Options for getting food - help a 1st timer out!

[Mousemommy1]

We just booked our first trip to Aulani today!!! We will be there for a week at the end of February. We have a 1 bedroom villa so full kitchen. To help mitigate costs, we discussed cooking breakfast and lunch in the room and then having dinner out. Is there a garden grocer type delivery service at Aulani? What are our options for stocking our kitchen?

Any other tips will be gladly welcomed - I've got 4 months to figure this out!

 

[Mamasarges]

I don’t know about delivery service, but there is an ABC market across the street which has a reasonable selection of foods. I think it’s called Island Market. If you have a car, there are several grocery stores one exit back towards Honolulu that are great. I like Foodland best. There is also a Safeway. The Target also has a good selection of groceries. If you are Costco members, there is a Costco between the airport and Aulani. And Aulani has some groceries in the main store, just not a lot. Do keep in mind that food is a bit more expensive in Hawaii. How exciting to be headed to Aulani for the first time!! We are excited to be about to book our 4th trip! I’m sure you will enjoy it! Aloha!

 

[thedogatemyhomework]

lunch and breakfast tend to be the cheaper meals, maybe cook for breakfast/dinner and buy lunch instead?

many people also enjoy trying out the multitude of foods in hawaii so another strategy might be to pre-plan some specific meals (whether they be breakfast, lunch or dinner) and then plan to cook for the rest. (things like character breakfast and the luau at aulani being possibilities...or any of the other resorts at ko’olina since they’re fairly close by)

standard theme park tactics also help (eat 2 meals a day vs 3, etc.)

 

[nkereina]

Not sure on a delivery service like Garden Grocer, but I do believe Instacart delivers to Aulani. The Island Market across the street has decent basic selections at tourist prices, but I probably wouldn't rely on them to provide groceries for a full week. You'd have a better, cheaper selection going into Kapolei where they have Target, Costco, Safeway, etc.

Will you have a car? Highly recommend one both for access to groceries, but also for sightseeing and more access to dining options. If you're staying on DVC points, parking will be free so it makes a car even more cost effective in that case. Kapolei, where the grocery stores are, is about 10 mins up the highway. There are many restaurants there, including familiar and budget-friendly chains. And being able to drive yourself sightseeing helps to save on those expensive tours, and allows you to try out restaurants near wherever you might be on the island.

Without a car, you'd have to use Instacart or Uber/Lyft for groceries. And for dinner, there are only a handful of options in Ko Olina that you can walk to, and they're all priced for tourists.

 

[iloveftwilderness]

I wouldn't stock your kitchen from the ABC store (although I love the ABC store). I was just there and a box of cereal was $7 and a gallon of milk was another $7. You will find better prices in Kapolei. One can of soda at Aulani was $4!
Also- Monkeypod (across the street) has a happy hour from 3-5 with half priced apps and $10 pizzas. The Four Seasons (next door) also offers a happy hour that I heard was great.

 

[spacecanada]

I recommend stopping in Kapolei on your way from the airport to Aulani. We stocked up on groceries from Costco and the health food store across the road. It was quick and we only had to get groceries once for the week, though we did stop by to pick up some specialty snacks as a treat on our out trip days.

 

[jodybird511]

I wouldn't stock your kitchen from the ABC store (although I love the ABC store). I was just there and a box of cereal was $7 and a gallon of milk was another $7. You will find better prices in Kapolei. One can of soda at Aulani was $4!
Also- Monkeypod (across the street) has a happy hour from 3-5 with half priced apps and $10 pizzas. The Four Seasons (next door) also offers a happy hour that I heard was great.

Agreed--while I also love the ABC store, I wouldn't use it for my main grocery run. We also stop at Target on the way from the airport. Prices at Target are quite reasonable--for the most part, we didn't find them to be a LOT more than mainland prices. We typically cook breakfast and lunch and a couple of the dinners. We also buy liquor and mixers for drinks throughout the week--we've found this is a MAJOR money saver, as cocktails typically run about $14 per drink at the resort. We bought a bottle of rum, a couple bottles of MaiTai mixer, and brought our own insulated mugs. This lasted us most of the week, and we saved a bundle.

