Tiki Terrace lives!

Last Saturday, my better half & I were visiting the Barefoot Hawaiian store in DesPlaines.
Over conversation, it was mentioned that they were practicing for the re-opening of Tiki Terrace!
Sounds like they're almost done with the hoop-jumping for permits & inspections & should be opening in the near future!
Can't wait!

I was at the new location talking with Scott and Phil a week or so ago and checking out all the hard work they have done. The place is over the top. Take the old location and double, even triple the space. A great stage with sight lines for everyone. Carved goodies from huge tiki poles to booth seat backs. Great attention to detail on the wall coverings with black bamboo trim, painted tapa designs and matting. I can't wait to see the finished product. It will be a great new tiki addition to the Midwest, and the Zuziaks and their employees are some of the greatest hosts around.

Right on!!!

absolutely!

I ran into those guys a couple years ago.

I was with The Windy City Rollers roller derby in the Chicago Thanksgiving parade. I was layered up with a hat & scarf.
The Barefoot Hawaiian fire knife dancers were there. Basically, they were wearing short pants & not much else. Tough. Nice guys too! I was flattered they recognized me from the restaurant.

[ Edited by: mrexotica 2008-03-27 11:09 ]

Unlike Trader Vic's - which is two years and counting late with their Chicago re-opening - it seems that Tiki Terrace is right on track with their promised re-opening schedule.

Rockin'.

I talked with TT yesterday...any day now...

OPEN FOR BUSINESS!

http://chicagoist.com/2008/04/24/tiki_terrace_ta.php

Congratz to the Tiki terrace....

Now, can you open one in LA please ?

We have like, NO Tiki left here.

Has tiki terrace opened yet? I'm looking to make reservations and was wondering if anyone has been there.

On 2008-05-07 07:41, Dawn32 wrote:
Has tiki terrace opened yet? I'm looking to make reservations and was wondering if anyone has been there.

Ah, what part of "OPEN FOR BUSINESS!" was unclear?
:) haha.

If you like the old Tiki Terrace, the new one is very similar about about five times bigger, laid out better, and with more TIKI!.

we were there on opening night.

great-looking place!

We'll have to go back on a show night. I hear they've increased the size of the hula shows

Glad to see you are the same moron James that you've always been. I've been calling to get a reservation but cannot get a hold of anyone that is why I was asking.

Ah, what part of "OPEN FOR BUSINESS!" was unclear?
:) haha.

they always answer when I call...

someone gonna post some pics of this place or are we just gonna talk about how wonderful it is and use our imaginations!!

The place looks great, I was there a few days ago.

http://www.thetikiterrace.com

I will be in Chicago next week and already had a Wednesday outing to the Hala Kahiki planned for June 4.

I've written my friends to see if we can make it a Tiki Wednesday and hit the Tiki Terrace first.

Woohoo! Can't wait to drinkie Tiki.

you would be doing yourself a huge disservice if you do not hit the chef shangri-la as well.....

On 2008-05-28 15:12, Tipsy McStagger wrote:
you would be doing yourself a huge disservice if you do not hit the chef shangri-la as well.....

I heard that, too! I do have to say that there are some worrisome Yelp reviews involving A ROACH in the booth which sort of turned me off of the FOOD aspect of Chef Shangri-La. But def worth a drink there!

[ Edited by: spycygrl 2008-05-28 18:05 ]

While Shangri-La is certainly cool, it's more of a Chinese restaurant.

Tiki Terrace is Hawaiian & closer to Hala Kahiki.

If that matters. Otherwise, hit all three - after hitting Tong's Tiki Hut (also a Chinese Restaurant) & if you're around during the day, go to Barefoot Hawaiian store, just around the corner from Tiki Terrace.

So you want some pics aye?

the pictures don't do it justice....i was there recently and it looked very cool...with the exception of the white and gold ceiling fans....very cozy bar too...the food is basically sam's club and trader joe's fare, heated warmed and served(according to those who were with me)..which isn't a bad thing..it was actually good..but i doubt an original meal is made there...the drinks were not too bad, very tasty....this is the place i wish was a little closer to the city...i would like to hang at the bar more often. where was this place when i was living just down the street from it after i graduated college!!!....

[ Edited by: Tipsy McStagger 2008-05-30 15:12 ]

[ Edited by: Tipsy McStagger 2008-05-30 15:13 ]

Turns out Tiki Terrace is CLOSING EARLY on Wednesday for a Private Party.
:(

Looks like I won't be hitting it after all. Darn! It looks amazing!

My fiancee and I, along with another couple, hit Tiki Terrace a month or so ago. Great place, chock full of tikis and other oceanic art pieces. The place is quite large, as well. Impressive.

