Post #146337 by Doctor Z on Sat, Mar 12, 2005 3:23 PM

I was stumbling along in Google and found myself at eGullet.org, a food-chat forum where I came across this post by one of their members (bold emphasis mine):

*"That reminds me of something else. Tiki lounges and their food. L.A. and environs was the Mecca for tiki lounge aficinados. From Trader Vic's in Hollywood to Kelbo's on Pico at Sepulveda to Latitude 20 in Manhattan Beach and The Lava Isle in Burbank, and etc. Kelbo's had the greatest ribs, almost like candy. The Lava Isle in Burbank (on Magnolia) was the first place I had Indonesian food - my first meal was nasi goering and I was hooked!

There was also one in the shopping center that used to front on Sepulveda Blvd. right where the airport expanded in 1961, where the east/west runway now crosses the road . I can't remember the name but it was very popular with the PSA stewardesses. (Pacific Southwest Airways - they were voted the most beautiful stewardesses in the U.S. in 1960.) It had a huge tiki with a flame coming out of the top of its head that could be seen from planes when one flew in at night.

Several friends and I used to "collect" tiki lounges and try the foods.
There are still a couple of tiki bars in Hollywood and L.A. but nothing like back in the late 50s and through the 60s.

The foods served at tiki lounges were different from any other restaurant and the drinks were elaborate, colorful and strong. The bartenders took pride in being able to construct any "tropical" drink from memory."*

Anybody heard of "The Lava Isle"? (Locating Tiki, Critiki and TRT have nothing on it) How 'bout a shopping plaza by LAX featuring a tiki with the flame so big you could see it from a plane?? The Latitude 20 was not in Manhattan Beach (actually it was about 10 miles south in Torrance), so this person's memory might be a little off...