Bikini Beach Cafe

Just walked off of Waikiki beach. Sand still in my toes. Hot. Sweaty. Thirsty. Needed to find something refreshing to cool down and within a small budget. I Spy… a shave ice sign! Low and behold, this little shack off of the surf/​paddle board lined path came to my rescue.
The crayon-​colored photo of a Rainbow Shave Ice in a bowl looked SO GOOD! Haha. Take my $ 6 NOW! The fragile Japanese worker took my money and proceeded to make my order.
Hmmm. As I was taking photos of the shop, I noticed the shave ice was being placed into a clear cup. Okay. Whateva. I just needed something cold and refreshing, right?! It didn’t actually have to look like the coloring book photo, did it? Haha. Well, a few more minutes passed by and my order was still not done. So, I turned to my hubby and said, «Matsumoto’s is a well-​oiled machine compared to this place.» I only ordered one Shave Ice, so I was confused as to why it was taking so long. Luckily, there weren’t any other customers in line.
Suddenly we hear, «Sumimasen.» I guess we look Japanese now? Hehe. I didn’t mind. I understood what she was saying (Excuse me). She explained the equipment was suddenly broken and offered a refund. I told her it was okay and I’d accept what she had already made so far, which was ¹⁄₃ cup full with red, orange, and yellow syrups. She apologized and handed over my Shave Ice. It still looked decent. And yummy! Then, she proceeded to give me a refund, too. Wow! I wasn’t expecting it, but she insisted and I obliged.
I ended up finishing the shave ice as I continued to walk through the corridor and onto Kalakaua. Even though it didn’t turn out right, it actually worked well in a cup. Because of the heat, it quickly turned into an ice cold drink. And hey, it was free. Score!
All cooled down now, I was recharged and ready to enjoy the rest of my walk around Waikiki!

Not sure what has happen but this place has gone down hill. Price has gone up ($ 5 for 1 flavor and $ 6 for 3 flavor, $ 1 for ice cream) and portions are not big compared to what we experienced in the past. From the moment we got it, the syrup sunk to the bottom and I’m not even sure if there was ice cream in it. I think there was as we saw bits of melted chocolate ice cream, weird as I would have assume it would be vanilla ice cream. This is the last time we will be coming to this place.
Service is non existent but sometimes that’s what you get with this area. The rating is based on the poor quality and taste of the shave ice and not the lack of service.

Came back again this year and it’s fallen off a bit. Shaved ice wasn’t as fluffy and the flavors weren’t quite as I remember. Maybe I came on an off day, but try one cup before committing to ordering a bunch for the family as I did. Still good, just not the best.

The place is just past the Cheesecake Factory. It’s down a corridor lined with stand up paddle boards.

My wife had heard about this place and so we had to get some shave ice on a perfectly warm day. If you’re not from the area this place is hard to find. They are located in the alley where you see a bunch of surfboards (stored while not in use). You definitely get a better deal by buying 3 flavors for $ 6 than you do buying 2 flavors for $ 5. We chose Strawberry, Lime, & Capico… amazing flavor combo. They do not strive on customer service. I believe we were being helped by a Japanese girl (only for identification purposes… not to judge her by her ethnicity). She made my shave ice, said the price, and that was it. I most likely would not go to this place again. I’ll find another place for shave ice next time.

Everyone kept saying that we had to have shaved ice in Hawaii, so on our way to the beach we passed here and stopped to try it. We ordered passion fruit orange and pineapple with condensed milk. It was so good!!! It was big enough for two to share. Perfect to sit on the sand and enjoy.

I stop here on my way to the beach to get some shaved ice. This was my first time having some Hawaiian shaved ice so I was super excited. I went with passion orange, pineapple and condense milk. It was $ 4.50 but it was huge, enough to share. I really enjoyed and finally understood what is the different between shaved ice and a snow cone. This is the perfect snack on a hot beach day, now if they only added some rum :)

Our 1^st day in Honolulu we went for a search for Hawaiian shaved ice. This is where Unilocal lead us too. we were not dissapointed. I was hungry to so I ordered the bento first.
Bento included: a box of rice topped with teriyaki chicken, SPAM, and a sausage. It was a quick bite, but it was tastey! The chicken was still cold on the inside, they should have warmed it up more, but it was good.
My favorite way to order shaved ice is: vanilla ice cream on the bottom, shaved ice. Favorite flavors are watermelon, pog, strawberry, or guave, depends on what they have, and condensed milk on top. YUM!
Kinda hard to find. Gotta go past Cheesecake Factory into the alley with the surfboards. Definitely would go here again!

A giant 2 flavored shaved ice enough to share for $ 4.50. Great deal in Waikiki! We got piña colada and melona (melon) flavors. Hubby said the flavors stay in the ice. Thumbs up!

After spending the morning at Waikiki beach, we headed home through a pathway of surfboards (near Cheesecake factory if you’re coming from the street). There lies the Bikini beach café. Unilocal reviews gave us the green light and the kiddos went running to the stand. This marks Day 2 of our «Hunt for the Best Hawaiian Shaved Ice» adventure.
We got 2-​FLAVORS Shaved ICE ($ 4).
–Kid’s choice was strawberry and blue raspberry this time. More generic flavors, but quite refreshing this time around.
-$ 0.50 for condensed milk. .
-$ 0.50 for a scoop of vanilla ice cream on the bottom.
They were generous with the portions. We even had to ask them to hold back on too much condensed milk. TEXTURE of ice was not snow-​like like Waiola, but leaned more on the icy side. Taste like evenly shaved ice chips. Both were good, but we liked this one better. Perhaps, the location and convenience helped too.
It really HIT THE SPOT after a long swim and sweating in the sun.
*Don’t forget to SIP all the melted GOODNESS on the bottom of your bowl. That was our favorite part once again. YUM!
TID BITS:
–CASH ONLY
–1 small bench available. Just eat it at the beach!
–Hot foods and spam musubi as available.
–NOT easy access if you’re driving here. Parking is a challenge.
CAUTION: plastic container is very flimsy and can tip over easily. We really appreciated that they had a napkin dispenser available to wipe off the dripping sugary water. Most other places made us to ask for more napkins, which can get annoying.
We all agree that this was one of our TOP 3 shaved ice during our Hawaiian shaved ice spree! 5 stars for taste and convenience!!!

