Art’s Hideaway

Lunch review: I have been here many times over the past 9 years I’ve worked in town. Always great service. They make sure everything is ok and if something is wrong it’s fixed. The owner seems a little scattered at times but that kind of adds to the quirky charm of the restaurant.
Location is unique and makes you feel like you know someplace special that only downtowners would know.
I was torn between giving 3 or 4 stars but for me majority of my rating falls on the food. Although Arts serves standard comfort food (which I love), I’ve never been wowed by anything I’ve eaten. If I could, it’s 3.5 stars for me.

Ok, I’d read the reviews and knew there’s some karaōke. Didn’t expect it to be non-​stop at 1900 on a Friday night. Nor so loud that conversing wasn’t possible. And like many Karaōke places, the «singers» were horribly bad.
Had one beer while awaiting our friends’ arrival. We rapidly left as soon as I finished my beer.
Maybe this is a good place for lunch without the horribly annoying awful karaōke? I don’t know but won’t be trying to go back to find out.

When in downtown Honolulu looking for a lunch spot this is great for a few or a small group. Great food, simple menu and awesome service. Definitely a staple for downtown workers. Been three times now and never been disappointed.

Location: Art’s Hideaway is exactly that. You need to look for the arts hideaway sign when walking on the sidewalk on Bishop street and you’ll see narrow stairs leading down, when you get to the bottom… Wow it opens up to a whole underground area with tables.
Atmosphere: I’ve been coming here for years since its right across the street from my workplace. I would recommend this place if you live/​work downtown and want a casual laid back local sit down and eat place rather than take out. And they Serve Alcohol! big plus! but dont expect the fancy mixologist cocktails, they have bottled beers and standard hard liquor. Oh also they have Karoke at night, there have been some nights we walked over after work and stayed for hours!
Food: They have daily specials that rotate and he’ll usually put up a board at the top of the stairs that you can see when you walk by. The french dip is good, and he also makes a good NY steak with grilled mushrooms and onions, I dont think its on the menu just ask for it. There’s something for everyone here burgers, wraps, salads, pastas, and local favorites like hamburger steak.
Service: ART is the man! Very friendly and always tried to accommodate you. He is sometimes the 1 man show and will seat you, serve you water, and then cook your lunch and bring it out to you! But when its busy he has help that is very efficient and will keep your water filled. This place is fast and they have it down to a science so that you will not wait too long for lunch.
I’m so happy to support local small businesses, great place to try if you’re downtown.

What a hidden GEM. Great service, prices so low it makes you feel cheap and the food is delicious. this is one of those you have to go look for it to find it places but once you eat there you are hooked.

Came to Art’s for lunch yesterday with one of my besties and I ordered the meatloaf with salad and mashed potatoes! The meatloaf was great; it was doused with mushroom gravy, and the salad dressing was a fruity vinaigrette. The portion of the plate overall was good for the price. Only $ 9.00!
It’s a good little intimate place for people who are looking to get away from the hustle and bustle of downtown work life. We went at noon; but got seated as soon as we came through the door.
(As an additional comment) One of my coworkers has a typical routine of getting the chicken picatta on Thursdays; he’s been going every week now since I can remember. But when he opens the takeout box, the office has the best aroma of lemon and butter :)

Art and crew always made my friends and I feel right at home. Always keen to special requests and besides the food make great mixed drinks. The Hideaway will always hold a special place in my mind.

Nice little place downstairs nothing fancy but local flavor and cheap prices. Turkey sandwich with mashed potatoes all smothered in gravy — delicious and huge portion. For something quick at lunch this is great.

Finally can check this place off my bookmarked list. Literally a hideaway… you would’ve never guess this place even existed underground in downtown.
typical diner food that serves alcohol. The owner I believed who took our order is very energetic and seemed pretty nice.
ordered their French Dip sandwich that comes with fries (they don’t add salt) that was alright, no wow factor and a little plain/​bland tbh.
although my food wasn’t a hit I will definitely come back here to try their local plate lunches I noticed other people were ordering that looked really good.

Love Arts used to go at night karaōke and dinner good crowd and great food a place to chill and have fun they also do lunch during the day the food is really good try them out

If you’re looking for a quick & hearty lunch downtown, but want it sit-​down style, this is the place. Service is awesome & fast, normally you can order, eat and pay within 30 – 40 minutes. Food is all from scratch & portions are generous, but still very cheap. There’s also a full bar if you’re having a rough day. Haha.

Dingy downstairs diner. Probably better for drinks than for food. While the food wasn’t disgusting or inedible, it wasn’t great. I had the fish sandwich which thankfully wasn’t too fishy to eat. Service was really good. But this would never be my suggestion for where to go for lunch.

Art’s Hideaway is the ultimate hole-​in-​the-​wall. The entrance is a small door with narrow stairs leading down to the restaurant. It feels like you’re eating in a building basement where secret meetings are held. (And that’s a good thing because houses in Hawaii don’t have basements.)
Two people can get lunch here for less than $ 30. A friend of mine invited me to this place. We both ordered French dips, which were cooked fresh and came with an awesome au jus sauce. A lot of places put way too much salt in their au jus sauce but Art’s is good about this. You can taste the actual sauce instead of all the sodium in it, which places like Arby’s could learn to do.
There is apparently karaōke at this place and it’s just the right size of a bunch of people to go there after a long/​hard day at the office.
If you work downtown or attend HPU, I highly recommend trying this place at least once.

