Planning a trip to Maui and don’t know what to eat? Check out this post on the 10 most amazing cheap eats in Maui!
Hawaiian cuisine is influenced by many different cultures that include but are not limited to Filipino, Korean and Portuguese. Together, these cultures offer Hawaiians a unique and delectable cuisine that can only be found in Hawaii. So, if you’re planning on visiting Maui for the first time, I highly recommend trying the local Hawaiian food. In fact, this post alone will highlight some of the most amazing cheap eats in Maui if you’re looking for a place to start.
Maui Bucket List Series
P.S. This is a post in my Maui Bucket List series. Here is the complete 19-part series:
Hidden Gems: 10 Magical Hidden Gems in Maui, Hawaii
Black Sand Beaches: The 7 Most Amazing Black Sand Beaches in Maui
Poke: 12 Top Places to Get Poke in Maui
Breakfast: 8 Amazing Places to Get Breakfast in Lahaina, Maui
Coffee Shops: 7 Cozy Coffee Shops in Lahaina, Maui
Restaurants: The 12 Best Restaurants in Maui with a View
Accommodation: 10 Unique Places to Stay in Maui on a Budget
Sea Turtles: The 12 Best Places to See Sea Turtles in Maui
Surfing: The 10 Best Surf Spots in Maui
Road to Hana: The 7 Best Stops on the Road to Hana in Maui
Sunsets: 8 Incredible Places to Watch the Sunset in Maui
Waterfall Hikes: The 7 Best Waterfall Hikes in Maui
Vegan Food: 8 Incredible Vegan Restaurants in Maui
Instagram: 10 Incredible Maui Instagram Spots
Cheap Food: 10 Amazing Cheap Eats in Maui
Grocery Stores: The 8 Top Lahaina Grocery Stores You Need To Visit
Ka’anapali Restaurants: 9 Amazing Ka’anapali Restaurants You Don’t Want to Miss
Lahaina Restaurants: The 12 Coolest Restaurants in Lahaina on Front Street
Instagram Captions: 100 Media-Inspired Hawaii Captions for Your Instagram
Tasty Crust Restaurant (cheap eats in Maui)
Serving Maui for more than 50 years, Tasty Crust Restaurant is known for its world famous pancakes and reasonable prices! These pancakes include but are not limited to banana pancakes, blueberry pancakes and mac nut pancakes. Banana pancakes are pancakes composed of bananas and other basic ingredients. Blueberry pancakes are pancakes made with blueberries and other basic ingredients, and lastly, mac nut pancakes are pancakes made with macadamia nuts. So, if you’re planning on visiting the Tasty Crust for the first time in Maui, I highly recommend it. Not only is the breakfast great but there are also some other fan favorites like Korean Pork Ribs, Chinese Chicken Salad, and Won Ton Min.
Tin Roof (cheap eats in Maui)
Owned by Top Chef finalist Chef Sheldon Simeon and his wife, Tin Roof is a hot spot for Maui’s delicious local grinds. In Hawaii, “grinds” is a local term that means food. You’ll see it on a lot of menus in Maui as well as in advertising too. In fact, the food in the restaurant was actually inspired by Sheldon’s upbringing in Hilo. From that place, his vision was to create affordable comfort food with aloha from quality. The comfort food that’s in the restaurant right now includes but is not limited to the Mochiko Chicken Bowl and Chef Sheldon’s famous garlic noodles. The Mochiko Chicken Bowl is a dish made from chicken thighs marinated in ginger sake shoyu. Chef Sheldon’s famous garlic noodles can also be eaten to the side of it as well as a Western/Asian fusion dish.
808 Grindz Cafe (cheap eats in Maui)
Located in the Old Lahaina Center, 808 Grindz Cafe is a local favorite! In fact, many locals have been known to line up outside the Old Lahaina Center from 8am to 12 pm, just to get the food. Inside the cafe, you’ll also notice that the atmosphere is almost small-town like with a pinch of Hawaiian. Hence, making it the perfect spot to enjoy local food in Maui. In addition, the menu of the cafe is varied and value-priced. You will find a lot of breakfast items listed there as well as lunch. These breakfast items include but are not limited to egg benedicts, griddle cakes, and waffles. So, if you’re planning on visiting the 808 Grindz Cafe for the first time in Maui, I highly recommend it. Not only are the breakfast items great, but they also serve vegetarian food as well.
Kihei Caffe (cheap eats in Maui)
Located in Kihei, Kihei Caffe is one of the best breakfast spots in Maui. In fact, according to Pride of Maui, it was even voted “Best Breakfast” six times in a row by Maui No Ka Oi Magazine, Maui News Readers Poll, and the acclaimed MauiTimes. The caffe itself also has plenty of breakfast options that visitors can choose from on the menu. These options include but are not limited to Southern Style Sausage Gravy and Biscuits, Scrambled Eggs, and Pancakes with a choice of buttermilk, banana macadamia nut, pineapple coconut, blueberry, or chocolate chip. So, if you’re planning on visiting the Kihei Caffe for the first time in Maui, I highly recommend it. Not only is the breakfast amazing, but they also serve lunch with a selection of sandwiches, salads, and tasty burgers.
