Kauai Tiki report

Gretchen and I just got back from a week in Kauai and we were happy to see that there ARE some tikis alive and well there. I'll be putting up a full page of photos and info soon, but here's there short of it.

There were respectable tikis at both the Marriott and Hyatt resorts. Plus, the Hyatt wins for best Mai Tai on the isle. Downside is it's in a plastic cup. Second best, but very close, were Mai Tais at Zelo's in Hanalei. They were in proper hurricane glasses and hands-down won the "presentation award". Now, I appreciate a good dive bar more than most, but the Tahiti Nui is just sad. Basically a beer joint with sports on 2 tvs. Cool interior wall treatments and 4 or 5 great tiki barstools couldn't make up for the squalid feel of the place. I couldn't even bring myself to order a cocktail since the bartender seemed frazzled just getting the occasional bottled beer for one of the 5 other (drunken) customers there.

The tiki highlight was that right next door to our resort was the house of a wonderful old gentleman who happened to be an amazing tiki carver. He had a couple of beautiful pieces there in his yard and we chatted him up about his work. He's a retired building contractor and doesn't sell through stores or galleries. He just does them for fun (and profit). I liked his way of working: Don't send money, just a picture of the kind of tiki you like and he'll just do it. He didn't have email or business cards, he just scrawled his name and address on a piece of paper for me. There will be pics of his work on the page I'll put up.

Needless to say, we had an awesome time. We went in the ocean every day and there was NO surf all week, so we snorkled a lot. Highlight was at Ke'e when a sea turtle stared me right in the face from about 2 feet away as I just hovered there motionless, then swam slowly right underneath me! It was very exciting.

Oh, and the best place to do all your tiki shopping: Walmart! They have a whole tiki section, cheap mugs and everything. Sure it's not "collectable", but we seemed to have collected an awful lot from there anyway!

That sea turtle experience sounds great! That's what I was looking for (a turtle experience) when I went last - unfortunately the surf was pretty damn choppy....bad snorkling!

We found the most "cheap - for sale" tikis at Wal Mart too - how sad is that!

Did you get a chance to go to Hamura Saimen - the best noodles on the island!

Sorry to hear about Tahiti Nui - I never had a chance to be served - just ran in & took a few pix....

Hi Tangaroa! I know, I know, I went on and on about Hamura Saimen too, but we never made it there. I'm on this controlled carb diet and pastas and breads are out. I could've cheated, but there was so much great fresh fish on the island that we didn't have the urge to. And it was either cheat with saimen or with mai tais - which do you think we chose? :)

But we did make a new food discovery as great as HS: Fish Express! They're a supplier to the finer restaurants on the isle, but they have a deli case open to the public right in their storefront. They are right across the street from the hospital next to Walmart. Absolutely out of this world fresh sashimi of different kinds that have been marinated in all kinda good stuff, plus fish salads and straight up sashimi. We stocked up on ample amounts of 4 different fishes and the bill came to $11!!! And the owners couldn't have been nicer. She was like our auntie saying "try this" and "if you like that, here have some of this". We felt almost sated just from the tasty samples she offered us. Those people are coming back as gods I tells ya!

Oh man - I gotta go back!

The wife was teasing me the other night saying - "maybe next year....."

On 2002-09-25 11:51, Tiki-bot wrote:
Oh, and the best place to do all your tiki shopping: Walmart! They have a whole tiki section, cheap mugs and everything.

Wal-Mart?!?!?! Egad. It's the end of the world as we know it.....and no, I don't feel fine.

:)WAL-MART!?!?!?!?! Did they have Smiley Faced Tiki's? What's to become of us? :tiki:

[ Edited by: DawnTiki on 2002-09-25 22:38 ]

I've been to Kauai several times and the last time that I was there I found all kinds of tikis. Stay out of Wal-mart on your vacations, save your money for drinks and real souveniers. If you can find something at wal-mart in Kauai, chances are that you can find the same thing on the mainland if you go in the right shops.
The truth is that I bought three tikis at what turned out to be a tourist store. I thought the tikis were original to Kauai but I later found the same mass produced ones at a store here in Newport Beach.

If anyone is going to Kauai soon and doesn't want to be disapointed by the Tahiti Nui, check out Duke's on Kalapaki beach. The drinks are great, the food is delicious, and the atmosphere is world class. The restaurant has a strolling hawaiian acoustic group during dinner and hawaiian bands at the barefoot bar at night.

