Bootlegger Tiki, PALM SPRINGS, CA (bar) - Locating Tiki

T tikilongbeach Tiki Socialite Long Beach, CA via Dallas, TX Joined: Aug 05, 2011 Posts: 1686	T tikilongbeach Posted posted on Wed, Nov 12, 2014 8:59 AM This article has pictures of the basement space under Bootlegger Tiki. The speculation is it used to be a gambling den. http://www.desertsun.com/story/life/2014/09/07/don-the-beachcomber-palm-springs/15123257/ The sprawling, mid-century modern complex at 140 Via Lola in Palm Springs is in the throes of a renaissance. The property includes a long, rectangular, glass-facade building that faces Palm Canyon Drive and houses four — soon to be five — businesses and a handful of vacation rental apartments on the second floor, above the retail/restaurant level. Behind the building, extending west on Via Lola, is a sparkling swimming pool and more apartment units — 38 in all. The street-facing building — former home of Don the Beachcomber, one of the many Polynesian-style dining establishments opened by Ernest Raymond Beaumont Gantt, known as the founding father of tiki restaurants, bars and nightclubs — is being re-imagined by the owners of Palm Springs-based H3K Design. "We've taken a mid-century modern building and re-envisioned it for the 21st century," H3K Design co-owner Howard Hawkes said. Renovation on the property — owned by Tim Brinkman and Paul Warrin of San Francisco — began in the spring of 2012 when Hawkes and partner Kevin Kemper went to work on the living spaces, installing new kitchens and bathrooms. The crisp, white exterior is accented with bright orange awnings that match the poolside lounge chairs. Glass and metal railings frame the upstairs apartments and outdoor staircase. Four tenants are already installed in the former Don the Beachcomber home, which opened March 2, 1953 in the new Sunset Towers building, as it was called at the time. The building was constructed in 1951. Ernest Coffee Co., named for the founder of the chain of Don the Beachcomber restaurants, Bootlegger Tiki, Archangel Gallery and Woodman Shimko Gallery are up and running. The design team is currently working on a 5,800 square-foot renovation at the far north end of the building that will soon be home to Dish Creative Cuisine. Dish chef/owners Joane Garcia-Colson and Michelle Heinrich hope to have the restaurant up and running by mid-October. Dish is moving from its location in Cathedral City, where it has operated for the past two years. The basement of the building is a maze of tunnels that eventually dead end into block walls. One tunnel, a crawl-hole-sized space just below street level under Dish is said to lead under Palm Canyon Drive to what is now Desert Regional Medical Center. In those days, it was the El Mirador Hotel. Entry to the small hole burrowed into the block wall is closed off, jail cell-style, by rebar. "Rumor has it that it was an escape route if people were down there gambling," Hawkes said. There are a number of large storage-type rooms — speakeasy sized — and a huge walk-in refrigerator/freezer with a vintage wooden door. A small elevator, painted yellow inside, sits near a creaky staircase. In a small niche nearby, the bottom of an old dumbwaiter hovers near a vent that pours daylight into the space. Back in its hey-day, the restaurant and bar, which occupied the entire building, was frequented by Hollywood elite and the who's who in business and industry. Opening night, as reported by The Desert Sun at the time, was a star-studded affair — glitz and glamour under the backdrop of the tropics. "The haunting beauty of the islands expressed in architecture, tropical plantings and matting-covered walls," wrote Hildy Crawford in her column, Around Town. "Cantonese food and drinks with such improbable names as 'Missionary's Downfall, marked the opening of Don the Beachcomber ... paddles, harpoons, wooden shields and shells from the beaches carry out the decor. Over the bar hangs a bunch of bananas and a quaint bamboo bird cage." Opening night parties were hosted by the likes of singer/actor Bing Crosby, film director/producer Mervyn LeRoy - he became head of production at MGM in 1938 and was nominated for an Academy Award as producer of "The Wizard of Oz," Col. Winthrop Rockefeller, who would become the 37th governor of Arkansas in 1967, and radio comedian Freeman Gosden, who voiced Amos in the "Amos 'n' Andy" show. And the famous didn't only frequent the the popular establishment - some even lived on the property. "There were a handful of noteworthy people who lived in the building back in the day," Hawkes said. Those include interior designer Arthur Elrod, local fashion designer Bess Bender, Ray Ryan, owner of the El Mirador Hotel — he was purported to have ties to the Mob — Palm Springs City Councilman and Mayor George Beebee and actor Zeppo Marx. Hawkes said the property operated more like a hotel during the time Don the Beachcomber was in business. There was a cafe on the premises that served breakfast and lunch. The building has gone through several incarnations through the years, and was in a state of disrepair when the current owners bought the property, Hawkes said. In just a few months, the Dish renovation will be complete and the designers might turn their attention to the basement. There's a rumor a speakeasy might be on tap.

