Ulu Cafe

The Ulu Cafe is definitely convenient and is open all day which is great. We ordered plenty of food here throughout our stay and all of the food was very good. The only reason it doesn't get 5 stars is because of how it operates. Some food items are grab and go, others you walk up and they prepare it right there, and others you order at the register and wait. The ordering and waiting was always quite long and there was frequent confusion about where they were going to bring the food out to you. Since some food you have immediately and other things require a wait, we often had situations where someone was already done with their food and someone else in our party was still waiting for their food. The simplest solution seems to be to enable mobile ordering which they do have for one other restaurant at the resort. Ordering ahead would eliminate this hassle and make the experience all around more streamlined. As a side note, if you're looking for refillable mugs and/or popcorn buckets, this is where you get them.

This is a good place to order and take and go food option. We've ordered here numerous times when we have stayed at Aulani and nearby. They have a pretty good selection of different breakfast, lunch, dinner and snack items. You order, pay and wait outside for your items. Even when they are busy we usually wait only 5-10 minutes for them to bring out our food. The portions are good size. Plenty to eat. They also have the popcorn and drink stations here if you buy the refillable containers or cups. There are also the prepackaged baked snacks like brownies, cookies or rice crispies. We usually buy plenty to take home. The prices are reasonable and we've been happy with the food.

We love ordering food from Ulu Cafe. They have new designs for their refillable mugs. We have tried their pizzas, breakfast croissant sandwich, French toast breakfast, bacon flatbread, and of course their Mickey cookies. We ordered and paid with the cashier and waited outside for our food. The staff is friendly. There is a wait but it’s not too bad. The kalua flatbread was our favorite but we did not see it on the menu. We enjoyed everything and will be back again.

Ulu Cafe is where you'll find Aulani's refillable cups. They have three machines outside that you can use throughout your stay. There is other machines around the resorts one near Lava Shack and behind 'Ama' Ama. Ate here multiple times during our stay (had breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snacks). If you order from the menu, it is made to order. They have grab-and-go items as well. Here you can get Mickey-shaped cookies, marshmallows, brownies, musubis, and more.

The prepared food is excellent here! Definitely try the Poke bowls, the (whole) pizza and the ever iconic Dole Whip. My only issue with Ulu Cafe keeping from 5-Stars is the function. Structurally, you walk in with the wall menu on your left and straight ahead of you is ropes leading you to what looks like an ordering counter. I assumed that anything you see on the menu you would order it there at that counter. However, that counter is only for things like Poke bowls which can be seen on the small signs above their counter...that is until they took them down? So if you don't want Poke you walk in and turn right to go the cash registers to order your food. They take both room keys (tied to you credit card number with a pin) or a credit card. If you want the prepared food like the pizza, flat breads, dole whip or chicken fingers you order it at the registers. But pickup isn't inside at all and the instructions,"wait outside and they will call your name when it is ready" was so vague we weren't sure where to stand. Eventually after standing on the patio long enough a cast member came out with our food from a completely different area and called our name. Now, am I nitpicking? Probably. We both received the food and enjoyed it; chicken fingers and pizza are both DYNAMITE. However, getting food from here is just weirdly unintuitive. Also seating is not phenomenal on the patio so many people waited for food on the landscaping wall or standing looking around with similar questions. I even asked someone that had been there awhile if he knew where the food was coming from and he also didn't know since it was his first time there. If you get Ulu it will likely be to-go. I still absolutely recommend the food here I just wish there was either better checkout flow or a sign near where the cast member walks up from that says "Food Pickup Here" to eliminate some guessing and confused guest looks.

We stopped here for breakfast before our poolside day. Ordering can be confusing if you don’t read the sign. Some items you have to order at the counter and others you go to the cashier. My daughter & cousin don’t eat eggs and they easily modified. My cousin got the platter and they gave her more potatoes. My daughter got the breakfast pizza and they removed them. It’s pricey, but the portions are generous.

Our family of five from Texas and Oklahoma visited Oahu and the Big Island for Spring Break! While staying at Aulani, we ordered pizza from Ulu. They were very busy but pizza was ready a few minutes before the quoted time. We ordered two pizzas for five of us and it was entirely too much pizza. But we took the leftovers to the room and had for dinner the next night. Thank goodness for room refrigerators and microwaves! The pizzas were delicious! We also ate breakfast one morning and it was good! The only downside to eating at Ulu is they only have 3-4 tables so you have to search for a place to eat.

We hit up Ulu cafe a few times for a quick breakfast on our trip. There are MANY options for breakfast lunch and dinner, and I'm so sad I never got to try the pizza after 5:00 because it looks really good. Honestly the best thing I had from this cafe was a Mickey brownie! I have been dreaming about it since I had it, super fudgy,moist and love the white chocolate Mickey on top. The breakfast was good, perfect for a quick stop and very similar to any convenience breakfast of bagel and croissant sandwiches. You could also do breakfast platters, I hate to say it but it reminded me a lot of McDonald's type options. Definitely a notch better than McDonald's, but compared to the other options in Hawaii certainly not much better. Highly recommend it for quick stops when you have a busy day planned!