Champs

It was empty on a Saturday night at about 8pm. We were probably early, however I thought people would be watching Packers vs. Cardinals game.
Our waitress… I’ll just say I had better waitresses.

Great place to watch football, basketball, hockey. Very nice and attentive bartenders, very clean, good AC, and overall a relaxing place to hang. The bartender who served me on a Wednesday (Michael? Micah?) night was friendly, and he was nice enough to let me watch my basketball game. He also let me know that they are fairly new, and serve food Thurs-​Monday (no food on Wednesdays) and a popular Tuesday $ 1 taco night. Very good selection of nice bottled beers, and Happy Hour offers great deals– $ 3 for Sam Adams on Wednesday night; different beer specials are offered every night. Plenty of large TVs, good music, pool tables and games. Can’t wait when they start hosting live music. I would definitely recommend this place to hang out with friends, watch games or play in the arcade.

This is a good place to watch football on Sunday since it has a decent number of TVs. The place is usually packed on Sundays with regulars who have come to know the friendly bartender Micah. You can bring your own food also on Sundays, which is nice. I think the chef comes in around 10:00 am, and they start offering food at that point.
They also have a pretty decent bottle beer selection, and it is even better when it is happy hour. I think it starts after 4:00 p.m., or at least it did today on a Saturday. My fiancé drank two Lagunitas IPAs for only $ 9 ($ 4.50 a piece). I drank a Rogue Hazelnut Brown Nectar for $ 6. Not bad! There are definitely some good, valuable finds here. Some of the beers that they have definitely cost a lot more elsewhere.
They also have some dart machines, and the bar itself is pretty clean.
This place is a pretty good value with a good TV setup. I will definitely be back.

So, I suppose when asking a friend to meet you at a new bar, you shouldn’t skimp on any details. A group of friends and I decided to check out this new bar on Waialae Avenue and asked our friend from Kauai who was just visiting for the day to meet us at Champs. So when he called saying that he couldn’t find us, we thought maybe he went to Champion Bar which has been given the nickname «Champs» by some locals. Nope, he didn’t go there. He went to Champs in Kahala Mall. Yes, the shoe store. Whoops. Anyhow, we gave him all of the details that we initially should have and he made it over just fine and we all had a good time.
Champs is a fairly new bar located on Waialae Avenue. There’s parking available up the ramp right before the bar. I’m not sure what to make of the bar yet. I think that they still need to work out a few kinks and the bar will be in top shape. At first glance, the bar looks great-​the bar was nice and tidy, they have multiple TV’s on the wall, a lot of seating options and the bar is lined with video games. Their restrooms are very clean (totally expected them to be since the bar is new). However, I was slightly disappointed in their food menu. They have some good things available but were missing a major bar staple: fries. It wouldn’t be so bad if they didn’t serve burgers and sandwiches… but they do. They also have some really delicious sounding-​Ahi and Tako poke on the menu but I can’t tell you how they taste because it wasn’t available on the day we went. (1^st strike)
Their bar had a ton of drinks to choose from but we weren’t served everything we asked for because it was the bartender’s second day on the job… alone. Someone in our party ordered a mojito. Bartender said there was no mint so she asked if a mojito without mint was OK. My friend agreed (crazy to have a mojito without the mint but eh, it is what it is). Even though the drink didn’t come with the mint, it didn’t taste like a mojito. Something was definitely missing-​simple syrup maybe? My friend returned the mojito, told the bartender it didn’t taste right and ordered something else. (2^nd strike)
Another friend ordered a martini and the bartender apologized because she didn’t know how to make that type of martini since it was her second day on the job and offered another drink that she knew how to make. My friend ended up ordering wine instead and guess what-​they didn’t have that type of wine. (3^rd/​4^th strike?) Meanwhile, the rest of us were ordering drinks just fine and they took forever to come because like the bartender said, it was her second day on the job. It was totally cool that it was her second day; everyone has to start somewhere and learn somehow but… by herself?! There weren’t any other bartenders or any other employees around to help her. Great job Champs, way to go throwing your employees into the fire like that with a table full of thirsty patrons.
On the plus side, they have a couple of decent happy hours: Super Happy Hour and Reverse Happy Hour. Super Happy Hour is every day from 4pm-​7 pm and all day on Sunday. The drinks are at least $ 1 off and they serve $ 2 hot dogs during this time. The Reverse Happy Hour is from 10pm-​closing on Monday-​Saturday. Their drinks are discounted and they also have $ 2 hot dogs during this time. They have all beef dogs, spicy smoked sausage and brats. The all-​beef hot dog was pretty good and it tasted just like the kind they serve at Costco.
Overall, I gave Champs 3 stars for the ambiance and features of the bar, the good memories the bar allowed us to make with friends, and for the customer service. Not for the lack of bartending knowledge and experience but for the bartender’s efforts. She was apologetic for the slow service and for not being able to serve every drink we asked for but she was really sweet and was still very attentive to our needs. I don’t think it was her fault she was on her own. That seemed unacceptable to leave a new bartender on her own on her second day. I hope this business steps up their training and ends up doing well. The concept seems great and I’m sure there are many, many more great memories to be made here!

I’ll confess that this bar was not my first choice. But it’s a Sunday night and no other bars within a block were open. My friend and I sat at the bar because we wanted a quick drink. She asked for a virgin Bloody Mary and I ordered my drink. The bartender didn’t seem all that enthusiastic to be working and asked us to wait. Sure, no problem. As he got started on our drinks, he asked my friend what type of vodka she wanted. She reminded him that she wanted her drink virgin. «Ah…yes,» he replied. He then asked us if we wanted to start a tab. We said yes, and my friend said, «I’ll give you my card but I’m going to pay cash.» He acknowledged her and walked away.
As he was preparing someone else’s drink, my friend attempted to get his attention but he downright ignored us. When we finally did, we asked if there was a food menu and he said there wasn’t. It’s funny when we decided to leave shortly after that and asked for the tab, he heard us without any problem, being the same distance away.
He brought the tab to us, my friend’s card was swiped and he had given us someone else’s card. My friend informed him the card wasn’t hers and reminded him she wanted to pay cash. His response, «Oh I didn’t hear you, the music is loud in here.» He offered to reverse the charge and we paid cash and left.
I do not recommend coming here. There are so many other restaurants nearby that provide great service and don’t treat you like they’re doing you a favor… don’t walk, RUN away.

Whaaat thee fahk!!! R u serrious, can u hear me now??? What are u or sumtin… like go fishing? SHOOTS!
Making
NEkine since 1978

My crystal ball says that this place will have a closed for business sign within the next 3 months. On a football Saturday, we were given a doomsday welcome: «Only 2 items on the food menu are available, otherwise you can bring your own food and the bottled beer options are scaled down to just a few.» Not exactly the kind of welcome we were expecting. Available parking on the top deck and lots of televisions to watch the games. Probably the only good things about this place. They seem to be catering to the gaming in the back. This place will either close because of the lack of business or the police will confiscate all the machines.

The last Friday in October I had ventured all the way to Kaimuki. Normally I head to Kaimuki if I need to attend training class at the CFE on 10^th Avenue for my current workplace. This time around it is to attend a masquerade party with a bunch of cool people.
I walked into Champs sports bar for the first time and noticed that this establishment is like a mini Dave & Busters for adults. There’s the full bar on the right hand side as a person enters the door. There are few dart board games on the left hand side of the entrance. The middle section of the bar has a pool table. Towards the back end of the establishment was the arcade games.
Being that it was my first time at Champs I played tourist. As I walked around the establishment I had noticed a bunch of flat screen televisions for the patrons to enjoy. There was an ATM on site for individuals who needed cash (for those who don’t want to pay the fees best to go to your personal bank ATM for cash). I also noticed that this establishment had a unisex restroom. This is the second establishment that I have been to that offers a unisex restroom to patrons.
Beers, wine, and champagne was priced at $ 5.00 during happy hour. I normally don’t drink beer, wine, or champagne but I ended up looking at what the bar had on hand and decided to try the Redd’s Strawberry Ale. I drank the last two bottles of that brand. I also had ordered the Ketel One screwdriver for $ 7.00 and a new friend bought me a Tequila Sunrise.
If I am ever in the Kaimuki area again I would like to sample the different type of pupus (appetizers) that the establishment has to offer. Who knows I may want to be a kid and play with one of the arcade games on the premises.

