Kua ‘Aina

I visited here with fellow Unilocalers not having known these guys where there. The menu I had checked online before arriving and was happy to see the choice of starter’s, Mains & salads. on arrival we were treated with a glass of prosecco and great cocktail list. while ordering drinks and waiting for food the manager gave us a great talk about the menu and brand origins. this was a great form of engagement I felt. The food was sent from the kitchen cut up to a buffet table. However due to the number of people racing for food my table missed out more than once and had very little to report of. A quarter of A chicken toastie, quarter of a burger and squid rings. The food was replenished a few times but it seemed to not be enough for the group. This caught on and tables were sent some onion rings and calamari, great idea but I found greasy.
Cannot fault service but couldnt really report back on their headline burgers from the sample I had. shame as menu really appealed to me… especially haloumi dishes!

Aloha! To celebrate my birthday last night, my two daughters, wife and I went to Kua ‘Aina in Victoria Square Belfast. Kua ‘Aina opened in November last year and is another welcome eatery in Belfast.
It was the brainchild of Terry Thompson who opened the first restaurant on Hawaii’s North Shore in 1975. It’s famous for its lava rock char-​grilled burgers and sandwiches, accompanied by homemade sauces and divine milk shakes.
Kua ‘Aina means back country and is a favourite of Barack Obama. The Belfast restaurant is the third in the UK.
On arrival the restaurant looked like a typical Waikiki Beach restaurant along with surf board. It’s primarily a diner type restaurant which serves various burgers/​sandwiches, sides, sauces, craft beers, shakes, soft drinks, desserts and breakfasts!!!
We were greeted by Derek who seated us and brought the girls colouring in pencils, paper and menus-​I must say it is very children friendly. Whilst we waited for our milkshakes (coconut for me served in a classic glass milk bottle and small bowls of banana shakes for the girls) Derek brought us over multi coloured nachos and salsa.
We ordered kids Mahi Mahi fish fingers and fries and Chicken strips with sweet corn and fries. My wife had a halloumi and roasted pepper sandwich and I had a triple decker sandwich of Teriyaki chicken, bacon, lettuce and tomato in poppy seeded bread. To accompany this we had sweet potato fries, homemade slaw, onion rings and mayo. As a birthday surprise I was presented with a lovely chocolate brownie and ice cream.
Now the nachos were warm and crisp and salsa was great. The shakes were fab-​having mine served in a classic glass milk bottle was very nostalgic! The girls loved their fish fingers, fries, chicken and sweet corn. My wife really enjoyed the Halloumi and pepper sandwich and my sandwich was amazing. The best part was that you could actually taste the authentic flavour of the charring, giving that super taste of original char grilled Bbq. The slaw was crunchy and not too creamy and the onion rings were thick and juicy. The fries and sweet potato fries were nice and soft. Then the brownie was sweet, melt in mouth and warm… mmmm!!!
Suffice to say this was a mountain of food and we did have to pack and take home-​guess lunch is sorted! Presentation, service and overall ambience was second to none. This is a great place for an alternative type of burger/​sandwich diner. Thank you so much to the team (Ciaran the manager and Derek).

This restaurant probably does one of the nicest, if not the nicest burger on Belfast. Yes people rage about how great Five Guys is and I agree, Five Guys does a good burger. Kua ‘aina does it better.
My sister and I went here for an impromptu late lunch yesterday. This was my second time and my sister’s first. The menu has plenty to offer but doesn’t go overboard and the service staff are incredibly helpful and pleasant. We ordered the burger meal deal which is great value at £9.95 for their classic burger, fries and a soft drink. The burgers were perfectly cooked and the fries were seasoned with some type of spice; Cajun possibly. They also have some nice ales on tap and bottled beers. All in all this is probably now my favourite place to eat in Victoria Square. And there’s the Hawaiian theme which just makes you want to go on holiday!

Only had the desserts from this place, ordered an Eton mess and chocolate brownie to go. The Eton mess was absolutely disgusting. Very disappointed, probably won’t be back again.

I have been patiently waiting for Kua ‘aina to open as my friend had told me about how great it was when she had been on a trip to London!
Since its arrival I’ve been 3 times, it’s a great casual dining spot!
I have no idea if this is traditional Hawaian fare or. not, but their burgers are absolutly delicious and you can really taste how fresh they are. They must be flame grilled because they have that sort of charred bbq taste about them which I’m absolutly loving! You have the choice between 1/​3lb and ¼lb I always go for the smaller because they are still big as! I highly recommend the bacon avacado burger! They don’t scrimp on the avacado that’s for sure!
On a Sunday they do 2 for 1 cocktails, I was informed by the incredibly friendly waiter that was serving us, so obviously I obliged and there person I was with was driving so even better for me on this visit!
Aside from burgers they have other items, chicken dishes and such and a mysterious mahi mahi fish sandwich? I havn’t been brave enough to try this yet but have been informed by my friend that it’s very good!
This is definatly a chain restaurant with A difference I hope all the best for them in the future!

got a wee take away from here via Deliveroo, so i cant comment on the inside. Nice standard chain food, actually think its better than five guys chips to. Great choice of salads and interesting flavour combos. Don’t go expecting world class food and you’ll be grand.

