I really wanted to like this place. I was dying for a great MaiTai and I thought what better place then a place where they make their own rum. Welll... Check in with the hostess was easy and even though they were crowded we were seated on time. I ordered a Mai Tai and was underwhelmed. It had a funky aftertaste to it. It's a sweet drink but this one was a little too much. Food was good, not great, but good. We had the duck, which we liked, and the greens salad. I added chicken to the salad which they brought on a side plate. Weird. The salad was good. We assumed they were understaffed and while there was a little bit longer of a wait with the server it wasn't bad. We ended up not ordering desert or more drinks. It was a good experience just wasn't great. I would go back because of the convivence and staff was friendly. I wouldn't really go back for the food or drinks.

We love the Rum Shack for happy hour and thoroughly enjoy the cocktails. We invited friends to dinner tonight for their first time at Kuleana, and our excitement left after our drinks. The service there is never speedy, especially at a table. Food this evening was lack luster and disappointing. We all agreed we will continue to return for happy hour and cocktails but not for food anytime soon.

Interesting vibe in a rum distillery— super Mai Tai and pork nachos followed by a burger and coconut curry dish
Our server was super excited to be at work, attentive and helpful with the menu — something missing in more than a few establishments now a days.

Our server was great, but we came to the restaurant for their poke and shrimp appetizers and they were out of both.

Great food and good cocktails!

Service was fantastic! Paula very "on the ball". Always available when we needed something. Helpful with the food choices we made. Drinks seemed alittle high priced to me. Mai tai was tasty, but not very much liquid. $10.00 seemed more reasonable to me, not $15.00. One round of drinks was $72.00. Probably won't be going for drinks with clients again. Food was good.

Service was excellent. FYI lunch is only pupus/appetizers and salads. No main dishes/entrees till after 4:30 pm. Mai Tai was delicious and recommended. Kalua pig nachos and wings were good.

This trip was to celebrate my wife’s birthday and they made it very special. Mahalo! There was live music that was very good and he sang Happy Birthday to my wife by name. I saw some reviews that said the music was too loud, but we did not find that to be the case. In fact, it added to the ambiance and decor to make for a wonderful setting.

The service was very attentive and the food was great. I have the duck and my wife had a hamburger with Japanese pickles. She does not like pickles, but she tried one and liked it. The Grog was probably the best drink I had on this drink was was “alcohol forwards” as the waitress described. We found their rum to be very tasteful and without the burn from some strong liquors. All in all, a great dinner and a great experience. Thank you for making this celebration trip one to remember.

Of course the rum is amazing! As are the staff, happy hour, and food. we love seeing the smiling faces of Paula and Julian who always take great care of us - Mahalo!

Great food. Music too loud.

If you enjoy being served you drinks after your food arrives then this unfortunate establishment is for you! While our server was hobnobbing for a full five minutes with a table of locals and taking other tables’ orders our drinks were sitting at the bar, ice thawing. We’d lost interest in those drinks when our food was finally served. After protesting that our drinks had yet to be served there was still a delay but drinks showed up with an apology but it was too late. We skipped the drinks, ate our meal and left after paying. The server needs to be better trained.

The food is very average, the noise level is off-the-charts loud and the place has zero ambiance. Perhaps had we been served our rum drinks in a timely manner we would have had a better opinion overall and would not have even noticed the other shortcomings.

The ambiance was great, rums wonderful and all of the servers hustled and smiled and were just amazing! It's been a long time since we've had service that wonderful! Loved everything we ate too - delicious - and other dishes going by looked great too!

Service was outstanding, but the food wasn’t great. The vegan curry was really good, but everything else was not great.

There were 4 of us in our party all over the age of 70. The hostess informed us that they had music inside and asked if we would be more comfortable outside due to the noise factor. We took her advice and she was right.
Joy was our server and I would say she was the most knowledgeable and enthusiastic server I can recall. We live in LA and I know servers. There were 2 duck entrees and my wife is a duck aficionado. Joy explained how each one was prepared and what made them so different. The result, happy wife.
Her assistant was new to the island and I didn’t get his name but originally from Tuscaloosa. He will be a perfect front of the house man. Personable and impressed me with his interest in what we had to say.
Definitely the ALOHA spirit

Really, really nice staff. Very friendly and helpful. From when I walked in they all were very involved with making sure my visit was memorable. The place is a distillery that happens to serve food. Very GOOD food. And very good rums. Interesting presentation- I chose to sit at the bar - and I was promptly greeted and given a tasting tour of their rums by one of the principals of this place. His name escapes me, but I will be back! The food menu is very well balanced. Good selection of pupus, mains, and sides. I had the Steak & Frites - a Prime sirloin with great frites and a mushroom gravy to die for. I wanted to try the side of carrots, but opted for the "House Sides" - a combo of their house made kimchee, slaw and shishido peppers. Worth trying even if you do it with your appetizers. Finished with a Mai Tai. It's an award-winning recipe and won't disappoint. I thought the prices were reasonable- you are on a remote island in a remote restaurant for Heaven's sake. The glassware choices are interesting and a bit undersized, but really not a complaint.

