Samurai

Samurai is a great place to get something sweet or cold on a hot day. It’s really cheap and such a refreshing treat! The only best flavor they have here is the Strawberry/​Vanilla Soft Serve that i always get… IT’s the BOMB!!!

Good service, but didn’t think the flavor was that great. Good texture. Would be willing to try other flavors from cooler.

Guri guri is yummy because it’s soft serve that melts in your mouth. A mix between regular soft serve and sorbet. I got strawberry vanilla and it was pretty and refreshing but not super flavorful. Still, I’d go back and try another flavor!

I was just there five minutes ago I couldn’t wait to try a soft serve combo they lady’s let me do. SAMURI PLEASE DO A STRAWBERRY AND LYCHEE FROZEN COMBO! The lady’s were so nice and enjoyed our amazement in the combos we had. My cousins had all three strawberry vanilla and lychee.

Came in for a post-​beach treat. I’m glad I read other reviews on Unilocal in regards to their soft serve shutting down an hour before closing, because we timed it and got there with plenty time to spare. I got the keiki strawberry banana soft serve, as well as the small Kona coffee pre-​packed and a large strawberry/​vanilla. All of them were so good! They also have a huge variety of snacks to choose from, but I thought some were on the pricey side. Will definitely be back for some more soft serve in the future!

Yum for Samurai soft serve! My favorite is the strawberry. Such a refreshing treat and perfect on a hot day, everyone’s favorite. They also sell treats, this is a perfect place to bring visitors, they have a bunch of island treats to bring back home. Samurai soft serve is very inexpensive, and the give a lot, my mister and I usually split the small and rarely finish it. Until next time!, you know I will be back!
This particular section of Aiea is VERY chaotic, it scares me to drive in this area, in-​fact I don’t drive in this area period.

I’ve been enjoying Samurai since a kid. This is the best treat on the hottest and coldest days here in Hawaii especially after a beach day or trip to the Swap meet!

Definitely one of the best things you can get on a hot day! Most of the times I go to this Aiea location they have strawberry-​vanilla as an option. So so so good! The frozen version is also delicious, but there is something about the soft serve I can’t resist.
The «small» size is surely enough, I can’t even finish it myself.

Ahh childhood memories! Nothing like a samurai ice cake to quench a sweet tooth. I also love that it’s a crack seed store; so many goodies!

I’m a Maui girl, so, I know what guri-​guri is all about. Sometimes, I’ll have that craving. I’m so happy I heard about Samurai. This is the closest I had to that smooth guri-​guri.
But, I’m gonna be real with myself, I know that samurai is not trying to replace my guri-​guri fill, Samurai is its own thing.
It’s yummy! Smooth and good size offering for a size small ($ 3.75) that I ordered. I always get the vanilla strawberry swirl. So good this way. Available sizes are Keiki, Small, And Large.
Warning: Be careful with the top/​middle portion. It’s hallow inside.
There’s lot of sundries/​local snacks, but price point is a bit high average ranging $ 5– $ 9, depending what it is and size of bag. We did find a small bag of Li Hing Mui Watermelon gummies for $ 2.60. this was the cheapest snack bag we found. Personally it’s all good and I would get, if I didn’t know that I could get these things for less cost somewhere else.
Clean shop, friendly worker. I’ll come back definitely for my Samurai fix.

Samurai brings me way back to the days when my grandparents used to buy the frozen ones and it was such a treat every time they let me pick which one I wanted to eat for my after school snack.
Fast forward, and now we are at the days where soft serve Samurai is one of the best snacks you can have! Even though strawberry and vanilla is my favorite combination, I also like the strawberry and banana! This is the place to go if you want a whole lot of something to escape the heat because they pack the cup with soft serve no matter what size you order! I find myself struggling to finish the keiki size, so I really commend those who order the large cup!
Samurai is the perfect stop after heading back into town after going to the North Shore, and it never hurts to buy some of their yummy snacks in their shop as well! And of course, if you’re feeling nostalgic for the frozen Samurai cups, they sell all their great flavors in the shop as well for you to take home and enjoy as well!