This article has pictures of the basement space under Bootlegger Tiki. The speculation is it used to be a gambling den.

http://www.desertsun.com/story/life/2014/09/07/don-the-beachcomber-palm-springs/15123257/

The sprawling, mid-century modern complex at 140 Via Lola in Palm Springs is in the throes of a renaissance.

The property includes a long, rectangular, glass-facade building that faces Palm Canyon Drive and houses four — soon to be five — businesses and a handful of vacation rental apartments on the second floor, above the retail/restaurant level.

Behind the building, extending west on Via Lola, is a sparkling swimming pool and more apartment units — 38 in all.

The street-facing building — former home of Don the Beachcomber, one of the many Polynesian-style dining establishments opened by Ernest Raymond Beaumont Gantt, known as the founding father of tiki restaurants, bars and nightclubs — is being re-imagined by the owners of Palm Springs-based H3K Design.

"We've taken a mid-century modern building and re-envisioned it for the 21st century," H3K Design co-owner Howard Hawkes said.

Renovation on the property — owned by Tim Brinkman and Paul Warrin of San Francisco — began in the spring of 2012 when Hawkes and partner Kevin Kemper went to work on the living spaces, installing new kitchens and bathrooms.

The crisp, white exterior is accented with bright orange awnings that match the poolside lounge chairs. Glass and metal railings frame the upstairs apartments and outdoor staircase.

Four tenants are already installed in the former Don the Beachcomber home, which opened March 2, 1953 in the new Sunset Towers building, as it was called at the time.

The building was constructed in 1951.

Ernest Coffee Co., named for the founder of the chain of Don the Beachcomber restaurants, Bootlegger Tiki, Archangel Gallery and Woodman Shimko Gallery are up and running. The design team is currently working on a 5,800 square-foot renovation at the far north end of the building that will soon be home to Dish Creative Cuisine. Dish chef/owners Joane Garcia-Colson and Michelle Heinrich hope to have the restaurant up and running by mid-October. Dish is moving from its location in Cathedral City, where it has operated for the past two years.

The basement of the building is a maze of tunnels that eventually dead end into block
walls. One tunnel, a crawl-hole-sized space just below street level under Dish is said to lead under Palm Canyon Drive to what is now Desert Regional Medical Center. In those days, it was the El Mirador Hotel. Entry to the small hole burrowed into the block wall is closed off, jail cell-style, by rebar.

"Rumor has it that it was an escape route if people were down there gambling," Hawkes said.

There are a number of large storage-type rooms — speakeasy sized — and a huge walk-in refrigerator/freezer with a vintage wooden door. A small elevator, painted yellow inside, sits near a creaky staircase. In a small niche nearby, the bottom of an old dumbwaiter hovers near a vent that pours daylight into the space.

Back in its hey-day, the restaurant and bar, which occupied the entire building, was frequented by Hollywood elite and the who's who in business and industry.

Opening night, as reported by The Desert Sun at the time, was a star-studded affair — glitz and glamour under the backdrop of the tropics.

"The haunting beauty of the islands expressed in architecture, tropical plantings and matting-covered walls," wrote Hildy Crawford in her column, Around Town. "Cantonese food and drinks with such improbable names as 'Missionary's Downfall, marked the opening of Don the Beachcomber ... paddles, harpoons, wooden shields and shells from the beaches carry out the decor. Over the bar hangs a bunch of bananas and a quaint bamboo bird cage."

Opening night parties were hosted by the likes of singer/actor Bing Crosby, film director/producer Mervyn LeRoy - he became head of production at MGM in 1938 and was nominated for an Academy Award as producer of "The Wizard of Oz," Col. Winthrop Rockefeller, who would become the 37th governor of Arkansas in 1967, and radio comedian Freeman Gosden, who voiced Amos in the "Amos 'n' Andy" show.

And the famous didn't only frequent the the popular establishment - some even lived on the property.

"There were a handful of noteworthy people who lived in the building back in the day," Hawkes said.

Those include interior designer Arthur Elrod, local fashion designer Bess Bender, Ray Ryan, owner of the El Mirador Hotel — he was purported to have ties to the Mob — Palm Springs City Councilman and Mayor George Beebee and actor Zeppo Marx.

Hawkes said the property operated more like a hotel during the time Don the Beachcomber was in business. There was a cafe on the premises that served breakfast and lunch.

The building has gone through several incarnations through the years, and was in a state of disrepair when the current owners bought the property, Hawkes said.

In just a few months, the Dish renovation will be complete and the designers might turn their attention to the basement. There's a rumor a speakeasy might be on tap.

Post #731312 by tikilongbeach on Wed, Nov 12, 2014 8:59 AM