Islands Restaurant

Islands has really lowered its standards. I ordered a cheeseburger and got a hamburger. The burger seemed like it was made from a frozen patty and tasted like cardboard. It was also smaller than it use to be. The fries were good but the service was terrible. We had to flag down the waitress for drink refills, napkins, ketchup. It will be a while before we go back. Cheesecake factory is only a few dollars more but 1000% better food.

Pros/​Cons:
–Good burgers, drinks are a bit too expensive for my taste. You can expect your dinner to be about $ 15.
–They have endless fries and this deal comes with meals that you order. Also applies to onion rings and sweet potato fries.
Recommendations: See part about endless fries above.

ENDLESS FRIES. I got the Nalu Nalu, medium rare on wheat, and it was amazing. The burgers are so large that I have to cut it apart to start eating. The meat was quite good, although some corners were burnt. The bell peppers and vegetables within were salivating, although they managed to fall out of the burger quite often. Afterwards, my friends and I ordered several orders of fries. Our original waiter was very friendly, but his break replacement was not content with life or us, apparently. She did not deem it necessary to give each of us our own plate of fries. In the end, we all (several large males) shared several baskets of fries, when I believe it may have been easier on her had she given us individual baskets. I noticed, as we were querying to reorder, that she would make eye contact with me, and then run away to avoid further orders. Spurned by the waitress, I sometimes sat, suffering in my hunger, in the hope of one day getting fries to account for the many actions and calls I gave her. I had many hopes of enjoying my meal, all of which were viciously shot down. I was also quite thirsty, and her reluctance to do her job made me left me rather dejected, hungry, and thirsty. The only difference between me during the meal and me before the meal was that I was cold before. In conclusion, because of the waitress, the net gain of this meal may have been just how warm it was inside the restaurant. The waitress’s behavior has also attributed to our 2 hour meal, when normally I would have spent only one hour. I was not very content with her. Regardless, the food was good, and I spent time with my friends. 3.5 rating, probably due to all the factors involving the waitress. But, considering our first waiter and his haste and good service, 4 star rating.

Went around 1pm on a Wednesday. There was no wait time. Food was delicious and the price was not too bad. The waiter was very helpful and she brought the food very fast. For my first time at Islands it was a great experience and I would definitely come to an Islands again. Where this location loses two stars is with their parking. They do not have a dedicated parking lot so I had to look for parking in the neighborhood behind them. It took me at least 10 minutes to find a spot where it had no restrictions. When I do go to Islands again it will not be to this location.

I had the Cobb salad and it was scrumptious! Service was so friendly-​so many staffers asked to help us, make sure we had take out menus, offered drinks, and explained menu items. We were there at 3 pm and it wasn’t so busy, but the attentiveness was appreciated! A thirteen year old recommended we come here for burgers, so I’ll have to try at some point during my brief visit. (Not likely but it’s the thought that counts!)

Great food, it’s always fresh and you can taste the clean ingredients that they use. The hot digs at the bar are yummy. Not a lot of places to get a good wiener.

Probably the only place ever that could fck up a well done burger and a mojito With a pink burger & a flat mojito. And when I attempted to complain to my waitress she completely ignored me & then dropped off the check. Not chill, Islands. Not chill at all.

You can never really go wrong here. They’re food is greasy and delicious, just how I like my burgers! Their fries are a bit on the dry end, but the endless fries makes me a bit hopeful that the next batch will be a little more crispy and flavorful… Sometimes you get lucky, sometimes you don’t.

What’s not to love about Islands Restaurant. I love the fact you have a great selections from the menu. If you are coming here with your friends or your family you will enjoy the food. They have excellent selections of appetizers from cheese quesadilla to cheese fries. They have a great happy hour menu at the bar only from 4 to 7pm.
If you are a person who loves burgers you are in heaven. They have one of the best fries in town. I highly recommend the chicken Yaki tacos that are my favorite. Also that is great island fish tacos. They also have a great turkey burger. If you are craving a salad I would get the Cesar salad or the Greek salad.
They only negative is the parking is hit and miss. You can’t park on the streets from 4 to 7 pm and only 1 hour parking on the side streets from 8 am t0 6pm. They do valet parking too. The customer service is always great here.

Islands is NOT what it used to be. The fries are super greasy and low quality and the burgers are just slapped together with cheap ingredients. Even the veggie burgers are dry and tasteless. The teriyaki burger had very little pineapple and was dripping in sickeningly sweet teriyaki sauce… It was like syrup on a burger. Ew. If you remember how good Islands used to be, trust me, keep that as a good memory. The reality is that this place is worse than or on par with $ 1 fast food. Their fries are definitely worse. Avoid!

Best veggie burger I have ever had. They have other locations that are nice. Fries, deserts and the entire menu is great for what it is a burger joint on steroids.
Little side note. If you have seen Pulp Fiction and they reference the Hawaiian burger place it’s Islands.
It’s odd walking into the door because it’s like another world but it will make your stomach happy.
Staff is very friendly. It’s up the street from West Side Pavilions.

I’ve been coming to this location for about 15 years or so and I love it. I used to come here for my birthday dinners with my family. My favorite burger is the Mavericks burger cooked medium. It has BBQ sauce and those dried fried onions things. I love those dried fried onion things.
The service is always fun and upbeat. Islands is always a good go to burger spot.

