Tiki Thirstday Kickoff - March 20 • DC Metro Area (Bethesda, MD)

As a result of how well some trial efforts have gone over, a handful of local Tikiphiles and Rummies have decided to give a regular, ongoing Tiki Happy Hour - Meet Up a roll in the Maryland/DC/Northern Virginia area.

Announcing...

When: Thursday, March 20, 2014
Where: House of Foong Lin, 4613 Willow Lane, Bethesda, MD 20877
Time: Whenever you can make it. Some of us are planning to start after work,
others will probably be coming between 7 and 8

Drop by for a little, or stay the whole evening - that's up to you.
(Rumor has it this week's $5 Drink Specials will be Black Magics & Mai Tai '44s)

Sadly, the Washington, DC region gave up all of it's Tiki glory years ago. Trader Vic's closed down almost 20 years ago, and the last true area Tiki bar, The Honolulu, closed 10 years ago next month. We are, however, fortunate that House of Foong Lin still keeps a torch burning with the area's widest selection of Tiki Drinks and even some classic Polynesian dishes to enjoy. (They still serve a Pu-Pu Platter with a wooden server and flaming hibachi in the center)

Tiki footnote: the Chef/Owner's brother and former partner was a bartender at the DC Trader Vic's in the 1970s - several of their drinks are recipes carefully crafted from his brother's days at Trader Vic's.

Aloha wear welcomed and encouraged!

If you are visiting or passing through DC on a Thursday night anytime soon, PM me and I'll be glad to get you special directions!

Side Note: DC does have a vibrant Craft Cocktail movement. There are places that are doing amazing versions of a few Tiki classics that are very much worth a visit. (And in some cases an equity line of credit to pay for the bar bill;) House of Foong Lin's charm is that they are an old school Chinese/Asian restaurant that kept the classic Tiki drinks going long after they all but disappeared from most menus. They have also been amazingly receptive to the local Ohana that have discovered this non-trendy oasis. They have brought in special rums to cater to their Tiki regulars, upped their game with several drink additions to the menu (a very respectable Black Magic, a Mai Tai '44 and Mai Tai 52, among them). And last, but far from least, the food is first rate.

Update

(fyi, there is a large dining room to the right and tables behind me that can't be seen in this photo)

Not all of our newly minted Tiki Thirstdayers are TC or Facebook members, so it isn't reflected in the posts here, but our current headcount is right around 19, with a few stragglers, we'll probably have just over 20 people over the course of the evening. Not a bad kickoff for a Tiki gathering. Hopefully a good time will be had by all and we'll be lighting up the torches here on a fairly regular basis.

[ Edited by: Dr. Coruba 2014-03-15 19:17 ]

[ Edited by: Dr. Coruba 2014-03-20 09:51 ]

[ Edited by: Dr. Coruba 2014-03-20 09:56 ]

Good for you guys with this most pure of Tiki endeavors
A night out full of cocktails, friends & revelry!

OakTiki and I will be in attendance this week, seeing what other friends we can get to join in the fun.

For those who haven't been, or haven't been to the House of Foong Lin since their move, the new location is metro accessible, there's good parking across the street, it has its own bar area and is an all around good location.

Our hosts are wonderful folks who have made real efforts to be Tiki friendly. The cocktails are well crafted, and the menu is full of wonderful treats.

Thus far, it's been a really great crowd and a real outpost of Aloha spirit here in the DC area.

Make the effort to come out, drop in at some point over the course of the evening, you'll be glad you did.

We just got back from Tiki Thirstday had a really good time those $5.00 Black Magic's were GREAT thanks to Jeff for hosting WILL do again!

A little post-gathering report:

On the morning of the kickoff, I checked the list of who let us know that they were attending. Looked like a solid 12 to 15 people and I thought "not bad to get started". So when I got to the host bar, I told them to expect around 15 to 20. People started rolling in around 6. By 8 pm, the whole bar and lounge were busy with friends, and friends not yet met. Every bar stool occupied and every lounge table full. Everyone was enjoying the Aloha Spirit (and spirits;), both of which were in generous supply by our hosts at House of Foong Lin. By the end of the evening almost 40 people had joined us for a truly wonderful time. A great kickoff to what we hope will become a weekly slice of island time.

The lounge's owner, Mr. Fu, was so pleased with how it went, he is asking for ideas and help to up the Tiki factor in the lounge. And last night after closing told me he is interested in getting Tiki shirts for his staff to wear on our Tiki Thirstdays.

Special Mahalos to some local Ohana, who are also forum members here: TikiGAP and MoaiMiki. They really helped put the word out locally, and they were both directly and indirectly responsible for several of revelers we had last night. And a round of applause to Chef Fu, Miss Ling and the staff of House of Foong Lin who gave us a warm welcome, delicious hot food, and ice cold Tiki drinks all night long.

If this sounds like a good time to you, please consider joining us next week. Can't promise such a big crowd every week, but it is a sure bet that if you drop by on Tiki Thirstday you'll have good company, delicious food and drink, and good time.

Sorry I missed this. Is it going to be a weekly thing?

On 2014-03-21 13:10, JackLord wrote:
Sorry I missed this. Is it going to be a weekly thing?

Yes, it is. We're going to try to go with every Thursday night. We'll be at House of Foong Lin again on March 27th. New event posting on TC any time now. Can't promise such a large group every Thursday, but who knows? Our goal is to have a day, time and place where Metro DC Tikiphiles can gather and have a fun evening.

We'd be delighted to have you. We're a very much a "more's the merrier" group, so come on down and feel free to bring some friends.

Update: Here is the link to the next Tiki Thirstday on March 27th
http://www.tikicentral.com/viewtopic.php?topic=47384&forum=4&0

[ Edited by: Dr. Coruba 2014-03-21 13:32 ]

[ Edited by: Dr. Coruba 2014-03-22 10:11 ]

On 2014-03-21 13:30, Dr. Coruba wrote:

On 2014-03-21 13:10, JackLord wrote:
Sorry I missed this. Is it going to be a weekly thing?

Yes, it is. We're going to try to go with every Thursday night. We'll be at House of Foong Lin again on March 27th. New event posting on TC any time now. Can't promise such a large group every Thursday, but who knows? Our goal is to have a day, time and place where Metro DC Tikiphiles can gather and have a fun evening.

We'd be delighted to have you. We're a very much a "more's the merrier" group, so come on down and feel free to bring some friends.

Update: Here is the link to the next Tiki Thirstday on March 27th
http://www.tikicentral.com/viewtopic.php?topic=47384&forum=4&0

[ Edited by: Dr. Coruba 2014-03-21 13:32 ]

[ Edited by: Dr. Coruba 2014-03-22 10:11 ]

Thanks Dr C!

I have foot surgery this Friday so I will have to wait a couple of weeks.

But I am eager to attend. Thanks!

Hope your surgery goes well. Drop by when you can, we'll save some rum for you.

Mahalo!