Tiki Bars
Aloha Beautiful
Orlando, Florida, United States (Closed)
Aloha Beautiful, in downtown Orlando, did a soft opening March 17th, 2021 and a full opening on March 18th-20th, 2021.
The space was formerly inhabited by Joysticks Arcade Lounge and traces of the arcade remained with a monopoly top bar and a few pinball games.
The bar had tons of room and a free-flowing eclectic nature with various areas for patrons, including a full karaoke stage, the main bar, several lounge areas with couches and rattan chairs, and private VIP Karaoke rooms.
Though not a traditional tiki bar, there were lots of tiki elements, including a 6' tall fiberglass Ku Tiki with glowing red eyes, rattan, fish floats and netting on the ceiling, and shrunken heads hanging over the bar.
This space began transitioning to become Phoenix Jazz Bar @ March 2025 (as reflected on their old website address).
The Outrigger Apartments
Pasadena, California, United States
This apartment complex was built in 1961.
It has 47 units and the front features a very large A-frame. There is also a smaller A-frame pool house building in back.
Traveling from north to south along Rosemead boulevard, this was a frequent stop for tiki enthusiasts before hitting other landmarks like the Kahlua Apartments and Bahooka.
It was remodeled in 2008 and re-named "Huntington at Pasadena" to cash in on their proximity to The Huntington Museum, but before this, it was known as "The Outrigger" and had a unique tiki in front that was partially obscured by shrubbery.
Sven Kirsten, when referring to Tiki Archaeology, often showed a photo of this tiki completely covered in foliage with one hand sweeping the leaves aside to reveal a tiki eye peering out.
Kona Pali Apartments
Granada Hills, California, United States
Kona Pali is a 63-unit apartment building, built in 1962 in Granada Hills, in the San Fernando Valley. It is a remarkably well-preserved example of a midcentury Polynesian-themed apartment building. It has an identical twin in San Gabriel, the Kona Kai Apartments. The entrance is a dramatic A-frame. The entryway has a tile mosaic of the Hawaiian islands, and a water feature. Tiki carvings are all over the common grounds of the complex.
The Myna Bird
Honolulu, Hawaii, United States (Closed)
The Myna Bird was a tiki bar in the International Market Place in Honolulu, opened on May 19, 2017. The small bar was part of The Street, a food-court-like collection of restaurants and bars by Michael Mina. The tiki bar paid tribute to the Don the Beachcomber restaurant in Waikiki, which was the anchor of the original International Market Place.
Closed on 11/08/2020.
UPDATE: This space was re-named the Tipsy Tiki with little to no change in decor and re-opened some time prior to December 2021.
Kapu Hut
Eugene, Oregon, United States
Kapu Hut is the tiki bar within North Bank, a McMenamins restaurant, overlooking the Willamette River. North Bank used to have a non-tiki bar, but in October 2014, it was tikified and became Kapu Hut. There is a small menu of Polynesian Pop-tinged food available, and the drink menu has tropical drinks and over 60 rums. Given McMenamins' focus on brewpubs, it makes sense that there is an unusual (for a tiki bar) number of beers available here, too. The theming is light, and mixes Tiki with Asian and African elements.
McMenamins also owns the North Shore Lagoon at the Anderson School in Bothell, Washington (north of Seattle).
Restaurant en Coulisse
Chessy, France
Opened March 16th, 2002.
Restaurant en Coulisse is a massive fast food restaurant within the Walt Disney Studios Park at the Disneyland Paris Resort. The restaurant is themed with facades of Hollywood restaurants both made-up and real, including the fictional "Liki Tiki" -- complete with A-frame and decor from Oceanic Arts.
Lots of burgers on the menu. No cocktails. Just beer and a wide assortment of sodas and other beverages.
VenTiki
Ventura, California, United States
VenTiki opened in July 2013. Great care and attention were paid to the history of Polynesian Pop, particularly with the tropical drinks.
It is full of modern-style bamboo touches and chunky resin lamps. There is also an outdoor patio area in front.
It has a dedicated shrine to Magnum P.I.
The logo design was created by local artist Tiki tOny.
In 2016, a storm blew a tree over onto the patio; its fall was stopped by a carved tiki, saving some patrons who would have been struck.
There was an adjacent Ventiki shop for several years, but around 2021, this space was converted to another interior dining area which was badly needed.
As of 2022, Ventiki built additional outdoor seating curbside and during peak evenings, a line can form between these curbside areas and the hostess stand, but it usually moves fairly quickly.
