Tiki Bob's, San Francisco, CA (restaurant)

I went and visited Bob today - he's doing well - he says hi to everyone...

Trad'r Bill

Thanks for the update Trad'r Bill! :)

Egad! What does "Honey Honey" sell? This makes me wish that someone would have recorded all the Bob paint jobs over the years from the same angle, to post them next to each other :) . This must be number 4 or 5.

I was telling Jon Paul that somebody in Nor. Cal. should go by there at 3 am in the middle of the night and paint him back to brown and white.
And then leave a old pic of Tiki Bob's and say just leave him this color please.

Jeff(btd)

[ Edited by: bigtikidude 2010-03-22 12:05 ]

On 2010-03-22 12:04, bigtikidude wrote:
I was telling Jon Paul that somebody in Nor. Cal. should go by there at 3 am in the middle of the night and paint him back to brown and white.
And then leave a old pic of Tiki Bob's and say just leave him this color please.

Jeff(btd)

I like the idea, just so long it is not done messy.

This was so enjoyable to read from start to finish. I hope these photos are left here forever. I am working on the Sacramento Crawl ceramic for 2011 and since Tiki Bob is a part of our history he will be featured next year. Wendy

Updates will be on that thread just like last years Zombie/Coral Reef mug were.

Aside from the photos posted in this thread, there are very little else to be found. Does anyone know where I could find good vintage photos of the exterior of Tiki Bob's from back in the day?

sugar cubes from tiki bob's.....

Currently on eBay...

Never seen this version of the menu before.

PTD

Here are some more pics of that menu Duane. Saw the auction too -- awesome menu!

Here is a pic of a paper drink coaster:

That's a glorious menu! Nice coaster find too!

The lettering of "Chow" on the menu makes me think the mysterious San Francisco "Chow 'n Grog" sign that Trad'r Bill found in 2009, might actually be from Bob's:

http://www.tikicentral.com/viewtopic.php?topic=33593&forum=5&start=0

Sabu - good eye, I was thinking the same thing... the lines inside the letters match my sign very closely. I think the sign was probably based on the menu lettering, or vice versa.

I looked through dozens of bamboo lettering fonts on Archiva Tropica and didn't see any that looked like the menu/sign: http://www.arkivatropika.com/cgi-bin/tags.cgi?tags=%22bamboo%20lettering%22

Here's a side-by-side shot:

It seems very likely that the sign once hung at one of the Tiki Bob's locations. Any other explanation I can think of seems too far-fetched.

Trad'r Bill

On 2011-05-05 13:19, Trad'r Bill wrote:
Sabu - good eye, I was thinking the same thing... the lines inside the letters match my sign very closely. I think the sign was probably based on the menu lettering, or vice versa.

I looked through dozens of bamboo lettering fonts on Archiva Tropica and didn't see any that looked like the menu/sign: http://www.arkivatropika.com/cgi-bin/tags.cgi?tags=%22bamboo%20lettering%22

Here's a side-by-side shot:

It seems very likely that the sign once hung at one of the Tiki Bob's locations. Any other explanation I can think of seems too far-fetched.

Trad'r Bill

Waitaminnit: The "C" in the menu has THREE separation lines on the bottom, the sign only TWO! :wink:

A stunning discovery! Great eye, Sabu. I have photographic TIKI memory, but it does not extend to Bamboo fonts :) . These two are clearly related! If the "Transmission tradition" of menu art that we have found in the copying of logo Tikis applies to Tiki fonts, it initially seems hard to say which came first, and from where. But with a little logic, we might get close:

Tiki Bob' was the unwanted stepchild of Trader Vic's on Cosmo Place. So Vic's would never have copied anything from Bob's. Bob's (as a place) WAS a "copy" of Vic's, yes, but but not THAT literally. It's unlikely that the graphic artist of the Bob's menu went to Cosmo place (IF it had hung there) and sketched the sign for his menu job. The easiest way would surely have been that the sign maker got a copy of the Tiki Bob's menu and carved the font from it - per order of Tiki Bob's, of course.

Tiki Bob's Sacramento was too far away for the sign to have made it back to town, and Tiki Bob's Mainland seems to have been very under-decorated with Polynesian items. So: My vote goes to the original Tiki Bob's!

I like your analysis, Sven... especially since it confirms what I want to hear. :wink:

Trad'r Bill

Here's another cool menu that came up recently on eBay:

-Trad'r Bill

No !!....? (utter disbelief) This must be a clever parody, like all those mugs Bosko and Grog have been doing. - This would be an OK graphic for "Fat Bob's Burgers", but not Tiki Bob's...the Bob Tiki was always so slender and elegant!

More Like Tiki Blob's

I like it! The combination of soft curves and sharp corners with crisp lines - very cartoon modern! This illustration is by a skilled hand.

-Randy

If it makes you feel better, the Tiki Bob blob figure was from a Wine list!

Here is a comparison of the Tiki Bob's matchbooks that show the evolution of the Tiki Bob style from the early days (right) to the Raffles era (left).

DC

Thanks, DC, I just had to get used to that fat boy look....I kinda like it now, it was a surprise, but it grew on me.