Super good food and really good service, I love it, is a good place to go with your family.

Great food always. Love the hula burger and the all you can eat fries but the burgers are big so you won’t be needing seconds unless you’re a big eater! The nachos are good and so are the fish tacos.

BEST Burger and cheese fries! You can get your burger made so many ways and the cheddar fries have the perfect amount of cheese. I usually split both with my girlfriend because it’s too much for one person. And it’s a big restaurant so there’s hardly ever a wait.

We were planning on watching a movie at the nearby landmark theater, so we decided to go to Islands for dinner. When we got there, it was pretty busy, and we had to wait about 20 minutes or so before we were seated. Since the inside was little crowded to wait around, we were waiting outside. When our turn came, we were seated and our drink order was taken fairly fast. The overall service was not bad except that it was a bit slow service in general. However, I think it is understandable as this place was pretty packed. We ordered Island tacos, mushroom burger and turkey burger and burgers come with bottomless fries. Everyone who ordered foods were content. I liked my tacos, but I felt like they used a different tortilla this time. It was a lot thicker than what I remembered it to be. Overall, we were happy with our experience and we would come back.
Food: 3 stars
Service: 3 stars
Ambience: 3 stars
Overall Experience: 3 stars

I recently revisited the Islands restaurant on Pico Blvd (near the Westside Pavilion) again after several years with my mom and truly enjoyed my experience there. They have such a great variety of burgers and other entrees. They also seem to have some awesome fruity /​tropical drinks! I didn’t get a drink this time, but perhaps I will next time.
I ordered the Maui burger, which came with guacamole, lettuce, tomato, onion, and swiss cheese. I also added Applewood smoked bacon on top for a little extra. The burger was very filling and delicious! I’d been craving a burger like that for a while. My mom got the Hula burger (sauteed mushrooms, lettuce, tomato, swiss, and mayo) and also really enjoyed it. We both got Caesar salads as our sides and it was a decent and enjoyable portion. They even gave us a free side of fries! Very nice :)
I definitely recommend this Islands (and Islands generally, as I’ve had great experiences at their other locations too) and will definitely visit again!

This was one of the first places I went with my roommates during my third year of college. We wanted something that wasn’t necessarily Asian (here’s looking at you, Sawtelle), so we decided on the safest option ever: BURGERS! I mean, you just can’t go wrong. My friend and local LA native suggested Islands because it would be uncontroversial and good, so we all went with it.
We hopped into his jalopy (sorry, I just wanted to use that word. It’s really just a Saturn) and took the short drive to Islands. We parked in a nearby neighborhood and walked over, and I took a picture of the sign, which you can see handily included below. The atmosphere of the place is pretty cool: lots of surfing stuff and other island-​related paraphernalia. A bar sits in the middle and is a good place to watch sporting events such as UCLA improbably making March Madness and angering sports fans across the nation as it somehow wins its way to the Sweet 16. I didn’t have them advancing in my bracket either, and I’m from UCLA… Well then…
Anyways, our server was quite attentive and helpful. I eventually decided upon the Kilauea, which is this insanely pepper-​crusted burger with pepper jack cheese, chipotle aioli, lettuce, tomato, and island reds. I’m famous for not liking tomato, so I took mine out – not that you needed to know that or anything, but I pride myself on accurate reviews… Or boring ones.
The burger was actually really good, but if I had to nitpick, it was way too peppery. After a few bites, the pepper completely overwhelmed the burger to a point where it was overshadowing the entire meal. It was still dang good, but I had to un-​crust some of the pepper to finish it. In any case, I would simply order a different burger next time since the amount of pepper (and I really, really love pepper) was a bit much.
Aside from that, the bottomless fries were pretty awesome and – yes – uncontroversial. Overall, a really safe place to eat without any major gripes, and that’s exactly what you should expect.

My family and I always have a great time at Islands. We love coming here because of the great food and the price is reasonable for the amount of food you get.
The servers are usually nice and check up on you. There’s always interesting surf, road bike, and snowboard videos playing for entertainment.
If someone is celebrating a birthday, they celebrate your special day with a special cake either a brownie sundae or a coffee ice cream cake which is delightfully delicious!
Good times!

2014 Unilocal 365 CHALLENGE — ²⁵⁹⁄₃₆₅
Pretty good Islands restaurant. I am a fan of this chain in general so I enjoyed my time here.
LOCATION/​VALET:
— Right nearby Westside Pavilion mall
— Valet parking offered
— Meters on the street
— Park at the Westside Pavilion mall parking garage and get parking FREE for 3 hours!
INTERIOR:
— Pretty clean
— Hawaiian décor, as the name suggests
— Bar area
— Additional seating in the back of the restaurant
SERVICE:
— Attentive and helpful waiter
— My smoothie came out after my entrée… weird?
— No complaints otherwise
FOOD:
— Cool Breeze smoothie is a MUST
— Cheddar fries weren’t as amazing as I’ve had at other locations
— Hawaiian burger was good, but messy
— Relatively affordable ($ 40 for 2 people w/​smoothie + app)
OVERALL:
— Decent location, no major complaints
— However nothing really wow’ed me either
— Glad I got free parking for 3 hours