New England Tiki

Aloha Friends,

I'm headed for Boston on Sunday and will be traveling around New England for 2 weeks. Besides the Kowloon Restaurant (which I am very fond of), does anyone have any recommendations for New England Tiki?

Mahalo,

Uncle Arty

PS. Forgive me if this topic has been covered but I can't seem to find the thread that mentioned tiki stuff in Boston, New Hampshire, etc.

Uncle Arty,
Take some pictures. I'd love to see some New England Tiki
Al

Well, this could be a wild goose chase, then again, it could be a wonderful, as of yet unexplored(?), Tiki haven-

I recently found a menu for "Fantasy Island" restaurant in Salem, Mass. I don't know the date of the menu- althought the prices looked realatively contemporary, but it has a nice full color page of "Polynesian Drinks" (with both the Fogcutter and a Suffering Bastard portrayed as arriving in tiki mugs), and a full cocktail menu, along with plenty of Polynesian and Chinese cuisine. The Polynesian food menu includes names such as;

Fantasy Island Treasure
Flaming Ambrosia
Hawaiian Wedding
Chicken Royal Hawaiian
Black Lagoon
Fantasy Island Volcano
Beef Hawaiian

So naturally, I typed the name into a search engine to see if it still existed or not. Which brought me to their home page- http://www.fisland.net/index.html. Hooray!

Some of the dishes still appear to be on their menu and there are even a few photos up on their site- http://www.fisland.net/photo.html. I can't quite tell if there are actual Tikis or not, though.

Perhaps if you're headed that way, you can send us a report.

Happy Hunting!

Fantasy Island
516 Loring Ave (Route 1A)
Salem, MASS 01970
(978) 745-1700

Forgot to mention- coupons from their webpage- http://www.fisland.net/offers.html

Cape Cod-

TIKI PORTS, TRADER ED'S, and TIKI HAWAII CHINESE RESTAURANT

Also- I have a friend who heads out to Cape Cod annually- he mentioned hearing of-

The Tiki Port Restaurant, no homepage- but here's a picture- http://www.capecodrestaurants.com/search/display.phtml?passedCustomer=921170420&passedTowns=N%3B&passedFoodTypes=N%3B&passedRestaurants=N%3B&townCode=&areaCode=&passedSearchString=Tiki%20Port%20Chinese%20Restaurant

Tiki Port Restaurant
712 Route 132 - CapeTown Mall (across from the Cape Cod Mall)
Hyannis , MA 2601
508-771-5220

or-

Tiki Port Chinese Restaurant
1160 Iyanough Rd./Rte.132 (Capetown plaza)
Hyannis
Telephone:
(508) 771-5220
Open:
Year Round

Cantonese, Polynesian, Mandarin, Szechuan cuisines
for what it's worth- "Voted the best Chinese food in the Mid Cape" (http://www.capecoddine.com/rec.html), although I've also seen a bad review or two food-wise anyway, up on the web.

menu
http://www.capecoddining.com/menu.php?itemID=335&menuID=6

Coupon- http://www.capecodrestaurants.com/weekly-coupon/ or http://www.capecodrestaurants.com/search/coupon.phtml

I also stumbled across-

Tiki Hawaii Chinese Restaurant
331 Cotuit Rd.
Sandwich
(508) 888-3543

And-

Trader Ed's at Hyannis Marina
21 Arlington St. Hyannis 508-790-8685

which also seems to be the home of-

Trader Ed's Waterfront Catering 508-790-8686 (http://ccrestaurants1.homestead.com/Restaurants_R_Z.html)

Don't know a thing about it. Anyone else here have any details?

I don't know if you'll be getting as far west as Connecticut, but if you do, check out the 40 foot tall moai that is outside the Timexpo Museum in Waterbury, CT. The museum also has an exhibit revolving around the travels and theories of Thor Heyerdahl, which includes another (albeit smaller) moai. Worth a trip if you're in the area. You can see the large moai outside at no charge, but it costs a few bucks to go inside. Here's the address for more info:

http://www.timexpo.com

~tikigreg

A must see is KING TIKI in Portsmouth, NH!...It's mentioned in the Tiki Bar Review Pages. Have Fun! Grey

Hey ya Arty!
Are you following us, we just got back from Boston last night, ugggh...lag. No tiki in Boston that we found, but have a great time! If you stay in Boston, you have to have the clam chowder at Turner Fisheries...it's a must.