It’s an interesting concept at Champs. I was here last night for a party. You walk in the door, the bar is on your right, tables to the left. All the way in the back of the place is an arcade. It was like Fun Factory for adults.
It’s a good place to hang out with your friends and to catch games. They had a few big screen TV’s in there. I ran into a friend, and then ran into another friend, so this place must be gaining in popularity.
My cousin ordered this orangey alcoholic drink. I couldn’t remember the name of it. I took a sip and it was strong. They put a lot of alcohol in there, so if you like to drink, this is the place for you.
The party I attended ordered grilled cheese sandwiches from here. The sandwiches were divine. There were two types: Swiss, Provolone, and Havarti on either Pumpernickel or Rye bread. It was grilled to a crisp with the cheeses melting together to a gooey goodness. The sandwiches were rich and filling. I was pretty stuffed after eating half a sandwich.

Love this place! Large selected of liquor and the bartender was very welcoming. They have games in the back, pool and darts. Thanks for making me feel at home Brenton :)

They had great prices for their reverse happy hour and establishment itself had a great atmosphere: clean, lots of TVs to get a view of the game, and an arcade in the back.
However, my two stars is for the experience I had in which the service was extremely slow and the waitress was not the friendliest.
At the end of the night, I had to argue with her about my tab. She was insistent that I had ordered cocktails the entire night and wouldn’t believe me when I told her it was shots off the reverse happy hour menu. When she finally relented in changing the charge, she tried to convince me that it was difficult to do. If it hadn’t been for that end experience I wouldn’t have minded going back, but sadly not anymore

I go Sundays for football and stop in after work occasionally during the week. I love how friendly this place is. The staff are always pleasant and helpful. The bartenders have a lot of personality and I always get the same server but she is on point.
I ordered poke and it was very good, not to mention the beautiful presentation (in a martini glass!). The sliders were awesome too.
Sunday this place feels like a lively neighborhood bar, lots of regulars. $ 2 hot dogs, happy hour all day. My friend is obsessed with their pesto panini sandwich. If you’re the high maintenance type that complains about not having a servers attention every 5 min maybe sit at the bar just to be safe. I think the staffing is more than adequate for the pricing you get. I highly recommend checking this place out, I’m glad I did.

I haven’t been to this place since it switched over from WZ Entertainment to Champs Sports Bar. I had come for a Unilocal event but never quite found my niche there. I’ve been meaning to check out my he new concept after seeing Brian and Terry check in a few times. My co worker told me that since the switchover she had been going & found it really relaxing so I thought I’d check it out with her.
On a Thursday afternoon I met her for some football & beers. My biggest conflict with my coworker is our taste in beverages. She drinks Bud Light while I prefer almost everything else. Champs has a selection of both basic and craft level which was lovely. Over 25 bottled varieties that I saw. I was happy to have a few different IPAs to choose from. The happy hour deals were actually excellent: 4−7pm everyday + Sunday’s is Super Happy Hour with $ 5 glasses of wine, $ 1 off beers $ 6 or less, $ 2 off beers over $ 6, $ 1 off spirits & $ 2 off hot dogs, brats & smoked sausages [which turn out to be $ 2 with this deal, score]. There’s also Reverse Happy Hour 10pm to close Mon-​Sat with some other deals including discounted beers and shots.
The menu had a few simple options but I wasn’t starving. As I was about to put my menu down, the words Carnegie Deli pickles caught my eye. Any good New Yorker knows of Carnegie and boy do I love me pickles. This inspired me to read closer and see that they claimed to make NY style pastrami. I officially had to try. There were some full sandwiches for $ 9ish and sliders for $ 3. I started with the sliders because it sounded like a steal. NOTE: you only actually get one slider so that was a let down. The pastrami came out steaming hot on a toasty pretzel bun covered in melted Swiss. It smelled delicious and upon peering inside I saw that the pastrami looked legit. I dove in and was happy to feel at home. I crave delis and this pastrami did it for me. I tried the Kalua Pork slider as well but it was nothing new; the pastrami on the otherhand was a game changer. I wound up ordering a Reuben to take home. My only let down was the menu claimed potato salad which never made it to my plate. Pickle? On point! In the end, I was glad I decided to buy food.
My girlfriend kept telling me I had to try a drink called ‘Sex in the Parking Lot.’ I thought she meant Sex on the Beach but nope. The bartender Shaun made them like a pro, he had such suaveness. A twist on a Cosmo, it was enjoyable. We had just signed our bills when he treated us to a round of shots. My bill was cheap, great food & drinks plus complimentary shots? Winner winner! Great start to my birthday weekend. He wound up making us some of the best chocolate cake shots I’ve ever had. Super smooth and tasty. I liked his personality too; he made us want to stay & hang out.
A fun sports bar type place to cruise after work or do some day drinking. Very chill vibe. Would love music or darts but still enjoyable. Lots of large tvs, friendly service! Parking lot in the back.

