3 Star Gourmet Restaurant

Some of the nicest, kindest people work here. The bus stop for the 4 heading toward Nuuanu and the 6 going to Pauoa stop literally right in front, at Queen and Richards. (Only the 6 headed to Ward, Ala Moana Center, and UH stops across the street.) But if you can’t do stairs, I haven’t seen anywhere you can get in. Call to check for sure.
I stop in while waiting for the bus to go home and they always work to make sure I don’t miss it. You can call in ahead of time (don’t forget to ask about their daily specials). Lots of daily specials. There are two TVs on the walls to entertain you. No AC, just fans.
My favorites: any of the cream soups (especially cream of broccoli), Portuguese bean soup, homemade fried chicken, and garlic chicken with noodles. The garlic sauce permeates the noodles and bottom of the chicken and it’s got a kick! But it’s spicy, not hot, so while your lips may buzz even wimps like me can take it. All of these are specials, except the fried chicken, which is a regular menu item. The fried chicken is American-​style, except that they use chunks rather than whole pieces.
You can skip the rice and get all salad — fresh, mixed greens, olives, tomatoes and more with what seems to be housemade dressings.
Only dessert is a rotating take on bread pudding. I’ve had the banana bread version and it was lovely. Recently they had an Oreo bread pudding and it was all I could do to resist.
I’ve also had the burger, grilled chicken marinara with parmesan, broiled rib eye, and hot pastrami. There was nothing wrong with them, but they didn’t make it to the top of the list. These are all regular menu items. One of these times I’m determined to have the prime rib special, which I keep missing!

I would give a 4– or even 5-​star rating, but for the fact that they keep shorting me of turkey on my club sandwich. The food is great and the service is good. However, twice I’ve received my club sandwich with pieces of turkey on each quarter of my sandwich that was no larger than a quarter.

Sadly this place does not live up to its name of 3 stars. The food is just kinda bland. The portions are decent and prices are good, but I expected more flavor. Also, the meat dishes I’ve ordered have been overcooked resulting in dry fish and chicken. I’ve heard the pastas are good but I’m not sure I’m willing to entrust them to make a decent sauce when they can’t even spice some basics. The only plus side is they gave me extra furikake for my rice… and boy do they like to give you rice.

«They» say you should eat fish or salmon at least twice a week. When I want salmon, this is my go-​to place. Its actually one of the only places I know of downtown that serves salmon on its daily menu. My absolute fav is the furikake salmon with the beurre blanc sauce — it is out of this world. You can choose between white rice or brown rice, and the plate comes with steamed veggies. Sometimes I forgo the rice altogether and just get all steamed veggies. They have daily specials and sometimes they have monchong which is cooked to perfection. I have had it cooked with beure blanc sauce and also cajun style. The chef here really knows how to cook his fish! I always order it well done (because I like my fish either cooked or not cooked, but not in between), and it is never dry and always moist.
You can either order take out, or you can order and then sit down in the fairly spacious dining area where the food will be delivered to your table. If you «eat in» they will serve your food to you on a real plate so I usually order take out and then sit down — that way I have a container for my leftovers. The portions are generous so I usually have leftovers.
The dining area is open and airy with several sets of tables and chairs. There is no air con, but the wide doorway allows for good enough airflow that I have never been uncomfortably warm. The staff is very friendly and welcoming. They have an efficient system of getting the food out without a super long wait. Your food is made to order though, so don’t expect really fast service. In fact, the kitchen is open and you can watch the chefs prepare your food!

I always have a good experience here. Food was once again good in quality, price and portions. Service continues to be consistent as well. I’m hoping they begin to offer different items maybe daily specials that they want to see what works or doesn’t work out.
The dining in option is convenient too. I like the casual setup. I would definitely recommend the shi katsu, crab cakes and fried chicken.

Prompt service… That’s about the only good thing I can say about this place.
Of my scrambles eggs with toast and link sausage the toast was the only decent part. My eggs arrived unseasoned and undercooked and the sausage was so dry to chew comfortably without a sip of water.
Needless to say, there are many better breakfast places to visit.

