During our stay at the historic Westin Moana Surfrider, I decided to check out breakfast at The Veranda at the Westin Moana Surfrider. Famous for its afternoon tea service, The Veranda is a glamorous, stately restaurant filled with old-world charm.
As I mentioned in my previous post, we stayed at the Westin Moana Surfrider during spring break. That meant that, despite the pandemic, Waikiki was a madhouse. And the hotel’s restaurants were no different. Luckily, despite not having any reservations, we were able to make it into the restaurant without a reservation. But, before I get into our experience, let’s talk a little about the restaurant itself.
The Veranda at the Westin Moana Surfrider Location
As its name suggests, The Veranda is at the Westin Moana Surfrider. Specifically, it’s along the veranda (duh) running along the exterior of the hotel’s signature Beachhouse at the Moana restaurant. That places the restaurant on the Diamond Head or east end of the Moana’s main, historic building.
Because of The Veranda’s L-shape and location, most of the restaurant looks inwards towards the Moana’s central banyan tree. There are, however, a few tables that have ocean views.
Service
Given the crowds, the host stand at The Veranda was a bit chaotic. It took a while for us to be approached, but I don’t blame the staff. The restaurant, in general, seemed a bit understaffed and overwhelmed. It was a perfect storm of pandemic recovery employment levels and an unforeseen surge in visitors. So, with that in mind, I thought the staff did a great job. Especially since they, not only maintained their composure but also kept a smile on their faces and provided good service.
It’s worth noting that upon checking in with the host, they asked if we were a hotel guest and if we had a breakfast voucher – which we did. After noting our room information, they informed us there’d be a brief wait, which ended up being longer than we thought. In fact, we noted about six to eight parties that came after us getting seated before us. There ended up being a good reason for this, though. As it turns out, they were saving the best seat in the house for us. Titanium Elite perk, perhaps?
Elite Voucher
It’s worth noting that at the Westin Moana Surfrider, the Elite Breakfast voucher is valid for your complimentary breakfast only at the Surfrider Cafe. However, if, like us, you decide to dine at the Veranda instead, you get a credit of $18 per person towards your bill. Unfortunately, that means the only item on the menu you can get for free is the $18 Acai Bowl. Everything else is significantly most expensive.
The Food
For her dish, Mrs. Island Miler ordered the American Breakfast ($32). This dish comes with breakfast potatoes; island greens; your choice of bacon, country ham, or breakfast sausage; and eggs any style. Naturally, she chose bacon and, for reasons she can’t even explain, over-easy eggs. The eggs were cooked perfectly, which presented some problems since runny egg yolks work better if you have a hash, hash brown, rice, or even toast.
For my dish, I went with the Veranda’s signature The Moana “Beautiful” Mango Pancakes ($29) and a side of bacon ($8). This is a thick stack of pancakes topped with cubes of mango, mango sauce, dried cranberries, seasonal berries, a sprinkling of granola, and some maple syrup. Honestly, the pancakes were fine, but it didn’t feel $29 special. There was so little mango sauce that there was nearly no mango flavor whatsoever.
Breakfast at The Veranda at the Westin Moana Surfrider, Final Thoughts
The service and the quality of the food at The Veranda at the Moana Surfrider were great. Prices are a little higher than I’m accustomed to, even for Waikiki. But, I did think that our meal here, had we paid for the entire bill, would’ve been a better deal than our breakfast at the Royal Hawaiian. My perception might have been slightly different had we gone a couple of weeks later too. After all, not long after our stay, they began expanding the Veranda’s menu again. Dishes added back on are things like the Mochi Waffle and the Turf and Reef (filet + lobster and potato hash). So, yeah, if you’re staying at the Moana, and especially if you have a breakfast voucher, give the Veranda a try for breakfast.
One of many reasons why I dislike Marriott’s elite benefit is that their free breakfast policy is super inconsistent and at some hotels, very stingy. Think about you go to the restaurant, and they tell you your free breakfast voucher only covers continental breakfast and only includes cold items. Is the hot oatmeal included? You have to go ask waiters. What a disaster!
Agreed. Luckily, the Waikiki hotels are pretty good at informing you of what your options are at check-in.
$40 for eggs and bacon? No thanks. Hawaii is so overrated and over priced. I can’t imagine paying $200 for breakfast for my family and our income level can afford it. I remember paying over $4000 in food at the Atlantis and never again will waste my money on that. Everyone is different but I can’t justify it.
Admittedly, this is a bit of an extreme case. For example, breakfast was quite a bit cheaper at the Ritz-Carlton Residence Waikiki. Luckily, there are more inexpensive options nearby. My recommendation is to check out Island Vintage in the neighboring Royal Hawaiian Center.
I absolutely LOVED eating 5 of 9 breakfast at The Veranda during my stay on Oahu with my family of 4! We also had a little sticker shock at the 1st glance of the breakfast menu… However, the plates are not over priced for the ambiance of the Moana Surfrider, the service is excellent and the food was spectacular and the portions are large. We shared, had the frozen acai yogurt, granola and berry bowl $12.00, the all american breakfast for 32.00 and 29.00 for the DELICIOUS Mango pancakes w COCONUT SYRUP (sooo good). Breakfast for 4, under $100..AT THE MOANA SURFRIDER ON THE BEACH OF WAIKIKI..100% WORTH IT (take me back to PARADISE, ANYDAY)!!! ON 2ND THOUGHT, DO NOT GO THERE….I LOVE HOW QUAINT AND NON-CROWDED THIS LITTLE GEM OF THE WORLD IS!
When I booked our room breakfast was included, we were able to have made to order eggs fruit cereal, danish you name it everything was great love this hotel would definitely stay again .. we have 0 complaints .. I highly recommend 100% .
Rude staff. Very mean spirited. Lifetime hawaii resident