Don the Beachcomber - at the Royal Kona Resort
Kailua-Kona, Hawaii, United States
Don the Beachcomber is located within the Royal Kona Resort, where it opened in 2005.
This location is not to be confused with the historic, long-gone Don the Beachcomber restaurants run by Donn Beach or his partner Sunny Sund, but rather was opened by someone who picked up the rights to the name here in the Hawaiian Islands. Mainland rights to the Don the Beachcomber name are currently held by the newer Don the Beachcomber chain (including Madeira Beach and others run by 23 Restaurant Services after they acquired the brand from Delia Snyder).
The bar and restaurant are open-air, overlooking the ocean, but sheltered by a large, round roof. The restaurant in particular is full of fantastic '70s-chic Tiki loveliness, thanks to architect George "Pete" Wimberly.
A vibraphonist can sometimes be found playing in the bar as the sun sets over the ocean.
Food is on the more upscale end of Kailua-Kona dining.
The Reef - Boise
Boise, Idaho, United States
Opened in 2004, the Reef is a tropical restaurant in downtown Boise, with Latin, Caribbean and Polynesian cuisines mixed together, and furnishings from Indonesia. The restaurant has a huge outdoor patio with lots of round thatched huts, a stage for live music, and at least one tiki. They also have several prints on the wall that celebrate tiki bartending history (one for Don the Beachcomber, one for Trader Vic, one for Ray Buhen, etc...). In addition to their house tiki mug which premiered several years ago and was an adaptation of an older Tiki Farm "Warrior" design by Squid, they sometimes have promotional tie-ins like the more recent Zafra Rum tiki mug available.
Cacao Coffee House
Los Angeles, California, United States (Closed)
During the '90s and into the early 2000s, Cacao was a retro-themed coffee house decorated with a variety of kitschy items with a Hawaiian & tiki emphasis, combined with sci-fi. Cacao had a typical laid-back coffeehouse atmosphere, serving high-quality coffee beverages. Being a coffeehouse, there were no alcoholic beverages, and the food menu was limited. Cacao provided free wireless internet access, and periodically featured musicians and poetry nights.
Cacao was opened in 1990, but didn't get its sci-fi/tiki theme until new owners Bobby Green and Alastair Newbery took over in 1993. Bobby Green went on to own The Lucky Tiki in Mission Hills, and a thriving group of beautifully themed bars throughout the Los Angeles area. Jeremy Bell, a longtime Cacao patron, took over ownership of Cacao in 2000. Some time around the end of 2017 or in 2018 the name was changed to Good People Coffee Co.
Today, no tiki theming remains.
Club Trade Winds
Tulsa, Oklahoma, United States (Closed)
Club Trade Winds was the restaurant in the Tulsa Trade Winds Motel at 51st and Peoria (1120 E. Skelly Drive), which later became Trade Winds West as other Trade Winds motels opened in the area.
At one time, Tulsa was home to three Trade Winds motor hotels. They were located at 51st Street and Peoria Avenue (1120 E. Skelly Drive), 51st and Harvard, and 3141 E. Skelly Drive (added in 1968 and still open as of 2021). There were also two in Oklahoma City and one in Muskogee.
This Club Trade Winds, at 1120 E. Skelly Drive, later became The Tiki Nook.
Frankoma was contracted in 1960 or 1961 to create mugs and serveware for Club Trade Winds. Some of the mugs tend to be oversized. Frankoma reused the designs a decade later (in a more normal size) for a short-lived Tulsa restaurant, The Cultured Pearl. All of these Frankoma tiki ceramics remain highly collectible.
Hawaiian Inn
Daytona Beach, Florida, United States
The Hawaiian Inn opened circa July of 1965.
This Polynesian-themed resort complex is right on the Atlantic Ocean; most of its 208 spacious hotel rooms have private balconies overlooking the ocean. The hotel has a number of amenities, including a large outdoor pool, an indoor pool, shuffleboard, and a beachside 9-hole putt-putt course, and most of the rooms include small kitchenettes. There is also the poolside Ohana Tiki Bar and Grill.
The hotel has seen better days. There is no remnant of its Polynesian history in the rooms, which appear to have undergone remodels at some point in the 80s -- all of the rooms used to have Witco headboards, which can now be seen as wall hangings throughout the hotel. Outside of the rooms, there are some nice touches, including bamboo-encased garbage cans and Witco furniture.
Check for scheduling, but the resort regularly hosts a Hawaiian Luau Dinner Show.
Just up the street from Hawaiian Inn, you'll find Aku Tiki Inn and Traders Restaurant.