Post #293523 by TraderPeg on Wed, Mar 21, 2007 6:03 AM

We arrived at 7:00 PM on Sunday night; the place was all but empty. The bartender greeted us enthusiastically and placed the drink menu down, then busied himself while we looked it over. We chose a Mai Tai, a Zombie and a Blue Hawaii; they were served promptly and beautifully decorated in Tiki Farm mugs, and they tasted pretty good, too.

We took plenty of time savoring our drinks, chatting and looking over the décor, which is lovely. The place will probably seem smallish to you Californians but there is another room that’s used for parties. The Tiki Hut bar area is decorated with adorable dioramas under the glass top; there are little wahines and surfers to look at, plenty of thatch and bamboo and puffer fish. The wall murals of Hawaiian scenes are nicely-executed, and the rattan furnishings are attractive and sturdy.

I know Wally’s has received some bad press here but we were treated well. The cute little chef came out with some plates of kimchee for us when we sat down to dinner, and when the floor show was about to start, he instructed us to move around the table for a better view. The Deluxe Puu Puu Platter was very good, generously-sized and there was none of the oiliness you’ve come to expect at the older places; it had babyback ribs and calamari on it, as well as these light, delicate rice paper rolls with fresh vegetables and mint in them. The bartender came over to ask about another round, and we decided to do a Volcano bowl full of Zombies; it was yummy and potent – woo hoo!

The floor show was so cool it almost had me in tears, only because I’ve never been to Hawaii and this was so much like the shows I’ve only seen on Hawaii Five O and Hawaiian Eye – and here I was in person! By pre-arrangement the dancers brought me their fresh flower leis which smelled wonderful. They danced to recorded Hawaiian music and when they weren’t on, the bartender played an interesting assortment of Polynesian exotica, reggae, oldies and spy jazz. Later a young man came out with a ukulele and guitar and played soft folky, punky tunes – not exotica but pleasant enough.

The entrees were good with fresh ingredients; they seem to enjoy switching the preparation of their entrees at will but that was OK – and I think you can order any variety of fried rice if nothing else appeals. Frankly, after that Puu Puu platter I didn’t even need an entrée.

The crowd thinned out to quiet after-dinner drinkers by the time we left at 10:15. The chef came out to give me a bag for my leis and to tell me how to take care of them as he had made them himself. He and the bartender both said goodnight to us as we left, and we’ll definitely be back soon.