SF Chronicle article on East Bay Tiki Bars - General Tiki

CL Coco Loco Member Exotic Isle of Alameda Joined: Mar 21, 2004 Posts: 820	CL Coco Loco Posted posted on 07/27/2009 On 2009-07-26 14:00, Molokai Mike wrote: Having been in the biz for 20+ years, I can assure you that the FI staff is the most hard-working, dedicated and craft passionate staff I have ever had the pleasure of working with! They love the TCers and strive to craft the most delicious drinks for all of you - whether on our menu or special requests from Sipping Safari (for example) . I take very kindly to constructive criticism and feedback and welcome your thoughts. We're all sad to have lost Martin - but it was ultimately his decision to move on and mine to buy his shares and we all need to respect that. I could have decided to sell too and who knows? There could now be a Forbidden Island Irish Pub or Sport bar or something! But FI meant too much to me to see it in the hands of a non Tiki owner, so my wife and I went for it! Support you local Tiki bar. That's a phrase oft repeated on this forum. If you're unwilling to do so, that's OK, but for heaven's sake, don't spoil it for others! Mahalo and Aloha! If you don't know Michael you should. He's a great guy! Michael, I want to publicly thank you for not selling FI to someone else. You not only brought us FI in the first place, you committed yourself to carrying it on when your partner decided to leave. Given the transition choice, instead of investing further in FI - by buying out his shares, you could have just sold to someone else, wiped your hands, and moved on. Your dedication to FI, and keeping it going forward strongly is greatly appreciated. Your heart in the matter is also appreciated. You truly care about people being happy in the bar, the staff service, and the quality of the drinks! I remember going out for drinks with you and Bill before FI opened and hearing all of the exciting plans you had for the bar and then seeing them come to fruition was really exciting. We are all lucky to have Forbidden Island! I also know you've been a dedicated TCer, and as such, it's my honor to support your establishment. You're doing a great job at increasing interest and positive word of mouth advertising! There's still a line to get in most nights and the bar is usually filled to capacity. And this month, you won best Bay East Bay Tiki bar AGAIN this year! Congratulations! Your team has been wonderful every time we've gone in. For goodness sakes, Susan bakes us cookies - and is an excellent mixologist, Paddie is making spot on drinks and learned the entire menu masterfully in a few weeks! and everyone else is doing a great job in over the top goodness. On the rare occasion if something isn't right, everyone on the staff immediately resolves it with a smile and a thank you. So again, thank you for your efforts and commitment to TC, the tiki community, and Forbidden Island. Thank you also to Denise, the woman behind the man. Without Denise's support, FI may not have existed. As Michael said, SUPPORT YOUR LOCAL TIKI BAR!!! I look forward to continuing doing just that with FI on Weds, visiting Smugglers Cove when it opens up, as well as all other Tiki establishments in the area. It's all good and the more tiki the better. Back on topic, great interview Michael! Mahalo! [ Edited by: Coco Loco 2009-07-26 20:49 ]

On 2009-07-26 14:00, Molokai Mike wrote:
Having been in the biz for 20+ years, I can assure you that the FI staff is the most hard-working, dedicated and craft passionate staff I have ever had the pleasure of working with! They love the TCers and strive to craft the most delicious drinks for all of you - whether on our menu or special requests from Sipping Safari (for example) .

I take very kindly to constructive criticism and feedback and welcome your thoughts. We're all sad to have lost Martin - but it was ultimately his decision to move on and mine to buy his shares and we all need to respect that.

I could have decided to sell too and who knows? There could now be a Forbidden Island Irish Pub or Sport bar or something! But FI meant too much to me to see it in the hands of a non Tiki owner, so my wife and I went for it!

Support you local Tiki bar. That's a phrase oft repeated on this forum. If you're unwilling to do so, that's OK, but for heaven's sake, don't spoil it for others!

Mahalo and Aloha!

If you don't know Michael you should. He's a great guy!

Michael, I want to publicly thank you for not selling FI to someone else. You not only brought us FI in the first place, you committed yourself to carrying it on when your partner decided to leave. Given the transition choice, instead of investing further in FI - by buying out his shares, you could have just sold to someone else, wiped your hands, and moved on.

Your dedication to FI, and keeping it going forward strongly is greatly appreciated. Your heart in the matter is also appreciated. You truly care about people being happy in the bar, the staff service, and the quality of the drinks! I remember going out for drinks with you and Bill before FI opened and hearing all of the exciting plans you had for the bar and then seeing them come to fruition was really exciting. We are all lucky to have Forbidden Island!

I also know you've been a dedicated TCer, and as such, it's my honor to support your establishment. You're doing a great job at increasing interest and positive word of mouth advertising! There's still a line to get in most nights and the bar is usually filled to capacity. And this month, you won best Bay East Bay Tiki bar AGAIN this year! Congratulations!

Your team has been wonderful every time we've gone in. For goodness sakes, Susan bakes us cookies - and is an excellent mixologist, Paddie is making spot on drinks and learned the entire menu masterfully in a few weeks! and everyone else is doing a great job in over the top goodness. On the rare occasion if something isn't right, everyone on the staff immediately resolves it with a smile and a thank you.

**So again, thank you for your efforts and commitment to TC, the tiki community, and Forbidden Island. Thank you also to Denise, the woman behind the man. Without Denise's support, FI may not have existed. **

As Michael said, SUPPORT YOUR LOCAL TIKI BAR!!! I look forward to continuing doing just that with FI on Weds, visiting Smugglers Cove when it opens up, as well as all other Tiki establishments in the area. It's all good and the more tiki the better.

Back on topic, great interview Michael!

Mahalo!

[ Edited by: Coco Loco 2009-07-26 20:49 ]

Post #471947 by Coco Loco on 07/27/2009