Help the Mai-Kai be voted as South Floridas #1 Restaurant

http://www.southflorida.com/dining/sfe-thebest-landmarkrestaurants,0,3200350.story?coll=sfe-main-promo

"He who does anything because it is the custom makes no choice."
Tiki Jam 2

[ Edited by: Loki 2006-03-21 11:11 ]

[ Edited by: loki 2006-03-23 04:54 ]

Done and done!

Good looking out Loki!

If EVERYBODY on this forum votes The Mai Kai is a shoe-in!

With over 4200 + registered T.C. users, this should be a landslide victory!

Get out the vote!
Vote Mai Kai 2006! :D

We need 60 more votes to get the lead...

I don't know... the Rustic Inn has some pretty tasty garlic crabs and Tropical Acres grills a great steak!

Done - I just sent this to dozens of people!

What, just 8 reviews so far? And so many of them bad, (obviously by people who have not read my intro to Tiki Road Trip!)

C'mon everybody, pitch in, give them 4 stars across the board!

I've just written up a review, the fabulous Mai Kai deserves to be #1!

Mai Kai: 84
Leader: 130

We gotta narrow that gap. Notice all the bad reviews are from locals...

here is my review ( I used a little artistic license in the begining);
"When I first went here about 5 years ago,I expected a mediocre experience at best. Sure,I heard that the place looks great and the exotic drinks were "good",but I figured the food to be mediocre at best and the Polynesian show to be entertaining, but hokey.
Boy was I surprised! The food I ate is great(get the Chinese woodburning oven dishes),the drinks are great and the ever-changing show to be the best I have ever seen!In fact the Mai-Kai is my main reason for visiting Florida!"

In like a mai tai!

I Voted too!! C'mon we got to win this thing!!!!! Nice review MrSmiley.

Cheers and Mahalo,
Jeff

On 2006-03-20 12:57, Jeff Central wrote:
I Voted too!! C'mon we got to win this thing!!!!! Nice review MrSmiley.

Cheers and Mahalo,
Jeff

Thanks, there is a limit of 500 characters-my longer review was MUCH better! :)

If we can make The Drugstore Antiques in SF , and Shasta Soda's Tiki Punch both #1, we better be able to do the same for the Mai Kai!

Mr. Smiley is the most thirstiesterest of
all!
Have a nice Tiki Day!
If you like it,it is ZAZZ! If you don't, give it a RAZZ.

[ Edited by: mrsmiley 2006-03-20 13:39 ]

One more for the Mai Kai! Current count 118.

128 to 132! 3 Votes from first place!

I added my two cents to the review page.

It is funny how all of the negative reviews are from locals. I have found that most of our locals don't appreciate anything older than themselves.

At the same time. seeing the Mai Kai packed almost every night makes me happy. It means that there is no room for the unhappy locals and more room for the regulars like me and Andy.

Just put my vote in. Is that countdown of the best places from this year or last year? Number 7? Doesn't sound right.

As a person who grew up in South Florida, I know exactly why some of the locals look down their noses at the Mai Kai. Two words: 'tourist trap'. Quite frankly if I was older when I moved down there, I probably would've checked it out sooner, but according to my family it was a no-go because of the said 'trap' factor. And to be fair there are alot of 'tourist traps' all over Florida. Anything that has a theme to it could be fairly or unfairly classified as such. I still get funny looks from my Dad when I go back home and tell them I'm going to the Mai Kai for dinner or drinks.

I avoided the Mai Kai during high school for the obvious reasons. When your're that age, and you have the largest ever Spring Break crowd around you (early 80s) you don't care about something like the Mai Kai, not to mention that it's too expensive for a teenager unless your family has money to burn. Teen years are beer years anyway. After I left Ft. Lauderdale and got a little more education in Kitsch and cocktail mixology among other things, I REALLY appreciated and continue to appreciate the Mai Kai. What I don't get are the reviews that said the place was 'dirty' and the drinks were 'watered down'. What?? I mean cleanliness is relative, even though I don't see it as dirty at all! But to say that the drinks are watered down? Either that person has got an extremely high tolerance for alcohol or they're just a career alcoholic themselves. And the whole 'overpriced' thing. What decent restaurant, that has a dinner show no less, is not overpriced? There are plenty of other 'overpriced' restaurants in that area that aren't nearly as much fun. And not to offend anybody here, but those reviews just sounded like a bunch of rednecks. As stated in an earlier post here, 'South Floridians don't seem to like anything older than themselves'. You got that right! That was one thing I couldn't stand about living there as a teen. That area at least at that time had, in my opinion,no future and definitely no past. History? What history?

