-
October 2023 by David Hwu
The best tarp chip I’ve ever had.,, period!Hard to find entrance to this stack and one wonder if he is even open, but well worth the trip.$7 fit a small bag of freshly fried tarp chips. Still hot and salty. Unlike the mass produced flavorless ones co packer makes.
-
September 2023 by Akemi O.
Always go when I go back Kauai. Even if Ma guys from Lihue, worth making the trip to Hanapepe to see the grandparents old stomping grounds and grab some chips. I always like the taro and potato chips, but forgot how good the ulu was. I've had ulu chips elsewhere and we make them and it's always oily...but not at Taro Ko. Whatever they do is great. Glad I bought 2 bags ulu this trip (8 total to give as omiyage)...
-
July 2023 by Richard R.
Like an old Chinese restaurant where you question how they passed their health inspection, but that's probably what makes the food so good. Lmao. Hours are totally random and when they are open, the door still has a closed sign on it. We tried the taro chips as lots have raved about and found they are a greasier version of Hawaiian Chip Company's taro chips sprinkled with garlic salt. Chips were ono but for $7/ bag a little steep. As others mentioned, the people running the place are not the friendliest but we didn't go there to make friends.
-
July 2023 by Kandee A.
The taro chips are fantastic. Love the fresh texture and love the small business theme...when you sell out, you're pau for the day!
-
May 2023 by Frank F.
This unassuming "shack" sells thin, delicious taro and sweet potato chips that are unbeatable. My wife and I bought the Li Hing Sweet Potato Chips to eat on our drive home. We couldn't stop munching even though we were full from lunch. I dinged the business one star because the proprietor wasn't terribly friendly. They really should give the shack a once -over with some paint and put a sign out front to improve business. It's really a hidden gem!!!
-
March 2023 by Deanna B.
Yummy chips with unique Asian flavors. We had plain tarp chips, and regular and purple sweet potato with the Li Hing Mui flavor. All were super amazing and crispy. With the trip.
-
December 2022 by Yolanda Coyaso
My mom, God bless her soul, used to by chips directly from the maker. She said it was the best she has eaten in her life. And it is till this day, I prefer!
-
November 2022 by Claudia M.
Takes me back to 50 years ago.. like a time capsule.. Food is great but the nostalgia is irreplaceable
-
November 2022 by Stephanie F.
The chips themselves are super delicious. Thin, super crisp, & perfectly seasoned. The place itself is a little house and you enter through an assuming side door that leads straight into kitchen. There you sill find two medium sized brown boxes with whatever chips they have left for the day. Dinged the place a star (but only a star bc the chips so dang good lol); Don't expect a friendly greeting when you enter lol. I greeted the two men with a friendly "aloha" and all I got were death stares. The most words that I got from the man by the counter said was him repeating my new grand total (every time i pulled a bag out of the box). Cash only! The lack of interaction/ death stares almost makes me feel like these gentlemen would prefer not to sell their goods to tourists. (If thats the case, maybe they should tell Hawaiian airlines to take their business off their website ). All in all, just come here for the chips- they are pretty tasty!
-
November 2022 by Mary J.
First time we visited on a Sunday and the door was closed. So visited again on a Tuesday, the door was open. We went inside, the nice old man showed us three boxes, one had the taro chips, the other had plain salted potato chips, and then we took the last bag of li-hing mui flavored potato chips-- that was the tastiest of them all. Each bag is $6, so we handed the owner a $20 bill and left quickly. He chased after us to give us our change but he seemed like a nice old man so we told him to keep the change. The younger man in the back was busy frying up a fresh batch of taro chips, you can smell it across the street. The taro chips are definitely fresh and light. Ambiance of the place was nothing special, looked more like a shack, but definitely a great stop to get authentic Hawaiian snacks. They even sell fresh fruits out front, they had coconuts at the time.
-
November 2022 by John T.
I felt pretty lucky. I was on Kauai for the day and stopped by here on a whim at around midday; fully expecting them to be closed or sold out. Initially the placed looked closed, as there were no cars outside, and the closed sign was on the door. However, I saw an elderly man inside, whom I assumed was the owner. I got out to check and he showed me the few bags they had remaining for sale. I got one of the regular potato chips and one of the regular taro chips. I'd give the place 4.5 stars based on their product. But the customer service is what brings this place down. Namely, the owner just seems like he is incapable of being happy or being nice to his customers. Any question I asked was met with a rude, insulting response. I didn't let his negativity bring me down, but yah, he shouldn't be the one that deals with customers at all. I feel bad for someone to be that negative and unhappy.
-
October 2022 by Jasmine O.
Two stars but only because this man's taro chips really are delicious. We were here earlier this year and has regrets not buying more as gifts for family and friends back home. I came here this trip specifically with the intention to buy around 10 bags... The door was open and there was no one standing there. So I said hello to see if the business was open...before I start rummaging through his stuff. A few minutes later an older man (I'm assuming the owner) comes out. I said hi there. He did not greet us, only stared at me and my friend. As I was picking out bags, I set aside 6 and was still choosing. He asked if that was all. I told him I'm still deciding on the others. He grunted, became annoyed, sighed and said he's busy trying to watch baseball right now. At that point I took up less than 2 minutes of his time. How incredibly rude!!!!!!! Didn't realize taking than 5 minutes to buy a few bags of chips was so outrageous.
-
July 2022 by Steve P.
Hard to know when they are open. Tried the phone number listed and said out of service. I went according to the open time posted on yelp but nobody was there. Tried twice before finally giving up. Maybe next trip we will have better luck.I guess everyone gets Kauai Chocolate and Kookies from this trip.
-
July 2022 by Sammie N.
First of all, thank you for your service. The place has a closed sign but luckily we saw the owner outside. They are open so just drive up and try the doors. The taro chips were out so we got the regular and li-hing potato and the okinawa sweet potato chips. They were very tasty and just right. I didn't need it to be over the top because I wanted to really taste the potato. The flavors really came through. Highly recommend if you are in the Hanapepe area! Also, cash only. They are $6 a bag.
-
May 2022 by Nancy N.
What a cool place! This is a small, family-run business. The right side of the building has a side door where you'll enter the house's kitchen area. There is a table with boxes of different types of homemade chips. They have sweet potato chips, taro chips, and regular potato chips for $6 each. It's cash only and super quick. The taro chips are my favorite! They're crispy, lightly salted, and super fresh. You can just pull up to the side to park. I highly recommend!
