Was excited to check out Florida's oldest Tiki bar, so drove down with 2 friends and stayed at the Golden Key Resort to get the full vintage experience. The hotel had seen better days, but you can't beat staying walking distance from a Tiki bar.

The drinks including the infamous Mai Tai were strong, free pour rum and fruit juice types. Emphasis on the strong because I brought my good camera and none of the pictures came out., only a few iphone memories.

The experience on this particular Monday night was a real tour de force. The bartender was friendly and happy to have me look around and tell me about the history. A lot of the original decorations were still there all these years later. On the other hand, the music was hip hop and at one point the only other group in the bar involved a woman twerking on the bar for her companion.

All in all, I think it would be an awesome local place to be a regular at. It's also great if you love Tiki Bar history.

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Tiki Bar

Bahi Hut Lounge

Sarasota, Florida, United States

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Bahi Hut was opened in 1954 by Bill Johnson, and remains a beloved neighborhood bar and local landmark. For many years it operated as more of a beer bar, although some tropical drinks were available.

In 2018 it underwent a grand restoration and by all accounts was quite successful.

Two new tiki poles grace the front exterior, Mai and Tai, carved by Jeff Chouinard.

They kept a couple of their previous cocktails on the menu (especially their version of a "mai tai" which was beloved by locals for being strong...even if considered unbalanced and inauthentic by most tikifiles used to Trader Vic standards) but have revamped the rest of their cocktail menu and have climbed back from being just a beer bar.

It is part of the Golden Host Resort, a vintage roadside motel.