Group Dinner for 50 in Honolulu
 

I am organizing a group business dinner for about 50 people in Honolulu. The meeting is at the Hilton Hawaiian Village hotel so would prefer a restaurant off site but close by. I am also looking for a private room for dinner. Something nice, preferably no big chains. Roy's is here in Chicago and we had a dinner there already this year. Something with a view would be nice. Thanks!

By "close by" do you mean walking distance, or just not too far of a drive? If you're willing to go a quick drive, I've been to group dinners at Brew Moon at Ward Centre and they were nice.

http://brewmoon.com/parties.asp

Sorry for not being clear but yes either a short walk or short cab ride would be good. Thanks for your suggestion.

how about the willows restaurant? it's about a 10 minute ride from waikiki.

not been there for dinner but have been for sunday brunch. there are separate dining sections and the buffet was in a section by itself. there is a party room to the rear. it's fabulous food, a great atmosphere (relaxed tropical, and you'd never guess it from the outside or the neighborhood). www.willowshawaii.com. no view but garden setting.

most places in/near waikiki i can think of that can handle a big group is at another hotel's restaurant or banquet room.

if fine dining is your thing there is always chef mavro's, but i've not been there (yet!) and don't know if they can handle a private party of 50. if they can, it's only like 5 min drive from the hilton. his new restaurant can, cassis, but it's in chinatown (15 min. by car), though the news said it has a view of honolulu harbor. chef mavro has got accolades galore from fodors, gourmet magazine, the ny times, etc etc. cassishonolulu.com.

good luck to you!

If you drive to cassis, you might as well eat at Chai's at Aloha Tower Marketplace! www.chaisislandbistro.com

No view, but he has some amazing live local entertainment every night. (Not as expensive as Mavro's.) He could arrange for your party to be in the outdoor Satay Bar area.

Shanghai Bistro is walkable, right down the road, and it can handle a dinner party of 50 (pre-arranged, of course). The private room will not accomodate a group this large but perhaps you can arrange for partitions.

The Golden Dragon at the Hilton has private rooms that can handle a group this size and these rooms have a view.

Thanks. I actually have looked into Cassis and it looks good but I have seen some reviews that are less than favorable. Anyone else have any thoughts on Cassis? I also am curious about Diamond Head Grill.

Cassis is pretty overpriced IMHO. I went once, to the grand opening. I *think* about going back. My friends went once for Happy Hour and said it was empty! Not because it was bad...I guess there are so many good places in Honolulu, it's hard to justify the value of Cassis.

Diamond Head Grill....in the W?

Yes, it is in the W.

Diamond Head Grill does have a private room with a view of Kapiolani Park. The ambiance of the W is upscale. I've not been disappointed with the food, although the restaurant has been through many incarnations.

The Willows was an interesting suggestion. It will give you the opportunity to choose between sit down or a varied buffet that has some local food items. The setting is tropical.

Chais is a very good option, your guests will appreciate walking around aloha tower after dinner too. Its the equivalent to south street seaport or Boston's Nathaniel Hall, if you know.

Another option opposite end of Waikiki would provide a lovely view is the Colony surf restaurant, Michel's. Private room and view, not sure that will happen at the same time but they have a wonderful view. Here is a link to the view I found online.

I ate here years ago and loved it, post for a more recent review. 50 people might just book out the place, call and find out.

http://www.dreamweddingshawaii.com/graphics/72.jpg

I have narrowed down my options to Diamond Head Grill or Chai's Island Bistro. Which would you choose and why? They seem pretty different and are in opposite directions.

Is Chai's in downtown Waikiki? Someone I mentioned it to didn't think downtown Waikiki was a nice area....not sure what was meant by that. I have never been to Oahu.

"Downtown" and "Waikiki" are two separate areas, and many tourists get confused on this. Downtown Honolulu is basically our financial district, about 3.5 miles away from the Hilton. The Diamond Head Grill is about 2.5 miles away from the Hilton,but in the other direction.

I don't know about the DH Grill, but Chai has live local entertainment nightly so that adds to your overall experience. (and not just any old entertainment--the Brothers Cazimero, Jerry Santos, Robi Kahakalau, Makana, sometimes Jake Shimabukuro if he's in town.)

Neither restaurant has a view, although DH grill has a "view" of Kapiolani Park. during dinner, you can't see it.

When is your dinner? I can check to see who is playing at Chai's that night.

It is in November. I don't think any one going would know the musicians but thanks.

Cerlaurie,

If its a choice between Chai's or DH Bistro my choice would be Chai's, hands down,no question, not even close. The entertainment at Chai's is fantastic as is the food and your group will love it, trust me.

DH Bistro is boring and the food in not really that good imho. The waiters there are also young and think they are all that when obviously they are not. DH Bistro is for the twenty something crowd. Hope this helps!

Aloha!

It's OK. After seeing his entertainment, everyone will surely know. If you go home and tell people you saw the Brothers Cazimero in Hawaii, people "in the know" will say, "ooooooooooo." I guess my point was, the entertainment Chai brings in are top-notch--not just any old schmoe.

Melissa, I decided to go with Chai's. However, I am still confused about the area. Would this be considered downtown? Thanks. Sorry for my ignorance. :-)

Chai's is on the waterfront edge of downtown, in the aloha Tower marketplace. Sounds like you'll have enough people to get the whole inside of the Chai's or the whole outside area.

It isn't far from HHV, but is too far to walk.To get everyone there, you might consider renting a trolley. That would be memorable, and probably just as cheap as 12 taxis to and from.

or a Limo! Chai's always has stretch limos coming by. Yes, it's downtown. email me at [email protected] and get me the date, and I will let you know more details if you wish.

I also agree that, if you are willing to come to the downtown area, Chai's would be a more interesting choice for you than Cassis.

More interesting setting, varied menu. entertainment...

You just threw everyone off by asking for a venue close to the Hilton Hawaiian
Village. You need to be more precise in
your specifications the next time that you have a travel inquiry.