Surf’s Up Hawaiian BBQ

Okay so I just quickly browsed at the ratings this restaurant got and I want to tell you all why I’ve rated this place 5 stars. First off, every time I come in there is this sweet Asian man that greets me and is nothing but kind. Getting to the food, I love their Hawaiian BBQ. I haven’t read the reviews but they have Chinese food and Hawaiian BBQ. I love getting the chicken katsu that is prepared as you order it and also the Hawaiian mix plate. I always ask them for extra sauce for the chicken katsu because it is just the best sauce to go hand in hand with this plate. They serve you a scoop of rice and a scoop of macaroni. My fiancé tried to say that their noodles were not as great as this other Hawaiian joint he goes to (I believe, LNL Hawaiian BBQ) but when we compared the two side by side, I made him swallow his words. My brother has this place on speed dial! haha we really do enjoy coming here for that. Although I’ve rarely eaten here (I always order to-​go), I want to share that this was where I had my first date with my now fiancé. If I didn’t think the food was good (because I’m a foodie) I would have never suggested we eat here. Anyway, if you like to eat Chinese food then maybe this isn’t the place for you but for Hawaiian BBQ, absolutely! Check out my other review for a great Chinese restaurant across the street from this place.

3 stars for A-​OK, ya I’d go again. 2 combo meal for $ 5, hey not bad. Fish was good and so was the string beans and beef. Not overly spicy to hide/​add taste. Better than average and good enough to return again.
It’s Chinese food to go so watch how you carry out your take out or ask for a double bag cause the sauce is comin out for sure :)

Very decent place, for a fast food meal, or just beacuse you’re lazzy to cook.
This place is cool and the people are welcoming.
Always courteous, smiling and make you feel like you’re important to them.
Definitely recommended.

If you’re on the corner of Sunset Boulevard and La Brea Avenue (I’m not even going to ask what you were doing, dollface) and are in the mood for [cheap] food, you’ll find that a plethora of eateries — none of which are expensive — vie for the honor of accepting your dining-​out dollars, on all four corners of the intersection.
George and Abe are quite the eligible bachelors in this part of town.
If burgers are your bag, you’ve got Wendy’s and Burger King to clog your arteries, hardcore. If hoagies and heroes are your homeboys, Subway and Quizno’s bring in both the noise and the funk (and oil and vinegar/​salt and pepper) to the table, served on a baguette in sizes ranging from average to very well endowed.
If you’re itching for pizza in your face, there’s a New York Pizzaria next to El Pollo Loco, next to Wingstop, next to Starbucks, next to, next to…
You get it…
– So why go to Surf’s Up Hawaiian Barbecue, and battle for a spot in the Fall-​of-​Saigonesque parking lot it shares with 7 – 11, Subway, Ross Dress for MESS, H&R Block, and that internet café where all the dope pushers hang out?
You might have been lulled — as I was — by their low prices.
And it’s true — you can get a really big lunch for less than $ 5, however you DO get what you pay for, and your tongue isn’t going to fall in love with you all over again (did it EVER love you, with all the naughty words?) after you’ve been treating it to the Chinese food behind the sneeze guard.
The Chinese food isn’t terrible, and it isn’t wonderful. It’s just there, like an irregular pair of Calvin Klein briefs from Ross.
As far as the cooked-​to-​order BBQ items, they’re a bit pricier (albeit all still under ten dollars, so Alexander Hamilton can still take his pick!), and they’re far more memorable than the snoregasmic Chinese fare languishing beneath the heat lamps and the kayak that the owners bolted onto the wall to give the place ambiance.
The fried shrimp in particular (the #4, $ 6.95) is quite exceptional for the price, as are the SPAM wasabe ($ 2.95) and barbecued ribs ($ 8.95). All come with steamed rice (you can’t mess that up) and macaroni salad — which has the potential to be a disaster if done wrong, but Surf’s Up does it right, and it’s really good.
The Wonton Soup ($ 4.95 for a medium, $ 5.95 for a large) is also fantastic and easily worthy of a non-​stripper mall restaurant.
The store is family owned and the employees are very friendly. There are often flyers for gyms and various athletic events floating around the tables or cash register counter — sort of a wink and a nudge not to eat too much, or you’ll end up like that Jared guy from Subway next door.
The fat version of Jared, I mean.
(Even though he was more fun)

