Formaggio Grill

We succumbed to eating here because the kitchen was closed at the first place we entered. Like the other bad reviews state: Service Sucks! There is absolutely no attention to detail! The establishment is nice and the food was decent, but poor poor service. Do these guys have any quality control?
Not sure if the same group of investors own the Kaimuki restaurant, but the Kailua restaurant sucks in service. It is unbelievable how these workers will blatantly tarnish the name of an established business like Formaggio. I feel sorry for Formaggio Kailua. Never going back.

When you factor in wine choices to please an oenophile, the fabulous food, the ambiance, and the reasonable prices, yes this is about as good as it gets on Oahu.
My wife loves this place because they make their own house Sangria — both red and white. She tries to replicate at home without success, so it serves as a convenient reason to dine here again! I tried the chef’s choice wine and it was a tasty red discovery that I had several glasses of.
Appetizers tasted excellent, though were uncreative, standard fare for restaurants of this style.
The main course is where things really shined. Wife had the Steak Neptune, a filet covered with crabmeat and Bernaise. She absolutely loved it! I chose the Filet Au Poivre and was equally impressed. Flavorful sauce and one the most fork tender (non tenderized) steaks I’ve ever eaten.
We ended things with a shared Tiramisu and lattes. Like the appetizers, the Tiramisu was tasty and acceptable, but not on par with the main dishes (I’ve had better many times).
Overall, the wait staff was friendly, attentive and professional — we look for that as a differentiator among good restaurants. Likewise, the owner or manager maintained a constant presence in the dining room making sure things ran smoothly and stopping by tables to chat and inquire about our dining experience. Simply a delight to dine here.

We decided to try this place tonight because we needed something different than our normal row of restaurants we go to. We parked in the back of the lot because the front was completely packed. Right as we walked in we were seated at the cooks counter and looked over our menus. We didn’t get greeted by our waitress for about 10 minutes but she was very friendly when she asked us about drinks or if we had any questions. The menu isn’t very big but has a wide variety of different dishes. My husband decided to order the lobster Mac and cheese and I had the fall off the bone ribs. They were both delicious! When they say fall off the bone they literally mean it! Those ribs were very very tasty! The only downside to my plate was the fries because they didn’t really have anything to them. Overall the ambience was nice and the staff was very friendly. Will definitely go back again.

This was a last minute reservation for Mother’s Day and we were not disappointed. We started our meal with garlic cheese bread and my daughters said it was the best cheese garlic bread ever! The ribs were great. Very meaty! My husband could not finish his full rack order. My garlic rib eye was great! We enjoyed our dinner. Rose was our server and she was great! You will not be disappointed!

Formaggio Grill is a cute eatery with a casual yet intimate ambiance. Located in the heart of Kailua town, which has seen its expansion of shop and especially restaurants over recent years, Formaggio Grill adds itself as a more upscale establishment.
Lunch date with the family. Being our first time eating at Formaggio Grill we were all looking forward to digging into the food. We stopped in for lunch and were all decently satisfied with our choices of dish. We started off with the Bruschetta, which was pretty good. For my entrée, I ordered the Kobe Burger with Sweet Potato fries. For fries, you do have the choice of regular, sweet potato, or truffle. My burger was well-​done. Even so, the burger was juicy and tasty, as they use wagyu beef, which is one of the better selections of meat coming from Japan. The burger was big, and the fries plentiful. I do recommend this if you enjoy burgers. Also went with a White Wine Sangria as a libation.
Reservations were made for lunch but may not be necessary as there were only a few tables filled. Though it was empty it did take a while for an employee to take our drink and food orders. Nonetheless, those who did wait on us were friendly.
Overall, Formaggio Grill is a good choice if looking for good food and a nice glass of wine when in Kailua.

Went to this place for the first time.
The service was a bit slow (I’m assuming because there was a private party going on). The waitress took forever to take our order. We ordered bruschetta to share and it was alright. Felt like I was eating it on a thin slice of bread.
The sangria was pretty good. I got the shrimp scampi pesto pasta for m entrée. It was alright. Didn’t realize it was a deconstructed version. I’d give the dish 2.5 out of 5 stars.
Overall, I would go there again. But I’d rather order the food myself because the service was a bit crappy

This is a really cool Italian place in Kailua. My burger was awesome. And the sweet potato fries that went with it were to die for. But the best of all was the service. Rose was our waitress, and she is the best. Super nice, can say enough good things about her. We will definitely be back!

Great date night or girls night at the bar for wine! I enjoyed spending Valentine’s Day sipping wine here with my honey. Girlfriends night is in order next!

