Mahalo Cove

Thank God it’s closed! This place was a shit whole! Tacky décor and bad service. I knew it was a matter of time before it would shut down. Oh well no great loss.

This place is closed, like in permanently! I drove from Rockville, as I had a coupon that was going to expire. I checked their hours on Unilocal,and it said open. it was a great fall day, so made the drive out… only to find out the doors are locked and no sign of life… I called the number and it still worked. with a recording of their hours… WTF…so annoyed.

This was our first visit to Mahalo Cove and I have to say that we were somewhat disappointed. We came away feeling rushed and food was mediocre. Pizza and fish tacos were edible – hamburger bun was soggy and inedible, and they were out of two things that we ordered. Happy to overlook all that until the waitress cleared away a pizza and a beer that were not yet finished…(while telling us to take our time). We would have stayed and ordered another round but we weren’t comfortable because it really seemed like she was in a hurry to get us out of there. Lots of TVs tuned to sports… might be worth trying when there is a good game on, but you’d better eat fast. (And another reviewer is right – choose a bar stool without a back – those with backs have seats that tilt forward and you will slide right off them.)

Food was great but dessert not so much. The cheesecake seeemed almost store brought. Service was great! But the outside appearance also needs work. Cigarette butts all around the entrance. Needs to be cleaned daily. We stayed in the area and passed the restaurant during our morning walk every day and they were still there. We liked the food. Fresh, great portion sizes but if they also want to entertain in the weekends they should clean up after rowdy patrons every night. Clean inside though. We liked but skipping on our next trip. They didn’t finish strong with the dessert & that’s very important to our family :/

Bartender was friendly and beer was cold. The half order of chicken nachos was huge but I would have gladly have traded for a smaller portion of it would taste better

This review is based on bar service and food on a Saturday night. The bar itself was large, the seats awkwardly had a forward tilt to them that made me feel as though I was sliding out of them (I switched chairs — same tilt), I ended up sitting in front of a video game machine and after inserting money realized that the screen calibration was off… You know, where you touch one spot and the screen selects another.
Our bartender/​server was nice and did his job efficiently. The food was just ok, though I think that may have been my fault. I ordered the Moco Loco and it was lackluster to say the least… Very grey and drab. Nothing special. It was described as having beef gravy but was closer to a cream gravy, more tan in color than brown. I would not order it again. My husband got chicken tenders and fries, he ate it so I’m assuming it tasted good.
We did not have dessert or appetizers. I had a Sprite, he had vodka and cranberry. All in all, I would not make a special trip to eat here but if I were in the area I might stop in — certainly not on a Saturday night when there’s a $ 10 cover charge for a band though.

Imagine yourself landing in Hawaii and eating the most amazing food except this place is anything but Hawaii.
I had to go to this restaurant 3 times because my kid is in a rock band that seasonally plays at this place. To best describe the experience, it’s chaos with a capital C. You may have to wait good 30 minutes before you can get a drink and another 30 minutes before your food actually shows up. Nothing beats the feeling you get after waiting an hour and getting the dive bar food.
I have been to this place on regular days as well and the situation doesn’t get much better. They always seem short on staff and I have never once walked out not feeling bad about the waitresses. These waitresses work hard but it seems like the leadership is simply not there. It’s not the cleanest place nor the word «quality» comes to mind when you order the food.
Nachos with shredded cheese — stale chips and not really sure what they were using for queso. Shrimps were too oily and over cooked. Drinks were too watery.
Though «Mahalo» means gratitude in Hawaiian I believe the name should be changed to «Pau» which means «Done» in Hawaiian.

5 Start Disclaimer!!!
I go to Mahalo Cove only because our after parties are there. However, their pizza is almost THE BEST PIZZA I have had. How does that happen?! The biggest dive of all dives that has bad service, a horrible sound system and average bands, BUT has amazing pizza. I consider myself a pizza connoisseur to the fullest. I try everyone’s pizza. I love pizza. The first time I was at Mahalo I almost didn’t eat it because I was being a pizza snoot and thought it would be awful. I was so wrong. I was strongly urged to eat a slice and I saw the light. If it weren’t for the pizza I wouldn’t step foot in there. They knock it out of the park with their pies. I have also heard their burgers are pretty good too.

