Post #816550 by kkocka on Tue, Aug 5, 2025 10:59 AM

Well it's been a long time coming since TVSJ was first announced, but I happily enjoyed my first visit yesterday. I exclusively flew from Burbank to San Jose and back for a very cheap fare, and had a little under 5 hours.

The food was good (kalua pork panini and spam musubi) although I missed out on loco moco which is only offered for breakfast until 1030. The drinks were good for the most part, but the navy grog was a miss for me. It just tasted off, or weak in terms of flavor. The booze was still there.

I really enjoyed their exclusive Pilo Pilo, twice, and the Samoan Fog Cutter. I've heard mixed reviews about TV's drinks over the years but I'm happy to say those were on point, especially the Fog Cutter. Strange that I didn't really hear or see much in the way of cocktail shaking, so maybe they were weak shakes or they just poured it all into the glass as-is, although they tasted like they were mixed well enough. I don't expect top bartenders to be at an airport tiki bar, but certainly we all have our minimal expectations under a name like Trader Vic's.

Although very open and airy, there was still enough theming throughout. I enjoyed the various tikis present (some of them duplicated in the space) as well as patterns and other decor. Probably the "weakest" element were the multicolored glass float lights, but overall I had a great time. Too bad the only access is via flying.

[ Edited by kkocka on 2025-08-05 10:59:16 ]