Zippy's Hawaii Restaurants

Ask just about anyone living on the island of Oahu: What's the most popular restaurant chain? Nearly all of them will probably tell you, "Zippy's". A local favorite, Zippy's Restaurants have been serving hawaiian plate lunches for nearly 40 years. What started out as a small local drive-inn has become one of Hawaii's most popular local restaurants.

The first Zippy's Restaurant was founded by brothers Francis and Charles Higa which opened in Honolulu on October 16, 1966. Since then, they've opened 23 restaurants on the island of Oahu and most recently, on the island of Maui.

Zippy's has been known for it's local style island favorites such as their "famous" Chili and the ZipPac Bento. My favorite for many years has been the Zippy's Famous Chili. It's an unusual heavy sauced chili with beans, served with rice or crackers. Zippy's famous chili recipe is a closely guarded secret and many like to guess the ingredients that make the flavor of Zippy's chili so unique.

The ZipPac Bento is a japanese "box lunch" consisting of a piece of fried chicken, one piece of teriyaki meat, one piece of fried panko battered fish and a slice of fried spam on a bed of rice and fuikake (Japanese sea weed flakes). There is also a SurfPac which substitutes another piece of chicken for the fish. 

Zippy's also serves a variety of entrees, sandwiches, soups, salads and deserts. Just about every Zippy's also houses a Napoleon's Bakery which makes baked goods, pastries, pies and cakes. Great for something sweet or a snack.

What sets Zippy's apart from other Hawaii restaurants is the fact that they are open 24 hours a day at just about all of their locations. This makes Zippy's Hawaii a guaranteed hang out for teens and early morning breakfast crowds as the light is always on and good food is always being served. I spent many a late night at Zippy's with my friends after a night at the movies for a late night snack and conversation.

Recently, Zippy's Hawaii has decided to venture outside of the island of Oahu and opened their first restaurant on the island of Maui. Many residents of Maui were very excited and happy about this and asked "what took you so long?". If you're on the island of Maui, you can visit Zippy's in Kahului. Previously, Zippy's was also on the island of Kauai, but in 1992, Hurricane Iniki caused extensive damage to that location and Zippy's permanently closed.

As a local favorite Zippy's has many locations on the island of Oahu. The closest to Waikiki is located in Kapahulu, right down the street from the Honolulu Zoo and the Waikiki Shell. The Kapahulu location hosts a Napoleon's Bakery and has a semi-inside dining area but no wait service. If you're looking for a full restaurant experience, the closest location would be in Kapahulu or McCully.