This sophisticated Hawaiian-fusion restaurant gives mainlanders an upscale taste of the islands.

by Contributor

In Short
Roy Yamaguchi opened his first restaurant in 1988 in Honolulu, Hawaii, blending European cooking techniques with locally produced ingredients and Asian spices. Today, his Hawaiian-fusion cuisine is served in a sophisticated atmosphere with dark woods, Asian accents and contemporary, island-inspired art. In addition to "Roy's classics" like Hawaiian-style misoyaki butterfish and the popular melting hot chocolate souffle, each location offers daily specials prepared by the local chef, all of whom are trained personally by Roy.

05/23/08

Top-notch restaurant

by spunkymom2

I actually want to review Roy's in Anaheim at the Garden Walk just east of Disneyland on Katella. As there is no site for that yet, I'll write on this Roy's which I have been to as well. My husband and I had tickets to a concert on May 10, 2008, Saturday night during Mother's day weekend and we took our chances trying to get walk in seating. When we arrived at Roy's, Anaheim, they said they were fully booked with reservations but did offer the chef's table next to the kitchen (counter seating). We decided to try as we were very happy that another Roy's has opened closer to us. We had a great time watching the chef's do their magic and mentally taking notes of what to order next time we come. The food was excellent except for one thing I will mention in a second. We ordered the pre-fixe menu and the appetizers were great, tri-tip cooked to perfection and the ono was ono-licious except for the gorgonzola cheese on top. Too strong for my palate and of course, the molten chocolate cake...yum! We were extremely grateful to have been accomodated without reservations, enjoyed great food and the service was very professional yet not stuffy. Will definitely be returning!

• Pros: food and service
• Cons: chef's table was a bit on the warm side

02/13/08

BEST Hawaiin fusion.

by abd1350

I adore this place. Unfortunately, because it is so expensive, it is a special ocassion place for me, which makes it even more exciting when I go. Their fish is unbelievable, and they are always changing up their menu to keep customers on their toes. The serves know everything and more about their dishes, and are always willing to help you out, very nice. Of course, what they're known for is their AMAZING chocolate souffle, which you have to order with your meal because it takes about 30 minutes to make! SO worth it. I recommend this restaurant to anyone and everyone!

• Pros: Food, Ambiance, Service
• Cons: Price

12/30/07

We love Roys!

by aandrus

Me and my husband LOVE roy's! The last two times we went we were asked if it was a special occasion and the waiter brought us out a free personalized desert. The wait staff is always excellent! Infact last time we went the waiter accidentally brought out the wrong steak for my husband and the waiter took it off the bill entirely with out even asking. When does that ever happen? Great food. We love it.

• Pros: Great food. Amazing deserts, great staff
• Cons: sometimes hard to get into on weekends like everywhere in La

05/02/07

Good food, bad Service!

by afandrews777

Don't get me wrong, the food at Roy's is awesome, but the service stinks! We made the mistake of coming in on a Friday night with a reservation and ordering from the Prix Fix menu. I guess that was a tip off to the waiter that his tip was going to be bad, although we would have tipped well. After our entrees, our waiter gave us the dessert drink menu and we did not see him again for over 35 minutes. My husband had to actually get up and go over to him to remind him that still had not gotten our desserts. Ten minutes later the manager came over and tried to offer us two desserts for our wait. Well, I think the waiter could have come over earlier to say that the desserts would be out shortly, sorry for the wait, but that never happened. We were disappointed in the way that Roy's handled this situation and will not return.

• Pros: Food
• Cons: Service - for this pricce!

03/05/07

I love this place!

by angelie

I've been to this place twice and they haven't failed me. My boyfriend and I eat quite a bit and so we got to try a few things at this place already. Starting with the appetizer which had 4 different things in a boat-like platter: potstickers, some ribs, sushi rolls, and shrimp, it was so delicious that I would probably order this as a meal next time I go there. I ordered butterfish the last 2 times Ive been here...soooo good! Very moist and just very tasty. My bf has ordered the trio before and somekind of volcano ono, hmmm, delicious too! They have relaly good drinks as well as good lava cake. The service was awesome except for the last time we went, I got a little upset because we waited for 20 minutes even though we had reservations and got there on time...they booked way too many people I think...but of course, as soon as I had my first bite, I forgot about waiting for our table. You should try this, I highly recommend it! It's different from other seafood places, the hawaiian fushion is very good!!