This is a bar not a resturant and don’t expect service. I went (or rather tried to) go her the other night with my son. We walked in and were met with curious stares from all huddled around the bar. We sat down for about 7 – 10 minutes without anyone coming by to offer a menu or anything so we left. won’t be back

Mahalo cove is a great place to meet friends on a the weekend for some drinks if they have good live music playing but don’t expect great service or a good dining experience.
I came here with a group of friends on Saturday night to see JAH works play. $ 10 cover which is understandable since there was a band.
I ordered a basket of fries to snack on and they were awful, flavorless skinny shoe string fries. I asked for a side of honey mustard because I don’t like ketchup and was charged $ 1.00 for a small cup of it! Outrageous!
The waitress checked on us a few times but left us wanting to just walk up to the bar and order another drink since we couldn’t find her, which shouldn’t have happened because it wasn’t very busy for a Saturday night.
The guys in our group played darts for $ 10 which again, I think is steep when you’ve already paid a cover to get in.
I wouldn’t go out of my way to go to mahalos but it’s an alright place to grab a drink. Better in the summer when the patio is open!

This establishment told me that I could not use a small magnetic flash light on my keychain to navigate throughout the bar easily because I was «blinding other customers.“This establishment is not ADA compliant and refuses a person with a night blindness disability to function normally with a small flash light aimed at the ground. The real issue here is with the ignorant bar security staff.

Pork sesame skewers appetizer was raw inside (although the flavor was good until I figured that out). Men’s bathroom was. Well, I’ve seen some sorry truck stops with cleaner restrooms (maybe the women’s was wonderful, who knows). TVs were above the OSHA threshold for hearing damage I’m pretty certain. The Guinness was good. Hula chicken was on point and the macaroni salad was pretty good. All in all, if you’re in the mood for a sports bar experience and don’t need to take a leak, this could be a pretty sweet time.

We had a Groupon to use so picked up the one of the coldest day in the winter to venture out. The place seemed little too quite but it was early in the evening. As the evening progressed several patrons and locals showed up.
The bartender, Enrique (SP?) was very friendly and helpful. His manner of service was very right on.
We ordered wings with Habanero BBQ sauce as per Enrique’s suggestion. Wings were cooked just right and the sauce was pretty good, although Lava that we asked for on the side was the bomb for me. I like ‘hot’ sauce and Lava was hot! We ordered Fish and Chips and Grilled Salmon for entrees. We wanted to try their Mahi Taco however we were told Mahi was out. Later on, the cook/​owner, told us that they bring only fresh fish and don’t keep them too long, so sometimes, sadly, they run out of fish. Fish and Chips: one of the best fish and chips that we have had for a long time. The batter was super light and the panko was nice touch for the perfect crunchiness. It was like Japanese Tempura. It was really really good. Grilled Salmon was okay, seasoned well but a bit dry to my taste.
The service was great and the food was great. We are going back for «Fish and Chips» for sure!

I saw an ad in a magazine that said polynesian food, and got the whole «mahalo» thing going on. Being from the islands… NO. dont think so. This is your typical American Bar Food. One of their dinner entrees, the Moco Loco? Its backwards. its the Loco Moco…
Why the 1 star?
It’s not Unilocal thats the problem, its owners like you. Kimmy wasnt trying to be a smart you know what; your response was unprofessional cynical.
Comment from Jason J. of Mahalo Cove
Business Owner
11/​20/​2013 Kimmy thank you for your informative post. The large handsome man at the door was offering raffle tickets to each customer who came through the door at a cost of $ 5 each or 3 for $ 10. This was also vocalized by the band before the start of the first set. Btw — the cover was $ 10/​person, which goes directly to the band… you know, the band you said was your favorite… they’re worth $ 10 for 3 hours of entertainment, right?
Now regarding your «after midnight» situation, we have staff who constantly walk around the restaurant to make sure everyone is safe and having a good time… why didn’t you voice your concerns to anyone at the time? Your post is exactly what is wrong with sites like Unilocal or Google. You obviously had a good time at my restaurant, then some «elder men» tried flirting with you at the end of the night and you «scurried off like scared little school girls» to write a meaningless post and give my business 2 stars. Mahalo!

