little pricey in my opinion but that's expected in this area and for customizable options.

So relieved they no longer have the QR code to pay your bill (my card got compromised,) but please make sure to check your bill before paying. If we hadn't checked our bill, we would have been incorrectly charged for a burger we didn't even order--$4 more than the burger we actually ordered. What made this kinda suspicious was that the employee didn't even wait for us to explain what the issue was on the bill, just said it'll be fixed. I love the burgers and fries here, but I ended up not feeling so great afterwards. Not sure if it was the burger or the fries or onion strings. We did have some issues with the burgers not being cooked to the way we ordered--too rare for a burger out. Kahala is kind of far from us, so if I'm craving a burger, I think I'll stick to a burger joint that's closer. After our last experience, I'm not sure I'd come back.

I hate to leave a bad review, but I hope this is taken as constructive criticism. Today, the service was not the best, as it took awhile for us to receive water, and we sat there for at least 30 minutes without even being greeted by a server. Also, it wasn't busy and there were no workers to be found. Altogether disappointed in the service. Burgers not worth the wait. Unfortunately would not recommend anyone to eat at this establishment, and will definitely not be coming again.