The other thing I don't understand is how Tropical Acres was voted number one. Someone in my family who is a Florida native was always telling me about that place and how retro it was. A few years back, we had a family birthday party there, and maybe I wasn't looking hard enough, but I didn't see much in terms of retro value at all. The food was as I recall, okay. Nothing good, nothing bad. But I kinda walked outta there thinking that that person in my family had a different idea about what I thought was South Florida retro. It was definitely an old place but totally modernized and renovated, uncharacteristically I might add. I didn't see one damn intriguing thing about it. "To each his own' I guess. Hopefully the Mai Kai can be number one this year as it should be!

Well, considering WE are engaging in a little voting manipulation, I would not be surprised if the competition is doing something along those lines, and some friends of some of the places are slipping in some negative reviews with others...wouldn't that get the ratings of the leading competitors down?
That seems like the only explanation for that "watered down drinks" critique...

...and:

On 2006-03-20 17:34, donhonyc wrote:
The other thing I don't understand is how Tropical Acres was voted number one. Someone in my family who is a Florida native was always telling me about that place and how retro it was......It was definitely an old place but totally modernized and renovated, uncharacteristically I might add. I didn't see one damn intriguing thing about it.

It never ceases to amaze me how some people have NO sense for vintage qualities, mixing up new with old and good style with bad style. It's like they have EYES but do not SEE. Another world.

We have a winner! Keep it up!

Almost to 1,000 votes and MAi Kai is in the lead!

Don't just vote, leave a four star review. That rating has to come up.

Sometimes local reviews are accurate but the ones on there just do not seem right. Maybe the local competition getting in a few jabs? We have some restaurants around here I would steer people away from but nothing like the Mai-Kai and certainly nothing that would make a top-10 list.

TTT

I can actually imagine why they say the drinks are watered down and over priced... because they are well made. First, they are comparing the price of Mai Kai drinks to a high ball somewhere else when they should compare the price to the Martini or special menu elsewhere. They are in line that way. Second, most people are used to a strong drink making them gasp. At the Mai Kai, you are not going to "taste" the liquor in most any drink. So, the average person isn't going to know just how much alcohol they have in them till they walk to the bathroom. And they may not get that far. If they are obnoxious enough, they won't even buy any of those "high priced" drinks and just taste one of someone elses and talk about how watered down and expensive they are.

It reminds me of a story Hoffa recounted. He and his wife were there for Happy Hour in vintage finery and some 'tards in shorts and flip-flops made some smart remark about their dress. They replied about dressing correctly for a fine restauarant and their love of the place. The locals then said how they also loved the Mai Kai, but went on to say how they need to turn the lights up. It's too dark in there. You just never know.

I met a guy yesterday from Fort Lauderdale who never heard of it. We just have to keep up the work and make sure everyone on Earth knows they must visit the Mai Kai when they are anywhere near Fort Lauderdale.

But that Trader Vic's Emoryville, that's a tourist trap. Don't go there. And those islands in the Pacific, Hawaii, tourist trap...

Just put my vote in for the Mai Kai!

On 2006-03-20 10:39, bigbrotiki wrote:
What, just 8 reviews so far?

This is likely explained by this quote from the site: "Reviews are posted after approval by SouthFlorida.com"

On 2006-03-21 08:50, GatorRob wrote:
Just put my vote in for the Mai Kai!

On 2006-03-20 10:39, bigbrotiki wrote:
What, just 8 reviews so far?

