Opened in 1954 and closed in 2020.

Minnie's was a Polynesian restaurant with immense charm, and was deservedly beloved by many. The Chinese food was typically dressed-up (for instance, the appetizers were labelled "tidbits of delight"), but the shocker here was that the food was actually fairly good. The restaurant featured carvings and artwork throughout, most notably a large number of beautiful oil and black velvet paintings by the Leeteg-esque artist Tyree.

There were two bars at Minnie's: a vast outdoor patio bar, and a dimly lit indoor bar encrusted with dollar bills and business cards all over the walls and ceiling, left by patrons over the years. The tropical cocktails at Minnie's left something to be desired, but it was about as good as you were likely to find in Modesto anyhow.

Parking was free in the lot at the rear of the restaurant. After dinner service closed, the front door to Minnie's was locked, and you entered the bar using the rear parking lot entrance (there was no sign at the front to let you know this, unfortunately).

Minnie's was just down the road from the Tropics Motel and Tiki Lounge.

The following is according to the Modesto Bee:

Sacramento-based owner TJ Bruce and his Splash Bar, Inc., took over from Stuart Mah at the start of 2018. Mah’s family had run Minnie’s as a Chinese restaurant and tiki bar since 1962, when they bought the business from original owners Hop Louie and his wife Minnie Woo — the spot’s namesake. Bruce ran Minnie's basically as it was for a year before closing the restaurant portion in 2019. In January 2020 he decided to close Minnie's and transform it into another of his Splash Bar dance club locations.

However, according to Bruce, the site’s tiki look will not be changing. Bruce said much of its existing theme fits in with the Splash Bar concept.

“We like that it’s kitschy, and tiki is a fun thing for bars,” he said.

So expect the large wooden tiki-head totems outside to remain in place, as will much of the interior and exterior look — save for some painting and needed updating. They plan to install a dedicated dance floor in the half-partitioned space in front of the bar area, as well as more video screens throughout.

The bar’s signature velvet paintings of nude Polynesian women were taken down after it was sold, as were its large fish tanks. But Bruce said he still has them and they may make a reappearance in the new Splash Bar.

But all those old dollar bills that have lined the bar’s walls for decades are coming down.

The new Splash Bar will have drag shows every Friday night as well as themed nights for karaoke, throwback nights and more. The weekends will have video DJs spinning music.

This Trader Vic's location supplanted the nearby original Oakland Trader Vic's, and has been the company's flagship restaurant since it opened in 1972. The Emeryville Trader Vic's is positioned near the end of a spit in San Francisco Bay, and has beautiful views of the nearby marina and city lights across the water.

The Emeryville Trader Vic's closed at the end of April 2010 for renovations, and reopened on September 28, 2010. The newly-refreshed Trader Vic's Emeryville has a stronger focus on tiki decor, and works to strike the balance between the sunny blue marina view and the moodiness of a traditional Tiki bar. Many of the carvings, lighting and other decorative elements have come from other, now-closed Trader Vic's restaurants from around the globe.

The restaurant is large, with several banquet rooms available for private parties. There is a large bar area near the entrance, and two dining rooms at the back of the restaurant.

Omaha, Nebraska nightclub owner and local personality Don Hammond opened his 7 Seas club on December 1, 1947.

“Skipper Don” spared no expense, adorning his club in tropical splendor with a maritime / Pacific island motif. For nearly a decade, Don Hammond’s 7 Seas offered patrons a seemingly limitless parade of live musical acts and entertainers, while serving a full menu and cocktails.

In March 1957, Hammond sold the 7 Seas to Gene Purcell, a featured performer for Lawrence Welk, and whose musical combo was a fixture throughout the Omaha nightclub scene.

Five years later, in April 1962, the 7 Seas was acquired by the adjoining Diplomat Hotel as part of an expansion and closed.

Don Hammond would go on to manage other night spots across the Omaha area, including The Tiki Lounge at the Flamingo Supper Club.

Photo Credit: Don Hammond’s 7 Seas, October 25, 1951. Courtesy of the Bostwick-Frohardt/KM3TV Photography Collection at The Durham Museum Photo Archive.

Aku Aku Tiki Bar opened in May 2007, in the Grnerlkka neighborhood of Oslo. Some of the decor was on loan from the Kon-Tiki Museum, including a large canoe hanging from the ceiling. The walls were lined with straw matting. Classic tiki drinks were served in tiki mugs, and the music was a mix of Hawaiian and Exotica tunes.

Closed April 6th, 2024.

Opened in September of 2016.

This bar describes itself as a "Tropical leisure cocktail bar located in the heart of La Placita de Santurce."

They serve tiki and tropical cocktails with a rum focus, and use a variety of tiki mugs.

Like many recent bars, the decor is lightly tropical but not immersive with tiki carvings and artwork in the way that Trader Vics and Don the Beachcomber set the standards with -- and probably why they do not use the "Tiki" label for themselves, preferring to focus on the cocktails.

However there is at least one actual wood tiki carving in the outside patio area and the overall ambience is dimly lit and inviting, sure to attract tiki aficionados who might be in the area and thirsty for a crafted beverage.