There is also a really cool vintage store just past Kapaa where I bought a mid 1940's uke. I don't remember the name of the place but I do remember them having a huge tiki section. Everything there was very pricy though.

I also met a tiki carver that I bought some small pieces from. The carvings that he did were very intricate and in monkey pod and milo wood. I don't know how to get a hold of him but the name on the tikis is signed T.Huni.

If someone can let me in on how to post pictures on this forum, I can put several pics of the tikis that I saw and the carver that did them.

On 2002-09-25 23:14, Luckydesigns wrote:
If you can find something at wal-mart in Kauai, chances are that you can find the same thing on the mainland if you go in the right shops.

..check out Duke's on Kalapaki beach. The drinks are great, the food is delicious, and the atmosphere is world class. The restaurant has a strolling hawaiian acoustic group during dinner and hawaiian bands at the barefoot bar at night.

...I do remember them having a huge tiki section. Everything there was very pricy though.

While the stuff at Walmart is cheesey tourist stuff, it IS half the price of the cheesey tourist stuff on the mainland. I just buy tiki stuff I like, not because it's collectable or whatever, and they had some stuff I liked - for half the price! So I'm an evil, awful person for buying something at Walmart? Maybe you should look at where YOU shop and see if it's not the pot calling the kettle black. I had plenty o' money to shop there, at Hilo Hattie's, AND never suffered for want of a drink. :wink:

I'm not saying people shouldn't seek out real tiki stuff, just that you can get some decent gew-gaws cheap there if you want. I'll probably buy a $400 hand carved tiki from the carver I met there, so it's not as if I don't recognize the value of the real, hand-made stuff. But I enjoy my dopey $6 mug from Walmart, too.

You speak the truth about Duke's. We had the best experience there. Food and atmosphere are amazing, and it's even reasonably priced for the stellar quality and setting. The aunties serenaded us at our table and insisted we take pictures with them - they were so sweet. Highly recommended.

Mahalo!

Tiki-bot

"In the future, everyone will have 15 minutes of privacy"

[ Edited by: tiki-bot on 2002-09-26 11:03 ]

Geesh! I need to learn how to read between the lines ALOT better because no where did I read anything remotely accusing you (Tiki-Bot) of being "Evil" or "An Awful Person" for shopping at Wal-Mart, I was making reference to the homogenisation of the planet! It was a joke son, you missed it! I wont make any assumptions as to what the other posts were implying, but I am glad to hear you had such a memorable time there. It sounds like you met some interesting people and turtles. The last time I was on Kauai it was Thanksgiving Day, we were in the middle of a typhoon, EVERYTHING was closed down, as it should have been, where did we have Thanksgiving Dinner? McDonalds. Would I do that again? You Bet! :drink:

[ Edited by: DawnTiki on 2002-09-26 18:45 ]

Sorry if I got a tad defensive there. It's just that sometimes the tiki snobbery on this board (of all places!) is a bit much.

"What?!! He drinks Mai Tais with less than the four absolutely essential rums???!!!"
"He has less than 100 vintage mugs??? What's he even DOING on this board???!!!"
"Paint??? On a TIKI???!!! Into the volcano!!!"

I exaggerate, but that seems to be the sentiment around here sometimes. Everybody celebrates tiki in their own way. I just get what I like and don't care if it fits someone else's standard of how a tiki-phile should behave, or where they should purchase their tiki goods. Tiki is in the eye of the beholder. :wink:

PLEASE, get the "beholder" to the hospital and have that removed.
It is affecting his eye sight.
You you you Walmayrter

Tiki-Bot you are so dead on with the snobbery statement. I think that this superior attitude has alot to do with why there are almost 500 members but just a few of the brave are willing to post comments. It can get pretty deep in here with the "if it weren't for me, were would Tiki be" "I inventented the Tiki" statements! God! You'd think that they carved the first Tiki. I have found that overall the people who post here are very open and friendly and VERY FUNNY! Your going to come across people in every crowd who need to feel like they have the biggest "Tiki" if you get my drift. But, I have felt the very same intimidation that your talking about, mean people SUCK! By the way, your "Sweet" Tiki Hut, is Very Nice! :D

[ Edited by: DawnTiki on 2002-09-26 21:53 ]

Woah........woah.
Everybody slow down..... I never had the intention of insulting Tiki-bot or where he shops. In fact that is why I put in the phrase about me buying at the tourist shop. I'm not at all trying to be elitist.

Also when Tiki-bot wrote:
"I had plenty o' money to shop there, at Hilo Hattie's, AND never suffered for want of a drink," I started thinking, maybe I drink too much. I don't know.

By the way, I don't care what you put in my mai-tai, I don't even have have close to 100 vintage tiki mugs, but I DID, in fact, carve the first tiki....and it's HUGE.

I'm glad we agree on Duke's, it is delicious!

I in fact carved the first Tiki
And it is so big
I had to buy two pair of pants

Hey Lucky E-mail me I live in tustin grew up in CdM

tiki-bot wrote:
It's just that sometimes the tiki snobbery on this board (of all places!) is a bit much.

I hope people who are newer to Tiki aren't afraid to post on this board because of a perceived 'snobbery'. There are some pretty hard-core Tiki-philes on here and it's often the details about things like mugs, drink ingredients etc. that are of major importance to them. What might look like snobbery is actually a passion for the subject.

It's a rarity that someone actually comes out and says something daft like 'I was into it first', and then we all laugh at them for doing so anyway!

So forgive those who want to use the right combination of rums in their drinks and wonder how they are going to fit their 500 mug collection into their new apartment, and don't be afraid to get posting yourself.

Trader Woody

Here are the pictures that I promissed you.

http://www.shutterfly.com/osi.jsp?i=67b0de21b30b26bac4ad

The fist couple are of the carver that I met, T. Huni and his tikis. The next one is of a luao at our hotel. The last is a tiki that was carved from a still planted palm out on the beach.
Enjoy.

[ Edited by: Luckydesigns on 2002-09-27 12:32 ]

On 2002-09-25 16:26, Tiki-bot wrote:
I know, I know, I went on and on about Hamura Saimen too, but we never made it there. I'm on this controlled carb diet and pastas and breads are out. I could've cheated,

Oh we abandoned the Atkins Bandwagon during our 2 weeks in hawaii (cripes, we eached gained 10 pounds in 14 days!...)

but oh how worth it ~ Hamura, and many other local grinds... and every bakery on Oahu and Kauai!

Tahiti Nui: we stayed for a drink, for the TIPSY factor ~ we took a few pictures. a tad afraid to take a picture that might include a face of the bikers who were there for happy hour...

On the Tiki Road Trip web pages there is a terrific review of the Tahiti Nui.

The Mai Tai that Aunty made me was possiby the worst thing I've ever... wait, I used to drink Boone's Farm so forget that one.

But her company was delightful and the place was empty and she happened to have her uke there and we sang "HeneHene Kou Aka" together. If I had known "Happy Talk" back then I would have made her sing it because she was the living embodiment of that character.

But she still needs to get a grip with dat shit she pourin'. nazzzzti.

Man, I miss Kauai.

BTW - my favorite Mai Tai there was at the Plantation Garden. They also had a nice after dinner drink called the Prince Kuhio which had Macadamia Nut Liquor, ummmm... rum and Kahlua, I think.

Shoulda wrote that one down, I guess.

On 2003-11-26 10:01, pablus wrote:

But her company was delightful and the place was empty and she happened to have her uke there and we sang "HeneHene Kou Aka" together. If I had known "Happy Talk" back then I would have made her sing it because she was the living embodiment of that character.

But she still needs to get a grip with dat shit she pourin'. nazzzzti.

Sad to say, but Auntie has gone to the Big Luau in the Sky ~ the new owners are nice enough ~ didnt get a chance to talk, as they were consulting with someone on a menu for the new restaurant they're opening. the wife didn't have coconut stuff to make a pina colada, so she improvised and made a pineapple-y frosty drink for me.

the place was busy with local biker types, nice folks watching football and drinking beer...

cheers
elicia

On a recent trip to Kaui I found very little tiki if I didn't really look for it. I even discussed the "Give Hawaii back to the Hawaiians movement" with a few locals and have to agree with them for the most part. I didn't ever see the Wallmart, but did most of my siouvenir shopping at the many ABC stores on the island. Same stuff you saw everywhere else at third of the price.

