Liliha Bakery’s Coco Puffs Are Heading to Waikiki Beach Walk This Year

Liliha Bakery, the 75-year-old institution beloved for its Coco Puffs and no-frills diner atmosphere, is opening its first Waikiki location at Waikiki Beach Walk, the company announced Friday.

The new outpost will occupy a 3,200-square-foot corner space at the open-air retail complex on Lewers Street, offering the full bakery counter plus a condensed diner menu. It’s expected to open in September and will be the bakery’s fourth location, joining the original Kuakini Street shop, the Nimitz Highway flagship, and the Ala Moana Center counter.

“People have been asking us to come to Waikiki for years,” said general manager Alfred Lee. “Tourists would take taxis from their hotels to Kuakini Street at 6 a.m. just to get Coco Puffs. Now they can walk.”

The Waikiki menu will feature all of Liliha’s greatest hits: the signature Coco Puffs (choux pastry filled with chocolate pudding and topped with Chantilly frosting), loco moco, oxtail soup, and butter rolls. The bakery will also debut a Waikiki-exclusive shave ice Coco Puff — a frozen riff on the classic that Lee has been testing for months.

Liliha Bakery was founded in 1950 by Takao Takitani and has remained family-connected throughout its history. The Coco Puff, invented in the 1960s, has achieved near-mythical status in Honolulu food culture, regularly appearing on national “best pastries in America” lists.

The Waikiki location will be open from 6:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. daily, with extended hours on weekends. Lee expects the store to sell over 2,000 Coco Puffs per day, given the foot traffic on Beach Walk.