I was surprised by how good Kua ‘Aina was. For a chain restaurant within Victoria Shopping Centre I wasn’t expecting much but it was impressive. I visited with a few friends and we all liked our food.
I had the red pepper and halloumi salad with balsamic dressing which was fresh and delicious. My side of nachos was interesting, but I thought them a bit strange as they were coloured natural, blue and orange. Maybe the food colouring used in them put me off a bit — no food should be blue!
However, overall Kua ‘Aina was good and I would go back. Food, service, atmosphere and wine was all spot on and a reasonable price.

I have been wanting to try here since it opened and finally got the chance last night.
I was pleasantly surprised by the size and décor of the restaurant to begin with as looking at it from the outside it looks quite small and that is quite deceiving.
It’s a lovely fresh vibrant restaurant and has taken the Hawaiian theme to new level it’s not the usual tacky over the top décor that some places are guilty of.
Four of us were dining and I myself and another arrived early, we ordered a bottle of the Pinot Grigio which was a a reasonable £17.50, my only concern was we did not get a wine cooler with our bottle and by the time my other two dining companions arrived the wine was a tad warm.
I ordered the Spicy Huli Huli Chicken which came with an option of coming on a bun or toasted bread. I chose the bun and it whilst it was lovely and tasty it wasn’t very spicy in fact it was quite salty which I expect was due to ‘Da Secret Salt’ which is apparently one of the specialities of this restaurant and it is even on the table of you feel the dish needs that something extra.
My friends all enjoyed their meals too which included the super salad and the club sandwich, and all meals were reasonably priced between £6−8 for the main meal and around £2−3 for a side.
The service was also pleasant and not over bearing, somewhere I will definitely visit again as there are a few more items on the menu I need to try!

Kua ‘Aina is just a bit different from the norm. It’s Hawiian themed and in truth I’ve no idea what Hawaiian food is like, but the food at Kua ‘Aina was delicious!
On my first visit tonight (and I will definitely be back) I had the Grilled Halloumi and Red Pepper Super Salad with a gorgeous Wafu (ginger and sesame) dressing plus a side of skinny fries. The flavour was immense, fresh, scrumptious and moreish.
All of my three dinning companions enjoyed their meals and we shared a bottle of pretty good Pinot Grigio. The vibe is bright, relaxed, colourful and youthful.
I love the fact Kua ‘Aina have a great selection of vegetarian options, reasonable prices and good customer service. Loved the Hawaiian music playing too as it added a chilled, on-​holiday feel.
The only thing I can fault them on is the lack of wifi. However overall I’m impressed and looking forward to visiting Kua ‘Aina again. It gets a big thumbs up from me and is perfect for refuelling whilst shopping in town, before a cinema trip or before a night out in town.

Loved it, one of the best burgers in Belfast! The theme is excellent and carried on right to the bitter end. The staff are super friendly accommodating, especially to families. The burger comes cooked to order which is rare in Belfast. Nice beers too!

I’ve been keen to give Kua Aina a go ever since I heard it was opening, so we decided to take the opportunity to go today for a late lunch
This restaurant is super cool with amazing décor and the staff are top class. We were treated fantastically by them!
I had the ¹⁄₃ lb burger with bacon and chilli fries and it was lovely.
The only lost star was due to the price, at £39 for lunch for 2 adults and a child I thought it was a wee bit steep. Nevertheless well recommended and I’ll be back!

Went here for breakfast this morning. This was my third visit. As usual, the staff were amazing and the food was lovely. I got the pancakes and a milkshake, which comes in a cool old-​school milk bottle. Weirdly, this Hawaiian restaurant has an Ulster Fry on their menu. I plan to try the veggie version next time. The music is cool, the restaurant is set out really well and has a chilled atmosphere. The only downside on this visit was the presence of an area manager or someone working on their laptop at a nearby table. Probably a one-​off. I like this restaurant because although it seems like another one of the chain restaurants in Victoria Square, it is very casual and VERY reasonably priced! My milkshake, pancakes, companion’s porridge with pineapple and pot of tea only came to £15. I will be back again soon! No-​one really seems to know about this restaurant so I would advise them to do some marketing on social media because it’s awesome!

Amazing décor! Takes You right to Hawaii. Great friendly quick serving staff. I had a lovely huge chicken burger with hallumi on top, delicious barbecue taste. Will Be back when I have time to sit an savour the cocktails! Which looked amazing.

Truly bloody awful. Wed evening, 4 customers, 3 staff, place was really cold, lack of background music contributed to zero atmosphere. After 15 minutes I asked if it would be possible to get our drinks, easy to forget when it’s that busy right?
My tuna avocado came minus the avocado and wasn’t exactly hot. Chilli fries have never seen or been close to chilli or any other spice, topped with cold cheese, great! My friends chicken burger was ok apparently, but for that price?
There are lots of mediocre eating houses in Victoria Square, and they’re all better than this place. Don’t even.

Nice to have a bit more choice that just burgers and chips in here compared to a lot of the other restaurants in Victoria Square.
Staff are friendly and helpful.
Awesome prices. Burger chips and drink £9.95.
Possibly some of the best chips I have ever had. So crispy on the outside and fluffy inside. A tad salty.
The chicken portion in the burger was huge. Looked like 2 breasts.
Clean and bright inside.

Cool interior and hawaiian menu. They do a drink, chips and a burger for 10 quid. Check out the hawiian punch and glass. Its the kind of food joint where you want to buy a surf board and head to the beach.
It was busy due to late night shopping but the staff where helpful.