Had a blast here! The food was delicious and the live band was rockin!
Great friendly service too! Definitely the place to have a drink or two with friends.

Yet another triple fab experience at the Cove! Great food, great drinks, fantastic group of old friends (reunion venue) and live music… wait. Yes. I know that’s 4 fabs but quadruple fab just didn’t pack the same punch. Needless to say. This is my second review of this establishment and my 5 star opinion has not wavered.
We were able to sample many of the appetizers from the menu and they were all yummy. From the chicken and beef skewers to the maui shrimp (shrimp tempura) to the spinach and artichoke dip. All was 100%! I also had a chicken tender. But let’s face it. Chicken tenders are chicken tenders wherever you go. I did not however have the opportunity to partake in the pork in which another Unilocaler mentioned.
All and all… a well worth it trip out to Loudoun County. If you are looking for a night out for either dinner or maybe just to watch the game and indulge in some adult beverages, you can’t go wrong here.
I leave you with this… If said Unilocaler’s dog’s food tasted better than the pork, would you REALLY take foodie advice from someone who eats dog food?
That is all. Stay thirsty my friends.

Scammers…
If you come here and open a «tab» with your credit card, either pay with that card or pay as you go. I opened up a tab and gave them my card (as most places do) and I was specific that I would be paying cash. Lo and behold, I paid my tab in cash at the end of the night, with a generous tip (the waitress was prompt and attentive). However, upon reviewing my CC bill, I found that they charged me for the pre-​tip balance (how could they? I didn’t sign anything)

Came here Saturday night with Irene C. to check out our recent favorite band Flow in the Dark and arrived around 11pm. It wasn’t too crowded which is nice bc we wanted a low key night and we were able to score a table in front of the stage.
The band was incredible as usual and we are so sad they are disbanding at the end of the year. The bar layout was nice with plenty of tables, a good sized bar, dance floor, and even a photo booth guy in the back. It was their 5 year anniversary and I guess some people got raffle tickets (why didn’t weeee??? :() and a lucky patron won a trip to vegas. It would have been nice to have been told about the raffle prize after paying the $ 20 cover…
It all went downhill starting around midnight… as the elder men got drunker and would not leave us alone. One guy spilled his beer down my back, one guy kept proposing to us, and then there was a fight in the front of the bar at 2am so we couldn’t leave… I guess people don’t get cut off in Sterling?
The manager was kind and apologetic as he helped us exit the bar finally and we scurried off like scared little school girls.

We were only here for drinks and to see Flow In The Dark before they break up in January.
Mahalo Cove was celebrating their 5^th anniversary I believe, and had a raffle for a Vegas vacation. We didn’t stay late enough to see who won, but our overall experience wasn’t too bad. Before the band came on, we thought the speakers were on full blast and hoped the band wasn’t going to make us deaf. The sound was adjusted and FITD was great. Drink service was attentive. We saw a lot of orders for wings and nachos. It all looked and smelled good, so maybe we’ll be back to try the food.

I’m so sorry Mahalo, but it’s time to cut the chord.
When they got rid of the terrible bouncers I thought the place would improve, but somehow it just rapidly got worse. Now, it’s almost always empty. The food has gotten worse as well, they managed to screw up nachos. I’m so sad because this was our favorite place to drink on Thursdays (dollar beer nights) but even $ 1 beers is not enough to get us to come back. We’re better off buying a case and drinking at home.
That being said, as long as Mikey, Chris & Naomi are at the bar, they will always do their absolute best to make you as happy as possible. I love them dearly, as well as Nikki. They have been very good to us over the last year and have become our friends, and I’m sad that we have to leave them. We might be back soon but it’s just not worth it anymore.