Which City is the Most Tiki? - Tiki Travel

STCB Sabu The Coconut Boy Tiki Socialite Carson, California Joined: Aug 20, 2002 Posts: 2813	STCB Sabu The Coconut Boy Posted posted on Fri, Aug 26, 2005 12:19 PM It's fun looking through my postcard and matchbook folders to get an idea of where the tiki hotspots were, as opposed to where they are now. California was the clear leader in poly-pop tiki culture by volume alone. But Florida wasn't far behind at all. I have literally hundreds of postcards and matchbooks from each of these states. In California you had the two progenitors of the movement - Don The Beachcomber in Hollywood and Trader Vic in Oakland. It's nice to see that despite these original locations being lost, Los Angeles and the Bay Area are both still tiki power centers. I don't think I can choose one over the other - The SF bay is dense with its larger establishments in a way that only Chicago could top (in Chicago's heyday). Los Angeles has its locations much more spread out, but there is literally tiki to be found everywhere in L.A. (apartments help to make this true). Still, Los Angeles has lost so much. You used to have Hollywood Celebrity Tiki (Don The Beachomber, Trader Vic's, The Luau in Beverly Hills, The Tahitian), then you had Working-class Tiki like Clifton's, plus you had Surf-Tiki, like the Tonga Lei and Beachbum Burt's. I miss it all. Florida was also spread out - with at least one large tiki restaurant in every major city. I would have loved to have driven through Florida in the 1960s, leapfrogging from tiki locale to tiki locale. These places were often large - almost like mini theme parks. The Mai Kai, Tiki Gardens, The South Pacific, The Luau - These are/were all large, sprawling places. I don't know quite how to classify Hawaii. In the 1960s, carved tikis existed absolutely everywhere. But frankly, that was because it was Hawaii. Based on my postcards and brochures, every modern hotel, office building, bank, theme park or giftshop seemed to have tikis. If you want to look strictly at Polynesian Pop-themed restaurants and bars that resemble the ones on the mainland (A-frames, tikis, puffer lamps, net floats, bamboo, rum drinks) then I'd say that Hawaii ranked just below California and Florida. But I could be wrong. Hawaii had the Authentic tiki culture first and foremost, which the mainland took and converted to Poly Pop, but it also seemed to embrace the fake culture right back in the 1960s and mix it with the authentic and the tourist. After all, Martin Denny and Arthur Lyman were based there and had their regular gigs there. I would definitely class their Exotica music as "Tiki", although Don Ho and Al Harrington - I would probably class them more as "Tourist". Next in line was definitely Chicago. To quote James Teitelbaum: Imagine walking around downtown Chicago back in the Tiki Heyday, and having three Pago Pagos, a Kon Tiki Ports, Don the Beachcomber, the Shangri-La, Tommy Wong's, and Trader Vics all within a few blocks. You'd be hard pressed to go for a stroll without stumbling across (or into) a Tiki Bar or four! I can't imagine what that must have been like! Walking around Shelter Island in San Diego must have been the only experience to compare at the time. After Chicago, it's hard to pin down the next largest Tiki "Power Places". New York definitely leads the remaining pack. Then I would offer Las Vegas, Seattle, San Diego, Boston, & Wildwood New Jersey as contenders. Even places like Salt Lake City had 4 or more tiki bars and restaurants. Columbus Ohio ranks just for the Kahiki alone. It was a glorious time, my friends! I think James Teitelbaum, Sven, Humuhumu, and TheJab might be best qualified to tell us where the "Most Tiki" city lies today, since they've done the most travelling to current tiki spots. I eagerly wait to hear their insights. Sabu [ Edited by: Sabu The Coconut Boy 2005-08-26 12:36 ]

It's fun looking through my postcard and matchbook folders to get an idea of where the tiki hotspots were, as opposed to where they are now.

California was the clear leader in poly-pop tiki culture by volume alone. But Florida wasn't far behind at all. I have literally hundreds of postcards and matchbooks from each of these states.

In California you had the two progenitors of the movement - Don The Beachcomber in Hollywood and Trader Vic in Oakland. It's nice to see that despite these original locations being lost, Los Angeles and the Bay Area are both still tiki power centers. I don't think I can choose one over the other - The SF bay is dense with its larger establishments in a way that only Chicago could top (in Chicago's heyday). Los Angeles has its locations much more spread out, but there is literally tiki to be found everywhere in L.A. (apartments help to make this true). Still, Los Angeles has lost so much. You used to have Hollywood Celebrity Tiki (Don The Beachomber, Trader Vic's, The Luau in Beverly Hills, The Tahitian), then you had Working-class Tiki like Clifton's, plus you had Surf-Tiki, like the Tonga Lei and Beachbum Burt's. I miss it all.

Florida was also spread out - with at least one large tiki restaurant in every major city. I would have loved to have driven through Florida in the 1960s, leapfrogging from tiki locale to tiki locale. These places were often large - almost like mini theme parks. The Mai Kai, Tiki Gardens, The South Pacific, The Luau - These are/were all large, sprawling places.

I don't know quite how to classify Hawaii. In the 1960s, carved tikis existed absolutely everywhere. But frankly, that was because it was Hawaii. Based on my postcards and brochures, every modern hotel, office building, bank, theme park or giftshop seemed to have tikis. If you want to look strictly at Polynesian Pop-themed restaurants and bars that resemble the ones on the mainland (A-frames, tikis, puffer lamps, net floats, bamboo, rum drinks) then I'd say that Hawaii ranked just below California and Florida. But I could be wrong. Hawaii had the Authentic tiki culture first and foremost, which the mainland took and converted to Poly Pop, but it also seemed to embrace the fake culture right back in the 1960s and mix it with the authentic and the tourist. After all, Martin Denny and Arthur Lyman were based there and had their regular gigs there. I would definitely class their Exotica music as "Tiki", although Don Ho and Al Harrington - I would probably class them more as "Tourist".

Next in line was definitely Chicago. To quote James Teitelbaum:

Imagine walking around downtown Chicago back in the Tiki Heyday, and having three Pago Pagos, a Kon Tiki Ports, Don the Beachcomber, the Shangri-La, Tommy Wong's, and Trader Vics all within a few blocks. You'd be hard pressed to go for a stroll without stumbling across (or into) a Tiki Bar or four!

I can't imagine what that must have been like! Walking around Shelter Island in San Diego must have been the only experience to compare at the time.

After Chicago, it's hard to pin down the next largest Tiki "Power Places". New York definitely leads the remaining pack. Then I would offer Las Vegas, Seattle, San Diego, Boston, & Wildwood New Jersey as contenders. Even places like Salt Lake City had 4 or more tiki bars and restaurants. Columbus Ohio ranks just for the Kahiki alone. It was a glorious time, my friends!

I think James Teitelbaum, Sven, Humuhumu, and TheJab might be best qualified to tell us where the "Most Tiki" city lies today, since they've done the most travelling to current tiki spots. I eagerly wait to hear their insights.

Sabu

[ Edited by: Sabu The Coconut Boy 2005-08-26 12:36 ]

Post #182128 by Sabu The Coconut Boy on Fri, Aug 26, 2005 12:19 PM