Tokay Bowl Tiki Room, Lodi, CA (other)

Name:Tokay Bowl Tiki Room
Type:other
Street:620 South Cherokee Lane
City:Lodi
State:CA
Zip:
country:USA
Phone:209-368-5164
Status:defunct

Description:
The Tokay bowl opened in June 1960. It was demolished in June 2003. Tokay bowl’s Tiki Room was mentioned many times in the Lodi News Sentinel as a venue for receptions awards banquets and dances over the years. The first mention of the Tiki Room was in 1964 and the last was 1997.

I have talked to several born and raised Lodi residence and they told me this place served food and had a bar.

I was searching the internet for some Tiki Temple a while back and stumbled on this Tiki room from the town I live in, Lodi.

Lodi News Sentinel, March 4th 1988

Later I took a trip to the Library to check out the old phone books and found this add for the Tokay Bowl. In all the phone books I checked it was the only add that mentioned this Tiki Room.

Lodi Phone book 1966

Later I did more searching of the Google News archives and found this cool old add for the Tiki Room. Apparently at one time it was used as a teen night club. Check out the band advertised for the kids, "The Fantastic Plastic Mushroom Band".

Lodi News Sentinel, June 24 1968

Here is an update on my research of the Tiki Room.

I corresponded via E-mail with woman who remembered bamboo and thatch inside this place. She also remembered enjoying Tropical drinks there. This is basicly all the info I could get out of her.

I found this item from the Lodi News Sentinel regarding the appearance of base ball Hall of Fame member Bob Feller at the Tiki Room.

Lodi News Sentinel, August 28th 1973 edition

1960 Fleer

an these two pictures of the bowling ally

Outdoor Sign

Main frontal view

Well I've been digging through some old Lodi newspapers and sleuthing around again.

Guess what I found out! There is a Stockton Islander connection to Lodi's Tiki Room.

We all know the last owner of the Islander was Dick Degrande. Well before that venture he owned the popular Cosmopolitan restaurant on Main Street in Lodi. In June of 1971 he moved his Cosmopolitan to the Tokay Bowling Alley. Part of the restaurant facilities he acquired at the new location was the Tiki Room. Degrande operated the Cosmopolitan and the Tiki Room until he closed it in 1980 and leased the Islander from Tommy Lee.

At this point "Jeannette's" restaurant moved into the facilities at the Tokay bowl. It was owned and operated by Robert and Jeannett Kulp until 1991. After that Buck's Steak & Seafood restaurant went in and stayed until the demolition of 2003.

I also managed to track down one of Dick Degrande's sons Gary. He told me the Tiki Room was a banquette room. It didn't have Polynesian decor when they had it but there was a rock water fall outside the doors. He said that he only visited the Islander a few times when his dad had it and every thing was sold when it closed. He was involved in his own career and doesn't know the whereabouts of the Tikis that were outside. He now owns a local catering business and Cafe.

Here is the paper mentioning the Cosmopolitain Tiki Room 1975