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Ratings and reviews

RATINGS
Food
Service
Value

Details

PRICE RANGE
$3 - $18
CUISINES
Indian, Asian
Special Diets
Vegetarian Friendly, Vegan Options, Gluten Free Options
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meals, features, about
Reviews (67)
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Traveller rating
41
13
4
2
6
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Time of year
LanguageEnglish
Traveller rating
41
13
4
2
6
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All reviews dosas south indian food service was excellent the big island vegetarian
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Reviewed 1 week ago

Went in november, once dinner and once lunch. Great place for pure vegetarian food! Without onion garlic option was dosa, idly and coconut chutney only. Dosa was really good. Hope such pure veg places keep existing! Really helpful chef! Place to sit and eat.

Date of visit: November 2023
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This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Reviewed 1 week ago

My last review in November 2019 (our last visit to Kona) was glowing. This time, not so much. What was a lovely little location with friendly, out going, happy staff, is now 1 surly guy in a run down food court. The food is still...nice and there were groups of Indian/Sri Lankan people on vacation enjoying their Dosas, but no, we will not be coming back.More

Date of visit: November 2023
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This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Reviewed 18 August 2023

This is a stall in a beat up food court which is super old, and barely surviving with total three vendors. The guy is working alone; very slow and a super sad face. We had just one family ahead of us, serving three dosas for...them and mine was the next. But the wait time was about one and half hour. I was server a very thin, completely burnt Rava dosa. when I refused to take it, he said he does not have any more batter and refunded me the money. The other dosa server was a regular one (not Rava dosa). The dos was small for $18. Served in thermacoal tray. Tasteless cold sambar and potato veg.More

Date of visit: August 2023
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This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Aadesh Banthia, General Manager at Swami's Dosa Grill Restaurant, responded to this reviewResponded 28 August 2023

Aloha Nitin, I'm genuinely sorry to hear about your disappointing experience at our restaurant. Your feedback is very important to us, and we appreciate you taking the time to share your thoughts. We apologize for the long wait, and we'll work on speeding up our...More

Reviewed 25 January 2023 via mobile

We were very pleasantly surprised with the quality of food! Loved it and are planning on going back before leaving the island. The service was excellent and choices of food fantastic! Pls visit if you like flavorful food and want vegetarian options. The ambiance isn’t...fancy - it’s outdoors food court environment but we didn’t mind it since the food was so good!More

Date of visit: January 2023
Helpful?1  
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
AadeshBanthia, General Manager at Swami's Dosa Grill Restaurant, responded to this reviewResponded 26 January 2023

Aloha, We can't thank you enough for taking the time to write such a wonderful review. Your review means a lot to us and lets us know we're on the right track. We're really glad you enjoyed our recommendations, we've found it's a definite customer...More

Reviewed 25 December 2022 via mobile

We dined at Swami’s Dosa grill in Dec ‘22 and liked everything that we ordered - Dosa , idli, vada including the filter coffee. Service was prompt and there were lots of seating in the food court . Food was hot and tasty. We went...when the restaurant opened for business and soon there were a number of people trickling in that showed how popular the place was. Nice to get authentic vegetarian South Indian food in the Big Island.More

Date of visit: December 2022
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This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
AadeshBanthia, General Manager at Swami's Dosa Grill Restaurant, responded to this reviewResponded 30 December 2022

Aloha, Thank you so much to give us time to write such lovely feedback. We try our best to serve authentic South Indian taste here in Hawaii and such reviews act as a great motivation for us. We're delighted to hear that you liked our...More

Reviewed 2 December 2022

The name itself specifies that the restaurant caters to the delicacies of South Indian dishes. The prices are a little more higher than mainland restaurants. Yet we enjoyed the quality food served there and also the food we carried to take for dinner in the...flight.More

Date of visit: December 2022
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This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
AadeshBanthia, General Manager at Swami's Dosa Grill Restaurant, responded to this reviewResponded 5 December 2022

Aloha, Thank you so much to give us time to write such lovely feedback. We try our best to serve authentic South Indian taste here in Hawaii and such reviews act as a great motivation for us. We're delighted to hear that you liked our...More

