From Ocean to Garden: Two New Restaurants Are Redefining Waikīkī Dining
If you’ve walked through Waikiki Shopping Plaza lately, you might have noticed two new restaurants that are worth slowing down for.
Botanico Waikiki does Italian and Mediterranean food in a space that feels like a dreamy escape from Kalākaua Avenue. On Royal Hawaiian Avenue, Hawaiian Style Seafood Company is the new home of Chef Jon Matsubara’s lobster roll (you know, the one that had people lining up around the block at his Mānoa restaurant!).
Different cuisines, different vibes, but both are doing the same thing: good ingredients, no fuss, solid eats.
The Urban Italian Retreat
Botanico Waikiki is the latest concept from restaurant group Zetton Inc., the team behind beloved local spots like Aloha Steak House and ZIGU. But this isn’t just another Italian restaurant. Executive Chef Yuta Tamano, classically trained in French cuisine at acclaimed restaurants including the two-Michelin-starred Narisawa, brings a sophisticated touch to Mediterranean-inspired dishes.
The menu reads like a love letter to Italian comfort food with unexpected twists. Appetizers include a reimagined moussaka with layers of braised beef, scalloped potatoes, roasted eggplant and béchamel sauce, alongside prosciutto zeppole (fluffy fried Italian dough bites topped with prosciutto). It’s the kind of place where you can settle in for a leisurely dinner, guided by a curated selection of about 60 wines focusing on Italian and Californian varieties, with staff personally trained by Master Sommelier Roberto Viernes.
Did we mention that they offer three hours of validated parking in the Waikiki Shopping Plaza parking lot? Say less!
The Lobster Roll That Saved a Restaurant
Chef Jon Matsubara debuted a lobster roll at Feast in Mānoa that created lunchtime lines snaking around the corner, with businessmen, police officers, office workers, and retirees coming from as far as Waiʻanae and Mililani. When pandemic restrictions had cut business by 70 percent in 2020, the lobster roll didn’t just save Feast, it became its signature item.
Now, that same legendary lobster roll has found a home at Waikiki Shopping Plaza. But Hawaiian Style Seafood Company isn’t just about lobster rolls…it offers seafood omakase featuring Kauaʻi shrimp, Kualoa oysters, Kona abalone, kampachi and aku, plus Kauaʻi garlic shrimp cocktail with chicharrones.
Chef Matsubara’s lemony, butter-drenched Maine lobster meat mixed with bonito-and-soy umami mayo and fresh dill on King’s Hawaiian sweet rolls hammers home the Hawaiian part of his theme. It’s fusion done right: respectful of both New England tradition and island innovation.
Chef Matsubara explains the philosophy: “Feast in Mānoa is more neighborhood style. Hawaiian Style Seafood Company is about sharing Hawaiian seafood with the world—our way of saying aloha to visitors and locals, fresh, fun, and uniquely Hawaiʻi”.
A Tale of Two Philosophies
What makes these two restaurants so compelling isn’t just their food, it’s their parallel commitment to quality ingredients and craftsmanship. Botanico Waikiki sources Italian and Mediterranean flavors through a local lens while Hawaiian Style Seafood Company takes island ingredients and gives them global appeal.
Both restaurants understand something fundamental: great food doesn’t need gimmicks. It needs vision, skill, and ingredients that speak for themselves.
Your Next Adventure
Next time you’re in Waikīkī, it’s worth checking out what’s happening at Waikiki Shopping Plaza. Maybe you’re in the mood for a proper sit-down Italian dinner at Botanico Waikiki. Maybe you just want to grab one of those lobster rolls everyone’s been talking about. Either way, you’ve got options, and validated parking…the true Waikīkī gift.