Tiki Bars
Hula's Modern Tiki - Scottsdale
Scottsdale, Arizona, United States
This is the second location of Hula's Modern Tiki, the first is in Phoenix (opened 2009 and re-located in 2018) and a third is in High Street (2020). This Scottsdale location opened in early 2014. True to its name, the look of the place is sleek and tiki-lite. The main room has several large carved plaques by Tiki Bosko on the back wall, and a large tiki by Tiki tOny stands out front.
Akamai Barnes
Kailua-Kona, Hawaii, United States (Closed)
In 1967, CBS paid for two television pilots based in Hawai'i. One was picked up, the other was not. One was Hawaii Five-O starring Jack Lord, the other was Kona Coast starring Richard Boone. I'm sure I don't have to tell you, but just in case: Hawaii Five-O was the one that went on to glory, while Kona Coast was destined to be completely unknown.
But Warner Bros, producer of Kona Coast, chose to recoup their costs by releasing Kona Coast as a film. It still is pretty darned obscure, it barely made a squeak when it came out in 1968. But -- and let's give thanks for this right now -- for some oddball reason, Warner Bros decided to release Kona Coast on a very bare-bones DVD. Now you can see this terrible, wonderful show/movie. It's full of fantastic '60s Hawaiian fashion, scenes of the gritty side of Waikiki, and scenes of Kailua-Kona on the Big Island.
Which brings us to Akamai Barnes. Akamai Barnes was a tiki bar, named for a Donn Beach-type character in Kona Coast, that was one of the main sets for the show, and was right on the main drag of town. Richard Boone was not just the star of Kona Coast, he was a driving force behind the project. Since the hope was that this would get picked up as a series, Akamai Barnes was open and operated as a real bar. A US Navy sailor who visited Kailua-Kona in June 1967 on the USS Tiru reports an evening spent at the bar; Richard Boone and the cast of Kona Coast were there, along with actors Lee Marvin and Jonathan Winters (who were not in the film; Lee Marvin and Richard Boone owned a charter boat together in Kailua-Kona).
After the shoot was finished, it must have been operating for some months before word came that it wouldn't be needed for the series after all. Richard Boone continued to live in Hawai'i, and kept Akamai Barnes running. A June 1968 article in Playboy references Akamai Barnes, calling it "one of the liveliest bars in the Pacific." Per an interview with a musician of the era in Kailua-Kona, he performed at Akamai Barnes for around five years, starting when it first opened.
Looking at scenes from Kona Coast and comparing them to Alii Drive today, it appears that the spot that held Akamai Barnes is now a vacant lot.
The Drifter
Gent, Belgium
Owner and proprietor Tom Neijens opened The Drifter in April 2014, after many years spent making classic drinks, first at home, and then at a speakeasy-themed bar he co-owned. The Drifter is his full-dive into his passion for tiki drinks and Polynesian Pop history. The small space is dominated by a beautiful, undulating mosaic tile bar, and Neijens has continued to add more and more tiki to the space over the years, with bamboo seating, carved tikis, and faux palm trees.
Hidden Harbor
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States
Hidden Harbor opened in the Squirrel Hill neighborhood of Pittsburgh in January 2016. The bar is owned by Peter and Matt Kurzweg, who own the brewery next door, and their partner, tikiphile Adam Henry. The decor is decorated in a more nautical style than a tiki style, with no bamboo, rattan or thatch. There are, however, three large tikis carved by Crazy Al Evans. The drink menu is a mix of classic tiki drinks and modern tropicals, and there are special themed nights with more focused tropical drink menus. There is a small selection of food available, including a pu-pu platter.
Liki Tiki
Colorado Springs, Colorado, United States (Closed)
Liki Tiki was a small juice bar/refreshment stand inside the Colorado Springs Bike Shop. The stand served lemonade, smoothies, and other light refreshments. The bike shop has been operating since 1973, but the small tikified stand was a newer addition, having inherited a large tiki from The Castaways in nearby Manitou Springs. The bike shop is easily spotted with its front lighthouse facade.
Liki Tiki was closed in 2019 in anticipation of the relocation of the Cerberus Brewing Company. Since 2016, Cerberus had run a brewpub on the corner opposite the bike shop (702 W. Colorado Ave.), and its popularity triggered the need for expansion. However, as of summer 2021, it appears Cerberus has remained where it is and the bike shop is still operating.
Tikitiki Bowling Bar
New Territories, Hong Kong SAR China (Closed)
Tikitiki Bowling Alley opened on October 15, 2015 in Sai Kung, in Hong Kong's New Territories. It was a large attraction, with three bars, a restaurant and a live music venue in addition to the bowling lanes.
The Krakatoa Lanes were ten bowling lanes, topped with a massive video screen with tropical and party scenes. Light fixtures were lava inspired, and the pins and balls were fluorescent colors and lit with black light.
Sea Dogs & Mermaids was the main bar, a large bar shaped like a ship and built of rustic wood, decorated in a nautical style. A row of tikis faced into the bar area. The bar served classic tropical drink recipes a la Beachbum Berry, and a selection of their own creations, in tiki mugs.
Beach Bums & Cannibals was a fine dining restaurant. The room was ringed with carved tiki panels on eggplant purple walls, with matching purple shag throw rugs under each rustic wooden table. Candelabras and chandeliers provided the lighting.
