Caveman Restaurant?

It existed...in Fort Lauderdale, Florida in the 60's and 70's! The back reads: "THE CAVES RESTAURANT, 2205 N. Federal Highway, Fort Lauderdale, Florida...Enter into glistening white tunnels leading you to your own private cave filled with brightly colored throw pillows. Caves seat from a romantic two to a jovial twelve. Serving great steaks, ocean-fresh seafood, grilled chicken breast, or a hearty slab of ribs. Unsurpassed service; sensational food". Check out the cave girl server's outfits! Lux Interior would have gone apeshit over this one!

[ Edited by: Basement Kahuna on 2003-12-29 20:47 ]

is that Tiki Bree?

"a jovial twelve"
Hellllo!?!?

The photo reminds me of one of my favourite theme restaurants from my childhood called "The Cave". I remember visiting this Saskatoon, Saskatchewan restaurant at least a dozen times during the early eighties. I don't remember any "Lux Interior temptin" outfits, but it did have a cool waterfall wall behind the bar, and a virtual labyrinth of booths and tables. Thanks for sharing this BK!

[ Edited by: Slacks Ferret on 2003-12-29 21:43 ]

CAPTAIN CA AA A V E MM AAA N!

I went to that one in Ft. Lauderdale as a kid a couple times. It was very cool but I don't remember much about the food. It was very Fred Flintstone. I was probably 8-12 years old. Yabba dabba doo......

Scotty

verie kewl... the 70's was all about creating biomorphic surfaces with expanded metal lath and sprayed-on-concrete...

there's a house in chevy chase, md with the exterior all curvaceous concrete like that. looks like papa smurf's house. perfect trip pad... groovy...

There is a Szechuan restaurant (the name escapes me right now) in Ann Arbor, Michicgan that is like a cave inside, and they serve tiki drinks...

But no one dresses like a caveman!

Me and Robin went there on our first visit to Fort Lauderdale a few years ago. We went there straight from the airport for dinner. We had ribs of course! They were OK but the atmosphere was great. After dinner we visited the Mai Kai for the first time. What a night! I have pictures I can post later.

Unfortunately, the last time I went to Florida (a couple of years ago) the Caves Restaurant was a mere shell of a building left. It had been gutted by fire!

One brontoburger & a sabertooth tiger's milk comin' right up!

Here's those pictures I took in May 2000:

On 2003-12-30 08:24, tikifish wrote:
There is a Szechuan restaurant (the name escapes me right now) in Ann Arbor, Michicgan that is like a cave inside, and they serve tiki drinks...

But no one dresses like a caveman!

Should you remember, please post the name. or even it's general location. I'd love to check it out.

-Z

My last stay in Kona, Hawaii was at a huge resort decorated a la Space: 1999.... there was a bar there that was done up like you were in old lava caves. It had huge hollow lava columns that rose up thru the 2nd floor terrace of the resort, capped off with giant white dome skylights. I have photos somewhere, I'll post when I find.

I beleive the name is "Szechuan West". Hubby agrees. I will check on google...

Szechuan West
(Chinese)2161 W. Stadium
Ann Arbor, MI 48103
734-769-5722

I have to wran you, don't get your hopes TOO high - my tiki radar is set off kilter so ANYTHING remotely exotic gets me disproportionally excited. This is no Caveman Room or Mai Kai. It's just a cool chinese restaurant that has funny walls and a little fountain and serves exotic cocktails...

Another fun themed restaurant is at Disneyland. Of coarse I don't remember the name, but I'm sure some of you TCers have been there. The restaurant that is inside/next to, the “Pirates of The Caribbean” ride.
YO HO!
Addendum -------------
I remember the name now, "The Blue Bayou".

Here is a stupid addition, while I looked for the name on the net, this woman posted a photo of the woman's restroom stall in Club 33(private restaurant in Disneyland), that has full size cane seat/chair covers over the toilette.
By chance, this just may be the best "Royal Wahine Throne" to be found.

A Tiki Cheers To You

[ Edited by: Unga Bunga on 2003-12-31 10:07 ]

[ Edited by: Unga Bunga on 2003-12-31 10:10 ]

On 2003-12-30 22:25, tikifish wrote:
I have to wran you, don't get your hopes TOO high - just a cool chinese restaurant that has funny walls and a little fountain and serves exotic cocktails...

Thanks for the warning. But this is Michigan after all. I takes whats I can getz. My tiki restaurant routine currently consists of driving past WAVES to and from work everyday. Humph.

-Z

Here's a matchbook with another view of the Caves:

Yup, this place sure did exist. In fact it was literally right down the street from the Mai Kai.

[ Edited by: donhonyc 2016-02-20 22:45 ]

Zombified, you have been to Chin's in Livonia, right?

On 2004-01-04 17:56, tikifish wrote:
Zombified, you have been to Chin's in Livonia, right?

a billion times! but it's just over an hour away. Waves is only about 10 minutes. So getting my non-tiki friends interested in the drive is a challenge. Especially when sitting at Waves and one of them says about the music, "Ya know, I really like that Jimmy Buffet"

-Z

Thank God The Tiki Bar Is Open
Thank God The Tiki Torch Still Shines...

[ Edited by: Feelin' Zombified on 2004-01-05 06:44 ]

I just discovered this place while doing some archival research.

Just for the sake of completeness, and to document that such a place did once exist...

In the early 1990's (IIRC) there was a Resturaunt called Bedrock's in Brandon, FL (East of Tampa) that had a similar caveman / dinosuar theme. I seem to recall the building itself wasn't sculpted shotcrete on lath, but the interior was decorated that way. They had a brontosaurous sticking its head in from a trompe d oeil window. I think that the brontosaur head may have had some rudimentary animatronics in it.

I just got back from Saskatoon last week amd while I was there I convinced my wife that we needed to visit "The Cave" restaurant. (I mentioned it earlier in this thread)

Am I ever glad we did! The food was awesome. I highly recommend it if you ever find yourself in Saskatoon.

And if you go, get the spaghetti instead of fries or a potato. Their spaghetti is sooo gooood.

Some photos:

The Cave opened in 1976 .

I grabbed one of their placemats. It has a nice map diagram of the restaurant which really helps illustrate how the place is divided into little nooks and crannies...I'll post that later after I get around to scanning it.

Later!

I live and work about a mile from that doomed, accursed spot. It's been 5 or 6 things since Bedrocks and is now a "coupon-buffet" type joint.

Bedrocks was very cool looking but as soon as The Flintstones movie played out it was over.

Brandon folk are the type of people that would eat warm, rhino fecal matter were it advertised on television or had a coupon.

Hence our lack of city government, even though there are well over 150,000 people within what would be the make-up of its municipality.

Largest unincorporated area, per capita, in the States.

When polled about whether they would like a city government or not, 96% of Brandonians responded, "...shhh, Judge Judy's on."