Great authentic Japanese "tapas experience. Hole in wall with unique Yakitori taste.

Feels like I'm in my best friend's house and he's cooking for me so Japanese and so good vibes great food

Excellent food. Flame grilled good almostphere and excellent ingredients. One of tue best spits in hawaii from a foodie that has done a lot of foodie stuff.

I arrived here with two friends via Uber from our hotel. It wasn't too far, but it was definitely easier than taking public transport. This small izakaya had a great reputation and we were looking for something still open late at night! Service was friendly and overall ambiance is very chill vibes. I wasn't feeling my best, so ordering the oxtail soup was really comforting. The only downside was that it came with just one piece of oxtail. Still, the flavor was hearty and yummy and the oxtail was fall off the bone tender. I'd recommend coming here for a light snack rather than a full dinner because of the portion sizes. Everything is individually ordered, so you can fill up, but be prepared to spend a decent amount to do so. I also got the highly praised potato salad to share at the table. It was decent but felt a bit overhyped. When I took my first bite, it just reminded me of a regular potato salad with bits of corn, topped with some sort of dry pico de gallo powder/ California mix seasoning that you could find at NY Fries. The other two ordered the ikura salmon don (delicious but super small like a regular rice bowl size) and the oxtail ramen (similar to the soup with 1 piece of oxtail, ramen egg and noodles- not too heavy). It's definitely a nice spot to try!

Aburiyaki... It's all flaming hot here and it's smoking hot! Aburiya Ibushi isn't easy to say but you'll easily fall in love dining here. Located in heart of Kapahulu parking is the luck of the moment if you're able to find one though we decided on a side street next to Taco Bell which we luckily found easily. As we dine on the whim we just stopped by and was happy they were able to take us though it was an hour wait which was very worth it and got a cute and cozy table...though if you're able to get the counter you can see the chef at work which is pretty cool. As this izakaya is filled with so many savory dishes I couldn't decide on one and got a few...Grilled Kurobuta Sausage, Round Eggplant with Grilled Ground Pork, and Ewa Sweet Corn. Yup ordered so I can take it home for later lol! The corn was the best I've ever had so flavorful and the char was done perfectly, Kurobuta Sausage was so savory and served with a scoop of potato salad and whole grain mustard, the grilled eggplant was something I've always enjoyed growing up and having it here was so nostalgic and topped with the grilled ground pork gave it that kick as it had some spice. Reservations here is very recommended which you're easily able to do directly on Yelp with a simple click on the time and fill out the basic information though a credit card is required to hold the reservation and as they're very busy and a small space but would definitely want to bring mom. Thank you!

Dinner in Honolulu, Hawaii... We texted each other: What you doing now? Are you hungry? Wanna go to Aburiya Ibushi? Now? How about 7pm? Where you going park? And that's how we finally got a chance to dine at this popular izakaya-styled restaurant on Kapahulu Avenue. We parked across the busy restaurant (on Hunter Street) for free because it was so late in the evening... and the street was empty. This is the street where Taco Bell is closed for renovation. I went in and asked if we needed a reservation. We got on the clipboard for 8pm. We wandered around for an hour until I was called on my phone. We were seated between parties. The cozy place was packed and kinda noisy and smokey... from the grilling of the open kitchen. I don't remember it being like this when I was here for lunch a few years ago. Daytime and nighttime vibes are very different! I ordered the Ikura Uni Bowl. It was cute and just right with some sesame seeds mixed into the rice. The green onions not only added color, but also provided a bit of a crunch. The Ikura was fresh and briney while the Uni was smooth and earthy! I ate everything happily! This was a unique, cool foodie experience with polite, efficient service!

Aburiya Ibushi **** RECOMMENDED **** Food: **** Value: **** Menu: **** Ambiance: *** (feels like Japan) Service: **** Parking: * (street parking only) When driving on Kapahulu Avenue, I often saw a line outside Aburiya Ibushi, so it peaked my interest. After my wife went with her friend, she said the food was good and the prices were cheap, so I decided to try it. I recommend that you make reservations through Yelp. There were 30 seats, 2 servers and 3 cooks on the night that we went. Approximately 60% of the patrons were Japanese nationals, speaking in Japanese, so I know I was in the right place. This is not a fancy Japanese restaurant - it is more like a neighborhood Izakaya bar-restaurant like the ones I frequent in Tokyo. The food was good and we enjoyed all our dishes. Those with the sparks on the video were my favorites. We will be going back, so stay tuned for more dishes. RATINGS & RECOMMENDED ORDER: Agedashi Tofu = A Beef Tongue = A Oxtail Zoshib(porridge) = B Potatoe Salad = B Aburikyaki Pork Belly = C Yelp: https://yelp.to/DS2K1bck07 YELP: Milton K Sorry! They allow only one 12 second video & the remaining to 3 seconds. The full video and pictures of the entire menu can be found on other platforms/apps: MiltonIn808 RATINGS KEY: A = Really Good - one of the best B = Good - would order again C = ok - similar, nothing special D = Not very good - wouldn't order F = Terrible - avoid

I initially liked to call this place a hidden gem but frankly it's so good that the word about this restaurant has spread like wildfire. The food alone will feel like you're in Japan. Quality, presentation, and flavor are definitely things they excel in. Every dish I have ordered is top notch. I love that they are open late! Not too many late night spots that are actually good anymore. Parking can be tricky as there's only street parking but trust me it's so worth it. Service is friendly and very attentive. They can get busy so I recommend making a reservation.

A must, must, must try! The food here was absolutely delicious! I enjoyed every dish that my group and I ordered here. This place opens up until midnight so it's a great place to stop by for a late night snack. The staff is super friendly and helpful. The place is always filled with new comers and plenty of regulars. There are table seatings and a bar seating (where you can sort of see the kitchen staff prepare your food). My favorite dish I got from them was the golden potato with mentaiko. My friends and I loved it so much that we placed a total of 5 orders of it! I also recommend their chicken dishes! Every chicken dish I've tried was super tender and flavorful. If you enjoy drinking and snacking, this place is the spot for you! Their chu-hi drinks pair so well with the food they offer. I recommend the yuzu chu-hi!

Found this spot through TikTok where someone was raving about its mashed potatoes. Reservations are recommended; it was hard to find an open slot. The restaurant was packed the whole time on a Sunday night. We got seated at the bar. There was enough space between all the diners. I liked looking at the drawings of the food on the walls and watching the Japanese news on TV. I enjoyed watching the chef make the meats on the grill too. We each got a chu-hi to drink with our meal. So refreshing. Jellyfish salad: Tiny, crunchy, flavorful! I could eat so much of it. Beef tongue: Portions were quite small. This was thin and delicious though. Tasted great with its accompanying sauce. Sirloin top: This was small as well but tasted high-quality. Went so good with just salt and some wasabi. Mashed potatoes: This is what we came for. Its texture was good and the star of the show was the curry salt on top. If I can figure out how to make it at home, I'd eat it with my mashed potatoes all the time! It was reminiscent of the mashed potatoes you'd get at KBBQ but with less mayo and less cold. Cabbage salad: This was sautéed (?), cooked in some way where the cabbage was soft but still had crunch. However, it lacked flavor. We ended up sprinkling the mashed potato curry salt on it. Oxtail soup: We ordered this last to end off our meal. It was hearty, the meat was soft, and overall a nice experience. I've only had Korean oxtail soup before and Vietnamese oxtail pho, so I was interested in trying the Japanese version. The service was super friendly. The meal lasted around almost 2 hours since things slowly came out one by one. We were still hungry afterwards though so we hit up the izakaya next door lol.