4 New Places to Eat and Drink in Chinatown Right Now

Oʻahu’s Chinatown is home to dozens of markets, restaurants and shops. Packed within just a few blocks, they’re brimming with local and imported produce, fresh meats and fish, Chinese herbal medicines, authentic dim sum, and plenty of lei and libations.

Here are four places that have opened within the past year that are worth visiting more than once.

1. Youpo Noodles

Chef Andrew Pressler opened Youpo Noodles in Chinatown in November 2024 after a successful three-year run hand-pulling noodles to order at farmers markets across Oʻahu (he recently reopened his stand at the Saturday Kakaʻako Farmers Market). His Youpo Noodles is a humble noodle shop that serves exceptional food. Punk rock blasts from the kitchen, the minimalist dining room has no AC, and the spicy food served on plastic plates and noodle bowls  will light your mouth on fire. Pressler says he was encouraged to open in Chinatown after receiving a warm reception from the local Chinese community, both at farmers markets and while working events at the Chinese Cultural Plaza. He specializes in biang biang mian from Xi’an, the capital of Shaanxi province in China. He said his greatest compliment is when a customer from Xi’an tells him he’s made it right. It’s not only his technique but also the care he takes in sourcing ingredients. Pressler, who’s led kitchens in Manhattan and Honolulu, has traveled extensively to learn the cuisines of Indonesia and China. He sources uber-fresh spices from a purveyor in New York and incorporates local produce from Hooah Farms in Hawaiʻi Kai and neighboring produce stands in Chinatown.

“There’s one thing about Chinatown that I absolutely love,” Pressler says. “Competition for veg down here is fierce. Aunties down here do not take anything substandard whatsoever. They keep their stuff pristine.”

What You Have to Try:

• Lamb Spareribs
• Chicken Wings
• Cumin Lamb Biang Biang Noodles
• Duck Biang Biang Noodles

1109 Maunakea St.,  (808) 728-6222, youponoodleshi.com, @youponoodleshi

2. Mille Fête

POG Cake.
Photo: Sarah Burchard

James Beard Award-winning chef Robynne Maiʻi opened the bakery Mille Fête on Feb. 20, 2025, with her husband, Chuck Bussler, and best friend from New York, Katherine Yang, the former pastry chef for Restaurant Daniel. It was Maiʻi’s dream to open a bakery years before she and Bussler opened Fête, their award-winning restaurant, one block down. Maiʻi sees the bakery as an extension of Fête: classic dishes, made with as many local ingredients as possible. Order a Chinatown Coffee Soda—a riff on a cream soda made with local Bean About Town coffee. You can pair that with a savory cake salé—a muffinlike pastry studded with salty prosciutto, smoked mozzarella, sun-dried tomatoes and scallion—or an ice cream sandwich made with Lāʻie Vanilla ice cream and buttery, crisp chocolate chip cookies. Then, take a seat at the window or grab a table for two along the banquette to savor the scene. On your way out, be sure to grab a dessert and a loaf of freshly baked and sliced sourdough. It’s the same mouthwatering sourdough that’s served grilled at Fête.

“We’re making things that we crave,” says Maiʻi. “We want you to take a bite and when you leave think, ʻOh! I want to come back again.’”

What You Have to Try:

• ʻUlu Chocolate Cake
• Cake Salé
• Olive Oil Cake
• Ice Cream Sandwich
• Chinatown Coffee Soda

1113 Smith St., (808) 888-0608, millefete.com, @millefete

3. Drip Studio 

At the new Drip Studio location, offerings have expanded to include lunch items, espresso drinks and tea-based lattes.
Photo: Sarah Burchard

Vincent Pōhaku and Kelsie Mercado-Uehara opened the original Drip Studio at Fort Street Mall in February 2023. Two years later, the duo relocated just a few steps away. At their new location on the edge of Chinatown the couple have expanded the café’s offerings to include lunch items, espresso drinks and tea-based lattes. Pōhaku and Mercado-Uehara see the space—it’s bigger than the old one—as a place where folks can connect and slow down. Pōhaku, who began making pour-overs at home in his late 20s, says he’s often asked questions like “What’s good coffee?” and “What makes a particular coffee the best?” A journey down the rabbit hole of specialty coffees taught Pōhaku about ideal growing conditions and different processing techniques and flavor profiles. After making the pilgrimage to coffee shops in Copenhagen, including April Coffee and Coffee Collective, the latter of which he says pulled the best espresso he’s ever had, Pōhaku was ready to open his own spot. He wanted to bring what he experienced in Denmark to Honolulu: specialty coffees and elevated service provided by professionals who take their work seriously, and most importantly a “slow coffee” approach that fosters a local community.

“I can’t wait to see the future of specialty coffee in Hawaiʻi,” Pōhaku says. “It’s kind of one of those things that I think we are in the beginning of.”

What You Have to Try:

• Pour-Over Coffee (coffees rotate often)
• House-Baked Cookies: Chocolate chip or lemon crinkle
• Cold Fashioned: A nonalcoholic coffee cocktail
• Japanese-Style Iced Pour-Over: With your choice of coffee
• Strawberry Matcha: Made with Ami Mei ceremonial grade matcha from Kyoto, Japan

1114 Fort Street Mall, (808) 200-7124, dripstudiohnl.com, @dripstudiohnl

4. Sing Sing Thai Street Food

Betel Leaf Wraps.
Photo: Sarah Burchard

Palm Amatawet cooked for 16 years and co-owned more than 10 restaurants, including Sarong and Mama San in Bali and Chalawan in Boston, before coming to Hawaiʻi. On Dec. 20, 2024, Amatawet and his wife, Pui Amatawet, a former flight attendant, opened Sing Sing Thai Street Food in the space formerly known as Opal Thai. Although chef Amatawet has led several high-end kitchens, he learned to cook Thai cuisine in the homes of friends all over Thailand. Drawing inspiration from southern Thailand, where he is from, he creates spicy, coconut-based soups, fresh betel leaf wraps and crisp turmeric chicken. Dishes from the northeastern region of Thailand include beef carpaccio with crushed peanuts, cilantro, lime and chile-garlic crunch, and soy-tamarind glazed pork neck thinly sliced with fresh lettuce and a chile-spiked dipping sauce dusted with toasted rice powder. The menu is updated with new dishes every quarter. Make sure to try a curry—all curry pastes are made in-house—like the panang beef cheek.

“We want to bring Thai food, Thai culture, Thai restaurant experience in Bangkok here because Bangkok is the place where you can find food from every region,” Amatawet says.

What You Have to Try:

• Issan Beef Tongue
• Thai Beef Carpaccio
• Betel Leaf Wraps (ʻahi or salmon)
• Panang of Beef Cheek
• Hawaiian Pineapple Puffed: Turnovers colored with pink beetroot powder and purple butterfly pea flower to mimic a Hawai‘i rainbow

1030 Smith St., (808) 785-6463, singsinghawaii.com, @singsing.hawaii

Sarah Burchard is a longtime contributor to HAWAIʻI Magazine.