Sunrise Restaurant

“ So there aren't many vegetarian options but they will make some dishes vegetarian if you ask. And I love bitter melon, so this place gets a big thumbs-up from me. The food is very homey and so is the interior of the restaurant. I mean, you feel like you're eating in your auntie's living room. In a good, nostalgic way. The miso soup tastes like the one my mom used to make (warning...NOT vegetarian). And the bitter melon with egg is delicious. I could eat that every day. Parking is a challenge but luckily, I can walk here. ”

Randall M.

“ Haven't been for a while...was nice to go back. Called for a reservation before they opened...and they called me back right away! We went early so found parking in the little lot...otherwise it can be a challenge. Still BYOB so that's nice...and saves money! No high chair so we brought baby's chair. - Pig's Feet Soup - Hubs liked it. I have a hard time with the feet itself but the soup was ono. - Combo Sushi and Okinawan Soba - Yummy. Baby liked it too. - Grilled Saba - cooked perfectly. - Okinawan Tempura - not bad. Batter is more like at the local okazuyas than the Japanesey kine I like. But was tasty. Just a nice little family date night. Had another fam like ours so talk story with them little while. Good food, good night. ”

Akemi O.

“ 1st time here, found street parking! Passed by this place many times. Saw "Food Fiend" vlog about this place. So ono!! Thank you ”

Kuki O.

“ Sunrise Restaurant is in the Kapahulu area and they have a small lot that can fit up to two cars out in front. Otherwise it's residential parking, metered parking on Kapahulu or the paid lot across the street next to Side Street Inn. The restaurant looks a little run down outside and inside is cozy but dated. It feels sort of nostalgic though. They offer Okinawan food and IMO, their cuisine is a little bland for my personal tastes but it's still good nonetheless. Healthy food and Sunrise Restaurant offers a good selection of items. I was super lucky because on the day I came, someone was just leaving that was parked right in front of the restaurant. We entered and were greeted immediately. Within moments we received our menus, napkin, chopsticks and water. We ordered their Combination: Sushi & Soup. One with Pig Feet Soup and one with Spare Rib Soup. I got my sushi with no salmon so they subbed it with tako. The kitchen was quick and we ate in no time. We did share a piece of each of the pig feet and spare rib so we could both try it. Both were super tender and the portion size of the meal was just right. The hot sauce in the golden tube is amazing! Paul C raved about it so I had to try it for myself. It was delicious and the perfect condiment for me with Okinawan food. I feel bad because I think I used about 1/3-1/2 the tube lol. It was a nice addition to the Spare Rib and Pig Feet but it was phenomenal in the soup. My soup was red! Don't worry, I drank it all so I wouldn't waste a drop. I don't want to write a whole paragraph just on the hot sauce so...customer service was friendly from entry to exit of the restaurant. Great Okinawan restaurant in the Kapahulu area with legit hot sauce! ”

Daniel C.

“ Yes, an authentic Okinawa restaurant in Kapahulu, Honolulu named Sunrise Restaurant! Present husband-wife owners, Chokatsu & Tomoko Tamayose, both from Okinawa, opened this hole-in-the-wall restaurant in 1999, which has been in operation for the past 25 years! Chokatsu's aunty, Kiyo Irei, formerly owned this shop called Sunrise Coffee Shop and cooked home-style Okinawan dishes for the community. The restaurant offered many Okinawan immigrants, their kids, & students a place that reminded them of their homes in Okinawa. After she retired in 1998, diners missed her cooking. Chokatsu told her that he had wanted to open his own sushi restaurant, but Kiyo suggested that he combine Okinawan food with sushi, as she promised to teach him her Okinawan recipes & help him run the restaurant. And this began Sunrise Restaurant. The owners embody the spirit of "icharibe-choda," which is an Okinawan phrase that is a secret to happiness in promoting brotherhood & teamwork that makes people help each other, i.e., treating everyone like family, even if you've never met them before. Thus, Sunrise Restaurant became a gathering place for HI's Okinawan community with its generous hospitality. After the pandemic, Sunrise Restaurant was faced when challenging financial problems as to whether they could continue operations, as with other small local mom-&-pop restaurants. Fortunately, close friends of the owners came to the aid in contacting professionals to provide social media, legal, financial, marketing and food industry assistance in keeping the restaurant afloat. Even students that the owners had helped years before, came back to help out! Menu offerings include: sushi; sushi & soup combo; sashimi; soba; soup (pig's feet, spare rib, miso, oxtail); pork bittermelon; pork tofu; yakisoba; fish (salmon, mackerel, Hamachi kama, salmon dynamite); pork cutlet; tempura; fried squid; poke. An additional $3 will get you rice, miso soup, & takuan. Certain dishes are served on specific days of the week or may be sold out, so if you're set on a dish, call ahead to ensure that they will have it available. And it's BYOB! We had the following: * Sushi & pig's feet soup special. Freshly made sushi includes 3 pcs maguro, 2 pcs hamachi, 1 pc ika, 2 pcs CA roll, 1 tamago with ginger & wasabi; great presentation & not fishy. Served temperature hot, the clear soup had a huge piece of pig's feet, mustard cabbage, daikon, konbu; it was very flavorful & not overpowering. * Salmon dynamite. Delicious salmon topped with onions & mushrooms in a special mayo sauce. Very tasty salmon that was excellent with hot rice. Loved the presentation with the top somewhat charred & accompanied with about a dozen half slices of fresh cucumbers. * Miso soup, rice, takuan. The flavorful miso soup was loaded with mustard cabbage, wakame, tofu, egg, daikon. Rice was temperature hot & fluffy; takuawan was bright yellow & very crunchy. Chokatsu & Tomoko are very welcoming, friendly & will make the diners feel comfortable by interacting with their customers. Chokatsu runs the sushi counter & cooks in the kitchen, while Tomoko works in the front in taking/serving your order & takes your payment. After Chokatsu is done cooking dinner on a Sat. night, he provides entertainment for all! He will play the sanshin, a 3-string Okinawan banjo covered with snakeskin, with a Japanese soup spoon. He will start singing, & diners will join him in traditional Okinawan singing & dancing. So, once you're seated, there are no time limits as to how long you can stay there, so prepare to have a good time! Reservations, even for just 2 people, are necessary, as you would be turned away if seats are not available. Note that even for a weekday lunch when I called about whether reservations were required for the 2 of us, Tomoko made a reservation, as the last hour of the lunch hour had people trickling in for a meal. The restaurant exterior certainly does not reflect the ambiance & décor of the interior. With seating for only about 20 people, the interior gives you a feeling that you're in your aunty's home, with the décor of pictures, trinkets, origami cranes, Japanese beer bottles, posters, photos, & more. Hours of operation are Mon to Fri 11:30a to 2 for lunch, Sat 5:30p to 9p for dinner, Sun closed. However, large private parties with minimum 15 people may reserve the restaurant on Sundays. Restaurant front is on Herbert St, which is off of Kapahulu Ave & about a block from Rainbow Drive In. Parking can be challenging, as there are only 3 free parking stalls fronting the restaurant. Otherwise, there is a public parking lot nearby, metered parking on Kapahulu Ave, & street parking in the neighborhood. What a great restaurant for homestyle & old-school Okinawan cuisine with a friendly ambiance! We look forward in returning to try their other menu offerings, & to know more of the colorful Okinawan backgrounds of the owners! Support local! ”

Jo Y.