Japanese Grandma's Cafe

I spent 8 days in the area and was so thankful to find this place. The chefs have recently switched to Tamari so most of the food can be gluten free. You will want to avoid the fried food as the shared frier is still an issue. The lunch poke bowls were gluten free and amazing — also plenty of Sushi could be made gluten free. I ate here 5 times in 8 days and that’s saying something!!!

How confident are you that this establishment takes safety precautions against cross-contact?

— Somewhat

Is there a gluten-free menu?

— Gluten-free items are marked on the main menu

How much of the menu is available gluten-free?

— Most/All

How would you rate the taste and quality of the gluten-free food you tried?

— Excellent

If I could give it ZERO stars, I would. I can't understand any positive reviews. Understaffed, server made me feel badly for wanting my food gluten free (celiac, not choice), not offering options to what was available (example - GF ponzu sauce isn't hard to make, but no offer to make it, unwilling to check if seaweed salad had soy in it already), not confirming what was safe / unsafe, and we watched FIVE tables all be turned (with larger parties than just 4) in the time it took just to receive our food. I had the simplest meal - chirashi with nothing on it - and it came out last (perhaps 10-15 minutes after my family had finished eating). DH and DD decided it took too long to get any food and didn't order until they were full - they just waiting until I was done, and ate at home (and they don't have any issues with gluten!). To be fair to the server (excluding the lack of knowledge), server was given two or three larger tables than 4 people and it was probably in their economic interest to serve them first, especially since we didn't order alcohol AND all the servers made their own drinks (which means no bartender). On the plus side, the guitar player was great and funny. At least I didn't get sick, but oh boy was it boring.

How confident are you that this establishment takes safety precautions against cross-contact?

— Somewhat

How much of the menu is available gluten-free?

— Not Much/None

How would you rate the taste and quality of the gluten-free food you tried?

— Below Average

Other Characteristics

• Good for dairy-free

The venue is very cute in a rather small town. I was not impressed with the menu options. None of the specialty rolls are gluten free. They have some tempura options, but they are fried in the same frier are are cross-contaminated. The only real options are Sashimi or Nigiri, and it’s expensive for what they are. Little portions of fish. Wouldn’t go again.

How confident are you that this establishment takes safety precautions against cross-contact?

— Somewhat

Safety Feature Ratings

• Staff is knowledgeable and can answer questions

Is there a gluten-free menu?

— Gluten-free items are marked on the main menu

How much of the menu is available gluten-free?

— Not Much/None

How would you rate the taste and quality of the gluten-free food you tried?

— Poor

Other Characteristics

• Good for dairy-free
• Good for dinner
• Good for keto
• Good for kids
• Good for takeout
• Good selection of healthy options
• Good vegan options
• Good with other allergies
• Offers outdoor seating

We were so happy to find a safe sushi restaurant! They were very accommodating and knowledgeable about gluten free and additional allergies (shrimp/mustard/tree nuts) and I even heard another diner with a sesame allergy being served. My son had several sushi rolls, one of which the chef even made just for him. They had no trouble at all accommodating him and were very helpful and kind. Food was excellent too. The place is really cute--a little stylish oasis in an otherwise somewhat depressed town. It's INSIDE (or actually out back behind) a clothing store called Blue Umi, just an fyi if you're looking for it and can't find! There seems to be a food truck too--it was parked out front.

How confident are you that this establishment takes safety precautions against cross-contact?

— Very

How much of the menu is available gluten-free?

— Most/All

How would you rate the taste and quality of the gluten-free food you tried?

— Excellent

If they had a *few* more options I’d give them all 5 stars. If you’re not worried about shared fryers, you can get tempura. Some of the menu items marked GF were no longer GF so that’s a bummer. But the sushi is fresh and amazing and our server was knowledgeable and conscientious! Didn’t make you feel bad for asking questions which can detract so much. Definitely would go back!

Is there a gluten-free menu?

— Gluten-free items are marked on the main menu

How much of the menu is available gluten-free?

— Some

How would you rate the taste and quality of the gluten-free food you tried?