On a sightseeing tour of Aiea one Sunday, I happen to come across Samurai on my Unilocal app. The craving for ice cream and frozen yogurt beckoned and I answered it with a swift and powerful vengeance!
Samurai was your quintessential mom and pop snack stand. It was awesome to have this entrepreneur enterprise operating in today’s economic climate here in Hawaii. Supporting local never felt so empowering than it felt right now. Samurai is a small store, enough to where you see just a wall of snacks and a counter with a freezer display of frozen yogurt packed neatly in to go packs for all your daily fro yo needs or celebration events. There’s no seating area to speak of inside the store, so it was just kind of an ice cream parlor basically with a snack stop along the way. The service here was good, pleasant, and quite positive. Fabulous frozen yogurt options here, although I prefer real ice cream.
Samurai ice cream shop is a fixture at the Aiea Shopping Center. The shopping center is a small one, which has plenty of parking for everyone, just need to come during the peak times when most people come here for lunch or dinner. If you are like me, the bus route 11 and 54 comes through Aiea and makes a stop in front of the Aiea shopping center. Samurai ice cream shop accepts the major credit cards, so that’s always a great thing, especially when you’re out of cash. The prices here were very reasonable and the options for flavors were quite expansive and you can get a wonderful selection here. While you can definitely try to mix flavors and desire a eclectic taste, best bet would be just to check out their basic flavors and go from there before going adventuring further. My time here has been short and sweet.
I’m glad that I know this place is here in Aiea, when I need something sugary and sweet to enhance my day. For me, it was all about the chocolate, so I just got that. Nothing but chocolate would sooth the savage sugar tooth that plagues me each day. It was definitely a wonderful treat to cap off a meh type of Sunday. They give a good helping, considering that prices here are very reasonable. They do give a generous helping of fro yo, so that’s always a good thing and the service here is great.
Happy with my purchase and look to return sometime soon.
Support local!
B+

I have been looking forward to trying this place, I grew up eating Samurai but in a small plastic container from grocery stores.
They are located at the Aiea Shopping Center on the bottom next to Times Supermarket. It’s a really small place. Warning: Parking can be a bitch & its small stalls.
They have snacks, soft serve of Samurai (Guri Guri to me) & in containers, gift baskets…
They have diff sizes for the soft serve to be honest I ordered the small mix of vanilla & strawberry and it still looked big to me in a way I should’ve got the keiki size (lol) but it was well worth it.
i am a huge ling hing mui type of person so i got the chips with it, need some snacks with my samurai =)

Get the soft serve.
I made the mistake during my first visit, only getting the prepackaged Hawaiian Frost because I wasn’t even aware soft serve was an option. What a dummy. While it was good, and I have since contemplated buying it whenever I’ve seen it at the grocery store, it wasn’t that good (as evidenced by my not having bought it again). But enter the soft serve…
I think I was lucky because I came on chocolate haupia day. Chocolate haupia, come on!!! The soft serve was piled on high and was delicious (so what that it was only 10:30 in the morning?). Yes, super melty (it’s soft serve. In Hawaii!), but so so so good, like licking a Ted’s Haupia Cream Pie. At $ 3.50 for a regular cone and $ 4.25 for a waffle cone, I was cursing myself for not having ordered a waffle cone (not because the regular cone wasn’t MORE than enough, but just because it was THAT good).
So, moral of the story? Get the soft serve.

Haven’t been to Samurai’s snack Shop for such a long time, today I enjoyed flavors of Strawberry and Haupia– WoW so delicious! Triple X better to get the soft serve, great with the furukake popcorn too!

Yes! This soft serve is what dreams are made of! Plus, I never ate Samurai as a kid so the nostalgia isn’t even clouding my experience.
So why do I love Samurai?
First of all, it has that little «mom and pop» shop feel which is always a bonus point for me. Second, despite being a little shop the prices of their soft serve are extremely low… Especially if you are getting the large! I got the large ($ 4.25) thinking that that would be a perfect size to share. I was wrong… It was way too much! Samurai has both quality, affordability, and charm. Being a townie, I never understood the buzz about Samurai, but now I know how good the West-​siders have it! I would definitely come back again if I’m in the area.

As a lover of soft serve, this place truly drew me in right away. Overall, they are a lovely snack shop offering all sorts of your favorite local snacks. They even have guri guri! However, my main reason for stopping into their store is strictly for their soft serve. They offer various flavors from strawberry, vanilla, chocolate, haupia, banana, melona, and lychee (from what I’ve seen). My favorites are melona, lychee, and the strawberry/​vanilla swirl. I haven’t tried the chocolate or banana, but they don’t really entice me. I’ve been wanting to try the haupia, but I’ve just never got the chance to do so. Here are the sizes and prices:
Keiki — $ 2.75
Small — $ 3.50
Large — $ 4.25
Don’t be fooled by the word ‘keiki’ (meaning child’s size), though. I always get that size and it’s way more than enough for me. What a deal!
Just be ready to get your order and take it to go because there are no places to sit inside. There are some benches outside that you could sit on or you could just stand around outside and enjoy your treat.
The people who work in here are always friendly. I always find it a nice way to beat the heat… especially with this extremely HOT summer we’ve been having recently.

