Hakone Buffet

There is something so inherently wrong about Japanese food being served up buffet style. I have always respected, to the point of cherishing, Japanese cuisine. To see nigiri and sushi rolls being mass produced just felt cheap. And that is, unfortunately, how I felt about the whole meal. The restaurant and wait staff were nice enough, but the food left you wondering why you wasted so many precious calories? I was treated by a relative so felt obligated to devour plenty of food to show her gift was appreciated. But I would never come back here again. Mainly because with so many delicious Japanese restaurant throughout Hawaii island, there is absolutely no reason why I would spend my hard-​earned cash to pay for a buffet with so much watered-​down, unappealing «Japanese» food.

We enjoyed having dinner at Hakone. It was our first time dinning there and the service was exceptional! The hostess was super nice and our server was so kind and friendly. We encountered a few of the staff as well and they were also pleasant.
We thought the food was terrific although my boyfriend felt the shimp tempura was more of a cake like substance rather than the authentic tempura batter (flakey). However, we still enjoyed dining at Hakone. The location and the atmosphere of the restaurant was easy to find. How could you go wrong with an beautiful view from the lobby as you walk to the restaurant?
I highly recommend everyone to try Hakone. Just a friendly reminder, as a kamaaina, you get a discount that they dont advertise. We will be back to dine at Hakone again!

Was hesitant after reading the previous reviews but was very happy with the buffet dinner tonight. Food and service were excellent. The only thing that wasn’t tasty was the Teri chicken. Felt a lot better paying $ 54 per person for this buffet than $ 94 per person for Mauna Kea’s Clam Bake buffet.

Terrible food. Not recommended.
The moment you walk in, there’s the scent of excessive butter. Cheap butter.
Japanese food shouldn’t be cooked with butter.

We had a really nice family dinner at Hakone, and thought it was good food for a reasonable price. Sushi (included ahi, salmon, unagi, and assorted maki (rolled) were tasty and replenished regularly. Crab legs were yummy! Salads were refreshing, particularly enjoyed the somen and the tomato and ogo salad (although referred to as fishy tasting bits of seaweed stuck to a tomato in another review, it is a favorite of locals). The assorted tempura (shrimp, eggplant, sweet potato, other assorted vegetables) we had were crispy and warm; about as good as can be expected for tempura not made to order. On the negative side, the teri steak tasted good, but was a little overcooked. Mahi didn’t go with the buffet, and was prepared more Mexican style. I wasn’t a fan of the dim sum; would prefer better made even if there was less of a variety.
Nice selection of desserts, key lime and various fruit tarts, chocolate. I didn’t have any, but the rest of family enjoyed it. And service was excellent! I don’t remember our server’s name, but she was tops!
I do miss the Hakone of the past where it was more of an authentic Japanese buffet. Definitely miss the miso butterfish and salmon, but they have kept the prices reasonable, and I feel we got what we paid for. We will definitely go back.

If «Hakone» is Japanese for «Rip-​off,» this restaurant has been aptly named. The Japanese seafood buffet at the Hapuna Beach Prince Resort was one of the most disappointing and overpriced dining experiences that we’ve had in quite some time. While the advertised menu items sounded enticing, the poor food quality and inattentive service were enough to quickly dispel any hope that we had of a pleasant meal. The sushi was at best of grocery store quality and as long as there was any remaining piece of Nigiri on the platter, the staff would not replenish the supply so the same undesired salmon and shrimp sat there for the duration of our meal while my husband repeatedly made reconnaissance trips to continually discover that the two pieces of Maguro that we had would be the only that we would get for the $ 54 per person fee. The «buffet» offered several salads, most of which were heavily mayonnaise laden and resembled some sort of potato salads along with a green salad which was actually edible once the fishy tasting bits of seaweed were removed from the tomatoes. The hot food items included tempura shrimp and vegetables all covered in an excessively heavy breading and none of which were actually kept hot. We were sorry that we even attempted to eat the cold, oily mess that ended up on our plates as it essentially felt like we’d guzzled down a bottle of Wesson oil. There was also some sort of very poor quality grilled tuna that lacked any moisture or flavor as well as some beef ribs, pork, and chicken that resembled something that one would expect to receive in a box of Chinese take-​out food. The assorted «dim sum» included something unidentifiable enveloped in a raw, uncooked dough which left us with miso soup and tofu to fill up on.
We didn’t even attempt to try the desserts as the main feature there appeared to be whatever fruit was left from that morning’s breakfast buffet at the Ocean Terrace. To further contribute to the lackluster experience, trays were provided on which to place the small plates, bowls, etc. and gather silverware to take to the table which gave the whole meal a cafeteria experience as we had trays and dishes stacking up on our table since we never saw our waitress again after she had initially served us the bottle of wine that we’d ordered. Including the inexpensive wine and gratuity, we ended up paying $ 170 for a meal of miso soup and grease-​soaked vegetables. When the waitress finally did show up to bring the check, my husband commented that the food really wasn’t very good to which her response was simply to laugh and walk away. While we love staying at Hapuna Beach, this resort absolutely has to improve their food quality as this was completely unacceptable and left us once again wondering why we even bothered to try one of the resort’s restaurants given the array of palatable options within easy driving distance.