— Excellent

We had a lovely first meal here in Kauai with terrific food and service. I came across this restaurant while shopping in Hanapepe. I asked the women working if they could accommodate celiac. They said they could and showed me the menu. They explained that the fryer is shared so I needed to avoid any fried options but that there were other choices. While none of the specialty rolls were listed as gluten-free they said that they could adapt some of them. I had the fresh local snapper nigiri, an adapted spicy Hamachi roll, and a rainbow roll with a vegetarian center instead of a California roll since I cannot eat the surimi. They were amazing, and I feel fine today. They have a lovely outside seating area strung with lights so I was comfortable eating here in this age of Covid. This was a lovely way to start our vacation, and I hope to have an opportunity to return while we are on Kauai.

After posting my review it occurred to me that you should check with the restaurant about the accommodations you need before reserving. We had dinner on a Monday night. While the restaurant was busy, it was not slammed. I’m not sure that they would be able to make these accommodations on an extremely busy night. It would be worth checking before going in order to make sure that you are not disappointed.

How confident are you that this establishment takes safety precautions against cross-contact?

— Very

Is there a gluten-free menu?

— Gluten-free items are marked on the main menu

How much of the menu is available gluten-free?

— Some

How would you rate the taste and quality of the gluten-free food you tried?

— Excellent

Cook was knowledgeable about cross contamination. They have tamari. Nigiri and sashimi were safe. Specialty rolls were roll dependent. I did not get any.

How confident are you that this establishment takes safety precautions against cross-contact?

— Somewhat

Is there a gluten-free menu?

— Gluten-free items are marked on the main menu

How much of the menu is available gluten-free?

— Some

How would you rate the taste and quality of the gluten-free food you tried?

— Excellent

A bit disappointed the food. Tempura batter was salty and very thin. Tempura is not fried in a dedicated fryer. No special rolls are GF. I had the salmon maki roll and it was fine but honestly it is the simplest possible roll to make. The rest of my family said their food was very good. We sat in the back patio area and the atmosphere was nice and service was pretty good.

How confident are you that this establishment takes safety precautions against cross-contact?

— Not very

Is there a gluten-free menu?

— Gluten-free items are marked on the main menu

How much of the menu is available gluten-free?

— Some

How would you rate the taste and quality of the gluten-free food you tried?

— Average

Other Characteristics

• Good for dairy-free
• Good selection of healthy options
• Offers outdoor seating

I had a tasty but simple meal here. The service was not good on the whole. Our server was very inexperienced when it came to which items contain gluten, but kindly referred me to the head server who was able to answer most of my questions.

There were not very many GF options that were safe from cross-contamination, even though many items are marked GF on their menu.

I ordered very conservatively to avoid getting sick, but I was satisfied with my simple salmon roll and avocado roll.

How confident are you that this establishment takes safety precautions against cross-contact?

— Not very

Safety Feature Ratings

• Staff will clean kitchen space or change gloves if asked

Is there a gluten-free menu?

— Gluten-free items are marked on the main menu

How much of the menu is available gluten-free?

— Not Much

How would you rate the taste and quality of the gluten-free food you tried?

— Good

Other Characteristics

• Good for kids
• Good for lunch
• Good for takeout
• Good selection of healthy options
• Offers online ordering
• Offers outdoor seating

Delicious! Only bummer was that the teriyaki is no longer gluten free, so I was relegated to garlic ginger (which was great!). Tempura shrimp bento bowl was really good :)

Celiac friendly?

Yes

Poke was delicious and I felt very safe eating here. We want to come back to explore the many options again.

Gluten free tempura—not in a dedicated fryer, but delicious!

Staff knowledgeable. Many gluten-free options. Husband had a Bento bowl with choice of gluten-free sauces.

Celiac friendly?

Yes

Lots of gluten free choices - even their teriyaki sauce is gluten free! I got the poke bowl with avocado - it was incredible. The waitress was helpful and double checked with the chef that the poke bowl was GF. Be aware it is a small restaurant and they share space with a clothing/gift store, so our table was next to the changing room, which was unusual.

Celiac friendly?

Yes

Many items on the menu can be made gluten free. I had the GF poke bowl with ahi and it was amazing. The fish was unbelievably fresh and I did not get sick. They have some fried foods that were labeled GF but since I didn’t order it I’m not sure if there is a dedicated fryer or not. Sake was also great!

Celiac friendly?

Yes