Mala Ocean Tavern

  4.6 – 2,902 reviews  $$$ • American restaurant

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Māla Ocean Tavern, Maui’s 2023 Best Restaurant, proudly offers oceanfront dining since 2004. Indulge in Brunch, Happy Hour, and Dinner with culinary delights like Eggs Benedict and seaside dinners with locally sourced fresh seafood. Despite challenges, MALA reopened Feb 1, 2024, embodying the aloha spirit. Join us in our oceanfront haven for an unforgettable experience.

Intimate locale on the beach features Pacific Rim & Mediterranean dishes, plus a variety of wines.

✔️Breakfast ✔️Brunch ✔️Lunch ✔️Dinner ✔️Dine in ✔️Take out Mala Ocean Tavern 96761

Address and Contact Information

Address: 1307 Front St, Lahaina, HI 96761

Phone: (808) 667-9394

Website: https://malatavern.com/

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Order and Reservations

Reservations: malatavern.comopentable.com

malatavern.com

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Related Web Results

Mala Ocean Tavern – Oceanfront Restaurant on Maui

Mala Ocean Tavern is Open Daily 8am – 9pm. Daily Brunch (Breakfast + Lunch Open-2p), Live Music Happy Hour (2-4p), and Dinner (4-9p – Bar Open …

Brunch Food & Drinks Menu – Mala Ocean Tavern

Indulge in a delicious brunch on Maui at Mala Ocean Tavern, featuring tasty food and cocktails. Daily from 9am to 2pm.

Reservations – Mala Ocean Tavern

Mala Wine Dinner during the Lahaina Food & Wine Festival Friday, February 20th. Book your table now! Skip to Content.

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Reviews

Loren Swanson
We had another great experience at Mala Ocean Tavern. I ordered the fresh fish sandwich with blackened mahi mahi and it was outstanding…..super fresh, perfectly seasoned, and cooked just right. My wife had the eggs Benedict with sausage gravy and couldn’t stop talking about how good it was.

We also took advantage of the $7 mimosas, I had the hibiscus one and it was refreshing and not overly sweet. Perfect brunch drink.

Our server, China, was amazing. Attentive, friendly, and made the whole experience even better. The food is always fresh here, the ocean view is incredible, and it’s always a stop we make anytime we visit Maui. We’ll definitely be back.
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Mason Ganz
Mala Ocean Tavern was amazing! Great service, great view (with an ocean breeze and perfect at sunset), and amazing food! We ordered the ahi bruschetta, ube bread, seared scallops, and steak. All dishes were delicious. We especially liked the ube bread and the bruschetta. Mai tais were also delicious! Make a reservation!
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Bernadette Minton
Stellar dining experience. Run, don’t walk, for the ahi bruschetta. Unparalleled and consistently high quality. Coconut shrimp was piping hot with great coconut flavor that let the fresh shrimp taste shine through. The hummus with crispy chickpeas was creamy and flavorful. The ahi bruschetta was so awesome, I’m planning to return and eat only that. Fish sandwich with mahi mahi was great – my only tiny complaint was that the fries could have been a little more crispy. And the greens salad with sautéed shrimp was excellent! Can’t wait to come back!
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Christian Martinez
After a long first full day in Maui we showed up without a reservation (they prefer reservations). We were a bit underdressed, but starving after hikes and long driving around the island.
The hostess was so kind in checking for availability for us.
We got very lucky and she kindly sat us after 5 minutes.
Keep in mind it’s January, a “slower” time for vacationing – so we’ve been told ( our first time here).
Our waiter was Joe. He was amazing.
He Checked in on us & Gave us food recommendations. All of the food and drinks were brought to us in a timely manner.
Food was delicious & fresh.
I got the Seared Ahi & my partner got the surf & turf (rare). Both came out perfectly. For desert, the bread pudding, absolutely amazing.
Highly recommend this place for a romantic night out or for any occasion.
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Ben A
Mala Ocean Tavern: Fresh Flavors & Friendly Service

I’ve visited Mala Ocean Tavern twice—for lunch in August and again for Thanksgiving, both experiences were excellent.