Oh no! We passed up Subway to try this place instead? The madness!
So paired with the beating sun and the long walk, we wanted to reward ourselves with some decent grease that day. (Ha! Who am I kidding?) We ended up @ Surf’s Up Hawaiian BBQ which is a little place located in a strip mall off of Sunset & La Brea. Not much seating but it’s manageable if you plan on grabbing a quick bite to eat. They’ve got decent prices that will make you hear evil thoughts. «Come hither Irma, come here and eat MY food!» Oh no!!! Low and behold, I was lured in. I ordered Chow Mein ($ 3.99) & a side of broccoli. Chow Mein was ‘meh’ while the broccoli lacked taste in general. My friend ordered the Chicken Teriyaki bowl. Overall, this fused Hawaiian /​Chinese establishment didn’t make much of an impression on me but I’m sending them happy thoughts in hopes that one day it gets better. Lesson learned, you get what you pay for… darn those evil voices… darn them. :)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~
²⁄₅ Ambiance — The mood, character, quality, tone, atmosphere.
²⁄₅ Service –Helpful, accommodating, efficient, delivery and speed?
¹⁄₅ Food /​Merchandise — Quality, taste, presentation.
³⁄₅ Price — Reasonable, inexpensive, high priced?

This is the type of place that is up to you and what you order to determine satisfaction. The made-​to-​order combos are good and fresh-​tasting. The pre-​prepared chinese food can be good if you go early and it is super-​fresh from the kitchen. From mid-​afternoon to closing… if not busy, they do not re-​fill the hot bins and whatever is left will be cold and stale.
Overall, not bad for a quick bit and more nutricious than typical fast food!

Panda Express???

So here I was about to shop at Ross to look for cheap pantyhose and women’s gloves (No, I’m not a tranny ready for the corner, it was for my Halloween costume). Before going in I notice Subway and Surf’s up, a Hawaiian place. Well, I’m hungry and I love Hawaiian, so I walk over and see a security guard and ask: «How’s the Hawaiian?» He quickly replied; «I’m fine how are you?» Since I didn’t want this to turn into an Abbott and Costello skit, I acted accordingly, like I’m genuinely curious about his well being, but I couldn’t care less, I was hungry. I looked through the window to a colorful and inviting illuminated menu and momentarily contemplated the safe choice, Subway, next door. Being the maverick-​rebel that I am, I completely ignore the big blue «B» in the window and strolled my hungry ass inside.
As I looked down at the hot pans, I noticed the offerings weren’t terribly different than say, Panda Express, except less choices. The menu was much more bountiful though. Besides things like Grilled Spam with sticky rice and seaweed, and a few other things, it was basically a Chinese menu with extras. I suppose if you put a few Hawaiian favorites together and add BBQ flavor, it instantly becomes Hawaiian. They further convince you with the surfboards on the wall and the tiki décor. I was pretty hungry and opted for the Hawaiian BBQ mix. Sort of a sample dish for me to get a taste of the place. BBQ chicken, BBQ Beef and short ribs. This plate is rounded off with shreds of lettuce (iceberg), white steamed rice (two huge scoops), and macaroni salad.
As I wait for the food, I sit and notice the two young guys that were eating, one guy on his mobile from the moment I entered the place and talking as if he was alone. His buddy, for the twenty minutes I was there, did nothing but udder «uhem!» every few minutes, clearing his throat (hint, get off the phone moron!)
I got my meal and noticed it was about a pound and then some. Ok, I’m not a small guy, but this was too much. One thing I will give them is portions are very large. That’s not always a good thing, but its better than too little food.
I started with the ribs. Nothing special. BBQ flavor on all the meat was the same and very generic. Chicken was a little fatty, but decent. The beef had decent flavor but there was some serious gristle hidden in there. I’ve chewed my bubblicious less than this stuff. Rice was rice, and if a few Chinese behind the counter can’t make steamed rice, then what the hell can they do, right? The macaroni salad had that very familiar Smart & Final scoop out of a tub flavor we all seem to have had. Ya know whadda mean, where it tastes weird, but for some reason you pile another spoonful in your face as if it’s laced with crack? WTF is the deal with that? I’m sure its part a conspiracy to get in our heads. Doritos, Oreos, Ritz, Big Mac’s… They’re also in on the hidden crack conspiracy to make us eat till we explode. Don’t EVEN get me started on Pringles. Commie bastards. Come to think of it, the mac salad wasn’t that good, so never mind. I also ordered a «mocha». That’s in quotes, so you can figure out why.
I thought, only in America. My favorite sushi chef is Guatemalan, my favorite Italian place is full of Mexican cooks, and now I’m eating «Hawaiian» food prepared by a Chinese guy while listening to a young Armenian guy on his phone jabbering away in native tongue, while some quasi-​gansta rap was pumping out of the overheads.
I couldn’t finish my food, and that’s rare. Part portion, part the fact that it wasn’t that great, and part that I was starting to get gassy. I washed it down with my «mocha» and the methane factory was open for business.
Shopping at Ross afterwards, I tried my best to keep gassing only clear areas, but every time I launched an invisible cloud from my shorts into what I thought was an empty isle, someone would immediately walk into it. Of course, I acted as if I were yet another victim of someone else’s horridness; I over-​acted being disgusted and even gave that person a temporary eye as if to suspect them! Unfortunately, if there are only two of you, everyone knows who did it. So I left the store empty handed (and left it a bit more polluted than when I found it). By this time, I had enough gas to get to Pittsburgh and back, but home was my goal and off I went.
I’m 101% certain that I will not return to Surf’s Up. Overall, it wasn’t as bad as I’ve had, but the fake coffee mocha and mediocre meat quality, so-​so BBQ flavor not to mention the hole I blew in my boxers from my rear-​facing flamethrower, is enough to keep me on the hunt for something a little better.
I think in this case, BBQ stands for Booty Be Quiet!!!