Couldn’t Find Li Hing Flavored Shave Ice — But This Was Just As Good! Perfectly Soft Ice With Yummy Flavors! I Tried Pineapple & Melona. Mmmm…

Great convenient location by the beach. It’s in an alleyway where surfboards are stored. We accidentally stumbled upon the location and treated us with some shaved ice. Service was a little slow, but it was worth the wait. I just wish shaved ice places would stay open at night

My family and I visited this establishment a couple of times on our recent stay at Waikiki. I found this place through Unilocal and was glad to have tried it. On our first visit, we came right after closing time. They literally had the window closed and were cleaning up. We peeked in through the side door and a woman was kind enough to let us order shaved ice eventhough they were officially closed. That was very sweet especially because I had my son who was looking forward to it. I ordered the pina-​colada and pineapple flavored shaved ice with ice cream and azuki beans. I told them not to add the condensed milk to cut the sweetness. The shaved ice was yummy. The ice was soft not the snow cone type that they serve at the North Shore. I truly enjoyed it. I also liked that you had to walk down an alley where surfboards are parked. It makes for a very beachy setting. If you’re looking for shaved ice in Waikiki, give this small spot a try.

What a tricky place to find! Sweet & tasty shaved ice to keep you cool in Honolulu!
Passing by the many surfboards, the tiny little shop is right in the middle between the sandy beach and the street. I was greeted by the girl at the window and I ordered my 3 flavors shaved ice — I got pineapple, piña colada, and strawberry. I really enjoyed the strawberry and piña colada flavor! The pineapple flavor was lacking a bit, though. I love watching the ice being shaved with their machine and being piled into the blue cup. It came out to be a lot! They gave me a spoon and told me to enjoy! The shaved ice was so pretty that I didn’t even want to eat it without taking a picture.
Very enjoyable especially under the hot, sunny weather by the beach! The little shop closes pretty early so make sure you get it after lunch as dessert! Also, it’s cash only!

Mediocre shave ice, very few flavors (all artificial), decently priced though. If you were hoping for an experience anything like the shave ice on Maui (Local Boys) or Kauai (Ono Ono) you will be severely disappointed. Oahu doesn’t have good shave ice folks. If you really want good shave ice on Oahu, go to Shimazu (and bring a spoon as they aren’t free).

Great little hole in the wall right next to Waikiki Beach — we didn’t have any food here, but we tried their Shave Ice. It was wonderful! Really large serving with a good choice of flavors. It really hit the spot since it was really hot and humid the day that we were at the beach. Really friendly service too — we appreciated how nice the folks behind the counter were! :)

Good shaved ice, great service, best location!
Their shaved ice is huge. enough for 2 – 3 people. I can’t say it’s the best I’ve had on the island, but it is perfect for cooling off on the beach. It is tricky to find. If you’re coming from the Waikiki beachwalk, get yourself to the Royal Hawaiian and go into the alley btwn Cheesecake Factory and Coach. When you see rows of surfboards leading to the beach, walk straight ahead and it’ll be on your right. If you’re at the beach, just go towards the pink umbrellas at Royal Hawaiian and walk into the alley leading to the beachwalk.
On a sidenote, I saw photos of what looked to me like chili cheese fries on Unilocal.But apparently they’ve never sold fries here. I asked the lady working there and she told me that fries were never on their menu.

Ooh lala good! The café was hidden in one of the alley way heading to the Waikiki beach. I’m glad I stumbled upon it.
The price is right & the flavors were right on. I paid about $ 5-​$ 6 for a rainbow shaved ice with ice cream & condensed milk. Yummy! I went there twice. I tried to go back a 3^rd time before leaving Oahu, but they were closed ;(
I would TOTALLY come here again if I’m ever back in Oahu.

Cute establishment. It was a little hard to find, but it is in a alley that is adjacent to the Royal Hawaiian Center. It’s actually a perfect location because it leads straight to a Waikiki Beach access point.
There’s various things on the menu but I believe their claim to fame is the shaved ice. For $ 4, you get a generous helping of the flavor (s) of your choice. My personal favorite was passion fruit! Flavorful and pleasantly sweet. Loved it! I had to make 2 visits to this place.
Cash only…

Restaurant Review
Bikini Beach Café
Royal Hawaiian Shopping Center, Waikiki Beach, Honolulu
Located in an alley on the side of Royal Hawaiian Shopping center is a small treasure. Owner Darryl Lee has created this little oasis for refreshments. This is a small closet sized café that is serving drinks, shave ice and some food. The menu is standard beach food, hamburgers, hotdogs with one exception. The exception being «barbacoa». Barbacoa is a form of cooking meat that originated in the Caribbean with the Taíno people, from which the term «barbecue» derives.[1] Wikipedia
This sounds promising. Many restaurants in Hawaii and around the country serve barbecue and depending on the region, the preparation of this dish changes. The choice to add barbacoa to the menu elevates the menu selection to another level. Instead of the typical beach cuisine that is served in Waikiki, you have a sandwich that is like pulled pork with the taste that Chef Deidre Todd brings to the dish.
Look forward to this little oasis in Waikiki when you are near the Royal Hawaiian Center.