Tiki Bars
The Reef Bar - at The Caliente Tropics
Palm Springs, California, United States
The Reef Bar is within the Caliente Tropics Resort in Palm Springs, a historic tiki hotel that opened in 1964.
The bar at the Caliente Tropics has changed names, theming, and management many times over the years. Originally, the bar was the Congo Room restaurant, a steakhouse. After the Congo Room years, the bar adopted its most-used Reef Bar name, and there was also a brief period in the late-'00s when it was Hawaiian Bill's.
After many years with the bar in flux, as of March 4th, 2017 it re-opened under the management of Rory Snyder, perhaps best known as the organizer of the annual Tiki Caliente event at the Caliente Tropics (and Circa Caliente). The bar has large windows and a patio overlooking the hotel's swimming pool, and rather than fight the light, Snyder aims to differentiate from the other tiki bars in town and create a space that blends the mid-century history of Palm Springs with the classic tiki elements on the grounds. A menu of tropical drinks and food is available. See cocktail menu below...
In addition to mugs and glassware, the bar also sports its own line of branded rum bottles with label designs by Anthony Carpenter.
Tiki Bob's Mainland Rendezvous
San Francisco, California, United States (Closed)
Opened in 1959, Tiki Bob's Mainland Rendezvous, more commonly shortened to Tiki Bob's Mainland, was the second location of the fabled Tiki Bob's to be located in San Francisco, the original was at Post & Taylor. This short-lived location catered to the nearby businessmen by offering "lingerie shows" where young women walked through the restaurant in their skivvies. Ostensibly, the idea was that these models would inspire the businessmen to then purchase the lingerie to bring home for their wives. Lingerie shows lived on in the neighborhood for quite some time -- nearby Sutter Station tavern was still doing them as late as the 2000s.
Today, the same space now holds Pagan Idol.
Malia Polynesian Room
Asbury Park, New Jersey, United States (Closed)
Malia Polynesian Room was inside Bill Green's Golden Dragon in Asbury Park, New Jersey. It opened in late 1968, and didn't last very long.
Mr. Green had run this site previously as the "Rustic Lodge" nightclub before remaking it into the "Golden Dragon" restaurant and then he decided to try rebranding it yet again a year later as the "Countrypolitan" nightclub. That must not have worked either, as Green turned over the site to a new owner that same year and it became Danny's Bar and Package store before being destroyed by a fire in June 1970.
Today is it known because of an album recorded there of a performance by Sam Makia and his Hawaiian Islanders, called "Live Hawaiian Party." The address was Coleman at Summerfield; Summerfield no longer intersects with Coleman, but a look at satellite photos from the era shows a building at that location that today is a parking lot.
Tiki Underground - Hudson
Hudson, Ohio, United States (Closed)
Tiki Underground was opened in February 2017 by Sean and Jessie Coffey.
The large space was lined with bac-bac matting and bamboo, with plenty of thatch. There were carved Witco pieces, and light-up moai.
They served cocktails and beer and also had a food menu and live music.
November 24, 2021 was Tiki Underground’s last call in this Hudson location. The bar moved to a new space at 1832 Front St, Cuyahoga Falls, OH 44221 in September of 2022.
Wahtiki Island Lounge
Hong Kong Island, Hong Kong SAR China (Closed)
Wahtiki Island Lounge was opened in Central Hong Kong in January 2017 by owner Philip Lee. Lee's father, Shi Wah Lee, worked for Trader Vic's for many years, including managing the London Trader Vic's during the '70s-'90s, and later helping Trader Vic's open locations around Europe and the Middle East. Philip Lee continued in the family tradition by opening his own tiki bar and Polynesian restaurant. The decor included bamboo, tapa cloth, and tikis, traditional Polynesian restaurant food, and tiki drinks served in tiki mugs.
Unfortunately, the restaurant was unable to come to terms on its lease agreement and announced its closure for Saturday, August 12th, 2023.
Tiki Island - Medford
Medford, Massachusetts, United States (Closed)
Tiki Island is a Chinese/Polynesian restaurant that opened in the mid-1980s in Medford, just north of Boston. The front area has a large moai, and the main dining room has a huge painted mural of a tropical scene, with a few tikis around the restaurant. The food includes some mid-century Polynesian-style Chinese favorites, including a flaming pu-pu platter, and tropical drinks are served in tiki mugs. A banquet hall in the back of the restaurant is unthemed.
Tiki Island has a sister restaurant in Hyannis, Tiki Port.
Luau Lounge
San Francisco, California, United States
Luau Lounge opened inside Players, a video game arcade on Pier 39 at Fisherman's Wharf, in 2012. The bar and restaurant overlooks San Francisco Bay, with large windows to take in the view. The decor includes tapa cloth, beachcomber lamps and tikis, but with full daylight on one side and a riotous arcade on the other, the mood is not one of escape despite some nice decor, including some Eugene Savage Matson Menu art on the far wall.
There is a full restaurant menu, and the tropical drinks menu on their website skews to the sweet and fruity end. However, that online drinks menu appears to date to 2013-2015 and the newer one from 2019-2022 is much improved. Both are shown below...
Diamond Head - Bethesda
Bethesda, Maryland, United States (Closed)
Diamond Head was a Polynesian-themed Chinese restaurant, owned by the Shao family. Some contemporary advertisements give the city as Bethesda, others as Chevy Chase, both are the same location. There was a second location in Washington, DC.
Appears to have been open at least from 1970-1972.
Diamond Head - Washington D.C.
Washington, District of Columbia, United States (Closed)
This Diamond Head location opened in 1978 in the Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, DC. It had a sister restaurant in Chevy Chase/Bethesda.
Don the Beachcomber - Marina del Rey
Marina del Rey, California, United States (Closed)
The Don the Beachcomber location in Marina del Rey opened in 1970. It is one of the "UFO" shaped versions of the restaurant, with a round building topped by a low-slung wraparound roof with a pointed top. The restaurant makes an appearance in the 1989 Patrick Dempsey film Loverboy as "Tiki Joe's". The restaurant was closed by the mid-'90s. The building is still there, attached to the Marina del Rey Hotel, but underwent a dramatic remodel in the early 2010s, and is no longer recognizable.
The Waikiki - Washington D.C.
Washington, District of Columbia, United States (Closed)
The Waikiki opened in 1960, in a building that previously been a Chinese restaurant called The Chinese Lantern. The Waikiki operated until 1967, when the business was sold to Moon Kim who opened the second location of her Luau Hut there, retaining much of the decor. Since 1978, the building has been Kelly's Irish Times, though the Chinese origins are still clear in the building's architecture.
Luau Hut - Dupont Circle - Washington D.C.
Washington, District of Columbia, United States (Closed)
This Dupont Circle Luau Hut, also sometimes called Luau's In-Inn Supper Club, was a short-lived sister location to the original Luau Hut location in Silver Spring, opened in 1970. It was owned by Moon Kim and Paul Malonson. There was another Washington, D.C. Luau Hut location on Capitol Hill.