Where to Eat in Hilo

Hilo is the Big Island's old town — the rainy, green, working-class east-side capital that never reinvented itself for tourists. That's exactly why the food is so good. The plantation-era mix of Japanese, Filipino, Portuguese, and Hawaiian cooking survived here in okazuya counters, saimin stands, and drive-ins that have fed the same families for generations.

The loco moco was invented in Hilo — rice, a hamburger patty, a fried egg, and brown gravy, first plated for hungry teenagers in the late 1940s. It's still the town's signature, and the bento, saimin, and fresh-fish poke are every bit as serious. The list below is ranked by Hilo locals, not visitors passing through on the way to the volcano.