Sad, sad, sad. I guess the flow of unsuspecting tourists keeps Formaggio Kailua going. Warm beet and kale salad — more chunks of carrot than beets, oversized leaves of chewy kale, dressing that tasted mostly of salt. Mussels on noodles — who came up with the idea of putting the sauce on the mussels while leaving the noodles unsauced? Lamb tacos were the most successful dish but the accompanying salad was a very sad pile of brown edged expired lettuce and dry chewy sun dried tomatoes. Gag me.
We usually try Formaggio once on each visit to Kailua and are generally underwhelmed but hopefully we can stop trying since they obviously have done so.

What do you do if you sat down at a table fumbling with recent reviews of that restaurant and noticed multiple low ratings of that establishment? Do you:
1) Exit without ordering.
2) Ask for management and question why such low ratings.
3) Give the place a chance.
Met up with some fellow Yeeps last night and ended up here because Hale Kealoha, our original destination, dinner reservation fell through as they received a large last minute catering order and didn’t bother to call us to cancel despite making reservations earlier in the week and calling back that day to reconfirm.
As I walked in Formaggio’s I immediately noticed the dim lighting, creating a different dining experience I’m accustomed to. I rarely come to Kailua and felt like I was dining somewhere in the mainland. It was very loud and noisy. Felt like I was at Roy’s in Hawaii Kai.
Our waitress was very friendly and informative with daily specials as well as to some of our questions about the menu. So noticing the low reviews I focused on the higher ratings and saw a pattern of the Kobe Beef Burger. Trusted my fellow Unilocalers and they came through.
Get the Kobe Beef Burger. I asked our waitress what she thought and she claims to eat this once a week. The verdict? The burger was INCREDIBLE. Cooked to perfection, no fillers. 100% beef. Served on a toasted Ciabatta with sliced tomato and a light dressing I was a happy camper. I also added bacon to my burger and requested sweet potato fries instead. Ketchup and a spicy aioli accompanied the plate.
I also sampled the lobster mac and cheese which was okay. Not to sound like a snob but I’ve had better.
Service was overall good but we were ignored for a bit as several cups of water were at low levels for some time but a wait staff finally came to refill our glasses.
When it was time to settle our bill one of our members mentioned we were celebrating 2 people’s promotion the next thing we know 2 complimentary desserts were brought over. I immediately noticed the chocolate pyramid from JJ French Pastry on Waialae. I’ve been wanting to try this and I had a dessert foodgaism! Also sampled the cheesecake, which was good.
In addition to the loud noise and high prices here, our seats were uncomfortable. They were cushioned chairs without back support, therefore giving many of us sore backs after our meal.
Despite the many low ratings here on Unilocal I pleasantly had a great dining experience. I wouldn’t mind driving up the Pali just to have the Kobe Beef Burger with Bacon for over $ 20.
NOTE: For our group of seven, our waitress was able to accommodate separate checks.

Came here with a friend for dinner because we both wanted to drink some wine and catch up.
Honestly, the service wasn’t bad but it was super great either. Since I was there catching up with a friend it didnt really phase me… I was too busy talking.
We ordered wine and 2 pizzas to share. The food did take a while to arrive but both were good.
Overall, I’d say it overpriced for what you get.

This is our favorite spot to stop in and have wine, creative fancy eats or listen to live music (which they occasionally hold.)We finally decided to try the dining in the dark that they hold monthly. It was expensive but we figured that it being 4 courses it would be worth it. It was $ 150.00 for both of us. I opted for the wine which was an additional $ 20. The food was interesting and it was indeed yummy. It was just a little quick. Also, we were surprised that the dinner didn’t include a desert. Instead it was 4 courses the first was an interesting light course with really different tastes. The next 3 included lamb, beef and an anchovy all with puréed sides or greens. We thought perhaps removing one of those and showcasing a desert would have ended the dinner a little bit better. Wouldn’t do it more than once but it was worth checking off the list!

One star for the service last night.
I understand it was Valentine’s Day but we had an 8:00 reservation and at 8:30 were told that they were still confirming everyone’s reservations. While we stood outside with about 20 other people,
I checked Open Table and made an 8:45 reservation at Baci Bistro which in my opinion is much better. We arrived at 8:40 and were seated immediately. Service and food was terrific.

Terrible service. Tacky as hell for the move they tried to pull when my girlfriend and I came with her mother. I couldn’t believe how classless the staff acted. And to top it off the waiter even asked what his tip would be to conclude our (awful) meal.
What a joke.