One of my favorite places for lunch. Art and his staff are quick and attentive and you can have a nice sit down meal in 30 minutes flat!
Check out the daily specials — try that Turkey and Stuffing. My son swears by the pastrami sandwich and if Turkey is not on the special for the day, I go for the mahi sandwich. A lot of bang for your buck here!

Such a great hidden, and I do mean hidden gym in Downtown Honolulu. If you’re not careful, you will walk right past the place and never notice it. Art’s is a really great place to grab a quick lunch. Art himself does most of the servicing of tables and he is so much fun to talk to.
The service is excellent and food is large portions at a great value. All of the food is great and your glasses will never be empty. You will even get a humorous «lecture» when you don’t eat everything on your plate from Art himself.
I work in the Downtown area and eat here every couple of months and Art remembers me every time. In fact, I noticed that he recognizes everyone that goes into his place.
I have eaten many items on the menu. Today was the French Dip with fries. Warm sandwich with yummy au jus sauce. French fries were fresh and hot. I only wish there had been a few more fries, but no other complaints.
Definitely recommended for a fast in, fast out lunch at a high quality level and great value.

I’d want to give them 3.5 stars. I haven’t been here in years but a friend suggested it for lunch. It’s tucked under a few other restaurants/​businesses on Bishop street.
While the food was ok, it wasn’t as impressive as the service. Super friendly and attentive staff. My fruit punch didn’t even get down to ¼ of the glass before it was being refilled throughout the entire meal! Our food came out really quickly too!
I read other reviews that mentioned that they have karaōke there in the evenings. May need to check this place out with the coworkers for pau Hana.

4.5 star service; 1.5 star food. I’d be willing to give it another try.
It lives up to the name — it truly is a hideaway, located down a staircase off one of the filthiest sidewalks on Bishop Street. I went for lunch at the recommendation of friends and colleagues.
Service was spot-​on. My water glass was refilled constantly, which I appreciate, and Art came around a couple times, first to take our order and again to check on us. The guy has personality for days and recognized one of my coworkers, even though she’s hardly a regular. Prices were great for a sit-​down place Downtown — veal parmigiana for $ 9?
My food, however, was uninspiring. I opted for the burger (probably should have gone for the veal that originally caught my eye) with fries. No complaints about the fries. Small burger on a basic white bun — but my burger was overcooked — the interior was fine, but the outside surfaces were charred. I’m sure I could have brought this to Art’s attention and had a replacement made, but we were on a tight lunch-​hour time frame. I’d be willing to try a new dish another time, or possibly pau hana, because the place does have some things going for it.

When you need a downtown spot for lunch, that does not involve eating out of a styrofoam container, your options are limited… and I think Art’s is a great choice.
Located in the basement (yes it looks a little dark and sketchy, but it’s really not), you walk down a narrow set of stairs and find a bunch of tables. At peak time, sometimes the place can be packed, but they still are pretty quick.
I like the chicken stir fry when I’m feeling semi-​healthy but when I’m going for it, I love anything with brown gravy. Even if it’s not on the menu Art will sometimes let me have brown gravy over it (e.g., chicken katsu + brown gravy = makes my own chicken cutlet plate!). Salads are good too. Oh and if Art is there, he will usually let you substitute or make something up as long as it’s close to the menu. Pretty cool.
His BROWN RICE is some of the best. It’s not gourmet or anything but it’s cooked just right that I actually order brown rice here, and it’s not often that I order brown rice anywhere.
Only thing I’m not really a fan of is the iced tea, but I can deal with just drinking water…
I haven’t been here for pau hana, but I hear it’s fun. I usually just sneak in for a quick lunch when I feel like a real meal.

The BEST Hidden Gem! Drinks are reasonable, Art is an amazing host, and KARAOKE!
Super casual and a great place to pau hana =)

A guy I met in college said «you have to have lunch at this restaurant I found, it’s really good». In downtown, as a college student, it’s hard to find anything «restaurant» like so I was intrigued. When he took me down the dark narrow steps however, I was pretty sure I was headed for death. lol. But, instead I died from food orgasm! 10 years later (yes 10, i’m old) andArt’s is always up there on my go-​to list downtown. He gives large portions, is soooooo nice, and the food is delicious. My personal favorite is the Fettucine alfredo with Chicken. He makes his pasta creamy and plentiful and gives you half a loaf of french bread too! The scampi is good too and french dip. :)
I usually opt for take out because at lunch time, this place gets BUSY. Like, if you want to eat in the restaurant and finish within an hour take your lunch at 11 instead of 12 kinda busy. Take out is great because you can call it in, it’s hot and ready for pick up when you come, and since my office is literally a stones throw away, I can bring it upstairs and pretty much have the best lunch everrr.
Also, little known fact, his fried zucchini is the best. Seriously THE best. There’s like 10 slices of beautiful fried zuccini with ranch dressing. Mmmm Mmmm… it makes me so happy thinking about it. BUT he only makes it for people he knows. It’s not on the menu. And if he’s busy, he can’t do it :(
This place truly is a downtown hideaway and is often my request for my office birthday lunch :)