Back to sleep.

midnite

Mahalo to all for the great suggestions!

I knew I could count on Tiki Centralites to guide me to paradise!

And yes, Tikigreg, I will be in Connecticut and will traveling through Waterbury, so I will definitely make a trip to the Timeexpo museum.

I'm not sure I will be able to make every stop but I'm gonna give my best shot. I'm taking my digital camera, Al, so I will post pictures when I return.

Thanks for keeping the Aloha Spirit alive!

Aloha,

Arty

Aloha (South of Boston… off of Rte. 3).
Hingham, MA

Wind Tiki
Webster, MA

Tiki Palace
Washington St. 1177 (Rte. 37)
Braintree, MA 02184
781-380-3808

Huke Lau
705 Memorial Drive
Chicopee, MA 01020
413-593-5222

Icki Aku Aku (near Boston)
Brookline, MA

Luau Hale
Lenox, MA

Kowloon
Copley Place
Boston, MA
(617) 247-8877

Kowloon
841 Broadway (Route 1 North)
Saugus, MA
(781) 233-0077

Aloha Friends,

Back from New England with photos to share. Just want to thank all of you for your marvelous tiki knowledge. I was able to get to a few key places and the rest I will leave for another time. Here is a quick overview of the places I went:

Kowloon
841 Broadway (Route 1 North)
Saugus, MA
(781) 233-0077

What can I say but that I love this place! Great drink selection and excellent food. Try the pupu platter if you go. Giant egg rolls, pork, ribs, and wontons. Comes to you with a volcano flame in the middle! They serve drinks in coconut and pineapple mugs that say Kowloon on them and they'll sell them to you for $5 bucks if you ask! The pineapple mugs even have the gold foil OMC label on the bottom.

http://photos.yahoo.com/bc/stentiki/lst?.dir=/Kowloon+Mugs&.view=t

Tiki King
Portsmouth, New Hampshire

Made the trek to Tiki King from Boston but unfortunately they did not open until 5:00 PM and I was pressed for time. To make matters worse, it was pissing down rain so the photos I took aren't great. However, it looked like a great place -- I peered longlingly through the window and they had some cool tikis and a great bamboo tiki bar inside. I plan to return in May.

Bali Hai
Saugus, MA

I found this place by accident off the 95 Fwy. The sign says chinese and polynesian cuisine. Took a picture of the outside. Inside was not very impressive. Stopped in for a Mai Tai but it looked like a geriatric convention in the bar. Bailed out shortly after that. Didn't even stay for a mai tai.

Timexpo Museum
Waterbury, CT

An amazing 40 foot moai greets you from the highway! The museum is actually a Timex Museum is dedicated to the history of Timex watches and clocks. The skinny on this is that the owners were long time friends of Thor Heyerdahl and they dedicated a whole floor to the Kon-Tiki expedition. Very cool replicas of artifacts discovered on Easter Island and Peru. They also trace the route of the Kon-Tiki and Thor's other voyages. There are clips of the Kon-Tiki documentary that show the crew capturing fish and cooking them up on the raft! Very cool! Definitely one of the highlights of the trip. (Thanks for the tip, tikigreg). I even bought a Timex watch with image of the Moai on the face -- Tiki watch!

I also scored a cool moai find in Cos Cob, CT at a local thrift store. I paid 5 bucks for two moai tikis! I got lucky there last year too when I found 3 Aloha Hut mugs for .50 cents a piece!

http://photos.yahoo.com/bc/stentiki/lst?.dir=/New+England+Tiki/Moai+Find&.view=t

Huke Lau
705 Memorial Drive
Chicopee, MA 01020
413-593-5222

This my last stop coming back from Vermont. As you can tell, I was driving all over freakin' New England! Stopped in for one mai tai. Some cool newer tikis in the bar and restaurant. The mai tai was way too sweet and they had a polynesian show going with black lights and day glow bikini tops. I felt pretty uncomfortable and so I bailed out quickly. The only thing I really liked were the tikis and I could see flaming pupu platters in the darkness.

