Pipeline Café

Sad to hear that Pipeline will be closing up the doors starting up 2÷1÷11
I’ve been going to Pipeline Café since it opened up around the same time I turned 21. It has been a great large sized club (for Hawaii standards) for all sorts of activities including awesome concerts (I’ve seen so many good concerts there about 4 times per year).
Pipeline café also happened to have one of the best Happy Hour specials in town with a great 2 $ food menu along with 2 $ drinks m-​f until like 7pm. They had extra good chicken katsu (crispy) and chicken tenders (frozen kine but still solid)
Also when I was younger Pipeline had one of the better Tuesday drink nights with 1 and 2 $ drinks all night.
It’s kinda crappy that they will be shutting down due to some facilities issues but I’ve had a bunch of good times there and hopefully will be able to make one more visit on ¹⁄₃₁.

It’s shut down as of tomorrow. I’m actually quite sad about this because Pipeline was a great place for all the mokes, punks and pricks to go. Now with out this venue, they’re gonna have to go somewhere… Zanzibar, Mad Dog and the like seem like easy choices but lets not forget Crazybox and their «No Dresscode» policy that you know those guys love.
*sigh* Funny how I rarely ever went here but I know I’ll end up missing it…

They no longer serve lunch. =(

The NY steak was really good… tender strips of steak & grilled onions over rice. Great flavor.
Also got chicken quesadillas… ok but not enough chicken on them.
I went to a comedy show Wednesday night… just wish I didn’t have to wait so long for it to start (8:45ish). All the comedians joked a lot about race… kind of disturbing but the audience laughed a lot.

Watched the Michael Winslow comedy show here one night. The food here is okay, the garlic fries and sliders were the only thing worth mentioning. Blacklight is used in the main hall, which was a little disconcerting when I saw my fingernails glowing in the dark… yeah…

Hah. I was right. Pipeline Café is a fire trap, and a disaster waiting to happen. That’s a big difference from room capacity of 299 than 2000. Whoa.
I knew that the first time I went there, and its going to be the last time I go there. Even if MJ came back there.
Thank god no lives were lost until the city and county finally listened to all the concerns from patrons over the years. Response time needs to improve to prevent a future nightmare elsewhere.

I remember when Pipeline Café opened 10 years ago and it was the hottest venue in town with lines for days. Well that’s all certainly changed as the nightclub business is very fickle and now it’s a place you visit to watch live music. Concert promoters now book Pipeline for acts who have a smaller following and it seems like they do a lot of comedy shows here. We come here every once in awhile for concerts but it’s never a place I’m excited to come to. I think I’m just too old and prissy. Or maybe I haven’t had enough to drink and that would be the cure to all my dismay with the world! I’ll let you know after I have this baby.
What brought me to Pipeline for this review was the Led Zepplica concert. Definitely not my first choice for a Saturday night out but our very dear friends had an extra pair of tickets and it was a great excuse to hang out with them for the evening. We had tickets for the VIP room upstairs and I’d highly recommend buying those if you’re going to a concert at Pipeline. I’m just beyond the days of being squished on a dance floor and although it’s not the cleanest place in the world, at least there are less people to have to maneuver through.
I’m sure if you’re a Led Zepplin fan this was an amazing concert, but as I am not, it was a horrible way to spend a Saturday night. Are tribute bands not the saddest bands to be in? No one really likes you per say. They like the person you’re pretending to be. Although in Led Zepplica’s defense, my friend said that they were better than the real thing. But I like quaint chic rock and as we sat upstairs listening to Led Zepplica, and I was never so happy in my entire life to have a pair of earplugs, which hopefully saved me from severe hearing loss. Like I said, I really really love my BF and my friends. I can suck it up with the best of them for the people I love. I don’t know what was the weirdest part of the evening. The man wearing light up devil horns with matching red pants and red sneakers or watching Daniel Dae Kim (Lost & Hawaii 5 – 0) stroll by because he’s obviously a Led Zepplica fan. Either way I’m fairly sure my unborn baby is now emotionally traumatized from the noise although I did a google search and it said that it would have to be for a very long exposure period to cause any damage. If she turns out wanting to get a Mohawk and date a guy name Spike then I guess we’ll know the reason.

