Modesto Mini Bar Crawl

I will gladly host a crawl out here but it will have to wait till Sept. or Oct. as things are just too busy right now. Of course the fact that I can't play tour guide till then shouldn't stop anyone from checkin' out the local watering holes. Tonight I will be at Minnie's to talk story and suck 'em up with fellow carver Mick, Late, JT

How long a drive is it from L.A. to Modesto? After reading about ob seagull's thread about Modesto and the great input from those who know, I think a Modesto trip sounds like fun. We could stay at the Tropics, of course! We need something to do in the fall. There's also that dead time in January when we're all fishing around for some tiki good times. Remember the posts after the new year? "So, what's goin' on? Anything?" There will be budget issues connected with the holidays, but we have time to plan and save. Hmmm...

Believe it or not I made it from Oceanside to Turlock in 5 1/2 hrs. last Monday. Car pool lane helps a lot.

It would be an honor to play tour guide for all the hoity toities from down south and the hooty tooties from the Bay area.

You're right Floratina, the Tropics would be the place to stay. Plan on it and I'll work on it. I know the owner of The Tiki, so I'll start working some jungle magic on him. Just got back from Minnie's, signature drink is The Jerk, mmmmm, very tasty. The food is good too. Late, JT

I'm not a hoity toity, nor a hootie tootie, but I'll be "vacationing" in Sac-town in a couple weeks and was thinking of making the drive to Modesto to check out the scene for a night. Do you know what the rates are for the Tropics? It'd be great to have a drink with a fellow Tiki artist and swap photos.

Hey Seamus, let me know what nights you'll be around and I'll hit The Tiki and Minnie's with you. Anyone else? I guess it depends on the dates.
I don't know what the rates are for The Tropics.

Cool! I might be meeting a friend of mine from LosAngeles there for the night to do some catching up. He's not a Tikiphile but he tolerates it quite graciously since two of his best friends are. I'll give you a heads up when we get closer. I'm guessing it'll be sometime between July 21 and the 25th. Thanks!!

Sounds like you're throwing a great little shindig. Wish I could be there. We'll light the torches and have drink on your behalf.
Have fun!!

Tikis by Seamus

http://home.earthlink.net/~seamus23

[ Edited by: seamus on 2003-07-04 18:14 ]

The rates for the Modesto Tropics are in the $35.oo range---cheap.

hey Jungletrader,
it's still a bit up in the air, but I'm thinking tues the 22nd is the best chance to get over to your neck of the woods. Is the Tiki an over 21 joint? I'm not sure if I'm draggin the kid along or leaving her with the cousins. We'll be in Sac tomorrow night and I'll begin to find out just how much of my "vacation" is mine. Let me know if you're still up for drinks.
Seamus

Seamus, The Tiki is a 21 or over bar. Most likely I could meet you there next Tues. Send me an e-mail or PM as that date nears.

Last night I met Seamus of Waldport and his friend for the first time at Minnie's. Traded some mugs and a Bosko Moai mask for some cast stone tikis. Nice addition to my growing collection. After Minnie's we drove down the street to the Tropics and The Tiki Lounge to suck 'em up and talk more story. Seamus sorry about the Tropics, it's too bad it's sorta rundown. It seems some lower income families have taken over the area. We also witnessed a scuffle in the parking lot which almost went out of control. As Seamus said, I should suggest Days Inn which is just a bit north of Tropics on McHenry, so there is my suggestion for anyone else who might be planning a trip.

Good food, drinks, and good conversation, thanks braddah.

If you haven't seen Seamus website then check it out all. Good tiki stuff, and good times. JT of Turlock

[ Edited by: jungletrader on 2003-07-22 20:22 ]

I just got home last night. Nice and cool, in the sixties!! Modesto was a great time!
Jungletrader was a great host, and Minnies and the Tiki Lounge were both really fun places to hang out. I especially liked Minnies. It's got that old school thing going on like The Alibi in Portland. Lot's of eyecandy all over. The Tiki Lounge was more of a dive bar, but when you add a Tiki/Poly theme and a couple "interesting" drinks the place has a certain charm to it. Be warned though, if time is not on your side, avoid at all cost, the fat Irish guy telling jokes. He kept us entertained for about an hour, and that was only about four jokes!! I would avoid the Tropics Motel for now,too except to perhaps photogragh the Tikis in the parking lot. By far, the worst motel I have ever stayed at.

Thanks Jungletrader, It was good hooking up and having dinner, drinks, and doing some good trading. I highly recommend the Modesto experience to anyone who's into exploring the remaining strange and wonderful Tiki establishments left out there. I even found some cool Daga mugs at a thrift store.