Cinnamon’s, the popular mom and pop restaurant in Kailua, will open its second isle location in November at the Ilikai in Waikiki.
The restaurant, which is replacing the Ilikai Bar & Grill, will occupy roughly 12,000 square feet and include an open-air dining space to accommodate larger private parties.
The eatery is hiring 70 employees but does not have a definite opening date. Cinnamon’s, which regularly has long lines of tourists and residents from across the island, will now have four locations, including those in Yokohama and Omotesando, Japan.
"We’ve been looking for two years. Kailua’s pretty much doing all it can. We can’t really expand in that space anymore," said company president Alexander Nam, son of founders Puna and Cricket Nam, who still do all the baking for the Kailua business. "We get a lot of people from town side, Leeward side and tourists, so it just made sense. We’re proud to be able to go to Waikiki and offer a more accurate reflection of Hawaii and the islands versus the plastic aloha that’s already out there."
The family is planning to invest more than $200,000 in initial renovations.
In addition to their popular breakfast items, Cinnamon’s will expand its menu for lunch and dinner, and it will have a full-service bar. It will operate from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. on most weekdays and until midnight on Fridays and Saturdays.
The 4,000-square-foot Kailua restaurant, which was opened in 1985 by the Nams and chef Carsie Green, serves breakfast and lunch only from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m.
"We have no idea what to expect," Nam said. "We’re just excited to get in and see what the reaction is. It took 20 years to become an overnight success (in Kailua)."
Besides dining, there will be a hula show on the breezeway every Sunday and during the Hilton Hawaiian Village fireworks show every Friday, and special pupu and menu items will be available.
"With this location in Waikiki, Cinnamon’s will be able to offer a unique local dining experience to visitors from around the world," said Megan Malloy, Colliers International leasing agent. "The hope is to alleviate the lengthened wait times being faced at their Kailua location as well."
Built in 1964, the Ilikai Hotel was the first luxury high-rise in Waikiki, and was made popular by the original "Hawaii Five-0" TV series.