Anyhoo, that was my New England Tiki adventure. I always try to mix a little tiki in with business and I think I got more than my share this time. Thanks for sticking with this post.

Mahalo again to all for your suggestions!

Click below for pics.

http://photos.yahoo.com/bc/stentiki/lst?.dir=/New+England+Tiki&.src=ph&.view=

Aloha,

Uncle Arty

"I do not shun adventure if it comes my way."

• Thor Heyerdahl

[ Edited by: stentiki on 2002-10-26 20:34 ]

[ Edited by: stentiki on 2002-10-26 21:04 ]

Cool pix- But I want to see your watch!

-martin

I got one of those Moai watches a few weeks ago (okay, I got two)in Waterbury. They are the tiki-est. I am also looking forward to exploring some of the other places listed here. Thanks for the exploratory work.

post a pic of that watch!

Here is a photo of the watch. I meant to do this first time around but I was having trouble with my flash.

The Moai is an image of the 40 foot Moai replica at the Timexpo Museum.

Enjoy!

Aloha,

Uncle Arty

"I do not shun adventure if it comes my way"

-Thor Heyerdahl

http://photos.yahoo.com/bc/stentiki/vwp?.dir=/New+England+Tiki&.src=ph&.dnm=Tiki+Watch.jpg&.view=t&.done=http%3a//photos.yahoo.com/bc/stentiki/lst%3f%26.dir=/New%2bEngland%2bTiki%26.src=ph%26.view=t

[ Edited by: stentiki on 2002-10-29 19:49 ]

Just back from a trip ourselves.

So when I absolutely gotta have a Mai Tai in southern Vermont what's a girl to do?

Completely by accident, we stumbled into a veritable institution- not exactly Tiki- but fantastic chinese- with !lots! of atmosphere, a great view of the river, and drinks in tiki mugs & pupu platters, the Joy Wah. Fresh authentic yummy-ness!

http://www.sover.net/~hhom/JoyWah/

Part of the reason I bring them up is not only did they have a GREAT bartender, but they do something we had never seen before-

either a coconut or pineapple mug, (similar to these- http://photos.yahoo.com/bc/stentiki/lst?.dir=/Kowloon+Mugs&.view=t) filled with a drink INSIDE a tiki bowl like this- http://www.tikiroom.net/gallery/orchids/aaw, yes, as in, coconut mug inside served inside another tiki bowl with ice. Strangeness. Anyone ever see that doen before? Is this a new england regionalism, or unique to the Joy Wah?

Once again...If any of you are up my way, let me know...I'll show you my home tiki bar! Grey

Got to follow up on my recent excursion to New England:

Kowloon- Fab exterior, interior was so-so, but I was very fond of it simply for the kitchy stuff like the rainbow fountains and occasional 80s Miami vibe. Great moving volcano mural on the wall. The Fog Cutter was vile, but the Navy Grog was good, even though it was nothing like a Navy Grog. The food was nasty, but I'm a little spoiled for good chinese food here in San Fran. The pot stickers were called "Chinese Ravioli", for god's sake. The Crab rangoon were huge and all cream cheese so they made me a little funny. They were surprised when I asked for chili oil, as spice is apparently an exotic concept. The duck dish was also an incredible oil slick that did not fit the menu description at all. And yet, I still liked the place. It has a kind of charm all it's own.