03/03/07

Not what I expected, given the great reviews.

by cincomomo

This place was not so great and I probably would not go back, which is unfortunate because all the other reviewers seem to really liek this place. Perhaps I ordered the wrong things...

We started off with the lobster potstickers. They are very oily, hardly any lobster, and it tasted like the type of americanized potstickers you can get from the frozen food aisle. For entree I had the whole fish, which was fresh and cooked perfectly and with great presentation. Unfortunately the soysauce based sauce they gave to accompany the fish was too strong, it was thicky, salty and gooey. For that kind of delicate fish I would have liked to see something a little sweeter and lighter. And the fried rice that came with the dish was overtly oily (literally seemed like a 1:1 ratio of rice and oil).

They do have great service though and good drinks, i really liked the lava flow! Unfortunately, perhaps whoever prepared my food had a heavy hand with the oil and salt. Maybe I will give Roy's another try--if I am not paying. The prefixe seems like a good deal, in retrospect I would have gone with that. It seemed like this place was a dressed up fusion version of a Chili's or Applebee's restaurant, so if you like those restaurants you would probably like this place for a special occasion.

02/25/07

Overrated

by theadvocate

First off let me say that I had very high expectations before going to Roy's. As someone who is of the same background as Roy, I was very excited that he has become a celebrity chef feeling like island cuisine has finally received some recognition in the culinary world. My wife and I decided to dine at the Newport Beach location during the tail end of our weekend dining tour of Orange County which included Michael Mina's Stone Hill Tavern and the Fairmont's brunch buffet (both of which I highly recommend). Given these facts, I admit my taste buds were very critical by the time we got to Roy's.

We started off with the waitress-recommended lobster potstickers. It was just a notch above disgusting. Tasted and had the texture as if it was frozen and then microwaved. Very greasy ( and tasted like it was fried in old oil), which over powered everything else. I can see how this dish would taste great if prepared right but our particular dish was very disappointing. Along with the potstickers we had the Maui Onion Ring Cesar Salad. It was just o.k.; nothing special. For our main dishes my wife had the fried whole sea bass and I had the Butter Fish/Ahi/Salmon Trio. The fried whole sea bass was great.... minus the overly salty sauce and the sea of grease with rice (literally) that they try to pass as fried rice. My Trio of Fish dish was nothing special. Their miso butter fish was good (a tad too much sauce... my plate was over flowing); the Ahi and Salmon were ok but overpowered by the miso in the butter fish. Overall I was disappointed because I feel Roy missed the mark in his attempt of creating a restaurant blending Hawaiian grinds with fusion flare. I guess if you consider TGI Fridays a great dining experience, you'll love Roy's. Also a note to Roy... how can you call yourself a Hawaiian Fusion Restaurant and not offer local grinds like laulau or kalua pig? That's a crime!

• Pros: great service, nice decor
• Cons: subpar food

10/24/06

About what I expected... and I expected THE BEST!

by ocforever422

Roy's in Fashion Island has been a favorite of mine since I had my birthday party there 2 years ago. I now use every occasion (yeah it's Tuesday) to visit this gem of a restaurant. Service is impeccable yet still comfortable (not stuffy at all). The food is incredible and nearly every appetizer they offer is a winner!

I had the opportunity to introduce some friends from the East Coast to the location in Vegas (yes, the one on Flamingo). They became instant fans as well.

Like some other reviewers, I wouldn't recommend it as a date spot. This ambiance (fun!) is more of a "special occasion dining with friends" restaurant.

• Pros: great food and service

10/19/06

Great for appitizers and drinks, sushi is great

by aprilhill1

Have been to this location several times and have had great experience every time. The appitizers are so great that we have them for dinner sometimes. The tuna tar tar is great sometimes it's not on the menue, just ask for it. Save room for dessert the chocolate suffle is worth ordering when you order your dinner also the pinnapple unside down cake is great. The location in Las Vegas is also even better on Flamingo Blvd.

Enjoy-

• Pros: Great food and service
• Cons: a little pricey $$$ but worth it