Post #785746 by HotelCharlieEcho on Fri, Apr 6, 2018 10:57 AM

Apologies for dredging up an old topic, but this thread (and in particular Sabu's post about his fantasy 1963 PCH Tiki Pub Crawl: http://www.tikicentral.com/viewtopic.php?topic=33196&forum=2&vpost=554307) really inspired me to dig a little further into those "smaller tiki-themed restaurants and bars of Long Beach like the Samoa, the Pago Pago, and other places still waiting to be re-discovered".

The smaller places he mentioned included specific references to the Samoa (which I did a little digging on and posted about here: http://www.tikicentral.com/viewtopic.php?topic=52739&forum=2), and the Pago Pago (which seems to have been part of a larger chain bigbro discussed here: http://www.tikicentral.com/viewtopic.php?topic=32034&forum=2, although the Long Beach location doesn't seem to have its own thread yet), as well as images of ads for Jakamos (which dustycajun posted about here: http://www.tikicentral.com/viewtopic.php?topic=41909&forum=2) and an ad for a restaurant called Keona (AKA Keona Club AKA Keona's). Keona does not appear either on Critiki or in Tiki Road Trip.

Interestingly, my research into Keona suggests that, despite the name (which seems to be Hawaiian for something like "the louse/mite"?), it may not have actually been a Poly-pop/tiki place after all.

According to this article about the current occupant of the space from The Grunion Gazette dated June 21, 2013, Keona operated from 1944 to 1990 - a fairly impressive run. http://www.gazettes.com/dining/profiles_in_dining/dining-profile-roxanne-s-expanding-into-speakeasy/article_426ff0b6-d916-11e2-ae66-0019bb2963f4.html. It was located at 1115 East Wardlow Road and owned by Chuck and Peggy Heckel. According to his obituary in the March 19, 1997, Independent, Chuck passed away in 1997:

I looked at a number of reviews and ads spanning several decades, and can't find any reference to any Polynesia/Exotica influence in décor, cuisine, cocktails, or otherwise.

(Short reference from March 1, 1963, Independent:)

(Ad from March 15, 1963, Independent:)

(Ad from February 28, 1964, Independent:)

(Ad from April 29, 1966, Independent:)

(Review from March 28, 1969, Independent:)

(Ad from September 17, 1970, Independent:)

(Short Review from June 29, 1972, Independent:)

(Review from April 26, 1974, Independent:)

(Review from December 28, 1975, Independent:)

(Ad from January 24, 1986, Independent:)

Their primary draws seem to have been menu items, including the opportunity to cook your own steaks...

...and a large, reasonably priced shrimp cocktail.

When their cocktail program was referenced at all, the only drinks mentioned seem to have been fairly standard daiquiris and margaritas (see April 26, 1974 review above).

There seems to be little ephemera out there, but their matchbooks are relatively easy to come by (in pink and green, in addition to this lavender). Note the lack of any Polynesian/tiki influence:

So unless others have evidence to the contrary, time-traveling Tiki fans visiting 1963 for Sabu's pub crawl can probably skip Keona.

The location is currently Roxanne's: