Kona vs O'Hana - What is the difference?

[DizGirl20]

We have yet to eat at a Poly Restaurant, so I booked Kona for our upcoming vacation. It seems that O'Hana gets a lot more attention and I can't seem to get an ADR (unless we want to eat at 9pm!). Just curious as to why? Is it the "entertainment" or better food or...

Thanks!

 

[PelletierBears]

We have yet to eat at a Poly Restaurant, so I booked Kona for our upcoming vacation. It seems that O'Hana gets a lot more attention and I can't seem to get an ADR (unless we want to eat at 9pm!). Just curious as to why? Is it the "entertainment" or better food or...

Thanks!

We love the Poly and both Kona and O'Hana

They both have great food but O'Hana's big draw is the shrimp and meat cooked on the open grill. Servers circulate through the room with large skewers of shrimp and beef, pork and turkey tips.

The other dishes are servered family style and consist of: sticky wings, pork dumplings, salad, brocoli and noodles (other than terrific bread and butter I believe that's it)

At the end of the meal is the worlds BEST bread pudding...

Kona on the other hand is a traditional restaurant where you order off the menu.

Have you looked over the menus? That may help you decide. I understand from reading several trip reports that O'Hana will accomodate vegetarians with special dishes if that's an issue for your family.

I'm sure you'll be happy either place but as you mentioned O'Hana can be hard to book. Oh, and they do a character breakfast with Lilo and Stitch!

 

[kerri0616]

We are fans of both restaurants:

Kona: A varied menu with many great offerings. A great variety of desserts. We've always had wonderful service and have never felt rushed. You order off of a menu which features appetizers, entrees, and desserts.

'Ohana: A set menu that is brought to the table course by course. Although you don't "choose" what you would like, there is lots of variety in what is served. You can ask for more of anything which is probably appealing to most guests. I think it's the quantity of food that attracts most of us. There are "games" for the younger set involving coconuts and brooms and instruments that the kids can play as they parade around the dining room. There is "entertainment" in the form of a singer who we found to be annoying, but most around here really enjoy her.We have felt a bit rushed here, but we just settle in and have our meal at our own pace.

Love them both!

Kerri

 

[momtojandj]

We just tried Ohana on our last trip, It was very good, but I did feel rushed to eat..and then we wanted to nap..lol..But it is a have to do at least once I think!

 

[Scrappy_Tink]

We just tried Ohana on our last trip, It was very good, but I did feel rushed to eat..and then we wanted to nap..lol..But it is a have to do at least once I think!

You don't need to feel rushed....just simply tell them you'll flag them down when your ready for another course. They were kind of rushing us to our next course on our last trip, so we just told them we weren't quite ready yet and would let them know. Nobody approached our table again, until we gave a smile and little wave. The "Cousins" are usually very easy-going and friendly. I swear I would go and eat nothing but their sticky wings all night....yummmmmmmmmm.

 

[AngelStitch]

'Ohana has entertainment, and great food! While I only ate at Kona once, I would definitely go back there. I have been to 'Ohana several times, best food anywhere in Disney. Kona has the same food, but in different ways.
'Ohana also has entertainment for kids at dinner, also. They have brrom races, and hula lessons. It is fun for kids.
Both places have just as good food. Either is a great choice

 

[Huff]

Love both Ohana and Kona.

Kona is on our must-do list every trip. Some of the best dinners have always been there. Food is excellent, desserts are awesome, service always the best. Look at the menu at allears.net. Something for everyone and all great!

Ohana is a meat lovers restaurant thats also fun for kids. Set menu with salad, pot stickers, chicken wings w/peanut sauce, grilled shrimp, pork, beef and chicken. Dessert is bread pudding with vanilla ice cream. Its all you can eat. Usually someone sings polynesian songs and theres kids games such as coconut races.

 

[North of Mouse]

We just tried Ohana on our last trip, It was very good, but I did feel rushed to eat..and then we wanted to nap..lol..But it is a have to do at least once I think!

We have been there lots of times and never were we made to feel rushed. I am a very relaxed slow eater, so even if they tried it would do no good

 

[Hopefully]

'Ohana has entertainment, and great food! While I only ate at Kona once, I would definitely go back there. I have been to 'Ohana several times, best food anywhere in Disney. Kona has the same food, but in different ways.
'Ohana also has entertainment for kids at dinner, also. They have brrom races, and hula lessons. It is fun for kids.
Both places have just as good food. Either is a great choice

Kona does not have the same food as 'OHana, only chicken wings as an appetizer are common.

