Conga Lounge Oakland Mai Tai Campaign in Full Swing! - General Tiki

D dangergirl299 Grand Member (1 year) Bay Area Joined: Feb 18, 2003 Posts: 893	D dangergirl299 Posted posted on Mon, Jul 20, 2009 12:52 PM Time for another letter writing campaign: City Council: Delsey Brooks [email protected] Jean Quan [email protected] Patricia Kernighan [email protected] Ignacio De La Fuente [email protected] Nancy Nadel [email protected] Larry Reid [email protected] Jane Brunner [email protected] Mayor: Mayor Ron Dellums [email protected] Dear ______: I am writing to respectfully request that you support a proposed Resolution that would establish the Mai Tai as the official Cocktail of the City of Oakland. As you may know, the Mai Tai was created in 1944 by legendary restaurateur Victor J. "Trader Vic" Bergeron at the original Trader Vic’s on San Pablo Avenue and 65th Street in the City of Oakland (formerly known as “Hinky Dink’s”). The original Trader Vic’s brought fame and business to Oakland because it was one of the most popular establishments in Northern California's Bay Area. Its tropical cocktail concoctions, delicious Polynesian food and intriguing South Pacific theme inspired writer Herb Caen to write that the "best restaurant in San Francisco is in Oakland.” Oakland’s own Conga Lounge, which is located on College Avenue in the Rockridge district and began the Bay Area Tiki bar revival in 2003, proudly continues this Oakland tradition by serving the Mai Tai as it was first invented decades ago. The Mai Tai, which is Tahitian for "the very best,” is known worldwide as the quintessential tropical drink and one of the most famous of all cocktails. Oakland is a thriving, diverse and creative community which deserves its recognition as the Birthplace of the Mai Tai. Oakland’s City Council goals include building community and reducing crime. I believe that adopting the famous Mai Tai as the official drink for the City of Oakland will significantly further these goals in two ways. First, publicizing the Mai Tai will bring more tourists into the City of Oakland, which is often overlooked as a vacation destination. This will result in more money for the City, which can be used to pay for the needed infrastructure to build community. Second, “reducing crime” is a goal in part because Oakland unfortunately has a reputation as a city where crime is a problem. Publicizing Oakland as the birthplace of one of the most popular drinks in the world will properly shift the focus of Oakland to one that is a well-regarded and fun destination. As the eighth-largest city in California and the 44th-largest city in the United States, Oakland has much to offer tourists and conventioneers: Lake Merritt, Jack London Square, Yoshi’s, a world-class jazz venue, Children’s Fairyland, Chinatown, historic theaters, the downtown business district and Convention Center, and the Chabot Space and Science Center. Oakland also has beautiful parks, an internationally acclaimed zoo, museums, and restaurants from fun and funky to first-class. I believe the designation could give Oakland’s tourism industry a boost. The Mai Tai is as important to tourism as any offering from the attractions and restaurants of Oakland. It is a drink that is still made in Oakland in the Conga Lounge in the time-honored way, with the original ingredients. In this day of economic uncertainty, school budget cuts, the foreclosure crisis, rising health care costs and political turmoil, we need a positive symbol to focus on and inspire the optimism for hope and change that is due. In these times, folks want to sit back and relax with the original tropical drink, invented 65 years ago here in Oakland. The Mai Tai deserves a special place among the classic drinks of the world, and I can think of no drink more deserving of the honor of Official Oakland Cocktail than the Mai Tai. The Mai Tai would do for Oakland what the Sazerac did for post-Hurricane Katrina New Orleans. After Hurricane Katrina, the city's crime problem increased, offering a worry for the hospitality and tourism industry. After New Orleans adopted the Sazerac as its official cocktail, the designation took part in the city’s tourism campaign that changed its reputation from hurricane-damaged to a world holiday destination once again. Please help put Oakland back on the map as a first-class destination and support designating the Mai Tai as the official Cocktail of the City of Oakland.

Time for another letter writing campaign:

City Council:
Delsey Brooks [email protected]
Jean Quan [email protected]
Patricia Kernighan [email protected]
Ignacio De La Fuente [email protected]
Nancy Nadel [email protected]
Larry Reid [email protected]
Jane Brunner [email protected]

Mayor:
Mayor Ron Dellums [email protected]

Dear ______:

I am writing to respectfully request that you support a proposed Resolution that would establish the Mai Tai as the official Cocktail of the City of Oakland.

As you may know, the Mai Tai was created in 1944 by legendary restaurateur Victor J. "Trader Vic" Bergeron at the original Trader Vic’s on San Pablo Avenue and 65th Street in the City of Oakland (formerly known as “Hinky Dink’s”). The original Trader Vic’s brought fame and business to Oakland because it was one of the most popular establishments in Northern California's Bay Area. Its tropical cocktail concoctions, delicious Polynesian food and intriguing South Pacific theme inspired writer Herb Caen to write that the "best restaurant in San Francisco is in Oakland.”

Oakland’s own Conga Lounge, which is located on College Avenue in the Rockridge district and began the Bay Area Tiki bar revival in 2003, proudly continues this Oakland tradition by serving the Mai Tai as it was first invented decades ago. The Mai Tai, which is Tahitian for "the very best,” is known worldwide as the quintessential tropical drink and one of the most famous of all cocktails.

Oakland is a thriving, diverse and creative community which deserves its recognition as the Birthplace of the Mai Tai. Oakland’s City Council goals include building community and reducing crime. I believe that adopting the famous Mai Tai as the official drink for the City of Oakland will significantly further these goals in two ways. First, publicizing the Mai Tai will bring more tourists into the City of Oakland, which is often overlooked as a vacation destination. This will result in more money for the City, which can be used to pay for the needed infrastructure to build community. Second, “reducing crime” is a goal in part because Oakland unfortunately has a reputation as a city where crime is a problem. Publicizing Oakland as the birthplace of one of the most popular drinks in the world will properly shift the focus of Oakland to one that is a well-regarded and fun destination.

As the eighth-largest city in California and the 44th-largest city in the United States, Oakland has much to offer tourists and conventioneers: Lake Merritt, Jack London Square, Yoshi’s, a world-class jazz venue, Children’s Fairyland, Chinatown, historic theaters, the downtown business district and Convention Center, and the Chabot Space and Science Center. Oakland also has beautiful parks, an internationally acclaimed zoo, museums, and restaurants from fun and funky to first-class.

I believe the designation could give Oakland’s tourism industry a boost. The Mai Tai is as important to tourism as any offering from the attractions and restaurants of Oakland. It is a drink that is still made in Oakland in the Conga Lounge in the time-honored way, with the original ingredients. In this day of economic uncertainty, school budget cuts, the foreclosure crisis, rising health care costs and political turmoil, we need a positive symbol to focus on and inspire the optimism for hope and change that is due. In these times, folks want to sit back and relax with the original tropical drink, invented 65 years ago here in Oakland. The Mai Tai deserves a special place among the classic drinks of the world, and I can think of no drink more deserving of the honor of Official Oakland Cocktail than the Mai Tai.

The Mai Tai would do for Oakland what the Sazerac did for post-Hurricane Katrina New Orleans. After Hurricane Katrina, the city's crime problem increased, offering a worry for the hospitality and tourism industry. After New Orleans adopted the Sazerac as its official cocktail, the designation took part in the city’s tourism campaign that changed its reputation from hurricane-damaged to a world holiday destination once again.

Please help put Oakland back on the map as a first-class destination and support designating the Mai Tai as the official Cocktail of the City of Oakland.

Post #470363 by dangergirl299 on Mon, Jul 20, 2009 12:52 PM