Sheila Berry
This restaurant is charming. The staff is warm and friendly like an island breeze. Even though we arrived at the end of the lunch rush, the waiting was brief and the service was spectacular.
It has a bar area with lots of wood and character. Every table had beautiful flowers on it. The menu was full of great choices which made It was difficult to decide on our meal. We shared appetizers, then settled on a meal- I wasn’t able to add dessert. Next time!
VW. RICH
The BEST calamari! I've had it all over the world. The pizzas are wonderful too! This is my wife's favorite place for creme brulee.
The only down side is the homeless population literally outside the restaurant, I mean literally leaning against the restaurant front.
Jacob
GREAT food. Great staff. Awesome beer. If you're looking for a dinner spot, stop looking and come here. Highly recommend any of the pastas. Also the best calamari I've ever had.
B G
We ordered the Chicken pizza with pesto and goat cheese and it was amazing! We saw other people with Pizza so that’s what we ordered. Highly recommend. On top of that we had the Pina colada and mango smoothie. What a treat! We loved it! Will go again. First time in Hilo and yum!!
Peter Chung
Amazing food and service. We had the Seafood Medley Risotto, Shrimp Scampi Linguini, Quattro Fromaggi pizza, creme Brule, Keanakolu Hot Apple Pie and a couple of Chocolate chip cookies. All were super delicious and flavors and presentation were fantastic. If you're in the area, it's a definite must try. Enjoy.
Magda DK
This restaurant was recommended to us and it was delish! Service was very pleasant and nice. The space is very pleasant and art deco. And the food was very delish. We were all very pleased. We got three luau pizzas and two Caesar salads. The sauce was so yummy for the salad and the chicken very well cooked. The pizzas were flavorful and delicious!
Kelly
My sister & I dined here back on 9/30 when we were in Hilo! I had the artichoke pizza(can’t remember the official name) and my sis had a salad. And I had a Pina Colada! Delish! And our server was very helpful w where to go and visit while in the area! I wish I would’ve taken pix of the food but it was delicious!
Scott McDiarmid
Really enjoyed my meal and dessert.
I had a seafood special, and it was amazing.
Dessert was an apple crumble with ice cream, and it was almost as good as my Mom's. Will be back next time I'm in Hilo.
Vittorio Grieco
Walking along Hilo Bay I was drawn in by the aroma while the name Cafe Pesto caught my eye. I love to grow basil and even more so, I love pesto. As I walked into the cafe the atmosphere was inviting and warm with dark wood tables, a high ceiling, and plenty of space. The bar looked inviting since I was traveling solo, but decided to sit by the window and enjoy the traveling view.
I was carving a good burger and as soon as I opened up the menu, there is was their signature Big Island Cafe Pesto Cheeseburger.
A savory and hearty Island beef, toasted garlic butter bun, smoked mozzarella, crispy onions, tomato, and lettuce gourmet burger, served with garlic large cut fries topped with parmesan formaggio. OMG, delicious!
When Steph arrived with an Aloha smile I was prompt to place my order and asked for a recommendation on a dark draft beer on tap. She suggested the coconut porter. The beer was smooth like Guinness with a subtle hint of coconut. It was a perfect pairing.
Mahalo for the savory experience.
Jon Lewis
We had a great time here but the food was sliced a bit too much for my son. He is 7. My wife and I loved everything, including the burger my son didn't care for. The burger was seasoned with lots of herbs which we liked but just a bit too much for my son. The volcano mist salad is too die for... Can't wait to go back and have that again.
2023 update: we meet some friends here for dinner and had a great time. I had the Ono pasta special and it was amazing and my wife had the seafood medley risotto which was also wonderful. My son ordered the pasta with white sauce and didn't enjoy it at all. I tasted it and it had no flavor, next time I'll order from the adult menu for him.
