Hukilau Lanai

ant and accommodating. We are still getting compliments about this venue! Obrigado! Walene e Clay

dozens of emails with the staff at Hukilau Lanai (who were all extremely helpful and responsive) before Chantry was assigned to manage our dinner. Chantry, of course, was equally amazing! It was very easy picking out a menu; for appetizers, we went with the ahi poke nachos, calamari, and lobster & goat cheese wontons. Our guests loved all of the dishes! We then had the soup or salad option (everyone picked the lobster bisque - hard to choose a salad over that!). For entrees, we had the choice of filet mignon, fresh catch of the day, and the pork tenderloin. Most of our guests chose either the filet mignon or the catch of the day. Finally, our wedding cake was a round, two-tiered, chiffon cake with lilikoi filling and vanilla buttercream. The cake was textured and decorated with Hukilau Orchid Heads. We provided a cake topper (MR. & MRS. on three tree slices held up with bamboo sticks), which looked rustic and picturesque. I was very pleased with how the cake turned out (moist, delicious, and not too sweet) and how the chef placed the cake topper. The cake was only $85! I worked with Chantry to create a custom wine menu (two reds - pinot noir and merlot and two whites - pinot grigio and chardonnay). We also chose two bottles of Domaine Carneros Brut for our champagne toast. We offered the entire beer menu, and coffee service was provided for free with the cake. I created a seating chart and place cards, which I dropped off the day before our wedding. Everything was set up perfectly, and the service was SO smooth that we didn't even notice we were in a restaurant! The wines were brought to my husband and me to taste and approve :-) and we always got our dishes first. I thought that was a nice touch. Everything went perfectly, and I couldn't have been more pleased!!!

Lanai was definitely the best value for the quality of food, ocean front ceremony site (including chairs), and professional service that I found. Planning a destination wedding requires you to put a lot of trust into the vendors/venue you choose and Manda, the event coordinator for the Hukilau, was so nice and very helpful throughout the planning process. She always responded to my e-mails within a few days and was always willing to set up a phone appointment to discuss details. About a month before the wedding Manda went on maternity leave and I started to work with Chantry, another event coordinator for the Hukilau. I was so happy that Chantry was just as wonderful to work with as Manda! Chantry went above and beyond on our wedding day making sure all the details we had discussed were in place and even helping remove some debris that had gathered in the train of my dress before we entered the reception! All the wait staff were attentive during the reception and our guests loved the food and drinks (definitely get the ahi poke nachos and calamari appetizers)! Our chocolate wedding cake from the Hukilau Bakery was very moist and delicious. Our reception was in the private banquet room and it was perfect for our 28 guests to enjoy a fun night of dancing on the dance floor, a private bar was set up in the back corner, and we had enough space to set up a DIY photo booth. We had our ceremony right on the lawn overlooking the beach on the Kauai Coast Resort property (the same property the Hukilau Lanai Restaurant is). It was very convenient to get ready in the Kauai Coast hotel room with all my bridesmaids, and then just walk down to the ceremony site when we were ready. The ceremony site is on the north side of the property next to an open field and overlooks the water. If privacy is a concern for you, it's good to know that some hotel guests will probably watch your wedding from their hotel balconies but we didn't even notice during the ceremony.(Afterwards we had a few hotel guests tell us congratulations when we were headed to the reception which was very nice). Overall for ceremony site fee, private banquet room rental, seated 3 course dinner for 30 people, wedding cake, and open bar we paid a grand total of $4,000 including tax and gratuity (about a 1/4 of that being the open bar bill). I recommend the Hukilau Lanai as a all in one wedding venue for anyone planning a Kauai destination wedding. My husband and I can't wait to return to Kauai and the Hukilau to celebrate our anniversaries. :)

a, kept in touch throughout the year long planning process and updated me as things progressed. We met face-to-face the day we booked the banquet room as well as the day before the wedding. She was always very accommodating and open to suggestions (giving and receiving). She couldn't have been friendlier! We had our cocktails and appetizers set-up outside on the gorgeous grounds where a variety of options were served. We then moved inside for dinner. I despise buffets so it was very important that we had a sit down dinner, which allowed guests to order from a menu. Our menu had 2 appetizer selections, 4 entree selections, and 3 dessert selections. Rather than including a dessert option we had wedding cupcakes. Overall, our experience was great. The kitchen staff was amazing - our guests were raving about the food during the reception and for days after! The servers were fantastic - always smiling and on top of every request. The managers were great - helpful, friendly, and professional. If we had to do it all over again we would most definitely do it here!

he Banquet Coordinator, Manda, is such an amazingly genuine and beautiful person. Words cannot express! Our bartender, Slyvie, was also incredible. We ended up eating at the Hukilau Lanai 3 more times during our week in Kauai. I really believe that it is the BEST FOOD ON THE ISLAND.

dding cake was delicious and beautifully decorated. Everything was wonderful!!!!!!