Always looking for the latest and greatest dining spots in Hawaii? Well, here’s a roundup of new café and restaurant openings that occurred in February 2025! From a charming bakery by the owner of the popular restaurant “Fete” in Chinatown, to the “Walking Bean Cafe” and “Dumpling Factory” in Kapahulu, there’s a fresh wave of exciting new spots in town!
All the following information is accurate as of February 25, 2025.
Mille Fête
James Beard Award-winning Chef Robynne Maii and her husband Chuck Bussler, the owners of the iconic Downtown restaurant “Fête,” have teamed up with Katherine Yang, who spent many years in the bakery scene in New York, including some time with Daniel Boulud.
Source: @millefete
The new bakery café, Mille Fête, is founded upon over 20 years of friendship, making this bakery collaboration is a long-awaited project. Offering a range of baked goods including cookies, cakes, breads, hand pies, baked bao buns, sandos (sandwiches), gourmandises, and ice cream, Mille Fête also features light dishes like tuna confit, kalua pig, and chicken liver mousse – a perfect pairing with the artisanal breads.
Source: @millefete
The bakery and cafe will operate during the day until 4:00 p.m., to later be transitioned into a bar in the evening.
Mille Fête
Address: 1113 Smith Street, Honolulu, HI
Hours: Thursday-Sunday, 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM
Phone: 808-888-0608
Website: millefete.com
Instagram: @millefete
Dumpling Factory
A new dumpling specialty shop called Dumpling Factory opened on Kapahulu Avenue, offering traditional Chinese dumplings with a contemporary twist.
Discover little purses filled with beef & green peppers, chicken & shiitake, zucchini with green peppers & egg, shrimp with egg & chives, among many others inspired by the owners’ northeastern Chinese roots. Or try the spicy sour soup dumplings with thin noodle or house-made braised pork belly over rice, with a selection of sides including tofu salad with green onion or house-made daikon pickles to satisfy your Asian cuisine fix.
Source: @dumplingfactoryhawaii
Dumpling Factory
Address: 755 Kapahulu Ave #1, Honolulu, HI
Hours: Daily, 11:00 AM to 9:00 PM
Phone: 808-367-1640
Website: dumplingfactoryhawaii.com
Tonkatsu Kuro
“Tonkatsu Kuro” serves Berkshire black pork tonkatsu and homemade soba. Located on the first floor of the new Koula condominium in Ward Village, the restaurant’s tonkatsu is encrusted in freshly ground breadcrumbs before being deep-fried in a unique blend of oils, resulting in a crispy coating that reveals juicy, thick cut pork.
Source: Tonkatsukuro
Three types of soba are offered as part of a set– cold soba, lemon soba, and a spicy Korean-style bibim soba, so you can savor both tonkatsu and soba for dinner.
Tonkatsu Kuro
Address: 1000 Auahi St Suite 134, Honolulu, HI
Hours: 7:00 PM onward (reservations through OpenTable)
Instagram: Tonkatsu Kuro Instagram
Lahaina Tacos
Located on the first floor of Pioneer Plaza in Downtown Honolulu, Lahaina Tacos offers authentic Mexican tacos, burritos, and quesadillas.
The chef, Armando, hails from Mexico, bringing his family recipes featuring with handmade tortillas honoring his grandmother. Enjoy a taste of Mexican home cooking with tasty tacos and burritos. Lahaina Tacos is available for takeout only.
Lahaina Tacos
Address: 900 Fort Street Mall, #190, Honolulu, HI
Hours: Monday-Friday, 10:30 AM to 2:00 PM
Website: lahainatacos.com
Thai Craft Curry
Thai Craft Curry opened on Kapahulu Avenue near First Hawaiian Bank, offering light, flavorful curries made by a Thai woman replicating her family recipes.
The eatery offers three types of curry (red, green, and yellow) for just $10 each, with premium curries such as Panang and Massaman beef curry for a few dollars more at $12.99. All curries are coconut milk-based but are quite light to keep the flavors fresh without being too rich. All are perfectly balanced with spices making them enjoyable for people of varying heat thresholds. Start with other Thai favorites, including chicken satay and larb to forge a healthy and home-style experience for those craving Thai comfort food.
Source: Yelp
Thai Craft Curry
Address: 415 Kapahulu Ave, Honolulu, HI
Hours: Daily, 11:00 AM to 8:00 PM
Phone: 808-909-7961
Yelp: Thai Craft Curry Yelp
Walking Bean Cafe
Another exciting new opening along Kapahulu Avenue is Walking Bean Cafe. Known for offering a variety of drinks like coffee, matcha lattes, smoothies, and tofu puddings, as well as breakfast items like bagel sandwiches, this cafe has a diverse menu.
Matcha lovers will enjoy their many green tea drinks, including matcha lattes, ube matcha lattes, matcha affogato, and matcha tofu pudding. Consider a unique shave ice options such as the “Sunny Side Up” featuring a lovely mango sauce or the chocolate lover’s “Oreo Fountain” which is catching on quickly via social media because of the whimsical names and visually appealing presentations.
Source: Yelp
Walking Bean Cafe
Address: 567 Kapahulu Ave 4, Honolulu, HI
Hours: Wednesday-Monday, 8:30 AM to 2:30 PM, 5:00 PM to 9:30 PM
Closed Tuesday
Phone: 808-745-9377
Instagram: @walkingbeanhawaii
Tiger Sugar
Tiger Sugar, the popular bubble tea brand from Taiwan, opened its third location on Oahu along Kuhio Avenue, near the International Marketplace in Waikiki.
The menu showcases brown sugar milk teas, cheese foam teas, and fruit teas. People tend to gravitate towards the balanced blends of teas accented by black sugar boba, pearl milk, and a creamy mousse. The brown sugar tapioca milk tea is especially popular, available in flavors like brown sugar & cheese foam, brown sugar & chocolate, and brown sugar & red bean. Experience the rich, sweeter flavors of Taiwan, right in the heart of Waikiki.
Source: KITV4
Tiger Sugar
Address: 2310 Kuhio Ave, Urban Honolulu, HI
Hours: Daily, 11:00 AM to 9:30 PM
Phone: 808-200-4561
Yelp: Tiger Sugar Yelp
While February’s openings were marked by a flurry of Asian eateries and sweeter discoveries, Oahu’s diverse culinary culture continues to deepen with more authenticity. We hope you enjoy some of the new foodie hotspots already making waves for food surfers.