We have also been to both and enjoyed both.
'OHana is very popular and one of the hardest ADR's to get. It books up months in advance, The food is very good, and some tables have a view of the castle and Wishes. There is entertainment for the younger set, but that makes it louder and more frenetic.
Kona is a traditional restaurant with a menu to choose your meal from. THe food here is also delicious. The pace is a bit slower.
We would return to either.

 

[mom2of2]

Kona does not have the same food as 'OHana, only chicken wings as an appetizer are common.
.

not the same wings...similar yes, but not the same

 

[B-Ride]

'Ohana has the advantage of all you can eat and an amazing dessert.

Kona is simply fabulous, one of our favourites at WDW. Although not all you can eat I never leave feeling hungry. The bread and butter are amazing so two loaves are always a must for our family.

 

[tinacaplan]

Kona gets consistently positive reviews here. Reviews at 'Ohana are mixed. Are you doing the DDP? That's something to consider. In my opinion the dinner buffets and family-style places (like 'Ohana) are only worth when you're on the dining plan, because its tough to eat your money's worth. Again, just my opinion. We really enjoyed 'Ohana when we were there.

 

[wildcatfan]

As other posters have said, you can not go wrong with either place. They both have terrific food, and we have had great service at both. O'hana is louder with more action. They are right next to each other in the resort so you can hear some of the excitement. My husband would chose Ohana because of the all you can eat and he is a meat lover. I would probably chose Kona because I love the desserts. I (unlike most) miss the fresh pineapple and caramel sauce as dessert at Ohana. I don't think you will be disappointed with either. But if you really want Ohana, keep trying back. Sometimes an opening will happen. BTW, the last couple of years we have had the QSD and we always go over to the Poly and eat at the QS restuarant. Great pork sandwich!!!

 

[pepe of ohio]

As others have posted one is family style all you can eat, O'hauna and the other is order off the menu style.....

I must say, years ago, when the O'hauna started it was really great...thru the years we have tried it 1 more times, the second being not so good to the 3rd of being down right awful.....will not be going back and spoke to a manager who offered us coupons for a return, which we refused and won't be going back....to us it's like a catered to your table, Golden Corral...which we aren't fans of...

We rather have what we want other than what's being served and the price is for what we want...not the buffet price of the O'hauna...which is over-priced to us....other crave it, but we've not fans....Kona will get our vote anytime we're interested in a meal at the Poly........

 

[psac]

To us the difference is Kona is good, while O'hana is not.

 

[cjsm&d]

Ohana for quantity and "entertainment" value. Similar to the Brazilian steakhouses popping up all over foodwise. I think everyone should probably go there once.

Kona for quality of food. It is one of our favorites, especially for breakfast or dinner! The kona coffee alone can't be beat.

For my family, we aren't big enough eaters to really get the most out of Ohana, and the food qualtiy was a bit uneven. Some very good, some overcooked or chewy... The wings and dessert are awesome!

 

[honeymom]

I wasn't crazy about the food at Ohanas but that was 8 years ago. My sister goes to WDW nearly every year and on her last trip (Nov 2011) she said that suddenly the Ohana food (which she had not been crazy about before) was delicious. Did a little research and discovered that the Boma chef who was always well regarded had moved to Ohanas shortly before her trip.

That being said, I am trying to make the same decision. Ohanas looks more fun, but the food at Kona (at least from pics I've seen on it on here) looks incredible. I have a reservation at Ohanas, but may switch to Kona.

Does anybody know if you eat at a table in Kona if you can order sushi from the sushi bar in addition to the things on the regular dinner menu. I ask because my 13 year old son loves sushi.

 

[mom2of2]

Does anybody know if you eat at a table in Kona if you can order sushi from the sushi bar in addition to the things on the regular dinner menu. I ask because my 13 year old son loves sushi.

Yes, You can order sushi at dinner

 

[PinkBudgie]

I was looking through the Poly thread and was thinking Kona was a little place you could drop in for breakfast on the way out- like the hotel coffee shop. I love real 100% Kona coffee. Then I read this thread and someone said they made a reservation there. Am I thinking too much like DLRer to think you can drop in anywhere at WDW without planning it 6 months in advance? Or can you just drop by?

 

[camandjacksmom]

We ate at both Ohana and Kona just 1 week ago so my report is very fresh. I will probably never go to Ohana again. I have done both free dining and OOP and the service both times was horrible. The attitude is get you in and out as soon as we can. When I said we would like to enjoy the food after the fireworks this was ignored and food just kept coming. I think the food is hyped up with the exception of the dessert it is amazing. Kona on the other hand was incredible. The food was incredible and the service was excellent. Our waitress overheard us talking about DS bday coming up and brought out a cupcake! The restraunt was no loud even on Super Bowl sunday with the game playing. I will always hands down recommend Kona over Ohana!!!