It’s wad our 25th anniversary, this was an excellent choice and was very romantic for my husband and I.

The mochiko chicken everyone talks about was good, could have used a little less sauce. I ordered the salad with the fish add on, my husband ordered the wedge with the steak add on. The steak was chewy but okay. The fish was the driest thing I’ve ever eaten. How could a chef in Hawaii cook fish that came out like cardboard?!! With so few restaurants in Waikoloa it’s a shame that the food here isn’t good. I’d rather go somewhere else twice than to come here.

Food was cold and the stake for two was way over priced fatty and a bad cut of meat.
I was very up set to pay that much for poor food

Awesome service, excellent food, and chill vibe! This was the best place to grab our first meal on the island after a long day of travel. Most of our party got the burger and loved it! My salad and prawns were yummy.

We went for dinner. It’s tucked into the strip mall. Servers were great. Out food was delicious.
We had a Moco Loco with pork from the specials.
We also had the curry tofu and loved it.
And the Poke Nachos were great as well.

Only so-so. Food and drinks were fair, place is cute, but we sat outside where was no ambience. Practically no GF choices

Service was excellent. Food just mediocre. Husband enjoyed the rum flight and mai tai. Red wine was lightly chilled which was great (& unusual in Hawaii)

Creative specialty drinks, solid food, an amazing dessert.

We sat at the bar and we both well watered (but not with water) and enjoyed talking with bartender

We’re not rum drinkers due to allergy, but the food offering were nice. However, the website menu didn’t match the current menu offered. We order an appetizer, but wouldn’t have if the menu showed the inclusion of French fries with our burger. Serving staff were fabulous. Would recommend going after the sun goes down. It was very hot inside with limited shaded table.

Could not have been happier!! Our food was delicious and Mai Tai’s hand crafted with lots of love. Definitely my go to spot in Waikoloa.

The food was alright, but the service was excellent. Very knowledgeable staff and attentive.

Drinks were great and food was even better. Catch of the day entree was the best.

Really fantastic cocktails! The food was great too.

What a great place despite being in a bland shopping mall! The rum is delightful as is their first-place Mai Tai (the winning bartender made it) and many other cocktails. We had a couple of their specials (both fish) and the malasadas with dipping sauces - everything very good. The service was a bit slow but that may be a good thing when drinking rum! It was very windy (all floor-to-ceiling windows were wide open) and our tasting flight was blown off the table, breaking a glass in the process. They quickly replaced it and cleaned up. Thank you!

Excellent service! We loved learning about the types of rum.

Great food. Quick service and our 2nd visit during our stay in Kona. Great Mojitos!

Enjoyed from the moment we walked in the door !!

Loved their burger and fries. Well flavored and well cooked. The Prawn appetizer was so~so. Lacked the flavor I was expecting. The watermelon Mojito was simply delightful. The service was great but the control of people moving around the restaurant was not. People lingering around tables. I like the rum😊

Anniversary was not acknowledged but we did enjoy our cocktails before dinner. The limited menu was strong on Asian Fusion. Food was well seasoned and plentiful. Nice staff, great ambiance and tasty drinks! Good overall experience

Wasn’t sure how this was going to be a family dinner, but we wanted to eat somewhere besides the hotel restaurant. We saw that the restaurant had good reviews, although I was a little concerned it was more of a cocktail bar than a dining establishment. When we arrived the wait staff was extremely friendly and helped give us some good advice about the different options on their menu. The cocktails were top notch, with high quality ingredients and mixers. Even my daughter’s Shirley Temple was the best one she’d ever had. The food was absolutely amazing! Great portions, presentation, and well put together flavor combinations. I’d also be remiss in mentioning how fantastic the dessert is. They only have one, but it’s like the most delicious doughnut you’ve ever had with some amazing dipping sauce. I would definitely recommend this restaurant to others.

Last dinner in Hawaii and so amazing! The food and service were great and drinks are fantastic!

Good food that is close to the Waikoloa resorts. Worth stopping in for a bite.

Excellent. Had a great time here as we arrived

Amazing food and rum. Ambiance was great, a tad loud for some but I enjoyed it. Get dessert, it was incredible.