This is likely explained by this quote from the site: "Reviews are posted after approval by SouthFlorida.com"

They're probably wondering why they are suddenly getting a flood of Mai Kai reviews...

[ Edited by: freddiefreelance 2006-03-21 13:36 ]

Looks like we caused a stir in the results. It seems they have cleared all the Mai-Kai votes back to zero and taken it out of the top ten list. What gives?

What a scam! The Mai-Kai only has 5 votes now.

Re: Tropical Acres: When I went to Florida for the first time I was driving down Hwy. 1 and saw the old neon sign at the road to Tropical Acres. I was excited by the sign and the name, but was sorely disappointed when I saw the inside. It was grossly remodeled some time ago.

What a scam! The Mai-Kai only has 5 votes now.

Re: Tropical Acres: When I went to Florida for the first time I was driving down Hwy. 1 and saw the old neon sign at the road to Tropical Acres. I was excited by the sign and the name, but was sorely disappointed when I saw the inside. It was grossly remodeled some time ago.

On 2006-03-21 11:09, Loki wrote:
Looks like we caused a stir in the results. It seems they have cleared all the Mai-Kai votes back to zero and taken it out of the top ten list. What gives?

Lets not give up. Post SPECIFICS without sounding like you're auditioning for a job at an ad firm. I don't see any reason not to mention that you live somewhere else and visit as often as possible, collect tikis and poly-pop etc.

Check out their rules:

**SouthFlorida.com editors check and approve ALL reader reviews. Reviews with offensive or inflammatory language are immediately deleted. We do not post anonymous reviews or reviews with obvious pseudonyms. Reviews by restaurant owners, publicists and the like are prohibited. Editors reserve the right to suppress a review if it reads like a sales pitch from a restaurant owner, publicist and the like. Editors also reserve the right to remove any and all postings at their discretion.

Negative reviews can be suppressed if overly critical without details to support why ("This place is terrible" vs. "The food is too salty and service is inattentive"). The same applies for reviews that single out specific employees for criticism. Editors reserve the right to edit grammatical, spelling and factual errors in reader reviews or to omit a review if it's so riddled with such errors as to be undecipherable. Reviews written in ALL CAPS will also not be accepted.**

Donhonyc is correct about the local feeling in S. Fla. that the Mai Kai is a 'tourist trap'... and they do adverstise heavily with brochures in places where tourists frequent so naturally there is a large number of tourists who go to Mai Kai. But I'm glad to see that there are enough tourists and enough regulars like Chip and Andy to keep the Mai Kai doing a brisk business. Hopefully, with that kind of support it will stay open forever!

Personally, I love everything about the Mai Kai (except the surroundings which popped up after the place was built... such as the City Furniture, with its red neon sign, that was build right next door, which which you can see from the gardens). But I can see why most of the bad reviews are from locals. There was a time a while back when I mostly just went to the Mai Kai for happy hour (2 for 1 Barrels, woo hoo) because while I loved the atmosphere, I didn't care much for the food... and it is fairly expensive. I would bet that some of those bad reviews are from locals who haven't been to the Mai Kai in several years and they recall a bad dining experience.

In the past few years, however, I have found the food to be great. If you don't know about it, ask for the "Bali Hai" menu which is an all-inclusive menu, including a choice of appetizer, entree, desert and includes the show -- all for $45. I highly recommend the Szechuan Surf and Turf (which is Filet and Lobster). Unfortuantely they recently took that dish off the Bali Hai menu, but they still let me order it the last time I was there. :) Anyway, you have to specifically ask for the Bali Hai menu... they don't just offer it to you.

Regarding Tropical Acres, I can understand why they are on the list as a landmark. It is not so much for the look of the place, but because it has been around for so long... about as long as the Mai Kai, or maybe longer. I agree with Donhonyc that the place is nothing to look at. In fact, I think it used to be a house (and not a very nice one) that was expanded at some point.

