Leonard’s Malasadamobile Wagon

Malasadas, where have you been all my life? Leonards malasadamobile has the friendliest service. So friendly, I didn’t mind waiting 25 minutes for fresh, hot, delicious malasadas. I ate 4 of these and felt sick for days. It was worth it.

For me a visit to the Islands is not complete without a stop at the Leonard’s Malasadamobile. My family laughs at me for waking up early and driving 20 minutes to catch me some freshly made malasadas. But when I return to share the doughy golden pillows of heaven, they are all smiles.
For me, original is the best, followed by cinnamon.

I’m kind of freaked out that Unilocal!recommended I review this like the day after I went there.
I didn’t post about this on any type of social media or anything. .. Unilocal is watching. .. Unilocal is always watching, once you’re an Elite they keep a hover drone on you at all times that pings the site when you enter a restaurant.
That’s my theory anyway.. .
Onto Leonard’s Wagon
This red and white stripped vehicle has been servicing this area for a VERY long time, at least as far back as my memory goes. I’ve been coming here intermittently for about that same length of time.
The service and food are always awesome, there’s a reason why they’ve been around for so long, hope they’re around for much longer.

I think every culture out there has some form of fried dough, and this is the form it takes in HI. I think that the filled ones are too sweet (tried the haupia flavor) and the unfilled ones are just ok. I don’t know if the flavor is bitter as one reviewer stated, but it’s not on point. I like the texture though, very pillowy. I wouldn’t mind having them again, but would not make a special trip out here for these.

Bitter taste.
This is what I grew up thinking as a child, that malasadas has a bitter aftertaste? I grew up eating malasadas from Leonard’s and Punahou Carnival until discovering that other places like Agnes Portuguese Bakeshop and Champion Malasadas exist. After trying other businesses’ malasadas, now I know it’s only a Leonard’s thing with the bitterness.
I don’t know if it’s tap water that they use in their dough to make it taste funky, but my friend and a few of my family members also had weird batches before. I’m not the only one. My friend called in to inform that her order had a chemical taste to it. They explained it must’ve been the yeast. Not only is the taste inconsistent here. Multiple times, it was still undercooked with a gooey center.
Waimalu Shopping Center’s Leonard’s is where I would frequent, but they closed shop a few years ago so I go to this truck. I’ve also been to the original location in Kapahulu a few times, which has a terribly small parking lot during busy moments. Their cooking is more thorough at other locations compared to this truck, but all tastes bitter.
Their filled malasadas are innovative and a joy. I especially like the custard one.

What is a malasada and why did it take me so long to try one! Malasadas are Portuguese donuts, they are very light and fluffy compared to your typical American donut. I was surprised that I have never heard/​tried these wondrous creations on the mainland. Leonard’s is just a simple donut food truck in the middle of a neighborhood grocery parking lot.
Malasadas are quite simple. You can have them plain or dusted in cinnamon sugar. It is the right amount of sweetness. I think American donuts can be wayy too sweet. I got their filled malasadas (custard, berry, or chocolate). The vanilla custard one was glorious, not too sweet and heavy for a filled donut. The chocolate one had a more bitter chocolate taste than the usual sweet chocolate taste.

OK, so the malasadas here are not always fried the same, as others have mentioned… but for me, I actually like them both ways. They’ve either been fried through, and very fluffy… or not as fluffy with less rise in the very center. But not to worry, I’ve never seen raw dough in the center or anything like that.
Both ways, are very delicious. I find that if they have JUST fried them, meaning they’re too hot to even handle right away, then they’re a little less fluffy. But if they’ve sat for a few minutes (still warm), then they’re really fluffy! I think this correlation is because when there’s a line of people, they don’t fry it as long and so they are on the less fluffy side. But when there’s NO LINE, they’re super fluffy, thoroughly fried through.
Today, no line, super fluffy!

50 stars!
I love Leonard’s malasadas, and who doesn’t?. Although most locals know what a malasada is, for the sake of Unilocal I will describe it to be like a sugar donut that is sugary and crusty on the outside and is fluffy and soft like a pillow on the inside, can get it custard filled or coated with cinnamon sugar. I’m not sure what other types of filling you can get it with, as I had ignored that section of the menu since I tend to enjoy my malasada the traditional way, PLAIN. Always served fresh, and hot. I love that there is a mobile bakery in Waikele, closest to home.
The drive home with a box of malasada in your car is complete torture!, just can’t seem to get home fast enough so I can have one. Okay, okay! I had two! It was my dinner, plus I had a stressful day at work.
Thank you Leonard’s for making my day all better.

When there is a Leonard’s, I’m there!!! I won’t get malasada’s anywhere else!!! I only get the cinnamon and sugar malasada. I’m not a fan of any cream filled dessert.
I usually go to the one in Waikiki, the one kinda near the Honolulu zoo. But now I can go to this mobile one :) :)

This wagon tends to not cook the malasadas all the way through. I bought a dozen plain malasadas and 10 out of 12 were still gooey in the inside. Shouldn’t be gooey should be cooked all the way and the middle should be cooked.
Go to the Kapahulu one, always have fresh well cooked Malasadas

The best malasadas around!!! Don’t go anywhere else! These are the best! Melt in your mouth, yummy goodness! Every time we come, we go here!
The original hits the spot. The custard filled or the cinnamon aren’t my favorites. The li hing is also great!!!

