Has the Mai Kai roof been re-thatched?

I was there back in October. It looked like they were getting ready to re-thatch the roof. Does anyone know if they have finished it? I will find out tomorrow. If it is done I will post some pictures.

When I was there in around the holidays in December it looked like alot of repair work had been done. I did spot a little bit of that familiar blue tarp that you see covering roofs after a hurricane, but it didn't seem like a big deal. I would have noticed if there was as much as there was after Wilma. One thing I did notice was that there weren't any leaks in the ceiling of the Molokai Bar. It seems to be an intermittent problem, and there's usually some garbage bags wrapped over the leaks, but all was well in there with the simulated storm running on the 'ship' windows and everything. :drink:

There are no plans to re-thatch the roof in the near future. There is still a lot of repair work to be done to the roof, most of it on the outside.

The hope is that the thatch will be back in place by Hukilau, but most of the people in the area that do that kind of work are on Island Time so June may actually be August, or November.....

I would like to remind everyone that the original plan and presentation of the Mai-Kai only included thatch on part of the roof. The area over the indoor gardens was left open to let in light for the gardens. Swanky has some great post cards and photos of the Mai Kai here and you can see the original roof line.

As much as we all would love to see the roof thatched again, this is South Florida and there is occasionally a hurricane, and thatch roofs and hurricanes don't play well together. I like the roof without the thatch for just that reason, I think it just needs a good coat of paint. I am probably in the minority with that opinion.....

As long as the valet area is redone, I think it's all good. Fix up the main building so it looks right and not like all the thatch is gone, and it'll work. I know Basement Kahuna has been down there and volunteered his time and skills to remake the carved trim under the port-cochere. Sounds like they are in the process, which is just fantastic to me.

When I was there last, a month ago, I noticed the old battens had been removed from the A-frame roof. Those battens were what the thatch was attached to. It looked to me like the roof had been repainted too. Just with those old ratty battens gone, I thought the roof looked so much better. I really don't envy the guys who had to get up on that roof! I'd love to see thatch again on the back half of the roof, but being a high maintenance item, it's perfectly understandable why they might forgo it. But the thatch really does need to be back on the valet area.

Truth is, the Mai-Kai needs a lot of TLC right now. But the amount of money it must take to keep the place going must be staggering. It's a balancing act between desperately wanting them to fix some things versus being very grateful that they're still around at all.

On 2008-02-02 18:19, GatorRob wrote:
Truth is, the Mai-Kai needs a lot of TLC right now. But the amount of money it must take to keep the place going must be staggering. It's a balancing act between desperately wanting them to fix some things versus being very grateful that they're still around at all.

Hitting the rusty nail on the head there, Rob. Just because it has survived and seems to be hopping during Hukilau does not mean they are well off. With any vintage original like this, we can be grateful for every month it exists. As with anything older than 10 years in America, there is never any guarantee it is "safe" from economic vagaries. I can only imagine how the current weak economy is hurting their operation.

It is heartening to hear that BK and other TC Ohana are putting in free time to spruce it up, good going guys! Don't go there and only expect to receive, ask what you can give!

On 2008-02-02 18:48, bigbrotiki wrote:
I can only imagine how the current weak economy is hurting their operation.

I wonder the same thing. Property taxes are high, insurance is WAY high, labor is high, building materials are high, etc. On New Year's Eve when we were last there, we expected the place to be wall-to-wall people. The front dining rooms around the stage were packed, but the back dining rooms (where we were) were practically empty. That really surprised us all. If those back rooms sit empty most of the time, that's a lot of lighted, A/C'ed, and taxed space that is not pulling its weight...

... which is why about 10 or so years ago, the Mai-Kai changed the name of the Tahiti room to the Gauguin Room because of his connection to Tahiti and the Gauguin paintings they had there. They made up a trendy menu for the room and pushed it with a big marketing campaign. Look at the photo of the Mai-Kai entrance Beachbum Berry has in Sippin' Safari and you will see the (now removed) "Gauguin Room" neon sign above the entrance. I was intrigued by that sign so Kern related this story to me. Apparently it only lasted a year or two. People came to the Mai-Kai to see the show, not to eat in a dining room with some funny name they couldn't pronounce that they probably didn't recognize anyway.

Had a great time last night. The back dining area was not full, but the patio area and the tables placed in the gardens seemed busy. The newly painted roof does look nice. The Valet area has not been completed yet and there is still a tarp where the big steel girders go into the main building. I have to go past it on the way to the airport so I will try to get a picture of the roof to post. Brought some first-timers with me last night, maybe that will have a ripple effect to bring more people in. I have included a picture of one of the Zombies I had last night - ouch!

[ Edited by: Tonga Tiki 2008-02-04 05:22 ]

The Mai Kai survived slumps in the 70's. They have made it 50 years by managing through thick and thin. Just ask Kern. I think Dave Levy has the desire to keep it going for another 50 years and he knows there will be ups and downs. He will keep it going. If business is poor, they can scale back and manage.

Someone said the plastic in the Molokai was gone. Is that true? That means the huge job of fixing the roof has been done. That is a gigantic step forward! THAT is a big happy thing to me. That shows they are spending big, big money on the place. They are in it for a long time. You don't spend that kind of money with any notion of ever closing. That's a job that's been needing and wanting to do for at least the 7 years I know of.

So, in slow times, there may be a little fit and finish missing here or there. But you have to understand that the very people who steered the Mai Kai through the slow years are the very people who are in charge today. If not Kern, then his Dad. The crew is there. The Will is there. I have great confidence. Knowing the work and money is happening just shows these people are in it for the long term.

"Mai Kai" The Best

post removed by request

[ Edited by: tikibars 2008-03-06 17:08 ]