Lunch service makes another great option in Kailua!
Their wayku burger was done to order (medium rare!) as well as the special condiment request.
The blacken ahi on orzu was also tasty.
I will need to come back to sample their interesting wine list.

Started with calamari fritters. so good. Full bar –ordered a lemon drop and my wife had the house Malbec. Ordered garlic ahi and I had the lobster bisque and house salad. Everything was fresh and delicious. Wasn’t too crowded for a Friday night but it was only 7pm. Definitely would recommend and will return.

I had surgery last week and was driving in Kailua with a friend looking for a place to eat something soft and we ended up here for soup. I wasn’t crazy about the lobster bisque, it was too salty and very few chunks of lobster, but I loved the caprese and the ambiance of the restaurant and service was great. I’ll go back and try another dish.

Great casual place to go. It can get a bit loud due to the high ceilings and open kitchen.
One family left from their screaming child, I felt bad but thought it was thoughtful of them. (They just had just sat down) poor fam.
Ordered the ahi Niçoise salad.
Asked where the show was from #hican
#hawaiiseafoodmonth (every month), they didn’t know specifically. Only that it’s locally sourced from the fish auction.

I will say for the most part every thing was OK. The food was flavorful and the portion size of the main dinner were good. I shared the garlic rib eye (35) and the lobster cheese and mac (28) with my wife. We both enjoyed our meal.
We all so ordered appetizers calamari and the bruschetta (both around 13) I do not recommend if you have a large group their is not enough to share and is to pricey to buy each person their own. the calamari was over cooked, the bruschetta had good flavor and love the olive mix it came with. This is where family style serving size would come in handy.
We came here with a group 12 (to celebrate my daughter marriage) and our total tab with alcohol came to $ 529 which for the most part I thought was reasonable.
Now for the good and bad of the tab. The GOOD: They saved me money, because as I was presented with the bill I was told it is there company policy to auto gratuity parties of 6 or more an amount of 18%, well it is my policy that if a restaurant auto gratutity me is that is all they get, period. The BAD: I am a very generous tipper, and would have left 25/​30% if they would not of included an automatic gratuity. So your policy back fired on you.
So I say to you and other restaurant that practice auto gratuity, Gratuity is for service earned, it is not a guaranty. Large groups spend more money in your restaurant because of it being a large group, if you want your servers to earn more money then pay them more out of that larger profit you earn on a large group.
It would have been nice for the manager or owner (I believe that would have been the older bald gentleman standing around) to come over to our table to see how every thing was. We had more congrats from other patrons in the restaurant and was ignored by management. Sorry a table of 12 is not your cup of tea.

Kailua is becoming one of the most sought after real estate markets on Oahu and this restaurant adds to the appeal. Excellent appetizers, live music, outstanding steak, fresh seafood, delicious prime rib, and extensive wine selection. We are very blessed to have a restaurant in our backyard.
We ordered the calamari friiti; crispy fried squid rings and legs with zucchini, mushrooms and peppers, served wtih a mayo-​type remoulade sauce. Excellent taste, but very spicy. Please be sure to request a pairing recommendation: you have the option to order 2 oz (tasting) 4 oz (glass) or 8 oz (wine-​o) ;)
After reading other reviews, I was tempted to order the lobster bisque, but opted out after seeing the size of the bowl. It was looked HUGE! Needing to pace myself, I promised myself a bowl on my next visit.
Entrees
Margherita Pizza — crispy, 10″ thin crust pizza with tangy marinara sauce, tiny grape tomatoes, and fresh basil. High quality, authentic Italian pizza.
Combo Prime rib and shrimp scampi — Kiawe smoked 12 oz prime rib which arrived brown on the outside and moist red on the inside. Perfectly seasoned and cooked to perfection! Shrimp scampi was on the smaller side (²⁵⁄₃₀), but soft and tasty.
Filet mignon was cooked to perfection! Caramel brown on the outside, and moist and tender on the inside. One of the best steaks in Hawaii!
Service
Waiter and host were very helpful and friendly. I was also impressed with Daniel’s intimate knowledge of each dish, background and preparation. We had a question about the salmon and he explained that they were farmed raised in Alaska, as opposed to wild catch, but knew that the fish were air flown to Honolulu. In addition, we described the cooking techniques for the Beef Bourguignon grand mere sauce with intimate detail. He either cooked the dish or spends a lot of time with the chef. We also tried to order the gelato, but he rejected the dish due to inferior product (freezer burn) did not meet the restaurant’s standards. Exceptional service!