This place is a bit strange, but it’s not too bad — as long as you get the BBQ and stay away from the Chinese menu.
Much like Ryan, I’m driving through the area and want something quick… so I see «Hawaiian BBQ» — which I usually dig. When I walk in, what I see is a steam tray display case with mostly scary-​looking, or at best sad-​looking, Chinese food. «Yeesh.» Then I look up on the wall and see beautiful pictures of the made-​to-​order BBQ stuff I came looking for. Okay, now I get it… Hawaiian *and* Chinese. It’s 3 p.m., so I dismiss timing as the cause for the wreckage of the Orient Express behind the glass… and I’m feeling somewhat adventurous.
I place my order for a combo platter with chicken & beef, open up my wallet, and the lady has disappeared. So I’m just standing there at the counter with a dumb look on face, thinking, «You guys want some money? If this grub is free, can I at least get my soda?» A couple minutes later, the lady comes back out and calls a pick-​up for someone else’s order. I finally realize I’m supposed to go sit my ass down and wait to pay (and quench my thirst) until my order’s ready. Okay. :-\
After my name is called and I finish the transaction, I pick up the tray with my drink and closed foam container — noticing it weighs about five pounds. Sit down, open it up, and there I discover three enormous slabs of meat, a big scoop of steamed rice, and of course a large glob of macaroni salad. It’s truly a mountain of food, and it actually looks like the stuff I saw in the picture. Things might work out after all.
Actually, things did work out okay. The grub was plentiful and decent. The meat was flavorful, especially the beef. The chicken was also pretty good too. (If you order it, just be aware this isn’t breast meat — it’s dark meat that has some fat and knuckles in it — which is really more suitable for this style [and price] of cooking.) The rice was nice and sticky, the way I like it, and I think I would have gone double on that in lieu of the macaroni. It was a *huge* amount of food, and with a drink it was about nine bucks. You can do much worse.
Other than the questionable Chinese menu and the confusing ordering process, the only other complaint I have is the parking lot. It’s a bit of a clusterfuck, obviously due to the Ross next door.

In my ongoing quest to try every Hawaiian BBQ place I can find, I dragged my poor bf here the other night. I was immediately put on guard by the combination of Chinese fast-​food and Hawaiian plate lunch – it’s never a good sign when restaurant tries to do two things at once.
We got the seafood combo plate (mahi-​mahi, fried shrimp and BBQ chicken) and the shrimp with lobster sauce. The grilled chicken and fried shrimp were fine, if nothing special, but the mahi was dry and none too fresh. The macaroni salad was actually pretty good.
As for the Chinese food, we got shrimp swimming in thickened egg drop soup with peas and carrots. Now that’s just insulting – as if the cook either has no idea what lobster sauce is, or assumes his patrons don’t. I’ve seen this at other crappy Chinese restaurants and it’s a sure sign of culinary apathy.
Surf’s Up is located in a strip mall with a small, crowded parking lot that’s a nightmare to negotiate during the day. It’s not as bad in the evening, presumably because half the businesses are closed.
If you’re looking for Hawaiian plate lunch in Hollywood, just go further east on Sunset and head over to Ono.

OK, I am the one that tried the Chinese food. Didn’t think I would be disappointed but I was. Noodles were OK, but the orange chicken is not worth trying. Maybe it was a bad night. The grilled chicken looked (and was) very good — yes, I got a bite from my dinner companion.
So word to the wise, eat the Hawaiian dishes when going here. If I had, it would have gotten 3 stars.

i felt my heart drop upon entering surf’s up hawaiian bbq because the owners were drilling holes in a surfboard, getting ready to hang it in the store. nonetheless they serve up a decent mix plate. this joint offers up hawaiian style mix plates and also serves steam-​heated chinese food (think: panda express). i haven’t tried the chinese food but the bbq mix plate i had was good as was my girlfriend’s katsu (good chicken & panko, not overfried or greasy). the mac salad had a nice tang to it. my only minor gripe is that the rice wasn’t terribly sticky, possibly because it was prepared by chinese hands and therefore not washed prior to cooking.
the parking lot can be insane at times. however, i believe i’ll be making a return visit whenever i get the urge for mix plate.