Rainbow Drive-In Serving Tradition Through Change
For 60+ years, Rainbow Drive-In has been a local favorite. Now, they’re building on that legacy and looking toward what’s next.
On any given day in Kapahulu, you’ll find a steady stream of locals and visitors alike crowding around a humble, yet iconic rainbow-trimmed building. Some come for the shoyu chicken or loco moco. Others are drawn by the nostalgia because Rainbow Drive-In isn’t just a place to eat; it’s a part of growing up in Hawaiʻi.
Today, Rainbow Drive-In remains family-owned, with leadership passed down to grandson and CEO Chris Iwamura, who has spearheaded a new era. However, unlike many local businesses that pursue radical reinvention, Rainbow Drive-In adopted a different approach: deliberate, values-driven growth.
What started as an eight-employee and 200 plates per day operation has grown to over forty employees and over 1,000 plates daily. “For us, the employees have always been like family, so we always want to make sure to take care of them. But now with more employees, it’s harder for us to make sure that everyone is taken care of. All of our administration used to be in-house, but we quickly realized that we needed to find help,” explains Iwamura the third-generation owner.
“When I came in, we were still doing handwritten timecards for payroll. Our payroll system was outdated, and it was presenting problems,” explains Iwamura. “So, I heard about ALTRES, and they put a comprehensive package together for us that really helped our business. It makes payroll a breeze.” With the help of ALTRES’s proprietary software, HR Symphony®, Rainbow Drive-In can handle payroll, schedule employees, and even do onboarding of new employees.
Sixty-plus years in, Rainbow Drive-In remains a beacon of consistency in a world that moves fast and changes often. Iwamura says, “I’m really excited for the future of Rainbow Drive-In. And part of the reason we’re here today is because of ALTRES, and I hope they grow with us as we continue to grow in the future.”
While other businesses have come and gone, Rainbow Drive-In has stayed — not because they resisted change, but because they embraced it with purpose.
