Chicago Tiki ?

Hi

I'm going to be in Chicago on Saturday evening and I would love to check out some tiki in the area. I am wondering if the Chicago area Tiki tour website is still the best location to understand what places are still open in Chicago? The Hala Kahiki looks particularly impressive in River grove. Can anybody give me an update on Chicago Tiki? What about cocktails downtown?

Thanks for tips and if anybody is up for a drink let me know!

Mr. Ho

Aloooooha Mr. Ho!

So glad that you're familiar with the CATT & our website at http://www.fraternalorderofmoai.org/CATT/!

And, yes, all of the places on the CATT agenda are, indeed, still the tiki hot spots in & around Chicago.

The highlights would certainly be....

• Hala Kahiki is amazing for it's decor & has a fun little gift shop.
• Tong's Tiki Hut (if you get that far West of the city) for it's decor & signature carved tiki
• Tiki Terrace - on weekends they have their full Polynesian revue & Hawaiian food, which is very good, too. While it's new tiki (vs. the previous 2, which are definitely old tiki), it is quite well done.
• Chef Shangri-la - also old tiki, with some great lamps & a fair amount of Witco as well

Enjoy your visit to Chicago!!

Oh - and I forgot to mention your question about cocktails downtown.....

The Violet Hour is outstanding & HIGHLY recommended. Love this place!

We've also got a new one coming called Two Dots & a Dash, but it's not quite open, so no luck there.

I believe there's one other new cocktail place firmly rooted in tiki cocktails, though I haven't been to it, yet, so some of the other locals can chime in here on that option, too.

Have FUN!!

Hala Kahiki is the must do on that list, IMO, followed by Chef Shangrila. They are somewhat equidistant from downtown and not particularly far from each other, so you could do a loop from Chicago and catch both. The other two are a little further out.

In Chicago, I agree Violet Hour is worthwhile. You might also look into Aviary.

Depends what you are into and where you are staying. There's a cool bar called Orbit Room on the Northwest side, close to the expressway. It has more of a mid-century vintage vibe with some tiki-ish touches. They have a tropical drink menu, but it's kind of marginal. We do like the place and the staff a lot. Good food, too.

Enjoy your visit!

TT

this is great -time is short so may just hit the one place. if anybody wants to join, probably on saturday late afternoon or something!

thanks so much!

mr ho

On 2012-09-13 15:05, Tonga Trader wrote:
Hala Kahiki is the must do on that list,...

Hala Kahiki is an excellent recommendation! My brother, who lived in Chicago, and took me there once. He proposed to his wife there! And ironically he and I both were discovering Poly pop around the same time. We didn't realize it until a year or two later when we spoke after I attended my first Hukilau. I wish now that I had taken some photos during my visit, or bought a mug. Obviously I need to go back again.