Tiki Bars
Trader Vic's - Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia (Closed)
This Trader Vic's location opened in 2010 and closed in 2019. Being in Saudi Arabia, there was no alcohol at this Trader Vic's, but they did serve tropical "mocktails."
Trader Vic's - at the Festival Centre - Dubai
United Arab Emirates (Closed)
The Festival City Trader Vic's was located within Festival Centre, and operated from 2012 to 2015.
Mahiki - Dubai
Dubai, United Arab Emirates (Closed)
This sister location to the famous London Mahiki opened in the Jumeirah Beach Hotel in December, 2011. Like the London location, it became a destination for celebrities, and wannabe celebrities. A vast cocktail menu was served, and food as well. The attractive decor was upscale tiki, and had a nightclub feel. This location closed in 2018, due to “unforeseen circumstances during the renovation” of the hotel, as stated by the owners at the time.
There have been several other Mahiki locations. In 2017, Mahiki's owners further expanded and franchised the brand. In the course of that year, Mahiki Clubs have opened in Marbella, Spain (Mahiki Beach/closed in 2021), in the Forte Village Resort in Sardinia (now closed), in Manchester in collaboration with Gary Neville's company GG Hospitality Management Ltd. (closed in 2018, re-opened in 2019, but closed again in 2020) and at a second London location (Mahiki Kensington, closed in 2019). There was also a Mahiki club in Gothenburg, Sweden (closed).
The Beachcomber - Malibu
Malibu, California, United States (Closed)
The Beachcomber was a restaurant on the historic Malibu Pier. The restaurant itself was not tiki but rather was designed to look like a 1930s restaurant. However the restaurant's bar, the Malibu Pier Club, had a special nook with a round table that seated about ten available for special reservations. This nook was called the Tonga Lei Room, and it was decked out as a tribute to the Tonga Lei restaurant, which was located across the street.
The bar and restaurant opened in 2008, and for the Tonga Lei Room the owners enlisted the assistance of Bamboo Ben, Tiki Farm and Tiki-Ray to help deck the place out. The Beachcomber closed in 2012.
Emerald Tiki
Baldwin Place, New York, United States (Closed)
Opened circa 2005 by Michael Geary.
Restaurant in a small town in New York state, next to a driving range.
Open at least through 2006, but then appears to have closed.
Tiki Lounge and Bar - Richmond
Richmond, Victoria, Australia (Closed)
Tiki Lounge and Bar was a tiki bar in the Melbourne area. It was created in 2006 by David Backler and Dianne Heywood-Smith, as part of their dance studio. There was a focus on fresh, quality ingredients and traditional tiki cocktails, directed by barman Kevin Clark, a.k.a. "Cocktail Kev." As the bar was connected to a dance studio, tango dance lessons were on offer, and the bar hosted an eclectic array of entertainment.
Closed as of August 2016.
Shipwreck Tavern
Bayville, New York, United States
Shipwreck Tavern is a nautically-themed restaurant that opened in the fall of 2006. In summer 2007, they added a "Tiki Bar and Cafe" that includes an outdoor seating area with tiki poles and masks. Shipwreck Tavern is owned and operated by the same outfit that owns the pirate-themed Bayville Adventure Park next door, and also the Jekyll & Hyde Club in New York City.
Kona
Huntington Beach, California, United States (Closed)
Kona opened in 2007 in the space that had been Sam's Seafood for decades. Much of the decor was retained and refreshed, with improvements being made most notably in the quality of the food offering and some softened lighting. They adapted the exterior Sam's swordfish sign by changing the lettering.
Kona had several dining rooms with slightly different decor. The "Hidden Village" back rooms were available for special events, and had the most elaborate Polynesian theming, with huts, a fountain, and a bar. The dining room at the front had painted murals and a fountain.
In 2009, Kona closed and reopened under new ownership as Don the Beachcomber (no connection to the historic chain). Don's closed in 2018.
Tiki Torch Restaurant and Bar
Edgewater, Colorado, United States (Closed)
Formerly the Okoboji Inn.
Tiki Torch Restaurant and Bar was short-lived: it opened in the summer of 2008, and was gone by January of the next year. It served burgers and tropical cocktails. Scooter riders got happy hour prices all the time.
This site was home to Providence Tavern (later just "Providence") from 2019 - 2024.
Aku Aku - Cadillac, Michigan
Cadillac, Michigan, United States (Closed)
The Aku Aku bar and restaurant offered "Poolside Dining" at the Cadillac Sands Resort (built in 1961). Tiki designs on the menu appear to have been lifted from a menu from the Tahitian Lanai in Waikiki -- it's unlikely there's any connection beyond an inspiration.
Aku Aku is gone, but the Cadillac Sands remains, now known as the Lake Cadillac Resort. The space retained at least some of its theming in its later incarnation as the Clipper Room and Porthole Lounge but the resort underwent a major renovation in 2019.
Clipper Room and Porthole Lounge
Cadillac, Michigan, United States (Closed)
Built in 1961.
The Clipper Room and Porthole Lounge was part of the Cadillac Sands Resort (a 55-Room Hotel). In its first incarnation, this was the Aku Aku. The restaurant made the switch to a new name and more nautical theme in the 1970s, but the resort underwent a major renovation circa 2019.
Luau (North Bedford Drive) - Beverly Hills
Beverly Hills, California, United States (Closed)
This short-lived restaurant opened in October 2008 and closed just a year later. There is no connection between this restaurant and Beverly Hills' famous The Luau, created by Steve Crane in the 1950s although the Steve Crane signature tiki was represented in a framed painting and a small carved version was prominent in the front of the restaurant.
Bamboo Ben was hired to do the decor, particularly the pufferfish lights, but they restrained him from going all-out.
Rather than the nod to historic Polynesian Pop that the name choice might suggest, this upscale restaurant was sleek and more Asian than Polynesian in design (with carved Gyan Mudra Yogic Buddha's Hands all over the restaurant and as their logo).
However, the drink menu had some classic tiki drinks, and was developed with input from Beachbum Berry.