Kapahulu’s Rainbow Drive-In Turns 65, Still Family-Owned

A corner in Kapahulu, and a family’s bet

The story behind the sign at Kapahulu and Kanaina avenues starts with a veteran who learned to cook in the Army.

According to Rainbow Drive-In’s own history, Seiju Ifuku was born in Hawaiʻi, raised in Okinawa, and came back to Hawaiʻi, where he joined the U.S. Army. He learned to cook while serving with the 100th Battalion during World War II. A 2021 Star-Advertiser feature says he served in the 100th Infantry Battalion and 442nd Regiment. After the war, he and his wife, Ayako, worked in small restaurants while raising their children.

Rainbow wasn’t their first restaurant. A 2018 Star-Advertiser “Old Friends” profile reported that the Ifukus first ran the Welcome Inn on Maunakea Street and then Kalakaua Drive-In, a popular spot in the 1950s. Looking for cheaper rent, they moved to Kapahulu and opened Rainbow Drive-In on Oct. 2, 1961.

The formula: fill people up, keep it fast

The founders’ plan was simple. The company describes it as generous portions of hearty, simple food for working people, served quickly at a fair price. In the 2018 profile, family member Jim Gusukuma recalled Ifuku’s motto: make it cheap, sell a lot, and rely on volume. “We’re not going to fancy it up,” he said.

The 2018 story noted that Rainbow still served plates in an old-style cardboard pie box rather than a foam clamshell. Gusukuma explained that in his view, a plate lunch has to come on a plate. Best-sellers then included the mix plate (barbecue beef, chicken and fish), the chili dog and boneless chicken with gravy.

The menu has changed very little. In a 2021 HAWAIʻI Magazine interview, current owner Chris Iwamura said loco moco and shoyu chicken were the main additions over the years. “Generationally, you can talk about the same plate and everyone knows what you’re talking about,” he said.

Three generations at the counter

The company says Rainbow has always been family-owned and is now run by the third generation. The 2018 Star-Advertiser profile described how that happened. When Seiju Ifuku retired around 1990, his son-in-law Harvey Iwamura, married to daughter Betsy, took over management. Another son-in-law, Gusukuma, married to daughter Sherie, left United Airlines in 1995 to help run the business.

Today, the Star-Advertiser and HAWAIʻI Magazine identify Chris Iwamura, Harvey and Betsy’s son, as CEO and third-generation owner. He told HAWAIʻI Magazine he came home in 2015 after working as a computer engineer in the Bay Area and began working in the restaurant to prepare to take it over. He said Kapahulu alone can now serve up to 1,000 plates a day, compared with the roughly 200 a day his father remembered from the 1970s.

Milestones, growth and growing pains

• 2012: The RainbowTiki logo shop opened at the Kapahulu entrance (Star-Advertiser, 2018).
• 2015: Rainbow opened Hawaii’s Favorite Kitchens next door on Castle Street, bringing together several old-time brands (Star-Advertiser, 2018).
• 2018: The first franchise opened in Kalihi with Rainbros LLC, headed by Ted Davenport (Star-Advertiser, 2018).
• 2021: For its 60th birthday, HAWAIʻI Magazine reported five Oʻahu locations and a $1-per-plate donation to local schools.
• 2026: Rainbow’s website now lists two locations, Kapahulu and Pearlridge. A Pacific Business News headline, shared on the paper’s Facebook page, reported that Rainbow closed its Kalihi location as minimum wage and food costs squeeze Hawaiʻi restaurants. We have not seen the full story.

Those pressures are real. In a 2024 HONOLULU Magazine package, Iwamura said labor costs had risen 36% since 2021. He said food plus labor had been running around 65% of sales, compared with a target of about 60%.

Giving back

The 2018 profile reported that the family’s Ifuku Family Foundation gives culinary scholarships and community grants, including to the Waikiki Health Center. We’ve asked whether it is still active. Iwamura told HAWAIʻI Magazine in 2021, “The community and our employees are really the things that built us.”

65 and still cooking

Rainbow marked 65 years on Oct. 2 with $6.50 chili plates at both locations, a meet-and-greet with Iwamura, and limited-edition anniversary T-shirts, according to posts on its website. The company also says readers voted it the Star-Advertiser’s 2026 Hawaiʻi’s Best Diner, Drive-In & Dive.

Next up is a new home. The Pagoda Hotel on Rycroft Street, near Ala Moana, has said Rainbow will take over its well-known floating restaurant. In late August, the hotel’s leadership told Aloha State Daily the opening was targeted for later this fall. As of today, we have not found an announced opening date.

Oahu Local has asked Rainbow Drive-In for an interview about the Pagoda opening date, how the family divides its roles today, and its community giving. We’ll update this profile when we hear back.

Visit

• Kapahulu: 3308 Kanaina Ave., (808) 737-0177, daily 7 a.m. to 9 p.m.
• Pearlridge: 98-1005 Moanalua Road, ʻAiea, (808) 488-3788, Monday to Saturday 10:30 a.m. to 8 p.m., Sunday 10:30 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Keep exploring: see October’s new Oʻahu restaurants, browse our Honolulu restaurants guide, or find more places on Oʻahu restaurants.

Sources

• Rainbow Drive-In, Our Story: https://www.rainbowdrivein.com/about-1 ; homepage and posts: https://rainbowdrivein.com/ ; Locations: https://www.rainbowdrivein.com/locations
• Honolulu Star-Advertiser, “Plate lunches a pot of gold for Rainbow Drive-In,” Pat Gee (July 17, 2018): https://www.staradvertiser.com/2018/07/17/food/old-friends/plate-lunches-a-pot-of-gold-for-rainbow-drive-in/
• Honolulu Star-Advertiser (Dining Out), “Celebrate 60 years of plate lunches,” Kyle Galdeira (Oct. 10, 2021): https://www.staradvertiser.com/2021/10/10/dining-out/celebrate-60-years-of-plate-lunches/
• HAWAIʻI Magazine, “Rainbow Drive-In Celebrates 60 Years…,” Kevin Allen (Oct. 1, 2021): https://www.hawaiimagazine.com/rainbow-drive-in-celebrates-60-years-of-dishing-out-ono-hawaii-plate-lunches/
• HONOLULU Magazine, “Why Your Plate Lunch Is Becoming a Luxury,” Thomas Obungen (orig. Oct. 2024; republished Aug. 8, 2025): https://www.honolulumagazine.com/why-your-plate-lunch-becoming-luxury/
• Aloha State Daily, “CU Hawaiʻi opens in Pagoda Hotel” (Aug. 31, 2026): https://alohastatedaily.com/2026/08/31/cu-hawaii-opens-in-pagoda-hotel/
• HONOLULU Magazine, “Pagoda Hotel Unveils New Modern Look,” Diane Seo (April 9, 2026): https://www.honolulumagazine.com/pagoda-hotel-unveils-new-modern-look/
• Pacific Business News headline via PBN Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pacificbiznews/posts/rainbow-drive-in-closes-kalihi-location-see-the-full-article-below-%EF%B8%8F/1406788291461232/ (headline only; the full article is behind a paywall)