Post #428536 by bigbrotiki on Tue, Jan 13, 2009 1:21 PM

Just to clarify: Many L.A. Tiki community members and TCers have had the opportunity to meet and talk to John Valencia, the owner of the new L.A. Trader Vic's, at various classic places like the Tiki Ti, the Tonga Hut, and Damon's. John has been exceptionally interested and open towards the Tiki community, and his attention to Tiki detail and tradition has impressed many of us.

So I was very happy to, beginning in the last year, oblige John with some advice regarding the decor of this downtown Trader island. So far, although my work has in no small part aided the resurgence of interest in Trader Vic's franchises, the T.V. company had steered clear of seeking my expertise. So I was very careful to offer only my opinion, not my "demands". John ran by me several possible pieces from the Trader Vic warehouse, which as we all know has been denuded of most classic Tikis in last year's sale. I was able to warn him of the high "Poly-Asian" content in some of those remaining carvings, and give my opinion on various other decor objects. The final decision always rested with him, of course.

I recommended the use of American carvers over the Trader Vic Co. outsources in Asia, but it seems I was only partially successful. As a businessman, John Valencia has the last word on where the investors' money is spent, and so some of the interior Tikis will be Asian-made (this and the fact that the build out will be done by an Asian company is what Ben was referring to)--hopefully though, after I provided John with some traditional Oceanic Art examples, they will be less buddhist and more authentic Polynesian. The good news is that the three large exterior Tikis will be carved by Danny Gallardo aka Tiki Diablo, and that one, the tallest, will resemble the classic De Young Trader Vic's logo Tiki. I am very happy that my expertise could make a difference here, and will continue to offer it as the project progresses.

[ Edited by: bigbrotiki 2009-01-14 10:27 ]