Makino Chaya Buffet & Bento - Hawaii

Makino Chaya is a Japanese Buffet chain that many flock to especially on their birthdays because depending on your age, you can eat for free or get a 50% discount.  Military also receive a 10% discount!

Personally, Makino Chaya is my least favorite buffet right now because I think the quality of the food is going down, but it is still a decent buffet particularly when you are hungry.

There's seafood, lobster, wagyu beef, crepes, sushi, and much more!  You can also order items off the menu.  The first time I ate at Makino Chaya, I was surprised they had takoyaki and shave ice.

The first time I went to Makino Chaya, I can't say I didn't enjoy myself.  After I had okonomiyaki, shave ice, crab legs, & sushi, I was sold.  The other night when I went to Makino Chaya, however, it seemed like the quality of the food and the amount of items available went down significantly...I didn't enjoy it there as much.

And to make things worse, I was chewing a piece of tako when I felt half of it in my throat and the other half in my mouth.  A very scary situation indeed and a little funny when I think about it too.  I could have caused a scene.  Luckily, I was able to pull it out of my mouth, dragging it out of my throat.  Yay!

I really only enjoyed the fresh pineapple, some of the sushi, the crab legs, and the wagyu beef.  But that's about it ... I would like to think it was me, but there was something different about Makino Chaya this time around.  I would like to give the buffet another shot though. 

The next time I eat there, I will let you know if it's improved.  The one thing I can say is that our server was wonderfrul.

There were frozen pieces of ice in my ice cream. 

Although I may not have enjoyed the buffet the other night, the bentos at Makino Chaya are a deal!  In the morning, they sell bentos for less than $5.00  

There are different types of bentos, so choose the one you want most.  Just know that bentos sell fast!  I ordered the garlic ahi.  It was dry.   I should have selected the steak & shrimp bento.  It was much better!  If the Misoyaki Butterfish didn't sell so fast, I would've chose it instead.

If you go to Makino Chaya, let me know what you think!