Tyler
Stopped by for lunch when my mom was visiting and had a great time. Everything we ordered came out at the same time and was still hot, the plating was well done, and everything tasted amazing. Pizza was really solid, burger was cooked great, fries were crispy, and my Shrimp and lump crab with pesto and cheese on a baguette was incredible. Bread had a nice crisp outside and very soft interior. The ube sweet potato salad was also very good, but I would probably request no coconut shavings next time as it was a little sweeter than I prefer.
The location is great, but finding parking can be difficult if you're there at a busy time. The inside is reminiscent of an older seaside cafe that has been well maintained. Photos on their website are an accurate depiction of the building. Unfortunately I didn't take any photos myself.
Matt “Wausserman” E
This place is awesome and really does get 5 stars on everything. The food is amazing, the restaurant decor is amazing and fitting and the wait staff is top notch. What an awesome hole in the wall place you can not pass up!
Phrog Lord
My wife absolutely loves this place. There are very few dine in restaurants around the shops near Hilo Bay. This is a good one. It doesn't have that hole in the wall/dive feel like most, and it offers some rather unique food options also.
I highly recommend their seafood pasta dishes. The fish is fresh and tasty. They also make a nice juicy burger. So, it's a pretty safe spot for the less adventurous also. 😉
They have a full bar, and some fun signature cocktails. I personally like to kick dinner off with a cookie and drinks as an appetizer.
The wait staff is super friendly, and our water glasses were refilled repeatedly, so it's also a great place to hydrate after an afternoon of kicking around in the shops.
Hannah Tiên
We were a party of 6 and they sat us down immediately. The Korean cream cheese garlic bread was the winner. It is a must. The fish pesto sandwich was fine, I really liked the pesto with the fish, but a bit simple and overpriced at $23. The Loco Moco was tasty, and the Sweet Basil pizza was very good too.
Natalie Plebanek
The dinner experience and the food was amazing at Caffe Pesto! Something that I really appreciated was their selection of gluten free food and it was Celiac safe (I have celiac disease). I got the Seafood Medley Risotto (see photo above) and it was unlike any risotto I have had before and it was of course gluten-free, so delicious. The fish they had that day was Ono (the white fish on the left in the photo) and as someone who is a bit more picky about their seafood, I immediately loved it. We also got crème brûlée (small pineapple topping on it in photo) for dessert which was also amazing and very reasonably priced. We also got espresso with our dessert to complete our meal which also was a smooth and perfectly bitter espresso (shown in the photo). My dad got the Red Ale IPA and felt that it was the best IPA they have ever had (beer not being GF of course, but had to include it because they liked it so much!). They also support the local economy by using locally sourced ingredients where applicable! Our server, Rachel, was also so kind, knowledgeable, and had such positive vibes/energy that really made our visit a great experience.
Binit Banerjee
We stopped here for dinner and about their closing time. There was no wait time and we got a table immediately. The place looked busy and had a nice vibe. I had taken the steak(cut of island beef) which came with pork belly hash. This was okay, nothing stood out and then again no complaints. My wife got the island fish, fresh catch (ono) which was served with some jasmine rice . The fish was perfectly cooked with balanced flavors. I definitely recommend this one. My friend got the mushroom poke with the fresh catch which was also pretty good and filling. We tried a bunch of cocktails, Pina colada, the rose, gin kiss and da boi (something). We ended with creme brulle which in my opinion was a bit light. The consistency could have been a bit denser. Service was great and I really liked their hospitality.
Ian Koo
Delicious pasta and one of the best loco mocos we’ve had in Hawaii. Great way to start our holiday on Big Island
Piilani Erbe
Went here for our anniversary. We had the shrimp nachos, seafood risotto, cesar salad, artichoke mushroom pizza, and the vanilla ice cream apple crisp. Our waters never got below the 3/4 mark, or paste we're cleared away promptly and the strawberry gingeraide was on point! Our friendly server really topped off the whole evening and made it just perfect.
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