Looking for Hawaiian Bros vegetarian options? You get a short list. Seasoned vegetables, white rice, macaroni salad, and fresh pineapple carry no meat, while every plate, wrap, and slider centers on chicken or pork. When someone in your group asks what about the vegetarians, you’ll find what to order below. You’ll also see what Hawaiian Bros marks on its allergen chart and what to ask at the counter.
Hawaiian Bros calls itself the home of the plate lunch, and it serves every plate with white rice, macaroni salad, and a protein. So you build around the protein. You can make a meal from the sides and the vegetable topper, but you won’t find a dedicated vegetarian entree on the menu.
A Quick Look at Hawaiian Bros
Brothers Cameron and Tyler McNie opened the first Hawaiian Bros Island Grill in Kansas City, Missouri, in 2018, Dallas Observer reported. Vacations in Hawaii had left them hooked on the food. In an October 2026 press release, the chain said it has grown to more than 80 restaurants across 14 states. Franchisees own most of them. Franchise Times reported 61 locations and $136 million in systemwide sales at the end of 2024, and ranked the brand No. 40 on its 2026 Fast & Serious list.
The company started franchising in 2022. In that same October release, Hawaiian Bros counted more than 350 restaurants under development agreements across 20 states. That includes a 52-unit deal with Southern Rock Restaurants to enter Florida. If a Hawaiian Bros isn’t near you yet, one may be coming.
Hawaiian Bros traces the plate lunch to Hawaii’s plantation workers in the 1880s, who came from several Asian countries and brought their own food traditions. The chain calls its menu an homage to that lunch. It also says it never uses freezers, fryers, or microwaves. That matters for vegetarians, because no fryer means no shared fryer oil. Ask a manager if your location does anything different.
Hawaiian Bros Vegetarian Options: What to Order
Hawaiian Bros doesn’t label any menu item vegetarian or vegan. We sorted the items below by what the chain’s menu page and its March 2026 allergen listing say. Hawaiian Bros publishes no ingredient list, so ask at the counter about anything with a ⚠️.
| Menu Item | Vegetarian | Vegan |
|---|---|---|
| Seasoned Vegetables (side or bowl topper) | ✅ Yes (ask about cooking) | ⚠️ Check (no ingredient list) |
| White Rice | ✅ Yes (soy marked) | ⚠️ Check (no ingredient list) |
| Macaroni Salad | ✅ Yes (egg marked) | ❌ No (egg) |
| Fresh Pineapple | ✅ Yes | ✅ Yes |
| Teriyaki Sauce | ✅ Yes (soy marked) | ⚠️ Check |
| Pineapple BBQ Sauce | ⚠️ Check | ⚠️ Check |
| Dole Soft Serve (Lime, Mango, Pineapple, Raspberry, Strawberry) | ✅ Yes | ⚠️ Check (chain says dairy-free) |
| White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Cookie | ✅ Yes (egg, milk marked) | ❌ No (egg, milk) |
| Huli Huli, Molokai, Honolulu, and Kilauea Chicken | ❌ No (chicken) | ❌ No |
| Luau Pork and Smoked Luau Pork | ❌ No (pork) | ❌ No |
| SPAM Musubi | ❌ No (SPAM) | ❌ No |
| Pineapple Luau Sliders | ❌ No (pulled pork) | ❌ No |
| Huli Huli, Molokai Mac, and Pacific Island Wraps | ❌ No (chicken) | ❌ No |
| Pacific Island Salad | ❌ No (comes with Huli Huli Chicken) | ❌ No |
How Ordering Works at Hawaiian Bros
You get white rice, macaroni salad, and one protein with every plate lunch, in a classic or big size. With the Mixed Plate, you pick two entrees for $1 extra in either size. For a meat-free order you change the protein, so the size only decides how much rice and macaroni salad you get.
The chicken entrees differ by heat. Hawaiian Bros rates Molokai Chicken a 1 out of 3 for spice and Kilauea Chicken a 3 out of 3. The chain calls the teriyaki-marinated Huli Huli its signature dish. None of those help a vegetarian, but the counter staff may ask which protein you want before you finish your sentence. Lead with the swap.
Dallas Observer also reported in 2021 that most items are gluten-free. Hawaiian Bros marks no gluten in the rice, pineapple, or seasoned vegetables, though it flags gluten on the same line as the rice and vegetables. The chain does mark gluten on the macaroni salad, the wraps, the sliders, the Pacific Island Salad, and the cookie.
