Mahina & Sun’s is the bar/cafe in the Surfjack Hotel & Swim Club, a boutique hotel in Waikiki that opened a little over a year ago in a quiet block of Lewers Street (makai of Kuhio Avenue), at the site formerly occupied by Hokele Suites Waikiki.

The restaurant and hotel have been updated in a somewhat artsy but unpretentious way.

So unassuming is the place that I walked right by it the first time, thinking that the large wood-paneled gateway might be guarding a private condo project — and a nice one to boot. Even the hotel logo doesn’t burst out at you the way they do at other Waikiki hotels. The Surfjack and Mahina & Sun’s are quietly secluded behind that gateway.

THE EXPERIENCE

Mahina & Sun’s is on the ground floor of the hotel, on the other side of a railing from the swimming pool. Operated by Town Hospitality Group, an entrepreneurial enterprise established by award-winning chefs Ed Kenney and Dave Caldiero, Mahina & Sun’s has a rustic, vintage feel, with a few fancifully painted picnic benches and beachy furniture available for you to cool your heels.

On my visit it boasted one of the more interesting art pieces I’ve seen at a bar: a wall filled with a collage of surfboard fins, created by waterman Mark Cunningham. (Mahina & Sun’s rotates its arts exhibits with Town, so the work of Karen Baker will be on display next.) Mostly it has a simple, relaxing vibe, with no TV screens to distract your attention.

Happy hour is offered at the U-shaped bar area, with seats both outside toward the pool, so you can hear the splashing of the pool if you want, and inside, where it’s cool and quiet. Overall it feels like a nice place to hang out.

There’s live music starting at 7 p.m., the last 30 minutes of happy hour, so you can catch some tunes with your pizza and beer if you want.

Note that as with so many spots in Waikiki, it will cost you to bring your car here, even when you dine: Surfjack offers valet-only parking at $10 (plus tip). In an effort to attract repeat visitors, though, Mahina & Sun’s is offering a perk: Request a Swim Club VIP card at the hotel’s front desk, spend $50 at the restaurant and you’ll park for free while also getting a freebie like a drink or snack with your meal. Do that eight times and you’ll get a pin that gets you free parking “for life.” Bring some friends for happy hour and order those extra toppings to qualify.

THE FOOD

Mahina & Sun’s is the first Waikiki establishment for Kenney and Caldiero, who brought in food-truck master Sean Priester to head up the kitchen. Like Kenney’s other restaurants — Town, Mud Hen Water and Kaimuki Superette, all in Kaimuki — Mahina & Sun’s adheres to the concept of local, fresh, sustainable ingredients for its offerings.

For happy hour you’ll get only a small taste of that. There’s one item on the menu, but it’s a good one: pizza and beer for two, for $20.

On most nights the pizza is the Naked Pig pizza — a thin-crust pie with uncured bacon, fromage blanc (white cheese) and Maui onion. It was excellent. The bacon is not too salty, the cheese adds both a soft texture and a rich taste, and the onions bring a touch of crunch.

The pie alone is regularly served for $17, so to get two beers along with it is a good deal. Extra toppings are available: arugula and parmigiano ($4), cremini mushrooms ($3), green olives ($2).

On some nights the happy-hour offering is a margherita pizza — thin-crust pie with red sauce, mozzarella and basil. I can’t imagine it not going down well with beer.

THE DRINKS

The beers available are Maui Brewing Co.’s Bikini Blonde, Pale Ale and the Pineapple Mana Wheat. I found the Pineapple Wheat braced up the pizza nicely.

THE VERDICT

For what it offers, Mahina & Sun’s is an excellent place for pau hana. It’s uncomplicated and good.