Their name is correct. It’s more then 3 stars but idk if it’s quite four. They have a wide menu selection and portions are good sized. Can never go wrong with their saimin & burger combo. The pastrami here is tasty too.

I work near here, so its an easy walk. My co-​workers who are local really like it, but I kind of shudder when they suggest it.
I have had the salmon and ribeye steak, and both left me feeling quite sick after eating.
I typically eat light lunches and when I eat meat, I prefer organic, so I think this may account for my stomach irritation.
The friendly staff and prompt service are great, and its very centrally located downtown.

Great food 3-​star, give yourself another half to whole star, you deserve it. I tend to get the Furikake crusted Salmon or Bento with Fried Chicken, Teri Beef and fried fish. The food always tastes great and is very consistent.
The atmosphere is a little bit hectic with the cars driving around, the people standing there awkwardly waiting for their togo orders and the yelling of numbers. Maybe they can just have a order number pop up on the board.
I would highly recommend that you come here if you’ve never been.

When I was going to HPU I would come here because it was my friend’s dad’s restaurant. Located in the old McDonald’s on Queen St so you know they have an awesome location. I came here for the ribeye… its a nice big cut and with even cost. I also love their grab cake burger sandwich. It’s so filling and delicious.
FYI: The restaurant also assisted my company in feeding the homeless by purchasing and preparing the food. The owners are giving and hard working.
Also HPU students get a 10% discount if they show their ID. Enjoy the awesome food Sea Warriors!

I ordered the Fried Rice with Portugese Sausage and it came soaked in Shoyu making it inedible. The lady at the counter was really sweet and made me scrambled eggs and toast as a replacement and it was good.

I really like these hard working folks here. The food is great for the price and I’ve always had nothing but quality grinds. I used to eat here more often when I worked downtown. They definitely don’t skimp on servings.
However, more recently, I’ve used them several times for catered events and the service was always great. In fact that’s why the high ratings from me because they provided everything from paper goods to table cloths, chaffing dishes and quality food at a very reasonable price. They are pretty flexible and accommodating to your budget. They were essentially a party ready to go!
Although they have a lot of catering menu choices they tend to specialize more in the Filipino food items (pancit, lechon, beef steak, pinakbet etc) particularly in the dessert areas as that’s all they offer is filipino desserts (biko, puto, cascarone, etc). So if that’s your cup of tea then by all means, you might like these folks. =)

With a name like Three Star Gourmet, one might think that the food is mediocre or that the owners are just modest. I think it’s the latter because this place deserves more than three stars!
I used to eat at Three Star Gourmet when it was located at the Remington College Building on Bishop St. When the old McDonald’s on Queen St. closed (still don’t know why it closed) Three Star opened another branch in that location; hence why it is called Three Star Gourmet II. This place has the same configuration as the old McDonald’s, but it is a lot more comfortable than the «Golden Arches».
Three Star serves breakfast and lunch. I heard some pretty good things about their breakfast, but being that I haven’t eaten breakfast here yet, I can’t verify that. However, the lunches here are pretty tasty and affordable. The lunch menu has a variety of salads, sandwiches, and hot dishes, including many local favorites. I am absolutely in love with the Pastrami Sandwich! I usually order that when I pick up lunch from here. The menu offers healthier selections, but has some greasy spoon dishes too.
The only negative comments I have about this place is that it is rather hot inside. The doors remain open the whole time and the hot air from the outside and the kitchen comes rushing in. Also, food here takes a little longer to receive so if you’re in a rush, you might want to find another option for a quick bite or call your order in.

Pretty decent food place in downtown! Wouldn’t say its on the healthy non gmo side of the block but from what I have tasted it is pretty good! I’ve had the ahi katsu, club sandwich, and sandwich, all good! The ahi katsu is no fresh catch status but is moist and has a wasabi aioli and sweet chili glaze, yum. The vegetables are sauteed in buttery goodness and the sauce goes good with the rice :) the club sandwich-​your basic and hard to mess up :) the ahi sandwich I am now in love with and will probably crave for from time to time! Two thick pieces of grilled ahi with melted cheese and grilled onions on a big, tasty sweet bread like bun. Like a Hawaiian arbys sandwich lol, so good!