Joey’s Kitchen (cheap eats in Maui)
Started by Joey Macadangdang, Joey’s Kitchen is a great cheap eat in Maui. The menu is based on Filipino-Hawaiian fusion food and the restaurant is laid back and super casual. In fact, the service alone is so incredibly amicable and helpful. Just order your food at the front and find a seat at a table. From there, one of the lovely staff members will bring your food right to your table. In addition, some of Joey’s Kitchen most popular menu items include braised beef ribs and coconut shrimp. The braised beef ribs at Joey’s Kitchen are always served with mac salad and a scoop of rice. The coconut shrimp at Joey’s Kitchen is also always served with a sweet and delicious sour aioli. So, if you’re planning on visiting Joey’s Kitchen for the first time in Maui, I highly recommend it. Not only is the breakfast there excellent, but it’s also a great place to pick up some tasty, local style comfort food.
Komoda Store & Bakery (cheap eats in Maui)
Known as the best doughnut store in Maui, Komoda Store & Bakery is a bakery where locals can enjoy timeless Hawaiian-style baked goods. These baked goods include but are not limited to Glazed Stick Donuts, Cream Puffs and Guava Malasadas. In addition, the bakery has also been known to sell pies, cakes, cocoa puffs, butter rolls, and cookies. As a result, many of these baked goods tend to be sold out earlier in the day. So, if you’re planning on visiting the Komoda Store & Bakery for the first time in Maui, I highly recommend it. The bakery opens at 7 AM on business days, so it’s best to get there early before 10 AM.
Leoda’s Kitchen & Pie Shop (cheap eats in Maui)
Leoda’s Kitchen and Pie Shop is a popular home-style comfort food spot in Maui! It’s known for having a warm country chic decor inside the shop as well as some delectable mini pies too. In fact, the shop itself is also known as a great pit stop on the way in or out of Lahaina. You can order to-go on your own once you’re there or dine in at the counter. In addition, some of the most popular pies at the shop include but are not limited to the banana cream pie and the chocolate haupia. So, if you’re planning on visiting Leoda’s Kitchen and Pie Shop for the first time in Maui, I highly recommend it. Not only are the pies great, but they also serve some decent salads, burgers, and sandwiches too.
Island Cream Co. (cheap eats in Maui)
Rated 11th Best in America by Yahoo Food, Island Cream Co. is a shop in Maui known for serving handmade gelato and ice cream. In fact, some of it’s best-selling ice cream includes Kaua‘i Karmel, S’mores, Lahaina Cream, Oatmeal Cookie, Turtle, many chocolate choices and two versions of Macadamia Nut. In addition, the shop also has fruit versions that include but are not limited to Pineapple Cream, Strawberry, Mango, Hawaiian Tropical and Blueberry. So, if you’re planning on visiting the Island Cream Co. in Maui for the first time, I highly recommend it. Not only is the ice cream great, but they also have handmade cones that come in three different flavors: vanilla, chocolate and cinnamon.
Huli Huli Chicken (cheap eats in Maui)
Featured on the National Geographic Channel, Huli Huli Chicken is the best spot to eat huli huli chicken in Maui! In fact, the food item huli huli chicken itself is a mouthwatering Hawaiian version of barbecue. This obviously makes sense since the word ‘huli” in Hawaiian translates to “turn” in English. So, in this case, the word “turn” in huli huli chicken refers to “turning the chicken over a flame”. In fact, Huli Huli Chicken is so popular in Maui to the point where the chicken tends to run out before the end of the day. So, if you’re planning on visiting Huli Huli Chicken in Maui for the first time, I highly recommend it. Not only is the chicken great, but they also serve BBQ pork and ribs too.
South Maui Fish Company (cheap eats in Maui)
South Maui Fish Company is a food truck in Kihei known for serving some of the most freshest fish in Maui! In fact, you can find the food truck located at the Kihei Marketplace near the South Kihei Road behind the Union 76 gas station. In relation to the menu, the truck usually serves a diverse amount of food items that include but are not limited to poke, ceviche, tacos, grilled fish, and curries. So, if you’re planning on visiting the South Maui Fish Company in Maui for the first time, I highly recommend it. Not only is the fish there great, but all of the food items there are relatively very inexpensive. To learn more about the South Maui Fish Company, please click here.
Overall, I really hope you enjoyed this post on the 10 most amazing cheap eats in Maui! Please let me know in the comments down below which place you would like to eat at the most! I would love to hear from you. 🙂
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All these places look amazing! Can you really go wrong in Maui though? Saving this post for our trip!
Thank you Marianne! No you can’t 🙂
Another great blog post! Going to have to share this one with my brother and sister-in-law too 😉 ; they’ll be in Hawaii in less than two weeks now. Then, I’ll need to revisit this whenever I plan a trip of my own. Thank you! Xx Sara
You’re so welcome Sara!! 🙂
Ahhhh I’m hungry now! Love having cheap eating options when travelling! Food can come up to be quite expensive so these are great to know about. I love that these are proper food dishes too, that Huli Huli looks amazing!!!
I know right!! I’m trying to save you guys money in the bank
Yum! These restaurants all sound amazing. I’ve heard amazing things about Leoda’s Kitchen & Pie Shop. The chocolate one sounds amazing, but I think my husband would opt for the banana. Thanks for sharing!
You’re so welcome Brittany!!