Kona Canoe Club hosts World Cup watch parties on Ali‘i Drive

Kona Canoe Club has turned its Ali‘i Drive waterfront into a World Cup gathering spot, with watch parties for every match through July 18 and most morning games on the schedule. The Kailua-Kona restaurant is leaning into the tournament with flags from competing countries, music, flat-screens and a new breakfast menu designed for early kickoffs above the shoreline.

The breakfast lineup adds a local twist to the international event. Guests can order papaya sunrise bowls, island breakfast fried rice, coconut French toast and breakfast burritos, along with sides such as applewood bacon, Portuguese sausage, potatoes, garlic fried rice, eggs any style and avocado. World Cup-inspired cocktails are also part of the draw, giving the oceanfront restaurant a stronger game-day identity than its usual island dining mix.

The timing matters on the Big Island, where visible World Cup energy can be thin even when soccer interest is real. By giving fans a place to gather together, Hawaii Restaurant Group is trying to turn a familiar Kailua Bay landmark into the kind of shared viewing room many towns take for granted. The venue’s location on Ali‘i Drive, above the shoreline, makes it an easy meet-up point for residents looking for a communal place to follow the tournament rather than watching alone at home.

The promotion also comes with weekly prize giveaways. The package includes gift cards, jerseys and two tickets to a June 26 Group G match in Seattle between Egypt and Iran. To enter, fans must follow the restaurant on Instagram, share the post, tag friends and tell their server they attended for a match.

Kona Canoe Club carries plenty of history into the promotion. Hawaii Restaurant Group describes it as an oceanfront Kailua Bay classic that locals have claimed as their own since 1972. The group itself was formed by the teams behind Umeke’s, Jackie Rey’s and Harbor House when they came together to take on the historic Kona Inn Restaurant and Kona Canoe Club on Ali‘i Drive.

That ownership shift followed two years on the market, when the Kona Inn Restaurant and Kona Canoe Club were purchased by the newly formed Island Restaurant Group. Nakoa Pabre, owner of Umeke’s and executive chairman of the group, said the goal is to offer better-quality jobs and give back more to the community. The World Cup watch parties now put that broader plan into practice by using one of Kona’s best-known waterfront rooms as a place for local fans to gather.