Tiki-fying oak wood

I've put some cheap floor-stock Lowes oak cabinets in for the backbar of the new basement tiki bar build I'm working on. I'm really struggling with how to give this totally non-tiki wood a proper tiki finish. Tested a number of stains, including mahogany and espresso and nothing looks right. Do I just paint it black? Is there a good stain color I haven't considered? Has anyone ever tried running a blow torch over oak to see if the grain rises as nicely as it does on pine? Any oak success stories out there? Thanks!

It depends on if you want a nice looking tiki bar, pretty.
Or if you want an old kronkie look.

If you like the old weathered look sanding it and then bleaching it may look good er and worn.

Have never done this so try a test spot first.

Sand, spray with a diluted bleach mix, and set in the sun.
This may not work in Ohio as we have no sun.

Good luck!

Check out this...
How to Make Wood Look Old & Weathered (Texture Trick!)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VQU2951XmHk

Thanks, Skip! Totally going for a sunken ship kinda look. I'm gonna put that weathered wood tutorial to use at some point, but since my cabinets are already installed, I'm gonna have to get creative with stain and paint. Tried a bunch of things on an oak scrap, including torching (didn't like the raised grain look; grain is too arrow straight). Ended up staining with Minwax Espresso, topping that with black acrylic paint, then dry brushing some grays and whites for age. Still working on it. I'll put some pictures up later if it turns out not to suck!

Going for a sunken ship wood look. What do you think?

Looks good.
Heck most tiki bars if done right are kinda dark so you won't see them that much anyway.

My wife always asks me if her outfit looks ok before we go to Windward a place kinda dark where all the people are so old they can't see well.
Who will see a bad outfit?

But they are better than before for sure.
Cool door handles.

That is a great looking job. Well done. Much better than the original color.

That grey looks nice. I think the torch method only works on softwood like fir, pine, and redwood.

Looks great! Definitely see the 'sunken ship' look you are going for.

Another trick: https://www.diypete.com/how-to-make-steel-wool-and-vinegar-stain/