Reviewed 30 July 2022 via mobile

There was only one person in the kitchen who was cooking and putting orders on the counter once ready. The guy wasn’t making eye contact or smile or greet to anyone. The worst thing was that he was dripping with sweat. I was watching him...and hoping the sweat drops don’t go in the food, but I am sure it didn’t escape. He had a napkin on his shoulder, but he never wiped his face! We ordered 3 dosas and didn’t like the taste. Also, they were out of red chutney by the time our turn came. I was so excited to go to this place, but then felt bad going.More

Date of visit: July 2022
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This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
AadeshBanthia, General Manager at Swami's Dosa Grill Restaurant, responded to this reviewResponded 10 August 2022

Thank you for sharing your feedback. Heartfelt apologies that the services did not please you,. However, circumstances like these are very rare. We're known for our fresh and best-quality Indian food and service in Kona. We regret that this was not your impression and offer...More

Reviewed 2 February 2022 via mobile

The restaurant is in the Kona international market food court which is behind the 76 gas station. Go around to the back to find it even if the building looks closed. They were the only restaurant open for dinner. To order, you enter your order...and pay at the self serve device. Everything you order is prepared once your order is placed. So the food is absolutely fresh. We had to wait about 15 minutes to get our food and the wait was worth it. My spouse had a dosa and I had the samosas. Both were fresh and delicious . There was only one person preparing the food and he attended to one order at a time. Be patient because the food was great!!!More

Date of visit: February 2022
Helpful?
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
AadeshBanthia, General Manager at Swami's Dosa Grill Restaurant, responded to this reviewResponded 2 February 2022

Aloha, Thank you so much to give us time to write such lovely feedback. We try our best to serve authentic South Indian taste here in Hawaii and such reviews act as a great motivation for us. We're delighted to hear that you liked our...More

Reviewed 1 January 2022

We were a large group and ordered lots of dosas. Everyone enjoyed the food. It was a very busy time and the two people who were working in the food truck were working very diligently and hard.More

Date of visit: December 2021
Helpful?
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Lotus C, Marketing at Swami's Dosa Grill Restaurant, responded to this reviewResponded 5 January 2022

Aloha, Thank you so much to give us time to write such lovely feedback. We try our best to serve authentic South Indian taste here in Hawaii and such reviews act as a great motivation for us. We're delighted to hear that you liked our...More

Reviewed 25 December 2021

We had ordered Masala dosa and uttapam . the sambar had gone bad and so was the red chutney. surprised to see that getting served even when many people reported the that it was bad. so for the price and quality the rating for Swamis...Dos Grill would be 1 Terrible . At the same location adjacent Asian food place had excellent fresh food reasonably priced.More

Date of visit: December 2021
Helpful?
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Lotus C, Marketing at Swami's Dosa Grill Restaurant, responded to this reviewResponded 27 December 2021

Thank you for sharing your honest feedback. Heartfelt apologies that the food did not please you, however, circumstances like this are very rare. Your feedback helps us serve better. We would love to have you at our food truck again and look forward to impressing...More

Reviewed 24 December 2021

If you want to try only dosa then this a good place to try. Most varieties of dosas were good but when it comes to rice or puri pls stay away. It’s not even close to South Indian. I tried both Sambar rice n rasam...rice. Qty is very very little even by HI standard but very pricey. Filter coffee is another disappointment. So stick to dosas then you will be good.More

Date of visit: December 2021
Helpful?1  
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Lotus C, Marketing at Swami's Dosa Grill Restaurant, responded to this reviewResponded 27 December 2021

Aloha Meena, Thank you so much to give us time to write such lovely feedback. We try our best to serve authentic South Indian taste here in Hawaii and such reviews act as a great motivation for us. We're delighted to hear that you liked...More

Reviewed 30 September 2021

Being personally unfamiliar with South Indian food, a member of our party with more experience did all of the ordering for us. She did not steer us wrong. We had dosa, biryani and uthappam. While all of it was delicious, hands down our favorite was...the uthappam. Just sorry we did not opt for a dessert but there was quite a crowd so we chose to give up our space at the picnic table. Wishing the owners the best of luck with their brick and mortar space.More

