Kona, Hawaii, USA: Daylight Mind Coffee Company

Daylight Mind Coffee Company–two locations:

• Kailua-Kona
• Waikoloa

Let me state flatly and unequivocally: Kailua-Kona is better.

If you can only go to one location in Kona, I vote Kailua-Kona.

Why? The Kailua-Kona location rests right on the beach. The added smells, sounds, and feels of the ocean waves crashing makes everything about Daylight better. The Waikoloa location is in Queens Marketplace, a nice shopping center but nothing magical–it’s not the ocean.

The menu is the same. I had better service in Kailua-Kona each time. I had quality internet in both locations. Kailua-Kona was a larger venue with more seating, and thus more varied types of seating.

Kailua-Kona is also next to a farmers market, the former royal summer residence, plenty of tourists shops, and quite a few hotels. It just feels more accessible, and I feel there is more to do and experience as a visitor in this part of town.

I had breakfast, iced coffee, house coffee, and coffee to-go at the Kailua-Kona location. I ordered coffee and seated myself. I went to the restaurant to experience the service and food. I stayed for approximately 15 minutes on one visit, on another visit I stayed for a couple of hours. I went weekdays and weekends, mornings and afternoons. I visited on multiple occasions and each time I was thoroughly impressed by every bit of this place.

At the Wakioloa location, I went just twice–once for breakfast and once just for coffee.

At either Daylight, the coffee was good, not my favorite in all of Kailua-Kona, but I still loved it, specifically the Kailua-Kona venue, for everything it paired and added to the coffee experience. So, this is an unusual recommendation, as I’m recommending it not based on having the best coffee per se, but rather on the feeling and ambiance created while drinking your coffee.

So, if you’re in Kona, try Daylight, try both locations, it’s good for coffee, breakfast, and maybe a little downtime before you go shopping, or back to the beach.