Pictures like that are why I can't let myself miss a TC posting. The barstools, that palm tree. Wonderful.

Sad to say, but Auntie has gone to the Big Luau in the Sky ~

Bless Auntie Louise.  
She was the heart of Tahiti Nui and most visited to talk story with our Auntie.  
This might explain the recent dis-enchanting visits by some TC'ers.  Ben and I loved Tahiti Nui, but hadn't visited in years and we were truly complexed over the bad reviews.  Well, mystery solved.  The heart is gone....only memories we hold.  
Aloha!

That is sad news indeed.
I was just tthere in April of this year, too.

Her place had been bought by someone else, a nephew methinks, and the bar was less important to them than the luau they held for the big hotel over on the point.

Young Tahiti Nui guy: "Pierce Brosnan was at the Luau last night."

Me: "Who's that?"

Wahine: PUNCH "You know who that is!!!" (she's got a crush on his accent)

Aunty: "She a keeper. Keep you straight, hahahaha."

Me: "Speaking of straight - hit me with another one of those famous Mai Tais, madam."

Thanks for posting those pics, BTW. I can feel the warm, wet breeze blowing through the place when I look at them.

Tiki-bot:

Excellent tiki travel report and thank you. A Kauai vacation is definitely something to be thankful for on Thanksgiving.

Do you think staying at the Hyatt or Marriot is worth the higher price?

Where did you go to watch the sunset? Is it true that all hotels, etc. are on the east side of the island whereas the sunset is on the West side?

Lastly, did you take the cruise down Wailua river to the Fern Grotto and, if so, how long & how was it?

Happy Thanksgiving.

On 2003-11-27 12:45, christiki295 wrote:
Tiki-bot:

Do you think staying at the Hyatt or Marriot is worth the higher price?

Where did you go to watch the sunset? Is it true that all hotels, etc. are on the east side of the island whereas the sunset is on the West side?

Lastly, did you take the cruise down Wailua river to the Fern Grotto and, if so, how long & how was it?

Happy Thanksgiving.

Aloha, CT295. I don't think the hotel matters much unless you plan to spend a lot of time there. You're probably just as well off with a beachside condo (where we always stay) that's decent and spending your time boppin' around the isle.

Yes, most of the resorts on Kauai are on the north, east & west shores. Great for watching sunrises with the time change. Best sunsets I've seen are from a boat or the north resorts in Princeville.

In 4 trips to Kauai I haven't been up the Wailua river or to the fern grotto. I tend to shy away from touristy things, but I hear it's fun. There are so many other things to do & amazing sights to see, many for free, that the river trip never gets to the top of my list.

BTW, the trip I refer to here was one we went on last November (2002).

Also, I am eternally embarrassed I ever bought anything tiki at Walmart. See, we don't have Walmarts where I live...really! I have since seen the error of my ways and seen the evil that is Sprawl-mart taking over the country. I apologize profusely. And I may even send back the stuff I bought there with a bottle of gin!

Aloha!

Pele would be pleased. I understand she was incarnated on Kaui before settling on the Big Island.

I had a similar problem regarding poor judgment when purchasing tikis. I purchased my tikis in the gift shop of the Kanapali Beach Hotel (which were made in China) and then the next day a true Hawaiian was selling tikis on the lanai. I regret I did not throw them into the ocean and purchase some made with mana (but I, too, wanted to save my dollars for mai-tais, as they were served in pineapples next door at the Sheraton.)

Good to see we have our priorities in order...:wink:

ChrisTiki:

we love "the hyatt touch" ~ everything about the Kauai Hyatt is wonderful: but to be real honest, we didnt spend enough time there! i think we spent a total of 3 hours poolside, didnt use the tennis, spa, wt room, golf or the other ammenities. we did get the breakfast buffet included in our room rate plus one night free ~ but i HIGHLY recommend going to a Sunday Hyatt Brunch (after 10 am) i have never seen so much food in my life... just make sure you dont have any activites planned afterwards, you'll be too full to move!

we decided next time to rent something cheaper, and make a point to GO to the hyatt and take in the free hawaiian music/dancing & live jazz at the bars. they have the most amazing Kalua Pork Nachos... a huge plate for 10 bucks. but its only served at the Seaview Terrace from 4-10 pm. dinner at Tidepools was very good too.

we did the cruise down Wailua river to the Fern Grotto 10 years ago, and didnt feel we needed to do it again (but i DO RECOMMEND you do it once!) if you're not too Luau'ed Out, the Smith Luau is pretty good.

we saw most of the sunsets from the hotel, so they werent spectacular.

i guess i should post our restaurant reviews, since we found a few gems on Kauai (and a few on oahu too)..

We spent 10 days on Kauai last month. Stayed at the Kuhio Shores condos near Poipu. The waves crashing on the rocks was 20 feet from our second floor balcony. 3 sea turtles feed off the reef and we watched them everyday (snorkled with them twice).
We were next door to the Beach House restaurant (good) with a great offshore reef break. The first 5 days it was about 5-8' with both a right and left hand break. Bethany Hamilton (the young surfer that lost her arm to a shark a couple years ago) and other good surfers were out from dawn to dark everyday (not me.....just one morning on a rented 10' log on a 2'-3' shore break in front of the Sheraton).

In front of the Beach House

Tahiti Nui Sign

Tikis at the Hyatt

Tiki at the Sheraton

One of 2 large Tikis in front of the window into the kitchen at Tidepools restaurant (Hyatt).....this place had great decor.....lotsa bamboo, tapa, outrigger (in the bar)

Best cheap lunch was at Keokis in Poipu......huge fish taco with black beans for $5.95.....best mai tai? Not found. Best drinks were at the condo.....most stores carried a large assortment of Trader Vic's Rums and mixes. We also had a good meal (and a great margarita) at the Blue Dolphin in Hanalei......The Poipu shopping center had a free Polynesion dance show on Tuesday and Thursday, but we missed it. Aloha

I just read through this post, and relived my first vacation with Tiki-Bot....
When a man takes you to Kauai for your first vacation, you pretty much have to marry him and have his child... (on a side note, our first weekend away trip was to Tiki Oasis 2! HE PLIED ME WITH RUM....)
Anyway - I was laughing at how silly we were buying tiki's at Wal-Mart, we bought the resin molded tikis for my nephews as gifts, and some fake tapa place mats, some stickers and postcards, not much else. And T-Bot is correct, we didn't have Wal mart in Nor Cal 3 years ago, and we didn't know of their evil. I feel so bad....
We have friends who just got from 2 weeks on their honeymoon, and they had a lovely time. Our Kauai picture page is long gone, so it was nice seeing the tikis from around the island. My favorite place was snorkeling at Tunnels, having dinner at Dukes, and the sunset cruise off the coast!
I want to go back....

"You're the mayor of shark city, people think you want the beaches open."

[ Edited by: mrs. pineapple 2005-08-19 09:25 ]

On 2002-09-26 19:37, DawnTiki wrote:
I think that this superior attitude has alot to do with why there are almost 500 members but just a few of the brave are willing to post comments.

Wow - can it be 3 years later there are 3553 members on this board!!!!!!

This thread too took me back to our first vacation on Kauai. It was great! I wish I could go back... Oh well - not for a few years anyway....

I'm going to dig out my old pictures & scan them for this thread - in the meantime, here's a few that remain from my old website....

We stayed here:
Kamahana

It's about $120 a night.... very nice!

[ Edited by: Tangaroa 2005-08-19 10:42 ]

Your wife has a beautiful left ear.

That's what I keep telling her - but she thinks it's too fat! I've always been an ear man....

WOW!! Sherry and I have never been to the Islands but really plan on going some day. I Must say that this thread has almost Taken me there. With every post I was smelling the salt air, seeing the turtle, getting high from the Maitai's, salivating at the luau's and spending all my money for all the tikis everywhere. Thanks to everyone here so much. This has been a fantastic trip. Nowhere but on TC can you get such a great trip for so little airfare! Thanks

On 2002-09-25 11:51, Tiki-bot wrote:

Oh, and the best place to do all your tiki shopping: Walmart! They have a whole tiki section, cheap mugs and everything. Sure it's not "collectable", but we seemed to have collected an awful lot from there anyway!

Conviently located next to Hilo Hattie, the Kaua'i Walmart did have a very large section of made in Hawaii products, apparel, foodstuffs, tikis, Hawaiian music, etc. I almost forgave myself for venturing inside.

However, Walmart was sold out of tiki torches!

It may be the island's 2nd largest employer, after Wilcox Hospital (also located next door).

Ah, Kaua'i...just back, again. My five-year plan is in action and I'll plant myself in Hanalei soon, to rust and rot in the jungle and warm ocean swells. Spent at least four nights in Tahiti Nui. Gotta tell you guys, if you're gonna go to this island, skip the hotels and get yourself a house/studio rental in Hanalei. There are always places available and you can get in for $100-120/night, or more if you want to pay higher. Very competitive with the hotels, plus you live like a local and have access to bikes, snorkel gear, etc.

If you're gonna hit up the Nui, do it on a Thursday night and get in there before 6p. That's the night for the local music and Auntie Louise's nephew Bill will do his hula at some point.

As for Walmart, I take a little gentler approach to their presence in the islands. Sure, I know your small town in Iowa might be challenged by the presence of the big discounter and it may up the pace of change affecting small stores, etc. But there's a different mindset in the most remote island group in the world. It's cargo culture, baby! Stuff is hard to come by and prices are high. If somebody can come in and drop the prices, people are happy in the islands. So, yeah, I buy my souvenirs from the locals, usually find a contact who can get me a sunrise shell necklace, or Niihau leis, at a good price, but certain to have been made locally, and NOT imported from P.I. However, I'm happy to get my Hawaiian Host chocolates and all the other cheesy stuff to bring back to the Mainland, at a good price in Sam's store.

I voted Democrat in every election since 1981 (when i turned 18) and I'm very liberal.

This is a good thread indeed...great read. I wish I had discovered this board before my last trip to Kauai in October. I feel I missed a lot of good things, but HEY....I have ideas now on what to do next time I go.

Those turtles are cute as can be. We saw one when we were coming into the harbor after a day on a catamaran tour of Na Pali coastline. He was just swimming casually along, then stopped, lifted his head and slowly looked all around, then put his head down and sauntered away...stroke...stroke...stroke. What a delightful little personality.

(I missed Walmart....but who cares, I only have 8 clear glass tiki mugs I got at Applebys last year...hmmmmm. Just think of how much fun I can have buying mugs.)

[i]On 2006-12-05 09:40, greg_surfs wrote:

As for Walmart, I take a little gentler approach to their presence in the islands. Sure, I know your small town in Iowa might be challenged by the presence of the big discounter and it may up the pace of change affecting small stores, etc. But there's a different mindset in the most remote island group in the world. It's cargo culture, baby! Stuff is hard to come by and prices are high. If somebody can come in and drop the prices, people are happy in the islands. So, yeah, I buy my souvenirs from the locals, usually find a contact who can get me a sunrise shell necklace, or Niihau leis, at a good price, but certain to have been made locally, and NOT imported from P.I. However, I'm happy to get my Hawaiian Host chocolates and all the other cheesy stuff to bring back to the Mainland, at a good price in Sam's store.

I voted Democrat in every election since 1981 (when i turned 18) and I'm very liberal.

It also may be the 2nd largest employer on the island, behind Wilcox Hospital next door.
Not that Walmart provides good jobs - they don't and are ruining good jobs and labor here in the US - but a Walmart is better than nothing.

PS - you may wish to buy your tiki souvenirs at Hilo Hatties, next door on the other side.

Next time definitely stroll the Hyatt and have dinner at the tiki mecca, Tidepools.

[ Edited by: christiki295 2006-12-07 01:03 ]

Is there an echo in here?

:wink:

Just wanted to share the names of a couple of restaurants that I really liked.

Coconuts Island Style Grill & Bar
http://www.coconutsislandstylegrillandbar.com/
4-919 Kuhio Hwy, Kapa'a, HI 96746 · 808-823-8777

More Details from the sight:

Alcohol Served
Beer, Liquor, Wine

Ambiance
Cozy, Fun / Festive

Cuisine
American, Continental

Dress
Business Casual

Features
Family Friendly, Non-Smoking

Meals
Lunch & Dinner

Reservations
Accepted - Groups

A tropical ambience, complete with colorful artwork and furnishings of coconut wood, characterizes this popular establishment, which is frequently crowded with patrons eager to sample the delicious cuisine. The menu includes burgers, pastas, fresh island fish, steaks, and chicken. Teriyaki-dipped salmon is a perennial favorite, as are the lobster ravioli and spice-cured pork chop. If you have to wait, enjoy a cool drink at the bar, and preface your meal with something tasty from their array of appetizers.

