Tiki Bars
Kapu Bar
Petaluma, California, United States (Closed)
Opened January 21st, 2023.
Owner Michael Richardson is a longtime tiki bartender and co-author of the Frankie's Tiki Room (Las Vegas) cocktail book, “Liquid Vacation.” Chef Mike Lutz helms the kitchen, serving Hawaiian-inspired dishes.
Interior design was done by Bamboo Ben.
April 19th, 2025, the building was sold and the last day was abruptly announced.
The Tahitian Room - at the U.S. Grant Hotel
San Diego, California, United States (Closed)
The Tahitian Room was a Polynesian-themed restaurant and bar in the U.S. Grant Hotel's northern annex that opened in 1960. It closed 10 years later and the annex was demolished and replaced with a parking lot.
The Luau - La Jolla
La Jolla, California, United States (Closed)
Opened April 28th, 1960.
The Luau copied its name, logo and much of its menu from The Luau of Beverly Hills, but it's unclear whether there was any formal connection.
Closed in 1966.
Chi-Chi - San Diego
San Diego, California, United States (Closed)
The Chi-Chi was one of a chain with locations also in Palm Springs, Hollywood, Riverside and Long Beach. The San Diego location opened in 1946 and included the South Seas Room. It closed in 1951.
As of 2023, this location is home to Urban India Restaurant & Bar.
The Hurricane - San Diego
San Diego, California, United States (Closed)
The Hurricane was a tropical cocktail lounge opened in 1945 by Sam Stutz and Edward Bolander, who operated a number of other bars/restaurants in town. The bar went through a long series of owners before closing in 1960.
Bradley’s Puka-Puka
San Diego, California, United States (Closed)
Opened in 1938, Bradley's Puka-Puka was a pre-tiki tropical rum bar that managed to remain open until 1970.
The bar was located on the mezzanine level of Bradley’s 5 & 10.
All drinks served were priced at five or 10 cents each and the menu featured 150 varieties of rum.
The original building was demolished in the early 1980s.
Black Sands Hula Lounge
San Diego, California, United States (Closed)
This lightly-themed tiki bar and restaurant was located below the South Beach Bar & Grill. Opened in late 2020, but closed just about a year later.
The Kon-Tiki Room - at Palmetto
Oakland, California, United States (Closed)
Opened June 10th, 2021.
This bar was next door to Palmetto and from the same team behind both The Kon-Tiki and Palmetto. In fact, it shared a door with Palmetto and served food out of the Palmetto kitchen. However, the Kon-Tiki Room was a dark tiki bar and felt entirely different from its next door neighbor.
The interior leaned heavily toward the nautical side and was designed by artist Woody Miller (Wood Tiki).
*NOTE: In an Instagram post by Palmetto on 10/06/2023, they announced that both the Palmetto and The Kon-Tiki Room would be closing for good on 10/29/2023.
King's Tropical Inn & Treasure Island Bar
Los Angeles, California, United States (Closed)
King's Tropical Inn was opened in 1927 in Los Angeles/Culver City.
The inn stood at 5935 Washington Blvd. and was built in a Spanish/Moorish style.
Users recount that: "the place had tables in little roofless bamboo 'huts' and the painted night sky had moving stars and clouds. And 'tropical' music played."
They were known for their chicken dinners with biscuits and honey.
It was also a major pre-tiki location that updated and changed over the years. The Treasure Island Bar appears to be a newer edition, added in the late 50s or more probably, the 60s.
They did produce some souvenirs, including a ceramic ashtray with a chicken on it for their 25th anniversary in 1952.
Closed in 1968 and the building was later demolished.
Tropic Isle
Culver City, California, United States (Closed)
This tiki bar appears to have been active @1961-1962.
It was later the location of the Bali Hai which ran from June of 1963-1969.
The Tropic Isle's tiki mascot figure was issued in mug form, both with and without dry ice pockets on top rim.
As of 2022, this location appears to be a Vans shoe store or adjacent to where the shoe store currently stands.
Broken Compass Tiki Bar
Burbank, California, United States
Opened in 2019 on the site of what used to be Buchanan Arms, a British pub.
Upon opening, there were minimal changes made to the decor (some skeletons and cutlases and nautical netting) but this was in keeping with what the owners described as a pirate bar serving up British pub fare (Fish n’ Chips, Bangers n’ Mash, and Shepherd’s Pie).
However, from early on they had a heavily tiki influenced cocktail menu.
The cocktail program and regular food menu received excellent reviews and customers were told that they were going to lean more heavily toward tiki with future updates.
Further remodeling took place and in November 2022, the bar re-opened with a much more heavily tiki influenced interior including tons of rattan and thatched huts. The pirates and skeletons are still there also, but the overall tropical ambiance is much enhanced -- right down to Jose and Juan, skeletal versions of the parrots found in Disney's Enchanted Tiki Room.
The name phased out from "The Burbank Pub" and into "Broken Compass" some time around the beginning of 2023.