Tiki Bars - San Francisco

First post ever in this forum. I wanted to start a discussion about Tiki bars near / around San Francisco. I'm very new to Tiki in general (So take that with a grain of salt). I felt that I had to post this. Having gone to Smugglers Cove in San Francisco many times, and Forbidden Island in Alameda about two times, I felt anxiety visiting Trader Vics - Emeryville for the first time. I was very underwhelmed by the quality of the drinks served ad Vics compared to the other Tiki bars I had visited. The quality of the rum put into the drinks was sub par. The Original 1944 Mai Tai was pretty decent, but did not hold a candle to the quality served at Smugglers Cove. The Navy Grog was OK, and packed a punch. But given the choice -- I would visit Smugglers Cove in a heartbeat compared to Vics. So I was a little disappointed and disenchanted with my visit. Wondering if I just ordered the wrong things, or it was an off night?

Not much compares to Smuggler's Cove. Expect to lower your expectations a little when going anywhere else.

Yeah. I fell that I visited them in reverse order. :wink: I work in San Francisco in SoMA. So Smugglers Cove is kinda Home Base and accessible. I live in the East Bay, so I felt that I had to branch out, and visit all of them to get a real Tiki experience in the bay area. Wondering if there is any point to really trying a lot of other tiki bars, or just go back to the cove.

I started discovering more of the Tiki culture after spending about 3-4 nights at Trader Sams in Disneyland when I went down there for vacation this year. Bought a bunch of mugs, ordered some B.G. Reynolds syrups to do my own at home thing. Though comparing F.I or Smugglers with Trader Sams is a bit of a understatement. I felt that I could make some better drinks at home with fresh ingredients and good rum (El Dorado 12, etc..) at home comped to Vics.

[ Edited by: jertiki 2015-09-02 21:33 ]

Oh, definitely check out other bars. I love Trader Vic's, but for different reasons than Smuggler's Cove. Check out Trad'r Sam in the city for a more tiki dive bar experience and the Tonga Room for the historical value, just don't expect to get Smuggler's Cove level drinks or really anything close. The more tiki, the better!

You need to separate your mixologist side from the Tiki side
in todays Tiki landscape, the best drinks don't necessarily come from
vintage Tiki establishments, we go to those for the historical mid century experience
and ambiance that you will not find in new places, I think the best drinks are found
at the home bars right here, because we don't have to worry about the overall cost & extra work
that goes into a top notch cocktail & have the taste to want the best drink possible.

But.... we are here for the old school Tiki, even more so.

Well spoken. I think I need to have that mindset the next time around. Thanks for the words.

Having spent lots of time at each of the establishments you've mentioned, here are my suggestions for which bars to visit depending on your priority of the moment:
Drink quality and selection: Always Smuggler's Cove
Tiki History and food: Trader Vic's
Atmosphere and kitsch: Tonga Room (leave before the band starts)
Tiki décor: Forbidden Island (although if you want a pure tiki experience, choose your nights carefully as theme nights and music can sully the tiki vibe)

Regarding Trad'r Sam's on Geary in San Francisco, you should go once just to see the cool old booths and décor, but the drinks are less than mediocre, as is the taste level of the clientele.

Thanks for the recommendations. Much appreciated. Going to take all of this advice to heart. :wink: Anything else I should know around the bay area?

...Anything else I should know around the bay area?

Bart and Uber are your best friends there!