Post #762139 by Kahuna Tiki on Fri, Apr 8, 2016 10:20 AM

Finally, after four months, I was able to go to the Shameful Tiki Room last night with my buddy. I was pleasantly surprised.

Before I went, I did some research to see what people’s reviews were like. I don’t care too much about what newspapers and magazines say. You know that more often than not, they’ll give a nice, bright, shiny review. Instead, I wanted to know what customers thought. And overall, the reviews were good. There were one or two really negative reviews, which surprised me. Not because they were negative, but rather because of the verbiage the customers used to describe their experience. Eg. “If you enjoy ice with food colouring and mystery meat with salt…you'll enjoy this place.” What the hell was THAT all about?

I decided to keep an open mind.

My first impression: darkness. I mean, it was REALLY dark. I have a tiki bar in my basement, but it’s not as dark as the Shameful Tiki. The bartender, Mélanie, gave me a flashlight so I could read the menu. :P Still, I think this is how a tiki bar should be and it definitely gave it that ‘dark tiki jungle’ feel. Perfect.

But when my eyes adjusted, I was impressed. The décor was authentic tiki all the way. Hand carved tikis. Fish float lamps. Puffer fish. Tiki mugs (of course). Plants. Murals. A few skulls just to make it a little ‘darker’. Basically, most of the same things I have in my bar, but taken that much further. It was very impressive.

My friend and I ordered drinks and something to eat. He had a Jet Pilot and I had a Mai Tai. Both were made to perfection. One nice touch: the Mai Tai was flaming, which I would never have thought to do, but which made it more decorative. I also later had a Rum Barrel and a Painkiller. Both were exceptional, and Mélanie certainly had mad skills. The cocktails all have strength ratings on the menu. Caveat Emptor: choose wisely!

While we were there, we got to witness both the Mystery Bowl ceremony (where they bang the gong that hangs over the bar) and the Volcano Bowl ceremony (a prerecorded volcano erupts, and everyone shouts ‘Volcanoooo Bowl’). These both lend a fun atmosphere to the bar.

The food, while portionally small (it’s a bar, not a restaurant, people) was delicious. My friend had the Crab Rangoon and I had the Luau Sliders and the Humuhumunukunukuapua Tacos (try saying that three times when you’ve been drinking!). The Crab Rangoon certainly smelled good (I didn’t sample it, but will next time) and my buddy said it was delicious. Both the sliders and the tacos were similarly tasty. I have absolutely NO complaints about the food, so I’m not sure what that one person was referring to ‘mystery meat with salt. This was certainly not the case.

I should also mention that it was a real pleasure to meet Alana, who is half owner and chief mixologist. I really enjoyed speaking with her and she is quite knowledgeable about all things tiki. She also had mad skills behind the bar, so you know that when she’s mixing your drink, you’ll end up with something exceptional.

I suppose the only down side to my visit was not meeting Rod Moore. He was the inspiration behind the Shameful Tiki and, I was told, carved the six foot tikis that are in the bar. Still, my understanding is that he runs the original Shameful Tiki in Vancouver, so I hope to meet him on one of my subsequent visits.

Overall, I really enjoyed myself. I walked away with two of the house tiki mugs and one of their menus as souvenirs. I fully plan to go back there, and certainly won’t wait another four months. I need to continue my journey through their drinks menu. :wink: If you live in the GTA, or are visiting Toronto, I would DEFINITELY recommend visiting the Shameful Tiki Room.

I guarantee you’ll love it.