What astounds me about the online poll is the number of votes for Tropical Acres. Most people on TC will not appreciate this, but the average age of a person who dines at Tropical Acres has to be around 70. The only times I have ever been there is when my grandparents had a birthday or something like that. Are there that many senior citizens out there on the internet to generate a #1 vote?

Finally, while I appreciate the enthusiasm of many people on TC wanting to have the Mai Kai voted as the top South Florida landmark restaurant, I don't think it would be fair for people who have never been there -- or to any of the other restaurants on the list for that matter -- to cast a vote just for the sake of making the Mai Kai #1. I know many people on TC have been to the Mai Kai either for the Hukilau events or otherwise, but I am sure not everyone voting for the Mai Kai has. And many voters may have never been to the other restaurants on the list. Personally, I have been to 8 of the top 10 and I think that the Mai Kai is the #1 landmark, but that is only because I have been to most of the other restaurants to compare. I think that the Southflorida.com editors yanked the Mai Kai's votes because of this. Just my two cents.

[ Edited by: joefla70 2006-03-21 12:10 ]

Okey Dokey...

I just called the Mai Kai to inform them of the vote purge and will call back after 3:30 to speak with Kern, the general manager.

Then I called someone at the Sun-Centinal and was given the name and phone number of Bonnie Gross, Producer of Online content and that of her assistant Amy, so that I might communicate my concerns about legitimate votes and reviews being purged from the SouthFlorida.com web poll.

I had planned to mention that I am part of an international comunity of Tiki Enthusiats who routinely travel great distances to patronize exotic resturants and bars. I would express my concearn that shortly after we became aware of and began to participate in the [b}The 10 best landmark restaurants in South Florida[/b] online poll, our votes for and reviews of the Mai Kai had been purged. I would clearly note that none of our members are professional reviewers nor are we associated with the Mai Kai in any way.

I might have even asked if the Sun-Centinal is purposely continuing the time honored South Floridaian tradition of purging legitimate votes.

Unfortunately I got their voicemails. I will call again.

Well, if they want to play like that, then tell them I'm going to cancel my subscription to their Newspaper. I've got the Palm Beach Post on the other line....

On 2006-03-21 12:22, hodadhank wrote:
I had planned to mention that I am part of an international comunity of Tiki Enthusiats who routinely travel great distances to patronize exotic resturants and bars. I would express my concearn that shortly after we became aware of and began to participate in the [b}The 10 best landmark restaurants in South Florida[/b] online poll, our votes for and reviews of the Mai Kai had been purged. I would clearly note that none of our members are professional reviewers nor are we associated with the Mai Kai in any way.

Do you think that is a good idea? I think this is the very reason why the votes got purged in the first place. They probably thought that a large number of people got together and decided to vote for the Mai Kai in order to get it to be the #1 South Florida landmark restaurant... which is kinda what happened.

On 2006-03-21 12:22, hodadhank wrote:
I might have even asked if the Sun-Centinal is purposely continuing the time honored South Floridaian tradition of purging legitimate votes.

I agree with you 100% if all the votes were actually legitimate. The Sun-Sentinel / southflorida.com certainly did purge many votes and reviews that were legitimate... but were they all legitimate? It seemed to me that the idea brought up earlier in this post was to get Mai Kai voted as the #1 South Florida landmark restaurant... not to have TC members vote which of the restaurants on the list is actually worthy of being #1. If all the TC members who voted have actually been to the Mai Kai, that's one thing. But if they have never been there -- and they have never been to any of the other resturants in contention-- then there is no basis for the vote. That is probably what the editors suspected. However, I don't know how the sun-sentinel / southflorida.com editors could know which votes, for any restaurant, are "legitimate" and which ones are not.

Just got off the phone with Bonnie Gross.

I explained my position expressed in my previous post and she put me on hold while she talked to Justin Chang, the Entertainment Producer responsible for purging our votes and reviews. Upon returning she informed me that Chang wiped the votes because they suspected a restaurant sponsored voting campaign. Since that was not the case she said perhaps some of the reviews could be reinstated but the votes were gone forever. Initially she offered to give me Chang's phone number but then rescinded saying I would get no further with Chang but hat they would confer and e-mail me a solution that she hopes leaves our community satisfied. I will post the e-mail here

In the mean time VOTE AGAIN and get all you friends to VOTE for the Mai Kai, write specific reviews using your real names and don't be afraid to admit the Mai Kai could use a paint job and a good dusting.