Other areas included the Octopus's Garden, with live music acts performing in front of tiki masks; and Island of the Gods, an outdoor dining area overlooking the hills of Sai Kung, backed with a row of tall tikis.
Closed @April 2024.
Tiki Bar Head Hunter
Kita-ku, Okayama, Japan
Tiki Bar Head Hunter is a small but thoroughly decorated tiki bar inside Omote-machi Play Town in Okayama. It opened in November 2011, and is owned by Yosiaki Taniguchi. Logo artwork was created for the bar by Mookie Sato.
The bar is encrusted with bamboo and festooned with netting, with thatch and float lamps and pufferfish and everything you want to see in a classic tiki bar.
Though the space is small, live acts perform regularly at Head Hunter, with an emphasis on musicians that get the mid-century American vibe.
Head Hunter is cash only.
The Pacific
Glasgow, United Kingdom (Closed)
The Pacific opened in February 2014, and was a sister location to The Tiki Bar & Kitsch Inn, also in Glasgow. Tropical cocktails were served in unique tiki mugs made by Garnet McCulloch of Fireworks Studio. The food menu was a mix of American and Thai. The space was small and not densely decorated, but a small bar was trimmed with bamboo and lauhala matting, and there were pufferfish lamps hanging from the ceiling.
Closed December, 2017 and rebranded as a new restaurant called Honu -- serving a medley of exotic foods (for Glasgow) including Thai, Korean, hamburgers, etc...and a craft cocktail menu... but all the tiki and kitsch has been stripped away.
B.G. Reynolds Tasting Room
Portland, Oregon, United States (Closed)
Since 2009, B.G. Reynolds has been selling the syrups needed for classic tropical drinks: orgeat, passion fruit, cinnamon, vanilla, special Don the Beachcomber blends, and more. The brand was originally called "Trader Tiki" and changed to "B.G. Reynolds" in 2011. In November 2015, this tasting room and storefront opened in southeast Portland. In addition to the syrups, the store also offered barware, tiki mugs, pre-mixed bottled tropical drinks, vintage aloha wear, and special cocktail mixing classes. The retail store closed in April 2016, but the syrups are still available from their online store, and are distributed to stores across the country.
Rumpus Tiki Bar
VII. kerület, Budapest, Hungary
Rumpus Tiki Bar opened in downtown Budapest in December 2013. It boasts a drink menu a mile long, but it's full of familiar old tiki favorites, and appear to be faithfully executed, right down to the tiki mugs and garnish. There are two levels, one wrapping around as an upper mezzanine, so that there is a mix of dramatic high ceiling area and more intimate low ceiling spaces. There is no break between wall and ceiling, rather sloping arches, adding a cave-like feel. Black fish nets are pinned to the ceiling, studded with globe lights dressed up as float lamps. Reed, bamboo and thatch are used throughout, perhaps more sparingly than we see in American bars, but used to great effect. There are carved tikis, and framed posters of brightly colored tikis.
Beachbum Berry's Latitude 29
New Orleans, Louisiana, United States
Beachbum Berry's Latitude 29 is the much anticipated venture of Jeff "Beachbum" Berry and his wife Annene Kaye. Berry has worked tirelessly for the past two decades (who am I kidding? he's a bum, he got tired now and then), researching the long-lost recipes for classic exotic cocktails from the heyday of Tiki. We all have the Bum (and his publishers!) to thank for the revival of the well-crafted exotic cocktail, via his books The Grog Log, Intoxica!, Taboo Table, Beachbum Berry Remixed, and Potions of the Caribbean.
Latitude 29 opened in November 2014, inside the Bienville House Hotel. The drink menu is a mix of Tiki classics (some of them the Bum has been keeping in his back pocket for just this occasion), and modern inventions by the Bum himself. Latitude 29 follows through on drink presentation, with custom swizzles and just-so garnish and ice touches. The bar team is led by Brad Smith; the Bum himself won't be found behind the bar, but rather playing host, like a Beachbum should.
The food menu, originated by chef Chris Shortall and now under the care of executive chef James Rivard, leaves the sticky-sweet Chinese-meets-pineapple history of Polynesian restaurants behind, and instead has more modern, fresh takes on the ethnic blend of flavors available in Polynesia today.
The decor is not quite the dark, encrusted enclave one might expect from a dyed-in-the-barkcloth tikiphile like Berry, but the windows and hotel location have dictated a brighter approach. There's no mistaking this space for anything but Tiki, though, thanks largely to the work of artisans Bosko and Tiki Diablo. There are large tiki carvings throughout, and behind the bar is a beautiful map depicting the carving styles found throughout the islands of the Pacific. There are many vintage beachcomber lamps and other items from Berry's long-lived Tiki collection.
Tiki Tolteca is located right next door (although they closed on September 27th, 2021 except for private parties).
Kanaloa - Glasgow
Glasgow, United Kingdom (Closed)
Kanaloa opened in 2011 as one of several themed bars within the Mansion House nightclub in Glasgow. It was a sister location to the original Kanaloa in London. There was a small mezzanine with seating overlooking the main bar below. Decor was by CheekyTiki, with no shortage of tapa and bamboo. Drinks were similar to those served at the London location, and came in tiki mugs. Kanaloa closed, along with the rest of Mansion House, in January 2016.