For concerts and shows, this place gets the job done.
I’ve seen Mos Def, Bobby Lee, Pepper, Q-​Tip, Rebelution, and Iration do shows here. In my opinion, Pipeline is probably one of the better venues to check shows out in Hawaii. The stage is nicely lit, the sound is crisp, and the bars are quick to get you a drink. With these ingredients, how could you not enjoy yourself?
True story of my first experience here. Back when I was young buck at 15, I remember trying to use a fake ID I bought for 30bucks at Fireflys. Being the alknowing genius that I thought I was, I said to myself, ‘Hmmm, It says I’m a 22 year old from Guam… no way this big Samoan guy knows what an ID from Guam looks like.’.
It probably would have been more convincing if I hadn’t worn my Wu-​Tang Shirt. hahahaha.
After waiting in line for 30 minutes, it was show time. I made sure to not make eye contact, don’t smile, no hands in pockets, and don’t slouch. Fail. The joys of being a stupid teenager trying to party with grown ups (18+).
Anyways…for shows and concerts, I love this place. For 15 year olds trying to sneak in with a fake, I say don’t do it!

Dang! Until last night, I think the last time I was here was for the very first MySpace party like…6 years ago! Haha! This is a review only for their comedy night and food…
A few months before the MySpace party, I saw Rex Navarette perform his comedy routine with some friends here and the setup was crazy: long cafeteria style tables spanning the dance floor area, and there was hardly any elbow room in between seats! I was literally squished! So when my BF got us tickets to see comedian Steve Byrne, I was on a roller coaster of emotions! My first reaction was «OMG! He’s soo hot and funny too! I can’t wait to see him live!» Then I flashback to the Rex Navarette show and I think «Oh great, if i don’t sit at the end of one of those long-​ass tables, I’m gonna be rubbing up against some stranger!» But I kept my fears to myself and hoped for the best.
Cut to last night: we get there a little after 6:30pm, even though the doors don’t open til 7… and there’s already a little crowd outside. So we wait. We get inside and I am soo relieved to see smaller tables set up — 2 rows of about 15 tables that were about 5 – 6 feet in length? They seat 4 people each, and then there’s 4 more chairs on the other side of the table, facing the stage, so you don’t really have a place to rest your drink in front of you if you came in later and had to sit there… the people in front of us put it in back of them.
Anyway, the venue is pretty good to see a comedian preform, maybe the setup depends on the featured performer, but I liked the table set up for the Steve Byrne show!
OK — now on to the food! Being that we both rushed home after work to get ready, we didn’t get to eat before the show started and were getting hungry while waiting for the doors to open! We got in and they had «concert menus» at every table and we looked it over… we decided to try the garlic fries (I LOVE garlic!!), BBQ chicken pizza, and the crab dip. The fries were really good! Not the skinny ones, or even the crinkle cut fries that I love so much… it was textured, but I don’t think I’ve ever seen that type before! Anyway, they were nice and crunchy, and garlicky — but not enough garlic for my taste! The crab dip was awesome… lots of crab and cheese! They were NOT skimpy with the crab… lots of generous chunks, unlike Ryan’s — who use more onions than crab now days! The BBQ chicken pizza was good too… the sauce was tangy, and did very well with the chicken and cheese and whatever other sauce they had on it! The crust was good — not greasy like Pizza Hut, but a little crisper than Papa John’s…it was good!
I’d go back just for the food! Haha… there was also a list of the upcoming comedy shows (all most on Wednesday nights)…but none of the names really appealed to me.