I have been eating their packaged soft serve since I was a child, however, I have only started coming here a week ago. It is a cute hole in the wall crack seed store with some homemade and classic local goodies. Of course, everyone comes here for the soft serve. There are a good number to choose from (banana, strawberry vanilla, haupia chocolate, melon, ect.) but I think it is fair to say most come for the strawberry vanilla swirl (my personal favorite is the haupia chocolate). Either way, it’s almost impossible to go wrong here. The parking isn’t too bad, but it may be a bit difficult. If you are in the area and have a sweet tooth, this is the place to fix your craving.

Perfection. I was supposed to get the regular one they sell in the flat cup but my mom insisted I get the soft serve. Soooo much! But still extremely good. Guys that were helping us were really nice

In the «olden days», there used to be Goodie Goodie Ice Cream. My dad used to drive my little sisters and me to a place by the Old Stadium for an after dinner treat. It was scooped fresh and the taste was intensely, unsaturated fruity and sweet — yum!
In these modern times, Samurai «Hawaiian Frost», is the closest you can get to Goodie Goodie. It’s basically frozen strawberry soda pop (or other flavor) and condensed milk. If you cannot get to Aiea, then look in the frozen sections of Costco and Times. On the island of Maui, there is something similar to Goodie Goodie — they call it Guri Guri Ice Cream. That’s really ono, too!
But of course, the best is FRESH and SOFT Samurai. They do have pre-​packaged treats in other flavors (such as haupia, banana, chocolate, and Kona Coffee) and sizes for take home, but you’ll have to scrape it before consuming. It’s a bit of work, but it’s worth it — especially after a few rounds of shopping at the nearby Swap Meets…
I waited for them to open at 10am on a Sunday, and was the first one in the door. The air conditioning was a welcomed escape from the humidity. The workers were really nice and said that they’ve been getting busier as summer is almost here. The first hour of the day is pretty mellow, then it gets really hectic. So — if you want to beat the crowd, go early!
There are 3 sizes: keiki, small, and large. Small was quite filling for me. The 2 flavors of the day were strawberry and vanilla. I got it swirled so I could get both choices! YUM!
Samurai is located next to Times Supermarket, on the ground level of Aiea Shopping Center, under the Bowling Alley & McDonalds. This is a take out place — no chairs inside. I would recommend staying inside the store because it’s clean, tidy, and cool!
The shop has a HUGE selection of snacks — from sweet (all kinds of candy, furikake puff rice, and senbei) to savory (arare, freshly popped popcorn, and cuttlefish) and preserved fruits like Li Hing Mui. If you need a gift, they have different sizes and assortments of goodie baskets — so convenient! If you want to get me something, I’d appreciate anything from Samurai! I don’t have any food allergies! ;)

Located near the Aiea Shopping Center, right next to Times, this is a fun little snack shop to stop by, especially if you’re in the area and you’re hankering for a nice frozen sweet treat, or some arare to tide you over.
I love their snacks, such as their arare and their Icees. However, their frozen cups did not hit it off with me. I was expecting the flavor to be a lot tangier, however it was more of a bubblegum flavor. I didn’t care for it, however my sister and my boyfriend loved it. I think the reason for my expectations, was because in appearance, it looked as if it was similar to an Icee. I do love the way they look. They look very pretty.
The service here is fast, efficient and friendly. The shop is tiny, and there’s no place to sit down in there. However, there are benches and an office building located upstairs with seating, where you can enjoy your treats. You can also opt to sit in your car to enjoy your treats. However, if you get the soft-​serve, then make sure to enjoy it right away, as it does melt.
I wouldn’t be back for the soft-​serve, but they do have other snacks in there that I would like to try. This is also a Hawaii staple that is worth stopping by at least once. So, it didn’t appeal to me. That doesn’t mean it won’t appeal to others though.

Dropped by Samurai after visiting the USS Arizona Memorial.
It was getting warmer outside and this was a nice way to cool off. Parking is easier to find in this area. The store is packed with snacks and a variety of Hawaiian frosts. The Hawaiian frosts are in pre-​packed cups in their freezer. The flavors are labeled, see Unilocal pics for a better idea. They only had one flavor in their soft serve machine the day we visited. So we tried the Strawberry Banana soft serve. It had a lovely consistency, so smooth, creamy, and light. Not overly sweet and the strawberry was delicious. We didn’t really enjoy the banana part, it had an artificial taste to it. The Vanilla Hawaiian frost was on point.
Service was friendly and helpful. The cashier asked us where we were visiting from and took the time to chat with us for a bit. Sweet! No seating available inside, a grab and go type place. There is a little bench in between Samurai and Times Supermarket next-​door. You can sit there or go back to your car.
Who doesn’t want a brightly colored cool treat?