Hours:
Mon-Sat 4pm-10pm

Pricing:
Average Main Course Price: $16.00

Payment Methods:
Visa, Master Card, Discover

My friend and I both had lunch there and had a tempura platter with ahi tuna relish and cabbage with Thai jasmine rice. It was all absolutely delicioius. Drinks were expensive and average. Certainly worth the visit, it is clean and the decoroations are very tropical.

=========================================
Wrangler's Steakhouse (Frommer's Recommended)

Cuisine STEAKHOUSE

Hours Mon-Thurs 11am-8:30pm; Fri 11am-9pm; Sat 5-9pm

Address 9852 Kaumualii Hwy

Location Western Kauai

Phone 808/338-1218

Prices Lunch $8-$12; dinner main courses $17-$30

Credit Cards AE, DISC, MC, V

Frommer's Review

Good service and pleasant veranda seating are among the pluses of this family-run operation. Western touches abound: a wagon in the loft, log-framed booths with gas lanterns, and lauhala paniolo hats in the made-in-Hawaii gift shop. A combination of cowboy, plantation, and island traditions, Wrangler's serves lots of steak -- big, hand-selected cuts -- and adds some island touches, from vegetable tempura to grilled steak to ahi with penne pasta. Families like Wrangler's because its multicourse dinners won't break the bank.

My friend and I both had one of the specialities which is a Tempura Tin Lunchbox and it was fabulous.

==========================================

I don't suggest the Kauai Hulagirl Bar & Grill in the Coconut Market Place. Poor service and food is expensive and not that great.

We were on a tight budget so we shopped Safeway and cooked in our room. Unfortunately we couldn't get to a luau d/t ticktes were sold out to the one that was recommended. Gonna have to do that next time I go to the islands. :)

Just got back from a nice stay in Princeville. Just above Hideaways Beach and only a short drive to both Anini Beach and Hanalei Bay.

Looking down on the Hanalei taro fields from Princeville.

Bali Hai in the distance...

High tropical brush below Princville on the short road into Hanalei (This pic reminds me of the beginning of Apocalypse Now!)

The infamous Tahiti Nui!

Drinking some Blue Moons at the Tahiti Nui. Bartender said live music is mostly classic rock except for some acoustic slack key & uke one night a week. Hidden behind a speaker was a framed Shag Don Ho print signed by Shag and Don! (Ona might want to pack a screwdriver next month.)

The Java Kai in Hanalei. Yummy coffee, breakfast... and cigars!

Pokolololita enjoying her papaya banana waffles and guards my box of Kauai Cigar Company sampler! Pure organic Hawaiian grown tobacco!

This exotic pavillion is at a resturant across the street from [b]Chin Young Village[b] in Hanalei town. I forget it's name but there's also a neat antique shop just to the right with a huge selection of vintage dashboard hula dolls.

Hi, thanks to everyone for all the Kauai tips posted here (and in other threads). I finally made it back a few weeks ago after a painfully long absence and the info here came in handy!

I will join the chorus recommending the Tidepools restaurant at the Poipu Hyatt. Though I'd been to Kauai before and did tons of recent research, I never would have known about this place without TC. We made reservations there for a 70th birthday dinner and it really is a cool place. It was much more Tiki than I expected, with tons of bamboo & tapa everywhere; and the Koi just below the tables is a fun touch (request a table on the outside edge when you make a reservation). A nice restaurant that you can bring your parents to, and still get your Tiki fix at the same time. It's not inexpensive, but all the meals and the service were very good, and their Tai Chi drink was good enough for an encore round. (It wouldn't be a bad idea to call to reconfirm your reservation - I had made ours for 7:30pm, but when we arrived they said they'd had us down for 6pm) Next time I'd like to swing by during the day to try and get a better look at everything.

Another food stop I haven't seen mentioned here was Scotty's Beachside Barbeque. Right on the water in Kapaa, they have a great setting. There's a small park right outside the building, with the ocean just behind. The whole beachside wall of the restaurant is open - it's just huge garage doors that they roll up while they're open, so it's a totally unobstructed view. It can get windy if you pick a rainy/cooler evening, but it's still nice, and hard to beat on a sunny afternoon. Food was excellent & plentiful, good service, casual, relaxed atmosphere. The picture below with the cruise ship between the palm trees was taken from our table.

