Izakaya Naru - Honolulu

This place really has a great atmosphere. It's a quaint, tucked-away izakaya with just a few tables and bar seating. The staff is fluent in both English and Japanese. We...

We arrived for our 7:30 PM reservation a bit early at 7:00 PM. The restaurant is quite small, and the waitress informed us that it was too early for us to be seated, asking if we could return at...

During our recent trip to Honolulu, we decided to have dinner at Izakaya Naru one evening. Unfortunately, the website isn't very informative, and making reservations requires a phone call.

One of my favorite memories in Honolulu! Be sure to make a reservation in advance. We ordered a variety of dishes from both the special and standard menus. I highly recommend trying the spicy bamboo shoots and the simmered beef from the special menu. The portion sizes for several dishes were larger than I anticipated, but I'd still suggest ordering about three dishes per person so you can sample more options. Other highlights for me included the sukiyaki pizza and soba with tofu—the broth was absolutely delicious!

Reservations are required! I had a fantastic experience at this izakaya. The atmosphere is small and lively, which adds to the excitement. The draft beer (Orion) is served in chilled cups, and the Okinawan lime ball was quite refreshing. We tried the beef tongue, juniper eggs, chicken skin, Aburi (seared mackerel), and a few other dishes that weren't pictured. Everything was delicious and perfect for sharing with friends.