This is my first review of a restaurant (my FAVORITE restaurant, a brew pub, called Kona Brewing Company! Our friend Doc, from back-home in Indiana, told me this place was a “must-visit,” so after living here a few weeks, I dragged Marnie and the girls to give it a try. Well, you won’t be disappointed if you have a chance to visit this place. We went to the restaurant in Kona, (the Big Island,) it’s located at 75-5629 Kuakini Hwy (you can get more info from the link above to their site.) They opened another location on Oahu (7192-Kalaniana ‘ole Hwy.) I’m sure I’ll try this locale someday soon also.
Well, the good thing about brew pubs is that I get to do one of my favorite hobbies: try new and interesting beer. the bad thing about brew pubs is that I usually end-up spilling a beer on my shoes. Such is the price to pay to have such a fun hobby. Ok, back to the Kona Brewing Company.
It was a little difficult to find, so we called on our way to get better directions. The brew pub is kind of located at the end of a street that looks like an industrial street. It’s typical of many of the streets in Kona, as the bays are used for everything from industrial to retail. Anyway, at the end of the street is the entrance to the restaurant, you can’t miss it.
You drive up and immediately see two huge metal beer-making things (can’t remember what they’re called.) They also have a Growler Shack (which I snuck behind and got a picture in.) There’s a huge parking lot and finding a space wasn’t hard to do. (Unlike Front Street, where parking is sometimes difficult.) The entry is over towards the right side, where you request a table. When we went (I think it was on a Saturday,) there was a short wait, and I was able to go to the bar and grab a pint while we waited.
We were seated quickly. The outdoor seating is really cool. You’re surrounded by trees and foliage, so you definitely feel like you’re in the middle of the tropics (it is Hawaii after all.) It was very pleasant and the service was perfect. I ordered a sampler, and the girls ordered soft-drinks. I thoroughly enjoyed the samples and ordered a second round (I think you get 4 or 5 at a time- mini glasses of their various beers.) So two rounds covers most of their selections.
The girls had several orders of mac and cheese, and I had a great salad. I’m not sure what Marnie ordered, but we were all happy with our selections.
After dinner, we signed-up for the tour. The tour lasts about 1/2 hour and ends with a sample party. Our tour guide was awesome. It’s no wonder this business is growing like crazy; they run a tight ship! Here are some pictures of the tour:
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