How to Build a Meal Without Meat
Dallas Observer reported in 2021 that vegetarian and vegan guests can choose seasoned vegetables as their protein. Hawaiian Bros doesn’t spell that out on its menu page, so say it when you order and watch the server skip the meat scoop. A plate lunch with seasoned vegetables, white rice, and macaroni salad is the closest thing to the classic order.
You can also try the Build Your Own Bowl. Hawaiian Bros describes it as any plate lunch protein plus one topper over rice. You pick the topper from fresh pineapple, macaroni salad, or seasoned vegetables. Ask for the seasoned vegetables as the base and pineapple as the topper if the counter lets you swap that way. If it doesn’t, the plate is the safer order.
A white rice side is two heaping scoops, per the menu, so you won’t run short on rice. Hawaiian Bros calls the vegetable side a seasonal, spiced mix. Since the mix changes by season, ask what’s in it before you order.
Sides, Sauces, and Dessert
Macaroni salad is the side most people associate with a plate lunch. The chain marks egg, wheat, and gluten on it, so it works for vegetarians and fails for vegans. Hawaiian Bros calls the recipe a secret spice blend and publishes no ingredient list, so ask if you avoid specific additions.
Hawaiian Bros marks nothing at all on the fresh pineapple chunks, which makes them the cleanest vegan side on the menu. It marks soy in the teriyaki sauce and nothing in the pineapple BBQ sauce. Hawaiian Bros also lists Mae Ploy and Sambal Oelek on its allergen chart with no marks. Neither one appears on the menu page.
For dessert, Dole Soft Serve comes in lime, mango, pineapple, raspberry, and strawberry. Hawaiian Bros describes it as fat-free, dairy-free, gluten-free, and low-calorie, and marks no allergens on it. The chain never calls it vegan. If you avoid refined sugar or other additives, check the Dole ingredient statement. Hawaiian Bros marks tree nut, egg, milk, soy, wheat, and gluten on the White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Cookie, so it’s vegetarian but not vegan.
What’s Vegan at Hawaiian Bros?
Fresh pineapple is the one item you can call vegan without a caveat. Seasoned vegetables, white rice, and the soft serve probably work too. But the chain publishes no ingredient list for any of them, and it marks no vegan items anywhere. A vegan plate here means rice, vegetables, and pineapple. That’s a light meal, so order a big size or a second side of rice if you’re hungry.
Special Dietary Requirements and Allergies
Hawaiian Bros publishes an allergen listing with 13 columns: egg, soy, wheat, milk, peanut, tree nut, fish, shellfish, sesame, gluten, sulfites, celery, and mustard. Here’s what Hawaiian Bros marks for a meat-free order:
- Pineapple: Hawaiian Bros marks no allergens and no shared-line warnings.
- Seasoned Vegetables: Hawaiian Bros marks no allergens in the dish. The chain does flag egg, soy, wheat, milk, tree nut, sesame, gluten, sulfites, celery, and mustard on the same line or in the same plant.
- White Rice: Hawaiian Bros marks soy and flags wheat, milk, tree nut, and gluten on the same line or in the same plant.
- Macaroni Salad: Hawaiian Bros marks wheat, gluten, and egg.
- Teriyaki Sauce: Hawaiian Bros marks soy.
- Cookie: Hawaiian Bros marks tree nut, egg, milk, soy, wheat, and gluten, and flags peanut in the same plant.
If you have a serious allergy, read the full PDF on hawaiianbros.com. For drinks, Hawaiian Bros sends you to each supplier’s website for ingredients and allergens.
Tips for Vegetarians at Hawaiian Bros
- Tell the counter you want seasoned vegetables as your protein before they start the plate.
- Ask the counter whether the kitchen cooks the seasoned vegetables with any meat or stock, since the chain publishes no ingredient list.
- Order the macaroni salad if you eat eggs. Skip it if you’re vegan.
- Add pineapple as a topper or side for a sweet counter to the savory teriyaki.
- Skip the wraps and sliders. Every one of them contains chicken or pork.
- Check the allergen PDF on hawaiianbros.com before your first visit, because the chain revised it in March 2026 and may change it again.
Hawaiian Bros Vegetarian Options: Common Questions
Conclusion
Hawaiian Bros works for a vegetarian who sits down with meat eaters and builds a plate from seasoned vegetables, rice, macaroni salad, and pineapple. It doesn’t work for someone who wants a real entree. For more restaurant guides, read our master guide to eating vegetarian and vegan at restaurants and browse the full restaurants category. If you like Hawaiian flavors, see what we found at L&L Hawaiian Barbecue, Ono Hawaiian BBQ, and Panda Express.