We usually go to Leonard’s Bakery for Malasadas when we go back to Oahu, but their food truck was en route to Kapolei from Mililani.
The order taker seemed to be new, but he was still friendly and patient.
The Malasadas were yummy as usual! Didn’t taste different coming from a food truck. LOL.
I gotta say this though: Get the Li Hing dusted Malasadas! Ono!

Okay, not sure if this is the same wagon, but there was one over at the Windward Mall, so maybe they rotate locations… but we were sure glad that they had some left and we get 4 of the last 12. Meanwhile, people were driving up, walking up, and then away disappointed!

Like the original Leonard’s, this is a great place… Just on wheels! We ordered a dozen and a half malasadas… 12 original and 6 cinnamon… All wonderful and freshly made!!! Gotta eat it while it’s fresh!!! Next day doesn’t taste as good but it still is!
It’s a must try!
Great for breakfast, snack, and dessert!

SO convenient to have this malaasadamobile out here in waikele. I’ve been craving malasadas for a while now but haven’t made an effort to go out to kapahulu to grab some. On our way back from the north shore, we decided to stop at waikele and grab a few malasadas to go.
I was thinking that they might not have all of their offerings because it’s not the actual store BUT they do! They have the original, cinnamon sugar, and lihing along with the custard, haupia, and chocolate filled ones. We ate four on the spot and took a dozen to go. Mmmmmmm~
However, I think there needs to be more sugar on the malasada itself. It was a whole lot of malasada but not that much sugar. I prefer the original the best but the cinnamon sugar reminds me of a churro, if you’re craving something like that. Overall it’s convenient with a lot of parking and the lines weren’t too bad. Wait time was around 5 minutes.

Your faith was strong but you needed proof
You saw her bathing on the roof
Her beauty and the moonlight overthrew you
Hallelujah — Leonard Cohen
Scent of fried donut was in the air. Krispy Kreme is last place i last smelled this delicious scent. Malasada’s. I wasn’t sure what those were but Kenzie said I needed them. Turns out they are a Portuguese donut. Made fresh while you wait. Girl who took my order was nice and patient as I tried to decide which malasada’s I should get. Sugar sprinkled one had delicious fried dough flavor and some sweetness to it. Cinnamon sugar malasada was very similar with the addition of a hint of cinnamon flavor. These two were a bit like the donuts I tried at Paris Baguette. The haupia filled malasada was my true love. My eyes lit up as the creamy coconut filling oozed out of the donut and hit my taste buds. The incredibly delicious flavor combination caused me to lose control of my lips and I’m sure some squirted onto my face and perhaps elsewhere… Best filled donut I have ever had. Hallelujah.

I’ve always loved Leonard’s malasadas. The breakdown is simple, but it would have been 5 stars if there was some consistency.
The food ⁴⁄₅
The original sugar malasadas will always bet favorite lol. They are cooked fresh and tossed with sugary goodness right after so it’s even better. It’s soooo delicious so even if people say it’s overrated it doesn’t matter. It’s not the best in the world, but it’s still really good and worth the money and drive. I would give it 5 and it could only be me, but there is a lack of consistency in the quality of the malasadas. Sometimes they are cooked perfectly and other times the insides are left partially uncooked and doughy. I still eat em tho lol. Anyway try it anyway, there are other flavors to choose from and it’s cheap enough to try em all so why not?
Service ⁵⁄₅
It’s a food truck style service so not much is expected. You go to the window order then wait for your number to be called lol. However I am glad the workers most recently don’t give off attitude and are friendly so that helps. Also they work pretty quick for a mobile truck and there are a lot of customers at times so wait time varies.
Other notes:
Lots of free parking. Don’t be discouraged by the long lines tho it’s worth the wait.

I love Leonards. Locals love Leonards. The tourists love Leonards.
What more can I say?
My favorite is the original. I tried the cinnamon and its good, and I tried the haupia filled one, and it was… eeeehh… but the original always pleases and hits the right spot!

We came across Leonard’s Malasadamobile Wagon by accident.
Visiting the Waikele Center, we thought it was so cool that they had a truck. We had already visited their Honolulu location and was so glad to see no line here. We came really early, so maybe that’s why. Quality was just as good, it was served hot and fresh. Employees were friendly and quick. Service was a bit on the slower side at the Honolulu location. If I lived here I’d probably frequent this location more, just to avoid the crazy lines at the Honolulu location.
These Malasadas are delicious. Light crisp outside and super soft within. Tossed around in sugary goodness. Their cinnamon one is also awesome! They are handed to you fresh. Worth a trip to Hawaii, just to try these pillows of deliciousness.

Very sad was the day that the Leonard’s location in Waimalu closed. I didn’t know it then, but it marked the end of co-​workers bringing in hot, delicious malasadas to the office ever again.
And when you realize that you haven’t had a warm and comforting malasada in years, it makes resisting the red and white truck futile because you will create any excuse you need in order to get your hands on one. So go ahead and get one for your «friend» and one for yourself. They do not disappoint!