• The Hodaddy, Kicking Ass For TC (Thank God for unlimited Long Distance)

On 2006-03-21 12:50, hodadhank wrote:
...the votes were gone forever. Initially she offered to give me Chang's phone number but then rescinded saying I would get no further with Chang but hat they would confer and e-mail me a solution that she hopes leaves our community satisfied. I will post the e-mail here

In the mean time VOTE AGAIN and get all you friends to VOTE for the Mai Kai, write specific reviews using your real names and don't be afraid to admit the Mai Kai could use a paint job and a good dusting.

Better yet, if Mr. Chang has some doubt that the votes are legitimate, instead of just voting, why doesn't everyone who votes also e-mail a message to Mr. Chang! That will teach him not to just assume that the votes were solicited and purge them!

One more thing ...

Just spoke w/ Kern at the Mai Kai who was very dissapointed with the Sun-Centinal purging legitimate TC votes & reviews. He'll be giving Bonnie and Justin an earful this afternoon. Apparently Mai Kai spends a large amount on Sun-Centinal advertising!

He also expressed his love for the members of Tiki Central and thanked us for watching his back! He'll let me know as things develope.

KEEP VOTING!

Even better, now the Mai Kai isn't in their top ten list to try to look at the reviews. They are there to vote for, but are not listed with the others...

That's really lame that they yanked all of the votes. I mean c'mon. On the other hand, fine. Let people know that Tropical Acres is the number 1 oldest restaurant in Broward. I'm sure alot of people, many that are looking on-line for information before their visit to the area, are going to go there and be dissapointed. I say that not so much as a Tikiphile as I'm saying it as a person who likes to go out and have a meal AND some fun. Sorry, but aside from the neon sign that Jab mentioned, Tropical Acres doesn't have much going for it. If it was all that I'd be going back every time I visit Ft. Lauderdale. Which reminds me: when I was a teen I did go to the Benihana in Fort Lauderdale, another place looked down upon by locals. You know what? It was fun! Not to take anything away from Benihana, but I think my money is better spent at Mai Kai. Locals I think would rather go to one of the several seafood restaurants down there, which is fine. But c'mon any kind of escapism outside of going to a place like the Mai Kai is just plain illegal. And I'm just talking about the drinks alone. You can't get a good buzz like that one without getting in trouble. :drink:

On 2006-03-21 12:40, joefla70 wrote:
I think this is the very reason why the votes got purged in the first place. They probably thought that a large number of people got together and decided to vote for the Mai Kai in order to get it to be the #1 South Florida landmark restaurant... which is kinda what happened.

I disagree Joefla70, There's an obvious difference between a group of people who drink and dine at the Mai Kai participating in a legitimate poll that is not restricted to south Florida residents, and a group of people conspiring in a villainous scheme to influence poll results for nefarious reasons. Incidently, are South Florida residents really the best people to determine what constitutes the #1 South Florida landmark?

If all the TC members who voted have actually been to the Mai Kai, that's one thing. But if they have never been there -- and they have never been to any of the other restaurants in contention-- then there is no basis for the vote.

I don't believe anyone here solicited reviews or votes from people who had never visited the Mai Kai. This is Tiki Central and it's safe to assume that many members have travelled to the Mai Kai at least once. I also don't think you must have patronized every restaurant on the list to participate in the poll. It's simply not a comparative excersize, all you are doing is writing an honest review from personal experience and voting on attractions, atmosphere and bar on a scale of one to five.

Yeah, nobody ever stacks votes on the internet.
Guarantee Tropical Acres' votes are all legit 30 somethings who love it for it's undying hipness and rare mildew cultures.

pffft.

What a stupid rationale for ditching all the votes. Don't they have an IP log on the things? Idiots.