If I’m in Aiea, I’ll find ANY reason to make a stop at Samurai’s. They’ve got a wide variety of snacks to satisfy any craving…
Samurai’s is a small shop right next to Times in the Aiea Shopping Center. Unlike their Kalihi location, they do accept credit cards and there’s no minimum charge. They’ve got creamy soft serve, ice cakes, fresh popcorn, and a wall full of crack seed snacks.
In my opinion, one of the best ways to treat yourself on a hot day in Hawaii is to head over and grab some soft serve. They usually have one or two flavors that change daily — most often strawberry and vanilla, which are always better swirled together. Let me tell you, they sure do swirl it high! You’ll get your money’s worth here… It’s the perfect treat — light, creamy, and way cheap!
As far as ice cakes go, one of my go-​to flavors is chocolate banana — or anything mixed with haupia. There’s a bench right outside where you can sit and enjoy your soft serve or ice cakes — which I’d recommend because they start to melt pretty fast.
They also sell soft serve in to-​go containers if you want to take some sweet treats to a party, or keep some tucked away in your freezer at home. (What? No one’s judging.) They fill up an ice cake container, small or large, with the soft serve flavor of your choice and charge the same amount as if you bought either a small or large ice cake. A small will run you a little over $ 2, while a large will cost about $ 5. A steal!
TIP: They shut down the soft serve machine an hour before closing, so make sure to get there well in advance if you want to guarantee yourself some!
PARKING: Free and easy at the bottom level of the Aiea Shopping Center.

Unilocal 365 Challenge 2015 #11/​365
If you’re looking for a cool, sweet treat, and happen to be in Aiea, look no further than Samurai’s! They have soft serve, guri-​guri ice cream (Hawaiian Frost), ice cakes, fresh popcorn, and local snacks.
My favorite flavor of Hawaiian Frost to get from there is the Kona Coffee. Apparently on my most recent visit, I wanted to try something else, and ordered the Kona Coffee, but Rachel told me that’s what I ordered the last time. Doesn’t matter, no complaints here! You might have to wait a bit for the treat to melt a little before you can fully enjoy it, but the Kona Coffee is really creamy and sweet.
Rachel ordered the Strawberry/​Haupia, and although I feel that Samurai’s strawberry flavor is a bit strong, it was still a good combination.
One thing I’m not fond of about Samurai’s is that they shut down their soft serve machine one hour before closing. What’s up with that?! IMO, the soft serve is the best thing that Samurai’s has going for them. However, the flavors are limited, and they only serve two flavors at a time for the entire day. Every time I’ve gone, it’s always been Strawberry and something else. My favorite soft serve flavor has to be the vanilla, which I’m a sucker for. Unfortunately, we weren’t able to get it this time, nonetheless it was still a great trip for some sweet treats.

Samurai. Let me speak of the ways that I (heart) you. Basically, which only boils down to one main thing: That guri guri.
Can’t say I’m a major fan of other guri guris, probably because the stuff tastes like straight up sugar and false flavoring or because of the icy texture.
But let’s talk about Samurai and how they’re honoring the way of the guri guri. While you can find the stuff in your local market in those little containers (when in desperate/​dire need to get that Samurai fix) getting it fresh here is the best. Soft and serve is probably the best option you have, especially if you’re like me and travel from a far ways away (town) to get the stuff. While they only have one flavor of the day, they carry other flavors that are fresher than the grocery stores. My all time favorite is their strawberry/​vanilla combo. And with a kiddie size which is still a substantial amount for under three bucks, I’M SOLD!
This place is a childhood favorite and I will continue to visit this place till I’m old and gray and with kids of my own.

Boyfriend and I had so many places that we wanted to check out before we left Oahu that we forgot about Samurai until the last day. Soft serve ice cream is his ultimate favorite so I don’t know how we managed to forgett, but we did :(
We headed over in a mad dash and got there at about 6:02pm. As soon as we walked in the door, the girl behind the counter quickly (and rudely, should I add) shouted «no more soft serve today!» And let me tell you, I have never seen my boyfriend so disappointed. I mean, really, you couldn’t just pour out one more serving for us? Why would you stop serving your most well-​known and popular item an HOUR before closing??? That’s a quick way to lose money and customers.
So having missed out on the soft serve, we begrudgingly settled on the banana chocolate frost (which are the little pre-​portioned out cups that come in either small or large size). It was nothing special because, of course, that’s not their best item. It was more chocolate flavor than anything else — hardly any banana to be found.
I guess it was our fault for forgetting about this place until our last day, but how were we supposed to know they stop serving soft serve an hour before closing? WELL, if you wanna try their soft serve, get there early!