rainbow drive-in

alooooha! i’m lucky to say that for every place that i have travelled, i have thoroughly enjoyed every single locale. every place i’ve travelled has it’s own unique charm to it, but i have to say that the islands of hawaii have a special place in my foodie heart. i’m not quite sure what it is – most people say it’s the aloha spirit, where everyone has a good work life balance and are generally happy, where the bounty of the earth – seafood, veggies and fruits are fresh and traditions are still very much imbued in many of the locals.

when you visit hawaii, add this place to the list! great variety of local flavours and dishes. have to say the macaroni salad is a meal in itself! had the rainbow burger with chilli fries. 🤙

so good, so filling, price not bad and very generous in the size.
definitely go for rice and pasta and any dish.

i especially like the mahi mahi fish.

not fancy but more of the comfort food. the loco moco had the nice sunny side egg/gravy over patties and rice. cheap eat and on the go. also other good dishes such as the bbq pork.

nice cheap foods. not anything spectacular but will fill you up for sure. we ordered the mahi plate and roast pork sunday special. the counter order service was nice and the food arrived fast.

great experience if you are after a local hawaiian diner experience. this is not "fancy" food but more comfort food of hawaii. they make a great chilli - comes on chips or taters. we were told to try the locomoco and it was delicious. runny eggs sunny side up mixed with a rich gravy over 2
patties and fluffy rice! it comes with an extremely creamy mayo macaroni salad too! get all of it on your fork! the mixed meat platter was an okay experience, comes with beef, chicken, fish, coleslaw and macaroni salad. locomoco is definitely the winning dish to try.

was a recommendation on the triple d show. a friend had also told us about this place. definitely seemed like the place to be when we arrived as the place was a full house. we ordered the mixed plate and chicken plate. overall it was ok. didn't see what the big hype was about. the mixed plate was kind of cold and dry. the chicken plate i felt was a bit bland. would i come back again? probably not. good place to get the bang for your buck though.

this place is not good....the mahi plate....cold, the cheeseburger, driedout and nasty.....they milking the diners driveins and dives episode...

one-liner: traditional hawaiian diner
highlight: loco moco plate
recommended for: cheap traditional diner meal seekers
would i go back? yes.

check out my blog post for the full review!

and when it comes to decidedly hawaiian dishes like the iconic mix plate and loco moco, you can’t go wrong with rainbow drive-in. located off the beaten path just north of the honolulu zoo, it’s a very humble food stand with exceptional value.

full review on beyond the rhetoric. link in comments.

my first meal in honolulu was breakfast at the rainbow drive inn. i had the breakfast special for $5.75 which was two scoops of rice, two eggs over easy and the bbq beef. it was serve fast, hot and tasted good. i was so impressed that i went back a couple of days later to try a typical hawaiian plate lunch. i had the loco moco plate which was two scoops of rice, two hamburger patties, two eggs, brown gravy and a scoop of macaroni salad. a lot of food but so good i had to finish it. i will definitely return and try another basic, tasty meal at a reasonable price on my next visit to oahu!

hamburger steak & mac salad. still the best after 21 years!

had the mix plate and partner had the loco moco plate. both was good and satisfying! lots of food!

the plate lunch is a staple in hawaiian cuisine. dating back to the islands’ plantation days, the plate lunch is a simple and filling meal eaten by plantation workers in the 1880s. many of the plantation workers were from asia so there was lots of asian influence on the plate lunch, the meal could possibly have been an american twist on the japanese bento box. the plate lunch consists of two scoops of rice, one scoop of super sweet macaroni salad and a protein, spam is popular. if a plate lunch contains more than one protein, it’s categorized as a mixed plate. the plate lunch is basically a loco moco without the gravy. the rainbow drive-in, the neighbourhood eatery with the multi-coloured roof in honolulu famously serves one of the best plate lunch in oahu. the rainbow drive-in embodies everything about hawaiian dining: casual, comfort food, usually eaten outside. the rainbow drive-

barely passable; maybe not even that good. this place is obviously popular with the locals, but i see nothing that would justify any kind of positive recommendation. the staff was slightly surly, the menu is an uninteresting list of fried food and burgers, the food is prepared with all the artistry of a mediocre burger king, and the prices, even by local standards, are high for what you get.

food: 2/12 chili peppers (out of 5)
service: 2 chili peppers
ambience: 2 chili peppers
value: 2 chili peppers