Opened in 1954, this short-lived establishment was technically at the very beginning of the tiki era, but from all accounts was still very much a pre-tiki Hawaiiana bamboo and surf bar/restaurant.

The interior was decorated with bamboo, rattan, and natural materials, with some large sheets of tapa on the walls as well. However, no actual carved tikis or tiki mugs.

The cocktail menu, shown below, is basically lifted from Don the Beachcomber's, including some of the graphics.

An advert from 1955 describes Steve Romer's Surf Rider as “Tops in Hawaiian entertainment featuring George Kainapau, the Golden Voice of Hawaii." Customers could also dance to the music of the in-house band called The Surf Riders.

The restaurant served Cantonese and American food, had private banquet rooms and a fashion show luncheon was held every Wednesday.

According to newspaper reports, the restaurant went into receivership in 1957.

This location is not to be confused with the Bakersfield Surf Rider, opened a few years later, which epitomizes the over-the-top decoration in the Golden Era of Tiki.

There were many unrelated restaurants that used this name over the years, and it is worthwhile to note that the name and what it evoked reaches back to the pre-tiki era.

*NOTE: This location at 137 S. Lake Avenue would eventually become home, four years later, to The Tahitian, which fully embraced the Golden Era vision of Tiki.

Today, with the area having gone through several construction remodelings, there is no sign of the original building. As of 2024, it appears to have been in what is now a parking lot area adjacent to Fidelity Investments.

Opened in 1999.

Paddy's Beach Club is located right on the beach and is relatively quiet during the winter but explodes into action during Spring and Summer, becoming a Spring Break/Beach Festival destination for thousands of scantily clad young people who visit every Sunday while the season lasts.

The Tikki Bar is located directly opposite the DJ entertainment stage on the other side of the dance floor. This dance floor is flanked on the sides by cabana private areas that you can rent for your friends. There is also a large drinking and dining area behind the main building and beach access onto the main beach as well.

Often regarded as New England's premiere dayclub.

They do have at least a couple of large carved wooden tikis outside. But the Tiki theme is applied pretty lightly overall.

Their cocktails are not the refined Trader Vic's and Don the Beachcomber cocktails that send the taste buds of most Tiki Fans quivering. If you want a ton of blue drink in a fish bowl to get buzzed on, though, they have you covered!

Opened in 2018.

The restaurant and bar was from Charleston restaurateur Karalee Fallert, who is also behind Taco Boy, The Park Cafe, and The Royal American, and her business partner April Bennett.

Executive Chef Jason DuPree created a menu that offered slow-cooked meats accompanied by sides including rice, macaroni salad, greens, and starchy root vegetables.

Dishes included the grilled kona kampachi, a variety of poke bowls, a pu-pu platter, Southern-fried coconut shrimp, and Spam sliders.

Wiki Wiki Sandbar resided in a 6,500-square foot space that incorporated local artists’ work that embodied the facets of tiki culture.

The four dining rooms had different themes including: the Octopus Bar featuring the work of Jeff Kopish; the Sunset Room featuring a sunset mural by Suzanne Allen; the Wave Room featuring a massive sculpture made of Japanese glass floats by KHA; and a traditional tiki bar that resided on the top floor with views of the Atlantic Ocean and dioramas by artist Hirona Matsuda.

Fallert recruited her partner from the Park Cafe, Xan McLaughlin, to develop the cocktail program with help from national rum connoisseur Daniel Parks of San Francisco’s Pagan Idol.

Long-time Charleston resident Roderick Groetzinger added his touch as bar manager.

In September of 2020 Wiki Wiki Sandbar announced they were swapping locations with the Folly Beach Taco Boy and re-opened at that new address -- 15 Center Street in November of that year. This was short-lived, however.

The bar closed on December 31st, 2022. In its place at 15 Center Street, they opened Bounty Bar which has a ceiling covered in fish floats but whose decor skews pirate/nautical as opposed to traditional Pop Polynesian/Tiki.

Bob Loo's was located in a former Howard Johnson's which was built in 1962 and closed around 1972. A steak house moved in almost immediately, but closed within a year. Then, in 1972, came Bob Loo’s, Salem’s first Chinese/Polynesian restaurant. In typical fashion, the top portion of the Howard Johnson’s cupola was removed. Likewise, the orange tile roof was replaced with a standard asphalt roof, and the trapezoid sign was taken down. Aside from these surface changes though, the building retained most of its visual lines and remained largely recognizable as a former Howard Johnson's. Bob Loo’s continued a successful operation here until late 1998, when the owners decided to retire and close the business for good.

They produced at least three collectible glasses -- a hi ball with a moai on front to serve their house Fog Cutter cocktail in, a hi ball with a Fu Manchu to serve the Dr. Funk Cocktail, and a hi ball with a Tiki Leilani on it to serve "Volcano Acid".

Robert N. Loo (Bob) passed away in 2010. He was known for this restaurant as well as the highly successful Silver Dragon Restaurant in Methuen which was started around 1962 and burned down in March of 1985.