The staff is genuinely friendly and attentive, making you feel welcome without being intrusive.

The food is outstanding. The **Pan Fried Mahi Mahi** is so good I’ve ordered it both times. Served with Yukon mash, mushrooms, green beans, and a black bean garlic ginger butter sauce, it perfectly showcases fresh, vibrant flavors without being overdone. The **poisson cru** is another must-try—a refreshing Polynesian-style dish that captures the essence of island dining.

For Thanksgiving, we enjoyed the pumpkin mochi crunch dessert, which was a delicious creative twist on seasonal flavors.

The atmosphere is relaxed yet polished—perfect for both casual lunches and special occasions. If you’re in Maui, Mala Ocean Tavern is a must-visit.​​​​​​​​​
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Ram Ramakrishnan
The food here is truly special—easily some of the best I’ve ever had. The ube bread was amazing: served hot and fresh, soft, and paired perfectly with the salted butter and honey dip—a truly divine combination. Their green curry was fantastic, with tofu, vegetables, rice, and a topping of plantain chips that added a delightful crunch. And the crème brûlée? Absolutely out of this world. The creamy texture paired with the caramelized bites was heavenly, with each bite perfectly blending creaminess and caramel for an extra-special touch.

The service was good, though the restaurant was hosting a New Year’s event and seemed a bit distracted toward the end. We had to ask for our check multiple times, which took longer than expected. I understand it was a busy day, but even on hectic days, maintaining attentive service is important.

Overall, this is a super nice place with fantastic food and good service. My only wish is that they offered more vegetarian options.
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Emily Dickinson
This is a true hidden gem!! For such a tiny restaurant, they do everything right- food was delicious and service couldn’t be beat. Not to mention the ocean breeze (with occasional wave mist). The staff was kind, attentive and even gave me great hiking recommendations!! I’ll definitely be back again!
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Sarah Jonas
I am so grateful we chose a dinner at Mala to celebrate my 30th birthday. Of all the places we went this week- Mala was the best service as far as making my birthday feel special. They started off by seating us at a perfect beachside table, which I requested In the reservation. I was very pleasantly surprised to see that they brought out a scoop of delicious Ube ice cream (unprompted!) with a wine glass covering the flame due to it being breezy out by our table 🙂 I had the pork shank, And hot Ube bread as an appetizer. I would come back here every time if I could! Mahalo nui loa Mala Ocean Tavern
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Ben Bar-Lev
Came here on a Saturday night , day after Halloween, place was half full. I’ve heard a lot about Mala from family & friends , knew i was in for a treat.

My wife, 25 weeks pregnant , eats plant based and there were several options for her.

Our server, Carlos, was soft spoken but confident & gave us great pointers – he’s someone you just know you can trust.

I got the ceviche w the sweet potato
Chips , my wife got the Brussel sprouts to start, both were just fantastic! The brussel sprouts were cooked to perfection & the ceviche i got was in this rich coconut broth that i ended up drinking. Really refined and confident flavors.

For our main dish, my wife got the vegan curry & i was stuck between the pork shank (Carlos said it falls off the bone) and the pan seared mahi mahi (which i ended up getting).

While the portion size of the mahi mahi was on the smaller side, the actual dish was huge — Yukon potatoes and a great ginger sauce with mushrooms and carrots – just really full flavor.

Id like to note that i got their version of a Mai tai as well as a gin drink that were some of the best cocktails I had during our trip.

Pricing was fair and the food quality was just superb – couple that with Carlos service and the incredible waterfront views — you got yourself a fantastic meal . Would RUN back. Also, their sambal was SPICY!
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Jack Werner
Our happy hour dinner at Mala was amazing. The best meal and experience we had in Maui. Sitting right on the ocean with island views and a nice breeze, drinking outstanding cocktails and eating local food. The service from Thomas was outstanding, and he shared lots of knowledge with us about the sea life in the harbor and the local ingredients in their food. You absolutely MUST try the bruschetta. Thank you so much!
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