I was just there the other day to cover the MUTEMATH show for a local zine and even if I don’t really want to tip a bathroom attendant, that one who was working that night was pretty clever. After doing my biz and telling him «Sorry, no monies bro…» while walking to the sink, he goes, «Well, would hate to see you working that camera with dirty hands…»
Even if he did this impressive over the head soap pump and behind the back paper towel grab — all the while, me still cracking up by that comment, I still didn’t tip him. Yeah I know, I probably earned a spot on that recent «cheap people» thread posted here on the local Unilocal not too long ago.
MUTEMATH live on the other hand, wow, what a fantastic performance! Drummer standing and pouring water on his drum set, bassist booming his strings and singer doing front and back flips over his organ — on top of ultra catchy and dancy tunes… show of the summer, fo sho’!
4 stars
Pipeline Café

Def the best live venue Hawaii has to offer based on venue size, sound, staff and environment. This is the home to National Product but any given weekend you can find amazing music here.
One of my all time favorite venues to play!

I say just park at the Sports Authority parking lot and walk if it’s gonna be a crowded show. Idk how many shows I’ve been to here, but I always enjoy myself. Not a fan of comedy Wednesdays but that’s just me. Although I did like how they brought down Bobby Lee and Anjelah Johnson. Good choices. This is kind of a local bar/​club. They do shows… it’s hardly ever just for dancing. And I like that.
Be nice to the food runners. They work hard!

We pre-​game and stumble into Pipeline on a Wednesday night. Alright, comedy night! (Every weds is comedy night.) Two opening acts, then the headliner.
We order a drink and pupus. Order them before the show, service becomes drastically slower during the show.
Hi La Ri Ous. I was in stitches!

I scored a free ticket from Seleena H. and got an opportunity to come here on a weeknight.
My first time here ever, but tonight was for a comedy show. The line up was pretty weak, but they saved the best for last. This dude was hilarious with controversial, musical, clean and raunchy jokes thrown left and right.
Pipeline is fairly big and has enough for a show like this. The big screens are great if you’re sitting way in the back like we did.
We had a waitress taking our orders all night and the prices are decent. The vegetarian quesadilla, chips and salsa and house Cabernet was better than mediocre.

As requested by management, I am updating my review to «Pipeline as Concert Venue» for a concert in February 2010.
Gone are the sketchy horny freaks of 3 years ago. In their place we have lines that wrap all the way around the block and into the next block, people not getting into the building until hours after the time on the ticket, shows not starting until multiple hours after the time printed on the ticket, a small stage, and really poor fuzzy overvibrating sound quality. I don’t mind if the music is too loud, but when it’s too loud for the speakers to handle, please make it stop. Not cool for a concert.
And the long lines? I attribute it to bad organization. If the management is reading this, you should know that you can make more money at the bar if you let people in on time, even if the band isn’t set up yet. We don’t care! We just don’t want to be grumpily waiting in a seemingly hopeless line. It takes away from what could be an enjoyable experience. Organize! Please! Especially since I’m reading reviews that this happens at *every* concert, not just the one I went to.
I arrived at 9:55 for a 9:00 concert and discovered a line extending back all the way around the block. We inched forward for maybe 20 minutes until the people in front of us started a mass exiting of the line towards the front. So we cut the hundred people in front of us and jumped to the front of the 2^nd entrance, which I assume they had just opened. I feel bad for the people in front of me who didn’t want to lose their place in the line. I’ve been to plenty of «standing room only» concerts where they open the doors on time, or maybe a few minutes late.
In all, Pipeline brings artists that you wouldn’t otherwise see in Hawaii – just prepare yourself for a not-​quite-​quality experience!

Here are a few other tidbits about pipeline after attending the Mayer Hawthorne show.
–while once again I didn’t sample the food, I did browse the upstairs menu and there was a decent sized list of pupus and entrees
–the overall sound was better for this show; I noticed it especially with the vocals
–the a/​c was pumping downstairs; you might need a light jacket if you arrive before it gets crowded or if you didn’t wear your dancing shoes

