Tiki Cove was once part of the Mecca Bar in Fairbanks, Alaska.

Wally Burnett opened the Mecca Bar in 1946, and in 1958 he added Tiki Cove in the basement. The bar featured an original mural with trees and a mountain range, some tapa cloth designs and fish net. The tikis were bolted to the floor to keep them safe from thieves. It’s been said that you could enjoy the cocktails and Chinese food in the privacy of a rickshaw table. The bar also featured a clamshell phone booth.

Tiki Cove relocated out of the basement of the Mecca Bar in 1977 into the top floor of the Polaris Hotel where it didn’t last long.

Mecca Bar is still open...

In 1961, the Thunderbird International Hotel was built at 525 N Sepulveda Boulevard, in El Segundo, California, just a few blocks south of Los Angeles International Airport.

Originally, it had a coffee shop, but a year after it opened, in 1962, they changed their mind and remodeled the coffee shop and re-opened it as the The Huki Lau.

A few years later, the Thunderbird International was sold and re-named the Hacienda. Along with this name change, The Huki Lau was re-named to the simpler "Tiki Hut".

Most recently, the Hacienda was split into two and completely redone, with the Aloft being formed from the south building and a Fairfield Inn formed from the north building.

There are no longer any signs of The Tiki Hut.

Tiki-Jo opened July 23rd, 1959 and was popular through the 1960s. It appears to have closed around 1971. Phased out that year in favor of an International Room and Jamaican Room.

The Tiki-Jo was in the Miramar Hotel (now the Fairmont Miramar), and featured a tiki carved by Eli Hedley, grandfather of Bamboo Ben.

Today, as of 2023, this is a vacant lot.

Opened July 10th, 1961.

Pub Tiki had "1-1/2" incorporated into its logo tiki -- the reason for this is unclear, it has been rumored that this was their promise to pour drinks on the heavy side (1-1/2 shot where 1 was called for), or perhaps it was a reference to their 1-1/2 hours of free parking. There were other restaurants in this "Pub" chain, but this was the only Polynesian themed location. A non-tiki Pub location still exists in New Jersey.

Pub Tiki closed in 1977 upon expiration of its lease. For the next 35 years, clothing store Knit Wit, now at 1729 Chestnut, occupied the space; it is now occupied by Intermix, a high end boutique chain based in Manhattan.

Opened Saturday, January 21st, 1961 at the corner of Roscoe at Desoto in Canoga Park, CA.

Trader Dick's was located in the Nugget in Sparks, just outside Reno. Trader Dick's had been remodeled twice and even moved across the street once since its opening in 1958. The final incarnation of Trader Dick's featured a 6,000 gallon fish tank, and support columns for the highway ran right through the restaurant and tank. When it opened, an unamused Vic Bergeron (of Trader Vic's) sued for trademark infringement and lost. The original Trader Dick's decor, which didn't survive the remodeling, was done by Eli Hedley, grandfather of Bamboo Ben. Trader Dick's closed in February 2014, and the space became Gilley's, a "honky-tonk" themed restaurant.

Started in the 1960s (1967?).

The Tikis was a massive entertainment complex, elaborately landscaped with tikis and volcanos, and featuring a Polynesian show. The Tikis could accommodate groups up to 1,500, and was able to entertain up to 3,000 people in one night.

The Tikis had caves, waterways, waterfalls, mermaids, an 80’ exploding volcano, 15 bars, up to 5 bands would perform each night, there was a petting zoo with exotic animals, and a handmade (!) roller coaster. Each night culminated in a Polynesian extravaganza and ended when a gorilla swooped down via a zip line, often knocking over guests’ beverages, and grabbed one of the maidens for a sacrifice.

Sometime after 1970, owner Danny Balsz divorced his wife, Doris Samson, and The Tikis closed in 1979.

Balsz attempted to recreate The Tikis in nearby Lake Elsinore, but he was never able to reopen.

Built in 1961.

This dramatic example of classic A-frame-meets-Googie architecture, was designed by James Salter, working with the Ralph Haver architecture group.

It doesn't show up well in photos, but one exterior wall has a repeated pattern of the logo tiki masks. These painted masks were also used at Del Webb's Ocean House in San Diego -- shown in the Jerry Lewis film, The Big Mouth (1967) -- and can be seen painted on the Tropics Lounge in Wichita, Kansas.

It was torn down in 1997.

The Aku Aku was a Polynesian restaurant inside the Stardust Casino, at the north end of the Las Vegas strip. The restaurant opened in 1960, and closed in 1980. Some of the interior carvings were done by famed carver Edward Brownlee. The iconic moai statues that stood guard over the Aku Aku were carved by Eli Hedley (grandfather of Bamboo Ben). These statues became famous symbols not just for the restaurant or the Stardust Casino it resided in, but Las Vegas itself. One of these statues can be viewed today at Sunset Park in Las Vegas.

Opened in 1968.

This Kona Kai was part of a chain of restaurants that included locations in Chicago and Philadelphia. This location was at the Plaza Inn (later the Hilton Plaza Inn), just a block from The Castaways.

There was also a second Kona Kai location at the Plaza Inn International by the airport that opened in June 1975 -- now the Hilton Kansas City Airport Hotel.

Both Kansas City locations featured "signature" 8-foot tall tikis carved by Oceanic Arts in Whittier, California (the tiki at this location has somewhat wider nostrils -- a shorthand to tell them apart -- see last photo below). These tikis now reside in a private collection.

This location closed circa 1990.

Most recently, this location had been the Holiday Inn Country Club Plaza Hotel, but it was bought and scheduled for demolition in late 2020. Demolition completed in 2021. Still awaiting development as of late 2026.

The Islands was a Polynesian restaurant just south of Camelback Road in Phoenix, operating from July 4th, 1958 through at least the '70s. It had four rooms: the Tapa Bar, the Tiki Room, the Cannibal Room, and the Waterfall Room, which was available for private events when it wasn't used for live music and dancing,

The building had two swooping A-frames, facing in opposite directions, covered in thatch, and two cone-shaped thatched huts to the left of the main building. The exterior sides of the restaurant were decorated with oversized, graphic tapa-style designs. The restaurant was fronted by two large rootball tikis that were sometimes used as logos for the restaurant.

From 1977 onward, it was known as Tommy Wong's Island Restaurant after being purchased by Wong, who had worked at the Chicago Don the Beachcomber and at the Aku Aku in Las Vegas before becoming a successful restaurateur in his own right. Tommy Wong also had an Island Restaurant (or "Islands Restaurant" depending on the advertisement) in Colorado Springs and Denver, Colorado.

Some time in the '80s, The Islands/Island Restaurant building in Phoenix was razed. The rest of the chain in Colorado also went under in the 80s.