Kona Cafe Reopening Date & Details

Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort is once again welcoming guests and one of the most in-demand hotels at Walt Disney World. ‘Ohana is also back, with Advance Dining Reservations booked solid weeks in advance despite high prices and spotty quality. Meanwhile, the Poly’s best restaurant flies under the radar, with last-minute ADRs, fair prices, and delicious cuisine. Same as it ever was. Same as it ever was. (Updated October 1, 2022.)

I don’t think it’ll shock some Walt Disney World fans to hear that we think Kona Cafe is the Poly’s best restaurant. While ‘Ohana has way more cachet, mainstream popularity, and name recognition, Kona Cafe is a favorite of longtime Walt Disney World fans. Part of that is due to quality and prices. If we’re being honest, part is also due to Kona Cafe being far easier to book. Many locals, Annual Passholders, and DVC members simply aren’t willing to jump through the hoops for ‘Ohana.

In some ways, Kona Cafe reminds me of Steakhouse 71, Geyser Point, Three Bridges, Sanaa, and Grand Floridian Cafe. None of those are the big name restaurants at their respective resorts. However, they tend to be more popular–and even preferred–among repeat visitors. All are “hidden gem” Walt Disney World dining options that we’d file under “real OGs know.”

October 18, 2022 Update: This table service restaurant at Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort is currently closed for a lengthy, multi-month refurbishment. Walt Disney World recently revealed that Kona Cafe will reopen on November 1, 2022.

Advance Dining Reservations are now available for the refurbished Kona Cafe. We’ve recently spot-checked a range of dates, and found decent availability for both lunch and dinner. Of course, that varies based on party size.

Walt Disney World has also announced that Kona Cafe will have a “refreshed experience” and the “look, feel, and even some flavors of this relaxed café will be different, yet familiar.” Kona Cafe will feature American cuisine with that Asian flare that makes it so unique and you can still watch the chefs at work in the onstage sushi kitchen.

Disney has also offered a sneak peek at returning menu items: certain favorites that have cemented their place on the menu, including the delicious and can’t-miss Tonga Toast and Pineapple Macadamia Nut Pancakes served at breakfast. These two are fan-favorites for a reason. Be sure to keep an eye out for several items returning to the lunch and dinner menus like the Big Kahuna Burger and Seafood Pu Pu Platter and even a new plant-based offering for dinner, the Sautéed Red Quinoa.

Our hope is that these changes amount to a nice refresh of Kona Cafe’s seating area, which, as discussed below, is showing its age. I’m skeptical that the restaurant can be improved dramatically given the space constraints, but I also don’t think it can be “ruined” given the relatively bland design. Here’s hoping that Imagineering proves me wrong on the former but not on the latter–they did a good job with the Wave to Steakhouse 71 transformation, so I’m similarly optimistic about this.

If you want to get your “last meal” at Kona Cafe in before the refurbishment, the review that follows covers our most recent experience at the restaurant…

During the Disney Dining Plan’s heyday, we ate at Kona every single trip. I ate their now long-gone New York Strip Steak at least a half-dozen times, and there were several items that offered great bang for buck. Kona Cafe was also a good option out of pocket, with several more budget-friendly options.

At some point, the menu changed and became significantly more expensive. This came at a time when we were not doing the Disney Dining Plan as often, so Kona Cafe became a much tougher sell. Dropping over $50 per person for the meal made it easier to see Kona’s faults, like it’s relatively minimal theming and the “mall food court” vibe thanks to guests loitering around right outside tables while waiting for their ‘Ohana reservations. Now, things have come full circle again…

Our last few meals at Kona Cafe have all been spectacular, a trend that dates back before last year and has continued through the official reopening of Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort. Most recently, we dined at Kona Cafe for lunch while staying in one of the “Moana Makeover” guest rooms at the Poly.

Both this meal and our previous two reminded us of the Kona Cafe we fell in love with over a decade ago. A range of price points plus fun cuisine, inventive items, and comfort food. Still no Disney Dining Plan and that Teriyaki-Style New York Strip Steak is long gone, but there is plenty to love about Kona Cafe!

Let’s start with ambiance. Nothing is different here with Kona Cafe–the seating has been more or less unchanged for years. Kona Cafe is starting to show its age with the patterns on the benches and carpet, but it’s still fine. There’s not a ton of space to work with here, so I’m not even sure what Imagineering could do to improve the theme.

Kona Cafe opens up to the second level of the lobby, offering views of the atrium. This is both an asset and liability. It’s great when uncrowded, as it gives the restaurant a light and airy atmosphere, and feel less claustrophobic and confined–avoiding the Wave’s woes. It’s unpleasant when the Poly’s upper level is packed with people waiting for ‘Ohana. Thankfully, that’s not an issue right now.

Our meal at Kona Cafe starts with bread service, which is simply regular rolls served with plain butter.