Date of visit: September 2021
Helpful?
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
AadeshBanthia, General Manager at Swami's Dosa Grill Restaurant, responded to this reviewResponded 6 October 2021

Aloha Denise, Thank you so much to give us time to write such lovely feedback. We try our best to serve authentic South Indian taste here in Hawaii and such reviews act as a great motivation for us. We're delighted to hear that you liked...More

Reviewed 16 August 2021

If you are a South Indian craving for dosa or idli or vada, Swami’s dosa grill is good choice. Its a food truck and they operate both for lunch and dinner. But in different locations. So google swami’s dosa grill lunch for lunch location and...Swam’s dosa grill dinner for dinner location. They have few seats to sit and dine. Very pricy dosa($17.95) and basically expensive dishes. You cannot eat here every day. We went for dinner had 3 dosa, 1 uthappam, 1 cofee and 1 mango lassi and paid almost $100. So consider this place to indulge yourself once during your stay in Big Island. They serve pretty quick. But my mysore masala dosa was uncooked at few places and too garlicky for my taste. The potato masala had fennel seeds which is not a norm in the traditional aloo masala for dosa. Sambar was more dal like. Their red chutney was flavorful. The schezwan dosa had mainly carrot filling. And the mixed vegetable uthappam had mainly carrots as well. But their vadas were very crispy and tasty. They also had pongal and samosa in their menu. They owners seemed young people. So I don’t mind spending $100 there. I will consider that as a gesture to support a fellow desi who are working hard to keep their business going. So if you are in big island do give them a try.More

Date of visit: August 2021
Helpful?
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
AadeshBanthia, General Manager at Swami's Dosa Grill Restaurant, responded to this reviewResponded 20 August 2021

Thank you, We are incredibly grateful that you took the time to leave us this note. We're pleased to know that we are able to serve you with authentic South Indian flavor in Hawaii. We always try our best to serve fresh quality food to...More

Reviewed 14 July 2021

The only way to sum-up our experience is: this is the best dosa we have had in the US [my wife is south Indian and I have lived in south India for 6yrs, so very familiar with dosa and related items]. The food is authentic,...delicious, fresh and worth the money you spend. Service is not bad too once you call Kush (the owner) and figure out where his food truck will park for lunch/dinner (he has separate locations for them) and at what time. Definitely try if you like good dosa, vada, or just Indian food, in general. Oh, btw: the chai here is made the way it should be, if you know what I mean!More

Date of visit: June 2021
Helpful?2  
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
AadeshBanthia, General Manager at Swami's Dosa Grill Restaurant, responded to this reviewResponded 16 July 2021

Thank you, We are incredibly grateful that you took the time to leave us this note. We're pleased to know that we are able to serve you with authentic South Indian flavor in Hawaii. We always try our best to serve fresh quality food to...More

Reviewed 5 July 2021 via mobile

Great food!! Waited about 20 min but was worth the wait. Second time eating Indian food. Young man cooking and looked like his sister. Highly recommending eating here. Low key with some tables by the food truck at the farmers market.!!More

Date of visit: July 2021
Helpful?
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
AadeshBanthia, General Manager at Swami's Dosa Grill Restaurant, responded to this reviewResponded 5 July 2021

Thank you Carol, We are incredibly grateful that you took the time to leave us this note. We're pleased to know that we are able to serve you with authentic South Indian flavor in Hawaii. We always try our best to serve fresh quality food...More

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SWAMI'S DOSA GRILL RESTAURANT, Kailua-Kona - Menu, Prices & Restaurant Reviews - Tripadvisor

Frequently Asked Questions about Swami's Dosa Grill Restaurant

Yes, Swami's Dosa Grill Restaurant offers takeaway services.

Swami's Dosa Grill Restaurant is rated accordingly in the following categories by Tripadvisor travellers:
  • Food: 4
  • Service: 4
  • Value: 4