Tiki Bars
Don the Beachcomber - at the Royal Lahaina Resort
Lahaina, Hawaii, United States (Closed)
A very short-lived, modern reincarnation of the Don the Beachcomber chain, located on the grounds of the Royal Lahaina Resort. The space is mostly gutted, and is now used as an entry area for the resort's evening luau.
Opened in the mid 2000's (at least as early as 2006) and closed in 2007.
Mai Tai Lounge - Lahaina
Lahaina, Hawaii, United States (Closed)
This bar and restaurant overlooking the ocean opened in downtown Lahaina in 2008. The decor was light on tiki, but they did offer a custom tiki mug for sale in the traditional three-face bucket style.
Mai Tai Lounge closed in 2013, and the location became Koa's Seaside Grill, which then became Koa 156º, and then closed as well. As of 2022 this site appears to be hosting a Del Sol sunglasses and clothing store.
Beach Bumz
Kihei, Hawaii, United States
Beach Bumz is a small store within a shopping center in Kihei, selling tourist items, including plenty of tiki mugs and other items of interest to the modern tikiphile. In the same shopping center as South Shore Tiki Lounge.
South Shore Tiki Lounge
Kihei, Hawaii, United States
Opened @ 2006.
A tiki bar & restaurant, tucked into a shopping center in Kihei. The decor is a mix of Polynesian Pop and surfing, with plenty of bamboo and some tikis. The inside portion is nice and dark, and there is a spacious outdoor patio. They have other things on their menu but are primarily known for their pizza. Beach Bumz is in the same shopping center.
Hula Hula Tiki Bar - Orange Beach
Orange Beach, Alabama, United States (Closed)
Opened in the late 2000s, Hula Hula Tiki Bar was part of North Shore Grill & Deli, owned by Joey Ward. There were tikis and bamboo, and the grill served burgers and more. It closed in 2012.
Bloody Mary's
French Polynesia
Opened in 1979.
A somewhat Polynesian Pop tiki bar and restaurant right on the main island of Bora Bora in French Polynesia.
It features a thatched roof, open sides, white sand floor, wooden slab tables and stools made of coconut stumps. Some carved tikis are on site that look like they could have come out of Oceanic Arts in Whittier, CA. Mary's has been visited by many celebrities over the years and the bar is proud to showcase their carved "walls of fame" with each celebrity's name -- some of whom have performed impromptu shows for the bar.
They also serve as a venue for traditional dance groups.
Westgate Cocoa Beach Resort
Cocoa Beach, Florida, United States
Westgate Cocoa Beach Resort began as the Wakulla Apartments, until the location was sold to the Mishler family in 1972 and converted to a motel. From then, until 2018 the site was known as the Wakulla Suites. The name was Native American, but the decor was Pop Polynesian. With 2018's extensive renovation and re-branding, the discrepancy is no longer a concern.
In addition to the previous tikis and tiki decor on the grounds, the Pop Polynesian theme has been further expanded with even more tiki decor and a lazy river in the pool area. There is now a poolside Tiki Bar for hotel guests only. The bar has two mugs for sale, a plastic tiki mug with the hotel name on the back and the other mug is a hollowed-out lidded coconut monkey.
Bora-Bora - Madrid
Madrid, Spain
Opened in 1975.
As is typical in tiki bars throughout Spain, tropical cocktails of dubious quality are served in beautiful tiki mugs. The decor is perhaps less elaborate than other Spanish tiki bars, but dark wooden wall panels dotted with tiki masks still set a decent mood.
Jolly Rogers
सेक्टर २८, गुरुग्राम, Haryana, India (Closed)
Jolly Rogers was a short-lived Polynesian restaurant just outside of New Delhi, on the 10th floor of the Time Tower. The theme for the restaurant was pirate-meets-tiki, but the decor was very bright, sleek and airy, with white walls and lots of windows. There were many tiki masks decorating the restaurant, though, and tropical cocktails and Polynesian food were served. Jolly Rogers opened in 2009 and closed in 2012.
Top Notch Kustoms
San Jose, California, United States
Top Notch Kustoms is the auto shop of Ignacio "Notch" Gonzalez. Notch is famous for several things in the tiki world: for building the famous towering Ku and Moai tiki bars seen at Viva Las Vegas, Tiki Oasis and Forbidden Island; for creating the jaw-dropping decor at Smuggler's Cove; and creating original and replica tiki mugs.
Notch's many talents manifest in many different ways, but here at his shop, it's mostly about carsNotch's specialty is hot rod customization. His shop holds a completely immersive tiki bar as a break room. It's a small space, but some ingenious interior design work gives it the feel of a full-size, full-featured tiki bar. Particularly notable: Notch's shop houses the neon sign for the fabled Cosmo Place Trader Vic's in San Francisco.
Painkiller
Manhattan, New York, New York, United States (Closed)
Painkiller was opened by Giuseppe Gonzalez and Richard Boccato on Manhattan's Lower East Side in May 2010. The small space dictated a streamlined decor approach, with heavy use of bamboo and flat artwork on the walls. The decor was a mix of simple tiki (in the form of untreated bamboo and flat Indonesian import masks), and graffiti artwork inspired both by the local neighborhood and tiki history.
The bar itself was a bit high, and the immovable stools were also high and close to the bar; sitting at the bar could be a challenge for the large or the small. The seating in the back rooms was comfy, though, and standing at the bar worked, too.
The emphasis at Painkiller was on the cocktails, with lots of modern variations inspired by old classics. The menu did not list specific drinks, rather it was a list of drink categories, intended to spark conversation with your bartender to help you find a drink you'll love. Drinks were well-crafted, and served in tiki mugs, with pina coladas served in frozen pineapples.
After a legal dispute with Pusser's Rum, owners of the "Painkiller" trademark, the bar changed its name to PKNY.
Painkiller closed in July 2013 after losing their lease.
Smuggler's Cove
San Francisco, California, United States
Smuggler's Cove was opened December 8th, 2009 by Martin Cate, a renowned rum expert and longtime tikiphile who was one of the founders of Forbidden Island in Alameda. Smuggler's Cove specializes in all varieties of rum and rum drinks, with a particular emphasis on historic and exotic cocktails. Cate has attracted some of the top bartender talent in the talent-rich city of San Francisco. Smuggler's Cove regularly appears on the lists of the best bars in the world. It has proven incredibly popular: if you go on a weekend, be prepared to possibly wait in a line for entry.
The decor is a blend of nautical and tiki. The dimly-lit bar spans three floors: the main and lower levels each have their own bars, and an upper half-level is a tiki hut that overlooks the main floor. There is a waterfall between the main floor and the lower floor, with a small pool at the bottom. The construction was led by Ignacio "Notch" Gonzalez, of San Jose's Top Notch Kustoms.
The offerings can be overwhelming in scope: over 500 rums, and more than 75 cocktails. If you're intent on trying as many as possible, consider entering the Rumbustion Society; those who complete the list are rewarded for their efforts.