Nice on the inside. No good beers on tap, waitress accidentally poured a drink all over my girlfriend. Not worth a 2^nd trip. Don’t go out of your way.

I’m giving this a 2 star because the shelf selection is good. But I sat at a table for about 25 mins without anyone coming to give us a menu or if we wanted to order anything. Took 4 tries to wave down the 1 waitress that we seen doing orders. Super small selection for any food.
It’s a cool concept. Like DnB’s. Had a fun factory vibe going on.
Not my type of place.
FYI. All street parking for this location

Came here to watch the first football games of the season. This new bar is AWESOME! Definitely making Champs our go to spot for early morning games. The service was incredible. Server and bartender were attentive (quite a feat for anyone at 7am), and they were accommodating when we asked if they could change a tv to another game. Definitely above and beyond what they had to do! The all you can eat breakfast buffet was a great plus too!
Pros:
Convenient location
Parking lot
All you can eat breakfast buffet
Incredible service
Cons:
Some of the tables are in awkward spots
Pillars slightly blocking tvs
Overall, we had a really great experience and we’re glad to have another great sports bar in town!

Came here after work on a friday, just me and a couple coworkers. We were excited about the reviews that we saw of oysters, games, and a large selection of beers. Unfortunately it was not that great… they had changed the food menu to only hot dogs and paninis, and the games didnt look very appealing/​legit. We had a few drinks all on separate tabs and some food (which took longer than it should’ve for a hot dog and sandwiches), then decided to head out. Upon recieving our bills we had no choice wether to run our cards or not, nor did we get an itemized bill. Looking at the three of our bills nothing added up. We came to the conclusion that most of the drinks were on one of our tabs (kind of hard to figure out when we’re a few drinks in and have no itemized check). Since they already ran our cards, we ended up just giving our coworker some cash and agreed never to come back.

New place on Waialae that we had so much fun at last night, I just had to give them a review on Unilocal.
We walked in and the place was dead. They are brand new though, so I think it will take some time to get some business going.
Our bartender was friendly and poured great drinks. We then moved onto the arcade section which we had a blast in. My gambling fever came out.
The décor is nice and new, very sleek. We can’t wait to come back during football season to watch the games. Hopefully their kitchen will be open by then!

What a fun place! It was so fun I hit it twice in the same afternoon/​evening. Fresh, clean, hip! Great games, great «jukebox», great service.
Met some friends before going to a planned dinner at Hale Vietnam. When dinner was done we hot footed it back for more cocktails, more games, more music. Smack in the middle of Kaimuki, directly across the street from Tamura’s for those like me who are destination challenged. Didn’t get to try the food because of the dinner plans but I am very interested in the Duck Confit Lumpia next time I am there.
Parking is up the neighboring ramp so no driving around looking for a spot on the street. This is more fun than Dave & Busters and more adult as there are no ADHD kiddies running amuck through the area. Check it out, you will not be sorry you did.

Great new place! Bartender Gina is super accommodating, and her specialty cocktails are delicious! Very bright atmosphere, tons of TV, and other entertainment throughout the facility. They’ve only been open for five days, and still working to get the full kitchen going, but you can have food delivered for the time being. (I believe they serve light pupu though.) Go check them out!