We did the Smith Family Luau, which was pretty much exactly as I remembered it. As a bonus, their Mai Tais were among the most palatable we found on the whole trip. I really like the East Coast area and booked there again this time. We ended up at the Lanikai in Kapaa in a large two-bedroom oceanfront condo. Very nice. I'm having trouble sleeping without the sound of the surf now that I'm back home.

Went for a Na Pali catamaran tour and managed to pick the one day with astonishingly calm seas for February. In addition to the stunning scenery of the land, we saw tons of dolphins and whales and a few turtles to boot. We went with Liko Kauai, who did a great job. Also did a helicopter tour this time, which I'd never done before. Waaaay cool.

As usual, there wasn't nearly enough time to do (and eat!) everything I wanted to. We were in Hanalei too early for Tahiti Nui, I never made it to Hamura's...but I'm planning to get back before the end of the year to remedy that.

Aloha, first time poster here.

My wife and I are visiting Kauai during the winter holidays and are staying in Kapa'a. This is my first time. She has been here before, in 2002. I found this board after searching for a bit of information about Tahiti Nui. We were trying to find lunch in Hanalei and, being put off by a 30 minute wait for a fish taco in an establishment overrun with misbehaving children and NO adult beverage service, we trudged down the muddy road to find Tahiti Nui, open, not crowded and without a tremendous wait for service.

I guess you could say our expectations were low or non-existent, but we had a nice time, first sampling a local lager and then ordering a Mai Tai to accompany our pizza after being reminded that such drinks exist when a group of wahine barged in with the chant "We're here to drink Mai Tai's". Yeah, good idea, we'll have a couple of those! They weren't bad. They were definitely not watered down, though with some practice I am sure I could do better. Pat was a great barkeep and his dog Pinto was fun to play with.

My last true Tiki experince was a few years ago when a co-worker had a tiki party and gave me a set of tiki glasses as a Christmas gift. Before that were my highschool years and the time spent at the Aloha in Rochester NY, downing Zombies, Mai Tai's and Aloha bowls and listening to the Willams Hawaiian Trio. That place closed a long time ago and the only souvenier I have is a pack of cigarette matches.

This has been a very helpful thread. We will be visiting Duke's Canoe Club, Kieko's Paradise and the International Surfing Museum before we leave.

Aloha.

James

The Honey and I made it to our most important destinations today, Duke's and Keoki Paradise. Sadly our third objective, the International Surfing Museum, opened in the summer of 2004 after two years of effort, closed after only a few weeks according to the long-time Lihue retailer I talked to. Too bad. Here are some photos of what existed at the time.

http://community.webshots.com/user/intlsurfinghalloffame/untagged/photos

We arrived at Duke's just after they opened. Early yes, but not too early for a pre-lunch Mai Tai. Service was great, the drink was great (better than I had at Tahiti Nui a few days ago) and the setting could not have been finer.

Keoki's Paradise was our next stop. Arriving after lunch service began we decided to enjoy lunch along with our drinks. I had the Pina Colada while my wife had a Mango Colada. Both were very good and we found it curious that the drink selection between Duke's and Keoki's was much the same, then we remembered that they were owned by the same company and quite of bit of Duke memorabilia was on display at Keoki's. Keoki's is located in an upscale shopping center near a resort. Meandering tourists and loud children come with the territory.

And here is a quick shot from Tahiti Nui.

James

Some more Tikis from our anniversary trip to Kauai last week.

These are outside the Hawaiian Trading Post in Kalaheo:

Some more shots from our too-brief time in paradise:
http://share.shutterfly.com/action/welcome?sid=8AYuHLRk4ZtmTF

You guys look really happy. Congrats on your anniversary.
If you're in town for the holidays, call me.

On 2009-11-14 05:56, pablus wrote:
You guys look really happy. Congrats on your anniversary.
If you're in town for the holidays, call me.

We are overdue for a visit to the Lagoon Lounge! Hopefully soon.

And by the way, if anyone goes to Kauai soon and you rent a car press play CD on the stereo when you first get in. We left our copy of the Haole Kats in the white Chevy P.O.S. we rented. :(

-Duke