King Tiki, Portsmouth, NH- Imigine my despair to walk up to the the place and find that it is now called "The Steak Out" - steak sandwiches and burritos. sigh. Another bar bites the dust. So I stuck my head in and wandered upstairs, and to what to my wondering eyes should appear, but tikis everywhere, old hula prints, and loads of bamboo furniture. Yes, it is now perhaps the world's only tiki cheesesteak shop. So I snapped a few pix (to be posted soon), and went back down stairs to talk to the owner, a very nice guy. Apparently, they ceased being a tiki bar in January of this year for several reasons, but primarily due to pressure from city officials. Seems that the clean gentrified little boutique town of Portsmouth doesn't think that tiki bars fit in with their image. So they started harrasing him, mounting frequent surprise inspections, sending in kids one day shy of their 21st birthdays to buy drinks and then fining them, and generally harrassing them out of business. They also had trouble attracting a tourist clientele, because so many Portsmouth tourists are day-trippers, and didn't want to get bent before they drove home. So it was just the locals, who preferred Pabst. They also were the ones into the mentioned-elsewhere Heavy Metal karaoke. He said they like the locals, but that "you really have to sell a lot of Pabst to pay the bills." So he threw in the towel. He also said that anything that wasn't bolted to the floor was stolen almost instantly. He told me that guys would get drunk and he'd catch them dragging 200 pound tikis out the door behind them! When he confronted them, they looked up with sheepish eyes and slurred, "But I love the tiki." To which he said, "Yes, I love them too, but they're mine." Anyway, he plans to keep the restaurant tiki-themed, so pop in and have a sandwich when you're next in town.

That's the latest from New England, and another update for your book, JT.

-martin

PS- The giant neon cactus on route one is fantastic! As is the Leaning Tower of Pizza.

Kowloon has a concession stand at Fenway Park! I spotted this during my travels last week:

I didn't sample any of their offerings (or anything else at Fenway), as we were going to Legal Seafood for dinner after the game (mmmm.....chowdah).

--cindy

On 2003-04-28 11:39, martiki6 wrote:
Got to follow up on my recent excursion to New England:

King Tiki, Portsmouth, NH-

So I snapped a few pix (to be posted soon),

So if by soon, you mean three months, here's the pix from the interior of the former King Tiki:

Tiki Room
http://www.tikiroomboston.com/

Kon Tiki Restaurant
39 Dalton St
Boston, MA 02199
Main Phone: 617-262-3063

Tiki House
569 Moody St
Waltham, MA 02453
Main Phone: 781-899-3466

Tiki Hut Lounge
111 Sack Blvd
Leominster, MA 01453
Main Phone: 978-534-0573

I posted this in another thread as well, but I thought I'd be a little redundant, since this news is relative to both threads.

Aloha in Hingham, MA has closed, according to a long-time email correspondant who frequented the place.

:(

Tiki Palace menu

On 2002-10-26 20:25, stentiki wrote:
Timexpo Museum
Waterbury, CT

An amazing 40 foot moai greets you from the highway! The museum is actually a Timex Museum is dedicated to the history of Timex watches and clocks. The skinny on this is that the owners were long time friends of Thor Heyerdahl and they dedicated a whole floor to the Kon-Tiki expedition. Very cool replicas of artifacts discovered on Easter Island and Peru. They also trace the route of the Kon-Tiki and Thor's other voyages. There are clips of the Kon-Tiki documentary that show the crew capturing fish and cooking them up on the raft! Very cool! Definitely one of the highlights of the trip. (Thanks for the tip, tikigreg). I even bought a Timex watch with image of the Moai on the face -- Tiki watch!

I would like to see that Tiki watch!

Cool picture I borrowed from The TIMEX website. Do you have more? Please share!

Viva New England!

One more...

I will go there some day... What is it made of? I guess it's the biggest standing Moai in The U.S.A. Maybe in America... Since when it's been there? Should we create a thread exclusively for this moai in Locating tiki?
Enjoy!

Been there as long as I can remember. The Timex family were good friends with Thor Heyerdahl, and have some of his artifacts & info on display in the museum that the Moai guards.

Its worth a quick visit. the museum is like 2/3rds times & watch history, and 1/3rd Polynesian.

Oh, and you cant really get close to the moai, he's behind a fence & they get PISSED if you climb it. :wink:

Must have been there way before this post below?

Been there as long as I can remember. The Timex family were good friends with Thor Heyerdahl, and have some of his artifacts & info on display in the museum that the Moai guards.

Its worth a quick visit. the museum is like 2/3rds times & watch history, and 1/3rd Polynesian.

Oh, and you cant really get close to the moai, he's behind a fence & they get PISSED if you climb it.

As my husband and I were able to take these photos!

And many more and with this one inside. :)