Totally serviceable, but nothing special. “Free filler” is basically what these rolls offer.

For our appetizer, we ordered the Crispy Pork-Vegetable Pot Sticker with Soy-Vinaigrette Dressing.

No, I didn’t accidentally use a potato pancake photo…

Flipping the pancake-like food over reveals five pot stickers.

These are truly some of the best pot stickers we’ve ever had. In our ‘Ohana Family-Style Dinner Review, the pork dumplings are one of the few things we praised. These are even better. The filling between the two is very similar, but what puts these over the top is the crisp texture and the creamy dressing. savory and fantastic.

Speaking of ‘Ohana, you can order versions of all that restaurant’s best dishes at Kona Cafe.

If you were to order these pot stickers, the glazed chicken wings, our final entree, and the bread pudding (off menu), it would set you back $55–or exactly the price of dinner at ‘Ohana for one–and would be enough food for two people.

We’ve also done Kona Cafe To-Go and ordered the Lobster and Crab Macaroni & Cheese.

This is filling and fantastic. Rich and heavy, with an abundance of lobster and crab meat and mix of quality cheeses. We both loved this, and would highly recommend this appetizer. It’s fairly priced especially given how much seafood is in it.

We also ordered the Steak Salad: Sunny-side Up Egg, Kona House Vinaigrette, Sweet Bell Peppers, Kale and Arugula Blend.

I don’t even remember why we ordered this. Wanting to eat healthy? In any case, what you see is what you get. This salad is not noteworthy nor is it recommended.

Turning back to this lunch at Kona Cafe, we ordered the Duck Fried Rice with Leg Confit: Crispy Duck Spring Roll, Shiitake Mushrooms, Togarashi, Grilled Bok Choy.

There actually are differences between the lunch and dinner menus at Kona Cafe, and both entrees we ordered are lunch-only. They are replaced by the Asian-marinated Airline Chicken and Kona-braised Short Rib for dinner.

At $32, the Duck Fried Rice is the most expensive item on the lunch menu.

It is worth every penny. The duck leg was tender and delicious on its own and the duck spring roll was tasty, but it’s the duck fried rice itself that was star. Savory and delicious, this was a huge and meaty portion of fried rice. That photo makes it look smaller, but we could only finish half–and it was perfect for leftovers. Highly recommended.

Finally, the Kona Chicken Stir-fry: Yakisoba Noodles, Napa Cabbage, Carrots, Teriyaki Sauce.

Upon tasting these, Sarah’s immediate reaction was, “these are better than the ‘Ohana noodles.” She’s right. Like those, these noodles have a nice balance of savory and sweet flavors, with a good elastic consistency, chewiness, and thickness. The rest of the stir-fry gave them a better exterior texture, too. Again, we could only finish half. The only downside of this dish is that our smaller piece of chicken (the one to the right) was dry. Otherwise, absolutely fantastic and highly recommended (but not quite as much as the duck fried rice), especially to ‘Ohana noodle diehards.

Ultimately, this just scratches the surface on why we are back to loving Kona Cafe. If anything, I feel like we’re underselling it with this review. We had another meal here shortly after the last big menu overhaul and it was likewise delicious–I can’t locate those photos, but we found the sushi surprisingly good. We’d also like to try the dashi bowls, poke bowls, and more–next time! (Additionally, Kona Cafe’s breakfast is great.)

With that said, we can still understand why Kona Cafe is less popular with casual Walt Disney World visitors than ‘Ohana. While we would take the cuisine and prices at Kona Cafe any day over ‘Ohana, there’s absolutely something to be said for the atmosphere and views of Magic Kingdom at ‘Ohana. Kona Cafe definitely lags in those regards, making it far less memorable as a dining experience. If the complete package and making memories matters more and you don’t mind overpaying, ‘Ohana remains the superior option. For food, Kona Cafe is the far superior choice.

Planning a Walt Disney World trip? Learn about hotels on our Walt Disney World Hotels Reviews page. For where to eat, read our Walt Disney World Restaurant Reviews. To save money on tickets or determine which type to buy, read our Tips for Saving Money on Walt Disney World Tickets post. Our What to Pack for Disney Trips post takes a unique look at clever items to take. For what to do and when to do it, our Walt Disney World Ride Guides will help. For comprehensive advice, the best place to start is our Walt Disney World Trip Planning Guide for everything you need to know!

YOUR THOUGHTS

Have you dined at Kona Cafe? Any favorite appetizers, entrees, or desserts? Tried the ‘Ohana menu items (or their close counterparts) served at Kona Cafe? Will you be booking an Advance Dining Reservation for lunch or dinner here? What did you think? Worthwhile for the food, atmosphere, or for both? Do you agree or disagree with our assessment? Other thoughts or concerns? Any questions we can help you answer? Hearing your feedback–even when you disagree with us–is both interesting to us and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts below in the comments!

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