Makai Island Kitchen & Groggery Pan-Asian restaurant

Are you on the pier in Santa Cruz? If so, make sure you stop by the Makai. It's a cool spot with a beautiful view of the ocean. Make your way to the back circular bar, as it slowly rotates, giving you a various array of ocean views, and it's fun. The food is good, but the thing that appealed to me is their knowledge of rum and cocktails. The current owner is a fan of rum and the tiki scene. They have a bar manager who is a fan of rum and good cocktails. The bar staff is given training on the history of rums and the proper way to approach the creation of various cocktails. As a result, bar staff has contributed their creations to the menu. Drinks are tasty and well-balanced. This location does take a mixologists approach to cocktail making, as fresh juices and syrups are prepared in-house. This spot has a cool tiki vibe, I guess they would consider themselves as more of a location that specializes in rum. Either way, it's a cool spot with an amazing, very personable staff. They make sure you enjoy your visit. If you happen to have Jeremiah as your mixologist, he's amazing on all levels, and he'll make sure your drink is delicious and you enjoy your time there. They have mugs and glassware available for purchase, which are cool in appearance and make good take-home souvenirs. Parking is available on the pier, which is reasonable. Definitely pay this spot a visit, as it was a very pleasant awesome suprise!

Very cool place to dine especially if you sit near the kitchen of the restaurant. This is a busy spot as it sits on the wharf which is on the water. Expect to be on a waiting list for a table, make sure you pay attention to your texts on your phone. THEY WILL NOT CALL YOUR NAME & WILL ONLY SEND A TEXT MESSAGE TO YOU SITTING IN THE WAITING AREA! The overall dining experience was a plus, we are super excited to return and try more dishes on the menu. The drink menu is outstanding and there are many options! The detail of the decorations in this establishment are on point it makes you think you are on a island! 🏝 There are places in the floor you can see the water beneath you!

Very cool place and awesome views! We sat in the area where it slowly spins so you get a different view every few minutes. The food was good, a little dry but decently priced. The BBQ Pork Sliders were AMAZING! Steak was nicely seasoned but a little dry. Would come here again. Drinks were $13+

You’re better off going during the day not at night . You can enjoy the ocean at day we couldn’t see at night. It’s dark in there at night. You almost feel like you’re in Hawaii! Hawaii vibes 🤙🏽 the food was amazing though! Out waiter Cooper was awesome and super fast service. The drinks are delish and I bought a cool cup.

This is our go to restaurant in Santa Cruz. Right near the end of the pier with both sheltered and open tables directly overlooking Monterey Bay, this place has a nice variety of Hawaiian themed dishes. We got the pulled pork sliders and the ahi tuna sliders, both on Hawaiian slider buns with a side of macaroni salad; a huge papaya salad with plentiful sugared macadamia nuts, lychees, pomegranate, and a wonderful guava dressing; and molten chocolate cake and guava strawberry creme brûlée. Our server Donelle was amazingly cheery; thoughtful and responsive. Enjoyed the views of sailboats and sounds of sea lions lounging on the pier rafters below the restaurant. A wonderful seaside escape with affordable fresh high quality food.

This place is the full experience 💙 Amazing food (blend of Asian, American, but mostly authentic Hawaiian) and sooooo many drink options! I got the guava-soy steak and I actually cried about it, soooo delicious 🤩 The staff was friendly, positive, and knowledgeable of everything on the menu and really added to the overall atmosphere, which was my favorite part. We got to sit on the turning floor near the bar and got a beautiful view of the evening as it got dark. The whole restaurant is Hawaiian and tropical themed, from the floorboards to the palm tree cushions to the lights 🌴🌺 On the expensive side, but well worth it! Definitely going back 💙

If you go to Santa Cruz, you must have a drink, lunch or dinner at Makai! We was just walking by the pier when we saw this amazing restaurant, since the entrance you already realize how exotic and wonderful is this restaurant! The reception was very efficient and fast, in las than a minute we was sitting on our table inside a Round bar that rotate very slowly so everyone over there can enjoy a 360° experience that I my self never had before and I loved! The food was great and the beer was extremely delicious and fresh, I definitely recommend this place! Thanks all you are doing an amazing job over there!

Great food, I think the Makai burger was a little hard to consume as the pineapple was a bit more overwhelming than I anticipated. Strongly recommend the sliders and the spam appetizer. The fried chicken dish was also really good. Atmosphere is awesome, the bar spins, and you can see sea lions to the ground.