Sea and Jungle Shop sold tiki and jungle themed props from their Glendale store for decades. The last owners ran it for over 24 years, starting in 1962. They were competitors with Oceanic Arts (who opened in 1956) and later benefactors of the younger store -- although it's not clear how long Sea and Jungle were open before they were bought out by the last owners -- but they probably existed in one form or another since the 1940s.

Sea and Jungle props decorated Rick’s Cafe Americaine in “Casablanca" (1942), and carried natives over the waves in “Mutiny on the Bounty”(1962) And they adorned countless other television and movie sets. They also supplied much of the decor for Disneyland, especially the Jungle Cruise ride (opened in 1955).

The front of their site was known for giant carved tikis and in later years for a giant pink fiberglass elephant that became kind of a company mascot.

How did it all start?

It was originally opened by Victoria White and "Jungle Jim" Joslin in the 1940s-1950s. (They titled themselves "Specialists in Tropical Atmosphere" on old postcards).

The matriarch of the last family to own the business, Virginia Langdon, was 17 and enrolled at Hollywood High School, when she eloped to Hawaii with her 16-year-old boyfriend because her parents opposed the marriage. They lived there five years, developing a lifelong passion for things tropical, their daughters recall.

The couple returned to Glendale and bought Sea and Jungle in 1962. There they ran a thriving business, making occasional forays to the South Pacific and Africa to replenish stock. Their children drifted naturally into the business, but it was Beverly Achtien (Virginia's daughter) who managed the shop in recent years.

Young people liked the place because it sold wacky items, she said. So did movie stars. Comedian Pee Wee Herman once bought a lamp shaped like a giant clump of yellow bananas. John Wayne favored nautical gear. Dorothy Lamour bought decorative wall hangings for her bar.

Sven Kirsten (author of The Book of Tiki) fondly remembers visiting Sea and Jungle when he first came out to Los Angeles and buying a couple of smaller items. Now, looking back, he wishes he had bought much more, but this was before his dedication to tiki had firmly taken root and nobody knew that Sea and Jungle's days were numbered. Sven has a great vintage ad from the store in his book, Tiki Pop - page 92.

When Sea and Jungle closed their doors on June 30th, 1986, Oceanic Arts bought two truckloads of various décor for $600 from them. They even gave Bob and LeRoy their office chairs, source-books, and their Customer List. This last item helped to get Oceanic Arts started in the Movie Supply and Rental business.

Opened circa 1957 and closed some time around 1975.

The Hukilau was located on the second deck of The Captain's Inn, on the South Shore of the Long Beach Marina.

Description of the location from the May 14th, 1961 edition of Southland Magazine:

"A WATERFALL shimmering under colorful lights . . . A broad, red-carpeted stairway, gently curved . . . Luxurious tropical furnishings. . . .

These are some of the sights which greet visitors to the new Hukilau Polynesian lounge at the Captain's Inn, 215 Marina Drive, on the south shore of the beautiful Long Beach Marina.

Located on the second floor of the greatly-enlarged Inn, the Hukilau lounge provides its guests with fascinating views of the yacht fleet, smooth blue waters and tall palms. Furnished with polished monkey pod wood tables, bamboo, nettings and other authentic tropical touches, the lounge offers delicious island appetizers, such as rumaki, pua pua, Hong Kong won ton, Hawaiian barbecued ribs and fried sui gow. The beverages, prepared by Popo, an award-winning Polynesian mixologist, include such exotic creations as Tahitian Tiki Punch, Scorpion Bowl, Montego, Flaming Virgin, Yacht Club Special, Tiger Shark and Mai Tai. They are served in bowls, cups, glasses or even statuary designed to accentuate the charms of each.

HOST GEORGE Heinrich and his large staff also supervise the activities of five other dining rooms and lounges, which brings the total seating capacity of the Inn to 325. Most of these have picture windows overlooking the yacht anchorage. The rooms include the Commodore's Lounge, where Adrian is featured at the piano bar, the Corinthian Room, Marine Room, Captain's Bar and Captain's Grill.

The Hukilau lounge, open from 4 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday, is reserved Mondays and Tuesdays for special parties (to 80 persons.)"

After 1975, the building was a Charthouse restaurant for many years prior to it becoming the Crab Pot Restaurant (current business as of 2022).

Tiki Farm is the largest modern mug manufacturer, creating mugs for sale at stores and restaurants, or through the Tiki Farm website. Tiki Farm has created many limited edition mugs in partnership with modern tiki artists such as Shag, Joe Vitale and Crazy Al. Tiki Farm has produced affordable reproductions of some of the popular vintage mug designs, such as the Suffering Bastard, and Mr. Bali Hai. Tiki Farm also creates glassware, serveware, and other general tikiware.

Holden Westland is the owner and founded the company in 2000.

Their old location at 1305 Calle Avanzado also held a Mugoomba bar (built 2006) and played host to several Big Tiki Bashes.

They moved their facilities in 2011 or so and began a slow remodel hampered somewhat by their success which gave little time to think of much beyond production. Their complete remodel and re-outfitting of the new office at 1120 Calle Cordillera was completed in 2021.

Tiki Farm then moved to 981 Calle Negocio, Suite 100, San Clemente, California 92673 around May of 2024.