On Tuesday, Sept. 29, chainlink fencing, yellow caution tape and traffic cones blocked the front of Happy Days Chinese Seafood Restaurant. A dim sum cart was still standing upright near the entrance. Wilted plants lined the windows, and poles propped up the restaurant's wall along the 11th Avenue sidewalk.
About half a mile of Waiʻalae Avenue tells two stories this fall. In one, Kaimuki keeps refreshing itself: a new operator signs on for an empty room and opens months later. In the other, two of the avenue's oldest buildings sit still, because their next step isn't up to a chef or a shop owner. The owners, insurers and city departments involved don't work on a restaurant's timeline.
Seven Weeks Behind the Fence at 11th and Waiʻalae
Happy Days, at 3553 Waiʻalae Ave., has been closed since Aug. 18. That day, a section of roof estimated at 40 by 40 feet caved in while customers and staff were inside. The restaurant is part of a 91-year-old building. City inspectors found that a critical interior truss had collapsed and that the parapet wall facing 11th Avenue was tilting.
Here's what has happened since, in order:
- Aug. 20: The city closed both lanes of 11th Avenue and the sidewalk between Waiʻalae and Harding avenues, with no timeline for reopening.
- Aug. 31: The state Department of Health's Vector Control Branch was notified about rodent concerns at the property.
- Sept. 24: The Department of Planning and Permitting said contractors could safely enter the kitchen, but only to remove spoiled food.
- Sept. 29: A cleanup crew started work, and state health inspectors visited the site.
- Oct. 2: The kitchen cleanout was expected to be finished.
The kitchen was only the part crews could reach. As of Sept. 30, spoiled food was still sitting in the main dining area, which can't be entered at all because the building is unstable. The property owner is still working with insurers and contractors to decide between repair and demolition. The Department of Health says it will coordinate removal of the rest of the food only after that decision is made.
So the sequence is fixed. Nothing about the dining room, the full cleanup or the building's future can move until the owner settles with the insurer. Even the city's first step depended on paperwork. Health officials first said they couldn't act because the state only regulates restaurants that are operating, and Happy Days had closed.
The latest reporting confirms that part of the 11th Avenue sidewalk was still closed as of Sept. 30. None of the coverage we found says whether the road has reopened to cars.
The Neighbors Carried the Wait
The businesses around a stalled building feel it first, and in Kaimuki they did. Nick Chun of Kimchee Two told KHON the smell started about a week after the collapse and changed with the wind. He said reopening part of the restaurant's parking lot helped bring customers back, and that businesses with outdoor seating had it hardest. Haunani Hess of Haunani Hess Visual Arts Studio said businesses nearby had seen rats.
Jenny Le owns J.Le Beauty Salon, a nail salon whose main entrance faces the restaurant's back door. She told Civil Beat her client numbers had dropped over the past few weeks. When workers opened the restaurant door during cleanup, the smell came into her salon even with the doors closed and the air conditioner running.
"If the client knows this area is so smelly, why would they come? Customers don't want to relax in a place that is so stinky." Jenny Le, J.Le Beauty Salon, to Civil Beat
A nearby resident called the cleanup "awesome news." The resident also said, "I wouldn't necessarily say that I'm hopeful, but I'm hoping that they stay true to their word and clean it out." Both comments are true at once. The kitchen problem had a fix that a crew could finish in a few days. Nobody has set a date for the larger problem.
A Few Doors Up the Avenue, the Same Kind of Wait
The Queen Theater at 3588 Waiʻalae Ave. has been stuck far longer, and for a related reason: the building's future depends on ownership and city policy, not on anyone ready to open something there. Hawaii News Now reported in June that the property was on the market for the first time in more than 50 years.
