If you’ve spent any time researching where to eat in Wailea, you’ve probably seen Koast pop up. It seems to be on every must-visit list, and reservations start filling up a month out. But does it actually live up to the hype? Yes and no. Keep your culinary expectations in check if visiting. It’s a fun restaurant but not life changing.

Koast Atmosphere, Booking & First Impressions

The atmosphere inside Koast is top-notch; it has a great view of the ocean and sunset if you visit in the evening. The restaurant itself is coastal modern, with a lot of outdoor seating and a large bar. You are basically guaranteed a great view no matter where you were sitting. Tables were relatively close to each other so it can be loud at times.

Booking was straightforward and done via Toast. We reserved our table at Koast about 3 weeks in advance. This doesn’t seem to be the type of restaurant where you need to be ready the day reservations become available. However, do make a reservation in advance, as it is a popular, busy location and they might turn you away.

First impressions were positive in terms of booking and the overall atmosphere.

What Worked: The Standouts

The staff were quite friendly and attentive; they were happy to answer questions and make suggestions.

During our visit, there were two standout items. Thee milk bread with coconut jam and salted butter, which was our first taste of food at Koast and really set the expectations. It was fluffy, and the sides that accompanied it were delicious.

The second standout item was the spinach pasta with local goat cheese. The goat cheese was amazing and really elevated the dish; the entire table loved this one and wished we’d ordered it instead of our own meals.

Where the Hype Fell Flat at Koast

There were two key things that really fell flat for us at Koast, the menu and the food. Unfortunately, the food is the selling point at a restaurant.

Starting with the menu, they rattled off about 6 different specials in detail. It was very difficult to keep track of them. Then, when it came to dessert, same situation. There is no dessert menu; it changes every day, and they don’t print one for you to look at. They once again list all five of them off in detail. I just started writing notes in my phone so we could remember what they were telling us.

If you are visiting in hopes of getting the pineapple dessert that is all over reviews, just know they might not serve it the day you visit. They didn’t have it the day we were there.

Now onto the food. We ordered one of the daily specials, shrimp spaghettini, the aged wagyu NY strip, and the rigatoni.

Unfortunately, there was a common theme with all the pasta: it was al dente. Which, in itself, isn’t a bad thing, but it got to the point where there was mildly crunchy pasta in every pasta dish we ordered.

The shrimp in the spaghettini were tasty, so I will give points for that despite the pasta situation. The wagyu NY strip was not cooked very well; it was ordered medium rare and was definitely more on the blue-rare end. It also had very little flavor. The rigatoni was fine but did not stand out in any meaningful way.

Overall Recommendation

If you want to visit for the cocktail vibe, nice views, and some decent food, don’t let me scare you away from making a reservation. I do think your experience will really depend on what you order and how it’s cooked on a given day.

If you are a foodie, don’t travel out of your way for this one; there are better restaurants in Wailea. If you have an extra evening and have knocked off all your other must-visit restaurants, give this one a try.

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