We were lucky enough to get some free tickets to the Utada concert at the last minute. The girlfriend is a huge Utada fan, so she really enjoyed herself despite all of the issues.
Never been here before, but it’s poor reputation preceded it. When we got there we stood in a huge line. The line went from the entrance of Pipeline, around the corner to the street right next to it. Down the street past Xerox and ended next to the VW car dealership on Ala Moana Blvd. The doors was supposed to open at 7 pm, show was supposed to begin at 8 pm, but we didn’t really get into the place until 8:45 pm. The show was massively oversold. It probably boardered on some sort of fire violation for maximum occupancy. I think part of the fault has to fall on the promoters for the concert. Boo to them. How you going to book the biggest recording artist in Japan and have a show at Pipeline?! It reminded me of a concert I went to in Eugene, Oregon for A Tribe Called Quest. It was ridiculous, pathetic, and embarrassing at the same time.
The stage was too small as Utada had her whole band up there and pretty much moved a total 10 feet the whole time because that’s all the space there was for her on stage. There was no space for us to get into the main room, so a lot of people had to watch from upstairs or on the pathetically fuzzy video screens. The upstairs is mainly it’s «sports bar» area and it’s relatively alright. Good for those twenty to early thirty somethings looking for a douchey place to pick someone up. On a side note, why is there always that one creepy skeve looking overage weird guy hanging out at places like there? There’s always one of «those guys» at bars.
The concert itself was alright. She sang mostly tunes from her new American album, which unless you’re a hardcore Utada fan like my girlfriend is, you may not have liked it as much. At least she sang «First Love.» I’d say 80−85% of the songs were from her new English speaking album.
I text my cousin in Las Vegas where he has tickets to see her at the House of Blues and he’ll probably get a way better show over there. Anyway, can’t complain too much. With the glass half full, I got to see one of the world’s best selling recording artists for free.

Always looking to eat an Avocado burger at Kua Aina at Ward Center but I get the «no more’ or «all sold out»… so today I cruised to Pipeline Café and noticed the Avocado Burger on the menu… ordered it and it was «HUGE»!!! Ok first it’s only $ 6.75, came with some delicious fries and I ordered a coke and came out to be around $ 8+.
Who knew Pipeline was opened for lunch Monday — Fridays???
11am — 4pm.
They also had a hamburger plate for $ 6.75.
When I’m craving an avocado burger, Pipeline is where I’d go if I’m in town.

I truly enjoy the Pipeline as it’s kind of like my «Cheers». I started going there for the Sports Bar upstairs which by far was the best kept secret in town. $ 2 drinks, $ 2 (now some of it is $ 3) pupus, great service, no crowds, pool tables, dart boards, sports… can’t go wrong! I would take all my out of town guests here because it was like you got the place to yourself. Of course its not quite as empty anymore, which is great for the business, but its not crazy packed or loud like some other places so its still a nice place to be. After a few visits, guaranteed the wait staff and bartenders will remember you.
I don’t really know how the Pipeline «used to be» as a nightclub as I’ve moved here over two years ago but I have seen some great changes since managment has change. For one, the entertainment offered and menu has definitely improved.
I’m not a clubbbing person so I don’t attend on those nights BUT I’ve been to a lot of AWESOME concerts and comedy shows here, really first class and intimate. I felt honored to have seen Gregory Issacs up close and personal here, then read that Gregory Isaacs next performance was at the bust-​out-​your-​binoculars Hollywood Bowl in LA. You can be up close and personal with Grammy winners, you can’t get that at just anywhere.
Alas, the property and interior itself, though I’m sure has seen better days, is as clean as it could be, functional and spacious. There was a time when I went and there was no cue balls at any of the pool tables and all the pool sticks were bus up. Takes time to get the bugs worked out under new management, and I’m sure they’re working on it.
Pros:
–Great Staff and Service — Super friendly
–Is an intimate concert venue
–First class entertainment
–Reasonably priced regular menu, CHEAP pau hana
–Spacious and clean
–Nice concert sound system
–Location — lot’s of free parking
Cons:
–Interior and fixtures a little beat up and/​or old
–Video/​TV media need upgrading, no HD sports! Can’t see anything when they try to project on their big screen during concerts. Awful camera or something.
–When it rains, the outside gets super flooded
–Location — in an industrial area so don’t get all dressed up

OH; my hangout every TUes when i lived in Hawaii.
$ 2 Wing Zings (THE BEST deal; very yummy and very cheap), quesadillas, chicken sticks, $ 5 mozarrella sticks
Cheap drinks — $ 2 well
Nice venue for shows; good, mellow local vibe