 

[corgi_monster]

We have Instacart here on Oahu and they will deliver food from Costco, Sam's Club, Safeway, and a few other places. Be warned that the prices on Instacart run about 20% higher than in store.

Safeway has their own grocery delivery service and there's usually a coupon for $20 off your first $70 purchase.

Shipt will deliver your Target order, and this is by far my favorite service. The price you see online will almost always be the same price as in store. Shipt is fairly new to Hawaii so they will run a $10 off your $100 order once every 3-5 weeks.

 

[Elsaburton]

We ate across the street at Pizza Corner and the Eggs Restaurant which were very reasonable in price. The pizza at the Olu Cafe was also delicious and very affordable.

 

[wilafur]

Just to echo the folks above, if you have a rental car then it'll be easy to stock up on groceries from Foodland, Costco and/or Safeway. I'm partial to Foodland for selection and Costco for bulk amenities (i.e. bottled water) and both have a location in Kapolei.

Otherwise, you can have items delivered to you via Instacart or from Safeway. Have a good trip!

 

[jkips]

Costco is definitely the way to go if you can get there and back in a reasonable manner. For a week trip like you are talking about you can easily justify the bulk sizes that costco offers. Plus the Oahu Costco offers some Hawaii specific offerings like fish jerky that make it worthy of a run in and of itself.

 

[Mil leech]

We found this last trip, that having a rental car to leave for meals was far cheaper. For example, our rental car for a week through Costco was $220, one lunch at Aulani for 3 by the pool was $70. I do have free parking with DVC, so that is a factor for us, but I highly advocate for a rental car to reduce food prices.

 

[pooh2001]

We will do Garden Grill
Maybe send down a package too of items they do not have

 

[Neraj]

All good options in this thread.

Just please keep in mind that there is no cold storage available if your room is not ready when you arrive... I see it too often, people going to Costco on their way to the resort and then scrambling to find out what to do with their ice cream and milk...

 

[Lilsia]

We had a car and where out and about most days so we found it cheaper to just save the money and stay in a studio room and eat out. We were still able to buy snacks, drinks and even some meal type foods and cook them on the grill. That might not work depending on how many people you have and if you plan on going off site often enough. For food, we grilled meet and vegetables and got some microwave rice.

 

[linco711]

We just booked our first trip to Aulani today!!! We will be there for a week at the end of February. We have a 1 bedroom villa so full kitchen. To help mitigate costs, we discussed cooking breakfast and lunch in the room and then having dinner out. Is there a garden grocer type delivery service at Aulani? What are our options for stocking our kitchen?

Any other tips will be gladly welcomed - I've got 4 months to figure this out!

You will want to have breakfast in your room especially. with all the restaurant closures due to the pool construction. Breakfast is very chaotic and overcrowded. The only real option is the buffet if you can get in. Disney should be ashamed that it’s guests have to go off property for breakfast!

 

[Lilsia]

You will want to have breakfast in your room especially. with all the restaurant closures due to the pool construction. Breakfast is very chaotic and overcrowded. The only real option is the buffet if you can get in. Disney should be ashamed that it’s guests have to go off property for breakfast!

Nobody has to go off property to get breakfast. The only place closed for breakfast is AMA AMA. Ulu cafe and Makahiki still serve breakfast.

 

[linco711]

Ulu cafe is overcrowded and you can’t get into Makahiki. Sorry to offend you by criticizing Aulani. We have been DVC members since the opening of OKW. We love Disney, but Aulani is a little different. Aulani cast members/staff are terrific and accommodating. i know the pool closings were necessary, but they are very disruptive. I’m sure it’s a lot different when all that mess is not going on. We may try it again in the future when all that’s done. Hawaii is suppose to be a relaxing vacation. We don’t expect that at the parks. I would definitely go elsewhere in the meantime.

 

[wendlle]

The ABC store food was more expensive than what Aulani had in their gift shop. We paid less for Bagels, bread and cream cheese at Aulani!

 

[linco711]

The ABC store food was more expensive than what Aulani had in their gift shop. We paid less for Bagels, bread and cream cheese at Aulani!

That’s true. Aulani general store food prices are good And it’s very convenient