Lake Elsinore, CA tiki bar

In a desperate attempt to avoid doing taxes, the hubby and I drove out to Lake Elsinore to "see the sights." We weren't expecting much, but it seemed a reasonable place to go. I did a search here on Tiki Central, and although there were several posts about The Tikis, nothing about THE WRECK!

Driving towards the 2 block long "downtown" I saw the most amazing looking sign...huge Wacky 50's letters and a large rusted metal palm tree let me know I had to investigate. The Wreck is at 117 Grand, right off of Main in Lake Elsinore. It's HUGE...I was told it was once a horse stable, then a car dealership, then a bowling alley, then for the last 50 years or so, The Wreck.

Naturally, the place is in disrepair, but the tiki that is left was fun to uncover. My polaroid didn't do justice to the dark inside, so my descriptions will have to do (scribbled down after drinking a very strong Cuba Libre...)

The walls were covered with bamboo and mats, unfortunately hidden under Bud Light posters. Still, this is a LOT of bamboo considering the size of the place. One wall had tiki style happy/sad masks and an old picture of an aquarium. Best part of the place was a little corner to the left when you come in the door. There was a large old swag lamp and a giant cone shaped tiki with grass hair. I WISH I had a photo, it was lovely. About 3 feet tall and practically hidden from view. Past more bamboo was another fish tank, this one was three dimensional, recessed into the wall and filled with a motley assortment of dried seahorses and other fish, as well as some plastic fish. It looked cool despite being cheesy. It was flanked by two oblong tiki carvings, about 16 inches long.

Checking this place was definitely archeology, it was dusty and everything was in layers. I could have probably uncovered more if I wasn't in a rush to hit the antique mall (got an Orchids of Hawaii three man drink bowl and a lovely Treasure Craft pineapple) If anyone else is up for a trip, bring a camera with a good flash.

This place sounds edgy in that San Bernardiino County meth lab kinda way...Your report sounds better than anything else I have heard about it, I might have to go check it out. I'll make sure to get a penicillin shot before I go in.

[ Edited by: DawnTiki on 2003-03-25 19:43 ]

Let's just say this...the guy to the left of me (not my husband, next to him...) had only one tooth. The guy to the right of me couldn't speak English and had only one eye. I wish I was making this up, but it's the stone cold truth. Still, definitely worth a look-see to anyone in the area.

What a lovely name...WRECK! I must visit this venerable looking drinking establishment the next time I'm up that way. I have an aunt that lives in Elsinor & my mom's just down the road in Sun City. Lake Elsinor used to be kind of a resort for old Hollywood types in the '40's & '50's. It still retains some relics from that era. Last time I was there I drove around and got lost but stumbled upon a really spooky old graveyard.

I used to water ski out at Lake Elsinore, back then we called it Lake Smellsomemore. Have they cleaned it up?