Lee's Hawaiian Islander

Had an incredible experience a few weeks back at Lee's Hawaiian Islander. I think the fact that the decor is dated adds to the fun and atmosphere, if you wanted a polished and shiny bar then you'd go to Carpaccio at the American Dream Mall. The staff were friendly and several other customers were in there when I went (about 1:30 on a Saturday). Had the Mai Tai and Zombie (both delicious, I'd say the Mai Tai was a little better) and my partner had a Scorpion Bowl & a Hurricane (the Scorpion was the better of the two). All drinks were well made, not super high quality liquors but still well balanced and just the right amount of bite for booze-forward drinks. The prices are a little on the higher side, but it's more than worth it. Mr. Lee was very kind.

Beaver, I think it's a little too late now but I'm thinking the Mai Tai and Scorpion Bowl are good bets, and the Pupu Platter for food.

Does anyone have good recommendations on what to order? I’m going tonight… pretty hung over and don’t want to read the menus.

We re-visited on Sunday 1/9/2022 after a long stay away. We were sadly disappointed in the food this time. We ordered a PuPu platter for 3 ($42.00) which was fine. Pepper steak w/mushrooms ($17.50) was a very small portion that couldn't even fill a pint, Roast Pork LoMein - tasted very bland and had a faint metallic taste, Roast Pork fried rice, nothing special, egg drop soup was good, table noodles were very stale and had to send back. Service was not pushy and rushing us out for a change, but the whole vibe was dull, especially because of all of the raised prices. Sadly, this will be my last visit as the food quality was poor and not worth the price, nor offset by the faded tiki decor.

Stopped here on a drive from New Orleans to the Berkshires, after reading some of the reviews on critiki. I'm really glad that I did.
My thoughts:
- I came here with my three teenage daughters oh, and they thought it was the best thing in the world. So, for a family meal that still allows a tiki crazed parent to imbibe a little, this is an excellent place.
- The drinks are the real deal. As others have mentioned, they may not be top shelf liquors, but they've got all the classics and the right recipes, and all the right Tiki mugs and bowls to add to the fun.
- do you wish that you could walk right into 1974? Well, at least Hawaiian Islander you can. The dacor, which is genuine old-school northeast-style Tiki, complete with gaudily painted Tiki god's everywhere, looks like it has not been touched since 1974, and I mean that as a good thing, despite the presence of the occasional duct tape! There is an outrigger boat hanging from the ceiling, accompanied with birds that look like they just arrived from Disney's Enchanted Tiki Room, a fabulous rock wall, fake flowers and bamboo everywhere, and real blow fish lanterns over the tables. A couple of the tables are in cute little Tiki huts. There's an excellent party room upstairs, and balcony all the way around the restaurant. It wasn't open when I was there but this would be an excellent place for a tiki couple to have a 50th birthday party or even a rehearsal dinner.
- I got to meet old Mr Lee and young Mr Lee.
- We were there on a Saturday at noon, and we were the only people in the dining room. There were a half-dozen people in the bar. Young mr. Lee says that it still gets extremely crowded free karaoke nights.
- I genuinely liked the food. I think as long as your expectations are for something in the ballpark of the standard American version of Chinese food, you won't be disappointed. I thought the prices were completely reasonable.
- The music was on point. All relevant to Tiki or Tiki-related culture of some sort or another.
- I would definitely go again when passing through the neighborhood. This is a preserved piece of tiki history!

I visited Lee's Hawaiian Islander last weekend. There were only three other parties in the restaurant but that was probably because I stopped in at approximately 3:30 in the afternoon on a Saturday. The restaurant is appropriately dark with no windows and it took a few minutes for my eyes to adjust. The decor was classic Gilligan's island's theme with bamboo covering the walls up to about 4 feet high and tapa cloth paper from there up to the ceiling. The restaurant is two floors with a large open area in the center all the way up to the top floor ceiling. You have the choice of sitting at bamboo booth, an open table, or one of four bamboo Hut like booths in the corners. We chose a bamboo booth and it was nice and cozy. One of the walls is decorated in fake rock and has two waterfalls running down it. There is an Outrigger Canoe hanging from the ceiling, tiki masks hanging over nearly every table, with some corner booths having clamshell lights mounted on the walls. We were greeted and sat immediately. The drink menu is a combination of familiar Tiki drinks and some that appear to have just been made up. As I was down in New Jersey on a family trip, my mom ordered a Chi Chi and I ordered a Planter's Punch. The drinks arrived in appropriate glassware for each, with a pretty decent, if generic Tiki mug for my Planter's Punch. The drinks tasted very close to versions I have made at using the Bum's recipes, and I was pleasantly pleased by them. The food was pretty much as has been described in previous reviews: pretty average if expensive. My mom ordered the shrimp over garlic and vegetables and she loved it. I ordered the poo poo platter which was a mixed bag. The Mongolian beef and chicken wings were really good, the ribs were very average, and the spring rolls were not very good. I don't eat seafood but my mom had the shrimp toast and fantail shrimp from the poo poo platter and she said that they were both pretty good. Young Mr. Lee turned on the lights upstairs for me so that I could take photos. He also said that as it was Saturday night it would be packed later because they had karaoke and always had a big crowd. On our way out the Elder Mr Lee was in the bar area and cheerfully greeted us. I was glad I was able to take a moment to speak with him and shake his hand. Overall, Lee's is an interesting classic Tiki Bar to visit. I wouldn't drive hours to get here, but if you are in northern New Jersey I would definitely recommend stopping in.

ALWAYS A GOOD TIME AT LEE'S
I go from time to time as I'm local. The focus of the drinks is strength instead of being top shelf, old school. No one will EVER say they don;t taste the alcohol in their drink. The food is great, but I stick to the Chinese and Polynesian. I had a steak there once, and it wasn't great but maybe it was just a bad day. There are enough options on the menu to make up for it. Going there for karaoke is a blast, one of the waiters sings. Usually a good cross section of the neighborhood there having a good time.