Raised on Tiki!

Just wanted to say; "Hi."

I finally got time to sign up to the forum. I say I was raised on tiki because every summer since I was one year old (I'm now 30.) My family would pack up the car and drive from southern Indiana to vacation at the Aku Tiki Inn in Daytona Beach, Fl.

So, I have a very nostalgic feeling for anything Tiki or for anything from that specific time period (1950's thru early 1960's) googie, the space race, etc..

I'm glad to see that some of the past is making its way back to the present!

Welcome to Tiki Central! With all those trips to the Aku Tiki Inn, surely you have snapshots of the place from years past? If so, we'd love to see them. If you use the search feature here to search on "Aku Tiki Inn", you'll see the pictures I uploaded of the place. They were taken last year. There is still plenty of tiki to be found there and at the Hawaiian Inn down the street.

[ Edited by: GatorRob 2008-01-12 10:56 ]

I was also sad to see the Aku Tiki Room in Kewanee close. :(

My wife and I just found out about it last year. We were going to make it a frequent tiki road trip.

If you haven't heard yet, check out the post on Locating tiki.

The wife and I are having a tiki night, tonight in its honor! :tiki:

My Mom and Dad have been going to both (Aku Tiki and the Hawaiian) since the mid 70's.

I'm sure I can dig out some vintage pics and stuff the next time I make it over to the house!

Saw your Aku Tiki pics! Awesome! That place is like a home away from home!

Also, see "TIKI MODERN", page 262, for more pics. I wonder if anyone has heard more on the recent news that, although the giant Moai sign was just rebuilt to its authentic state, that whole strip there will have to make room for a giant development?

Just picked up "Tiki Modern" the other day.

From what I've heard from friends that still work and live down there. The redevelopment is kind of a long term plan for the area. One friend who used to run the gift shop at the Aku Tiki (before they got rid of it) said that it could be ten years before they start anything and that since they just spent a couple of million $$ in renovations, they are going to be open for awhile to get a return on some of their investment!

So, I think we are good for awhile. We're planning on making a short trip this summer to stay one more time, just in case! :)

Good news, thank you! :) I recommend everyone to go there, and also to visit JULIAN'S while it is still there!

JULIAN'S? Really? last time i was there ,last year, it was up in the air if they were going to be open . what Witco they did have was leaning against the wall in one of the banquet rooms.the did not know if or when they would put any of it back up.and their atttiude was alittle slack. just my opinion,(shared by others with me)i could be wrong. TD

We'll have a night out at Julian's soon. I'll let you know.

tikijoeusaf - Looking forward to those pictures!

On 2008-01-12 12:42, TIKI DAVID wrote:
JULIAN'S? Really? last time i was there ,last year, it was up in the air if they were going to be open . what Witco they did have was leaning against the wall in one of the banquet rooms.the did not know if or when they would put any of it back up.and their attitude was alittle slack. just my opinion,(shared by others with me)i could be wrong. TD

Never mind the Witco, with that A-frame, the back lit shields, the giant Polynesian mural AND an Asian lounge diva singing Patsy Cline songs above the sunken bar, how can you go wrong? And regarding their attitude, I'd like to refer to my introduction in Tiki Road Trip: Do not expect anything, be grateful it is still there.
Not open? Stuff leaning against the wall? I hope that does not mean they are remodeling, or closing?

I'm happy to report that Julian's appears to be alive and well. The place was pretty full when we had dinner there on a recent Saturday night. No Witco anywhere, but I didn't venture into any banquet rooms. Overall, the place looked well cared for. Unfortunately, no lounge singer doing Patsy Cline songs. That would have been great. Instead, about mid-way through dinner we got a guy with an electric guitar and a backing tape doing bad renditions of Jimmy Buffet tunes. Needless to say, it was completely inappropriate for the room. However, it pains me to admit that a number of diners seemed to like it.

See my entry for Julian's here. I included a fair number of pictures.

Good to hear. Last time I was in there, there was on Asian Temple dancer Witco on the far wall. Maybe they decided it was too tacky? :)
I would imagine that Jimmy Buffet is for Florida retirees what Liberace was for the Vegas set...the main thing is that their habitat remained mostly intact (too bad that the shields have those dayglo colors now).

Glad you posted the place in Locating Tiki. Low TYPSY factor, yes, but all else is there and just as rare nowadays.

[ Edited by: bigbrotiki 2008-01-21 13:09 ]