Post #271770 by tikiwinebear on Mon, Dec 11, 2006 2:16 PM

During our 2 week vacation to Maui over Thanksgiving this year, we took a one day excursion to Oahu. Our main objectives: to eat and drink at La Mariana Sailing Club, to check out Thor's new store (downstairs in the Beachcomber Hotel), to have a Mai Tai at the Mai Tai Bar at the Royal Hawaiian Hotel, and to eat dinner at Tiki's Grill and Bar. Having been delayed over an hour for our inter-island flight because of "President" Bush's plane shutting the Honolulu airport down, we missed the sunset at the Mai Tai Bar but were able to make it to Tiki's G&B for dinner.

This was my 6th meal at Tiki's; 5 others were 2 years previous. After waiting for the 3 young hostesses to use a computer terminal to find us a table for 2, inside, we were seated 2 paces from the main bar. Before we settled in, the 3 surrounding tables started cheering and yelling at the television monitors because there was a game on, thus things didn't get off to a great start. (Also, the bar mats needed a good bleaching too... not a pleasant smell for a true dining pleasure.) We were reassigned another table (after many finger pokes on the computer monitor again) and this time we were almost inside the restaurant. The 2 seater table was delicately balanced over the floor tracks which guided the floor-to-ceiling glass doors that separated the inside dining room to the outside lanai. This would have been acceptable, but the floor was unlevel and the table legs just couldn't find a happy medium. I then asked one of the young hostesses if we could be seated INSIDE the dining room, as in the restaurant's beautifully tiki-furnished main area.

She was taken aback, and told me that no one wanted to sit in that room, since there were no windows to see the view (it was dark outside by now, and raining) and that part of the restaurant was closed off and used by employees, only. I was in shock. I rarely have the opportunity to eat at a place so lavishly furnished with large tiki carvings, lava rock walls, framed Shag artwork, fantastic Bosco pieces, and Doug Horne art, to name just a few. I would kill to have 1/8 of those pieces! Anyway, we stayed at the tipsy 2 seater table, and had a wonderful meal (mainly due to the waiter). We got our souvenir mugs (one lidded coconut and one yellow tiki) and left the restaurant decently happy but unsettled.

Due to my previous positive experiences at Tiki Grill and Bar, I would continue to frequent their restaurant. But, I would definitely request to sit in the main dining area (aka The Lava Walled Room) to soak in the best tiki mana. Just avoid the stinky bar mats and the glass door floor tracks!!

• Myke