I ordered the "Mystery Drink", which is at the bottom of the drink menu ($10). It was served in a fresh coconut, which sat on a mound of brown sugar and coconut shavings, which you can also eat. Great drink (definitely on the raspberry side). The bartender (also the manager/owner maybe?) stood by to await my reaction, then informed me that I was the first person to ever order one. So that's my one claim to tiki history. :)

We will definitely be going back. We were told we would need reservations if we planned on returning on a weekend night, so it seems like they must be doing a decent business. Hope they stick around for many years.

Cool pictures above rugbymatt! I was there a few days ago, it's a very fun looking place, it looks really cool on the inside!

I just heard that their GRAND OPENING will be next week on the 11th, and it sounds like it will be a really fun event!

CONGRATULATIONS SCOTT, PHIL, JIM AND FAMILY! BEST WISHES TO YOU ALL!

Hullo all, I went this last weekend and wrote a rather long blog entry about it: http://randomcha.livejournal.com/384840.html

Sounds like you had a great time despite the bad weather.

Today is the Tiki Terrace's Grand Opening!
CONGRATULATIONS again SCOTT, PHIL, JIM AND FAMILY!

the future Mrs E & I went there last night about dinner time. They were SWAMPED, so we came back later, about 9 & they were still swamped.

We ordered out usual Virgin Lava Flows & Taro Chips. The waitresses looked like their hands were full. Did I mention they have homemade sorbet!

They even were giving out tiki mugs!

see you guys again soon!

I was there last night too. Food, entertainment and drinks were fantastic as usual. The new place is much better than the old one, ad everyone gets a good view of the stage.

I think they changesd their Suffering Bastard recipe as well - much more bourbony.

[ Edited by: Tiki Flange 2008-06-12 08:34 ]

My fiancee and I made it to the Tiki Terrace right about 6. At that point there was only standing room, which is how it stayed until around 8:30, after the big tiki raffle. Even then, the place didn't clear out too much, and a whole new crowd seemed to arrive around 9.

Talking with the waitress, it seemed everyone working was overwhelmed by the crowd, especially her. It took anywhere from 15-45 minutes to get a drink or food, but the island spirit was alive and no one was really complaining. We had plenty to distract us, what with the band, the lovely dancers and the keeping track of all the various tiki mugs going by on serving trays.

It was definitely an interestingly mixed crowd. There was a congregation of a local ladies' "Red Hat Society" taking up about 15 seats at a large table (who ended up being the most boisterous group in the place!), some folks that were at least in their 70s or 80s, a few preteens, and plenty of folks in between - wearing a more than decent amount of Hawaiian and tiki garb.

The big tiki was won by a nice woman that was genuinely excited to get it. We spoke with her and she told us that it will have a place of honor on her bedroom balcony during the summer, and in her Hawaiian-themed basement during the winter. Sounds like it will be going to a great home.

All told, it was a fun event and the Tiki Terrace is a great room. We wish them a lot of success and will be back often.

[ Edited by: Numatiki 2008-06-12 13:39 ]

I was there last night with a few of my friends, we got there about 7pm, and it was very crowded, as they were really busy. I stoppped by to say "hi" to the owners and congratulate them all, but my friends I was with didn't want to wait too long for dinner, so i wasn't tehre long. I wanted to go back later, but I figured it was goign to be super busy all night, so I'll have to go back with my friends within the next few weeeks again then. It looked like a really cool event last night, if I didn't go with my friends, I definitely would have stayed there by myself all night to hear the live music, watch the dancing show, try to get a tiki mug in the giveaway, try to win the tiki raffle and check out everything else they had going on there, as it was such a cool event they had goin' on! Congratulations again guys, nice job, cool grand opening!

P.S. I also gotta say that the people who work there are really nice people.

On 2008-04-25 10:00, tikibars wrote:

OPEN FOR BUSINESS!

http://chicagoist.com/2008/04/24/tiki_terrace_ta.php

...and you're not kidding, JT.......

looks like that's not all that's open for business.....check out what tiki terrace turns into on their "get leid" saturday nights!!...i found these pics on myspace.....though now the tiki terrace myspace page has been deleted and the pics flagged by the myspace community......due to explicit content i can only post a few....but man, what a party!!!

this is how we do tiki in the midwest!!! Har!!!

Woah!

See, that's the sort of thing I miss out on by working most Saturday nights...

But on a less prurient note:

http://www.thetikiterrace.com/tikievents.html#wiki

Thursday, Aug 28, The Wiki Wiki Tiki Raffle.

Proceeds benefit the American Heart Association!

Tiki Terrace is raffling a 6’ hand carved beauty, carved by the owners!

Also raffling an original painting by Gabriella Mejia.

Free Wiki Wiki Tiki t-shirts, free mugs, drink specials, and entertainment by Barefoot Hawaiian, Keenan Kamae and Kaleo Lee!

See the event live in streaming video on the Tiki Terrace website and participate in the raffle from home!