Here are the facts on record:
- Built: 1936, on a 10,396-square-foot parcel along Waiʻalae Avenue
- Size: 850 seats, closed for decades
- Terms: offered fee simple and as-is, with no listing price announced
- City assessment: land at just over $2.8 million, building at $459,300
- Council action: up to $4 million set aside toward buying it
The $4 million came from a resolution the Honolulu City Council passed unanimously on June 3. It allows the property to be designated for government use, which opens the door to buying it. The mayor's administration opposed taking over the property. On June 18, the Star-Advertiser reported that the property had not sold and was simply on the market, and that the administration was not pursuing a purchase at that time.
We found no later reporting of a sale, a contract, a disclosed price or any further city action. Almost four months after the listing, the Queen's situation looks the way it did in June.
The Council's interest isn't new. In November 2024 it pushed for the city to acquire the property, through eminent domain if necessary. Becky Gardner of the Kaimuki Neighborhood Board has spent years pushing the owners, the Yu family, to sell or improve the property. When it was listed, she said it felt like the community could "go here and watch a play." Council Chair Tommy Waters said that if the city can't buy it, he hopes any new owner "will listen to the community, honor that vision, and become a true partner to the neighborhood."
Everywhere Else, Kaimuki Renewed One Room at a Time
Over the same months, the rest of Kaimuki's commercial blocks kept changing in small steps that one operator could carry out. Most of the openings were new tenants in rooms someone else had left.
The Honey Bar opened on June 5 at 1142 Koko Head Ave., in the former Bubbly & Bleu space. It serves mead and cocktails. In June it was still waiting on a permit to sell mead for takeout, and we haven't seen an update on that.
Marujuu Japanese Hamburg & Steak opened in the former Chubbie's Burgers Kaimukī space just before Thanksgiving, according to Honolulu Magazine's January 2026 roundup.
The Miro group changed its lineup twice in one year. Leila Kaimukī closed in January. In February, Aloha State Daily described The Counter Miro, in the former Leila space, as a coming prix-fixe tasting counter. In the same report, Café Miro had reopened in late January after a short staff break, adding an à la carte menu next to its prix-fixe option. Café Miro closed in May. As of July, Miro Kaimukī – The Counter was still serving prix-fixe dinners.
The Pig & the Lady moved from Chinatown to 3650 Waiʻalae Ave. in Civil Beat Plaza. It soft-opened Oct. 15, 2025, and held its grand opening Oct. 21.
Bad Ass Coffee of Hawaiʻi opened its first Honolulu location at 3502-C Waiʻalae Ave., with an announced opening date of March 13, 2026. KHON's March 16 segment confirmed it was open.
Some planned openings are still unconfirmed. Mokihana Haus was announced for summer 2026 at 1127 11th Ave., next to Moke's Bread and Breakfast. We haven't found reporting that it has opened. Also, 1127 11th Ave. is the same street the city closed in August.
Every change on this list followed the same pattern. One business decided, got the room ready and opened. A dining room could close in January and reopen under a new format within weeks. Happy Days and the Queen Theater don't have that option, because nobody can move into either building until the questions about the building itself are settled.
Two Dates That Don't Depend on Either Building
Third Fridays Kaimuki returns Oct. 16 from 5 to 9 p.m. with a free, family-friendly Halloween edition. The organizer says it is not a block party and the streets won't be closed. If you're planning to drive to it, check the 11th Avenue block before you pick a route.
The Kaimuki Christmas Parade is set for Thursday, Dec. 3, at 6 p.m. It will run along Waiʻalae Avenue from Chaminade/St. Louis toward Koko Head Avenue, and a tree lighting is also on the schedule. As of today, neither the Happy Days decision nor the Queen Theater sale has a public date.
When a building's future depends on an insurance claim or a council resolution, the people next door need straight answers about timelines. If you own property along Waiʻalae or nearby and want to talk through how a stalled building or a street closure affects you as an owner or landlord, reach out to Chip Lewis. Work directly with Chip to get a valuation grounded in what's actually happening on your block.
This article is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Consult a qualified professional about your situation.