Not a bad place for a plate lunch or a sandwich. I’ve had their fried chicken plate which was really good and their avocado sandwich with fries which was so-​so (it needed some bacon!). Prices are about $ 10.

Overall, I’d say «3 star» is accurately named… totally decent for a regular workday-​lunch, but nothing to rave about. Prices are average, portions are good (which means a filling lunch for one really big guy, or lunch + lunch-​the-​next-​day for me), and if you end up with leftovers, they are probably good enough to make it worth saving for later. I like that they use real plates (not paper or styrofoam) if you’re dining-​in, and the place is always spotlessly clean… though somewhat barren and basic. Ambiance is non-​existent.
All in all, this is the kind of place where I’m willing meet up with friends for lunch, if this is where they really want to go… but that’s about it… and I’ll always try to suggest other alternatives first! Seating is first-​come first-​serve, and it does get crowded sometimes… so larger groups should stake out a table first before committing (or go during off-​peak hours).

5.13.13.
3 stars for 3 Stars!
The menu has a pretty good selection of various types of cuisine; American, Italian, etc.
Opted for the Chicken over Linguini (New Orleans style, ~$ 8) – not too sure what this means but it was pretty tasty! It was a tad oily… but the cheesy, tomato, mushroom concoction was without a doubt YUM. The chicken was also seasoned to perfection and had a little kick to it too (perhaps this is the «New Orleans» influence).
I only wish this place served this with an alfredo sauce!
Unilocal 365 Challenge: #132/​365

When I first tried this restaurant several years ago, it was a 2 star, but after trying it again recently, they seemed to have improved their menu and cooking. Their menu is posted above the counter, so it’s easy to order:
Special of the Day pasta with fish (forgot what it exactly was titled) — 4 stars — for between $ 10 — $ 12, I think, they gave a whopping plate of fish on top of pasta and a piece of bread. The fish tasted fresh, and I was really full after eating the plate. The taste was ok for the price, especially since the price of fish is going up. The sauce was lightly flavored, but not the best I’ve tasted.
My friend ordered the crab cake sandwich which she thought was pretty good, but I can’t rate it since I didn’t try it.
Service is fast, tables were clean, and it’s a nice place to chat after ordering at the counter. They also bring your food to the table after ordering. I’d go here again but not often because although the price is a little higher than other lunch restaurants in town, the food is a little higher quality in presentation and taste, and the location as well as tables inside are very convenient to meet your friends and chat with in this restaurant if you work in town.

I stopped in for an early dinner and was craving a mushroom omelette. I didn’t have much time because I was waiting for my ride to come pick me up. The cook literally took less than 10 minutes to take my order, cash me out, and fix my order. Mush omelette with brown rice. Cost: about $ 7.
The omelette was perfectly cooked and LOADED and I mean LOADED with fresh mushrooms that were perfectly sliced. Not skimpy small mushrooms. These were costco sized thick cuts of fungus. The eggs were cooked perfectly. Not dry and overcooked. What I especially liked was it wasn’t salty.
It was so good, I went back the next morning for more.
Aside from the food, the place is inviting. I catch the bus from across the street and have been eyeballing this joint for weeks. I just never had the time to stop and get food. It’s at the top of a staircase and the doors are always open. It’s bright and clean and the menus are clear and bold. The dining area is clean and neat. There are also 2 small tables in front of the doors on the lanai for those who want to eat and run.

Was craving for a loco moco before work, walked around a couple of blocks and ended up here. Ordered their loco moco with fried rice underneath.
I only have good things to say.
Good sized, tasty homemade-​looking patty.
Awesome fried rice – did not skimp on any ingredients.
Terrific customer service! A very pleasurable experience dealing with its staff.