If they screw with us again, I'll put Kid Awake on it and he'll have them at 4000 votes in the space of about 20 minutes. Kid's a freak of nature and not to be unleashed except in the most dire of cyberstances.

Where's my kinikini?

On 2006-03-21 13:40, hodadhank wrote:

I disagree Joefla70, There's an obvious difference between a group of people who drink and dine at the Mai Kai participating in a legitimate poll that is not restricted to south Florida residents, and a group of people conspiring in a villainous scheme to influence poll results for nefarious reasons.

I have no problem with people who have been there voting. I didn't mean to say that there was a villainous plot to influence poll results by having people who've never been there vote. Someone did comment that with 4200 TC members, that the Mai Kai should win. I don't think all 4200 TC members have been to the Mai Kai.

Incidently, are South Florida residents really the best people to determine what constitutes the #1 South Florida landmark?

Yes, I think they are. How could they not be? I would imagine that most TC members have never even heard of the other restaurants on that list, let alone dined there. How would non-South Florida Residents be the best people to determine this if they have never been to the other restaurants?

I don't believe anyone here solicited reviews or votes from people who had never visited the Mai Kai. This is Tiki Central and it's safe to assume that many members have travelled to the Mai Kai at least once.

You are correct about that. But I would not rule out that people who have never been there may have nevertheless voted ... and not because of some illicit reason... but because of a fondness for the Mai Kai from what they have read and heard about it.

I also don't think you must have patronized every restaurant on the list to participate in the poll. It's simply not a comparative excersize, all you are doing is writing an honest review from personal experience and voting on attractions, atmosphere and bar on a scale of one to five.

I agree that you don't have to patronize EVERY restaurant to participate. Look, there are no rules to the poll. It is informal. But it just seems odd to me that people who have never been to ANY of the other resturants would participate. And I disagree that it is not a comparative exercise... Its the top 10 landmark restaurants ranked in order of votes, not just a list of landmark restaurants. How could that not be comparative?

Don't get me wrong hodahank. I LOVE the Mai Kai. I think its the top landmark restaurant in South Florida, but that is only because I have been to the others and I don't think that they compare (although I am a bit impartial because of my fondness for tiki). I just thought it was a bit odd for people who haven't been to the other places to vote. But I understand your point.

New tactic, we pile on a lot of votes for Tropical Acres and get them flushed!

Whoa! 33 reviews instead of 8!

[ Edited by: Swanky 2006-03-21 15:22 ]

Thanks everyone for taking the time to write great reviews. We are finally making a difference for a great place. Keep it up.

As of 7:oo AM, 3/22/06 this is the standing.

Only 91 responses and 33 reviews leave the Mai Kai in FIFTH place behind...

1)Tropical Acres 13.6% - 136 responses
2)Sea Watch 11.4% - 114 responses
3)Rustic Inn 10.9% - 109 responses
4)Joe's Stone Crab 9.4% - 94 responses
5)Mai Kai 9.1% - 91 responses

Average of Reader Ratings
Overall:
Family-friendly: 3.25
Fun: 3.5
Romantic: 3.39
Value: 3.18
Atmosphere: 3.25
Fun: 3.22
Service: 3.12
Value: 3.03
Family-friendly: 2.94
Fun: 3.31
Romantic: 3.12
Value: 2.94

Number of Reviews: 33

Don't be discouraged. It looks like they're finally counting our votes again and posting our reviews as well but we'd done so much better before the purge. I KNOW more than 91 Tiki Centralites have been to the Mai Kai. Please follow this link and answer the survey honestly and post a review. Don't be discouraged.

http://www.southflorida.com/dining/sfe-thebest-landmarkrestaurants,0,3200350.story?coll=sfe-main-promo

BTW- I was e-mailed by the Mai Kai again with a thanks for the support, for standing up for them and for and alerting them to SouthFlorida.com's sketchy vote tabulation. They have contacted the Sun-Sentinel to demand an explanation.

I just posted my vote - go Mai Kai!

I wish they told you on the review site that you can't post more than 500 words. My review was 1857 words!