Tiki Bob starts his lingerie shows, closely watched by local police :)

The Milwaukee Journal March 31, 1959 (page 13)

St. Petersburg Independent March 31, 1959 (page 2)

The Calgary Herald April 2, 1959 (page 11)

The local authorities were unable to stop Tiki Bob's shows, but there was one draconian agency that could and did...

The Modesto Bee August 2, 1959 (page 52)

-Tom

Rogue
Volume 4 Number 8
November 1959

High resolution at
http://www.martiantiki.com/rogue-v4n8/

Wow. I've seen the color photos before but those B&Ws are new finds, yes ??

I especially like the exterior sidewalk photo. Thanks Martian-Tiki !! :)

Edit - Actually I see that Swanky had uncovered (ha ha) this a while back on his blog but thanks for posting the magazine article and cover in its entirety. Also according to Otto the Tiki Bob's in the above article is actually the Financial District location and not the one in this thread. (And which is stated in the text).

[ Edited by: JOHN-O 2012-06-16 07:49 ]

Found another menu on the web - this is apparently on display at the SFPL menu exhibit:

Full size: http://sfhcbasc.blogspot.com/2010/09/mid-century-madness.html

Similar to the "Chow N Grog" menu posted earlier...

-Trad'r Bill

Great new photos! Here is another B & W of the entrance I found online.

And some old Tiki Bob's swizzles.

DC

Swizzles! Ahhhh the hunt is on!

I saw a Tiki Bob's menu in mint condition recently sold on eBay. Was anyone here the lucky winner?

For what it's worth, here's the blurb from the back of the chrome postcard shown elsewhere in this thread.

A few news article ads from Tiki Bob's featuring the mixologists Sneaky Tiki in the Tiki Bob's peanut mug, which, interestingly enough, were made with Suntory Whiskey.

The mug from my collection.

Wonder if it was the inspiration for the Sneaky Tiki at Harvey's in Tahoe?

Or closer to home, Joe's Sneaky Tiki in San Leandro?

DC

It is very probable that the "Sneaky Tiki" concept originated at Tiki Bob's, indeed. I don't have a date for this pic, but I guesstimate it to be mid- to late 50s:

Here's a scan of an ad from a mid-1960s magazine.

so the tiki bob swizzle stick doesnt actually fit inside the tiki bob mugs as its only 6 1/4 long. anyone know which mug/glass it was used for or was it maybe floated in ice in the mugs?

Did Tiki Bobs have it's own tiki mug?

On 2018-02-17 14:25, tikiskip wrote:
Did Tiki Bobs have it's own tiki mug?

Ha!
Ya I was kiddin.

He's back!

I haven't seen any actual articles that can be linked yet, so this is just copied from Facebook for posterity.

Martin Cate
December 14 at 2:35 PM
BIG NEWS

For over 60 years, a San Francisco landmark has maintained his quiet vigil over our fair City by the Bay. Located at the corner of Post and Taylor Streets, the silent column with the pleasant smile is overlooked by most passersby. But he has a story to tell. His name…is Tiki Bob.

In 1955, Bob Bryant, a former manager of the nearby Trader Vic’s restaurant went out on his own, christening himself and his restaurant Tiki Bob. To complete the image, he needed a signature design that would become his bar’s logo and mascot. Enter Alec Yuill-Thornton, a San Francisco architect, illustrator, and jeweler who had created the whimsical illustrations for Trader Vic’s book, "Kitchen Kibitzer," a few years earlier. Alec created an image that was immediately iconic and found its way to a tiki mug that historians suggest may have been the very first. Tiki Bob adorned menus, matchbooks, and more, and quite literally held up the restaurant when his visage was sculpted into a supporting column out front.

Tiki Bob’s closed in 1983, yet Bob remained, bearing his load with a smile and without complaint. Each successive business painted him to suit their needs- once even in a tuxedo. Enthusiasts around the world took comfort knowing at least he was still there but yearned to one day see him restored to his former glory. “I am a 3rd generation San Francisco Bay Area native and for me - history matters,” says local preservationist Heather David. “The whimsical Tiki Bob mascot was so wildly popular that the image was picked up (and used) by other establishments across the country. For years, Bob has been hiding in plain sight, while his image sells original artwork, t-shirts, socks, etc. all over the world. Why would we not celebrate such an iconic, lasting, and happy image - something that originated here, in San Francisco?”

In August of 2019, a Bob-loving trio decided to make it right. Led by Heather M. David, muralist Donald Harvey, and San Francisco bar owner and author Martin Cate, the trio approached the current owners of the business Abed Rashdan and Hinda Alfayez about repainting Bob, and they graciously agreed to let Bob be restored to his original colors. Layers of paint were removed to find the original brown and color match it. Donald’s expertise in San Francisco murals was invaluable in restoring Bob to his former glory. And so, on December 14th, 2019, at long last, Bob is back. And his smile is perhaps just a bit bigger today.

So when you next find yourself in San Francisco, say hi to Bob. He always has a smile for new friends. And while you’re there, please stop into Honey Honey Café, try one of their great crepes, and let Abed and Hinda know how much you appreciate their support of San Francisco history and the joy that Bob brings to people around the world.

Honey Honey Café and Crepery (and Tiki Bob)
599 Post St.
San Francisco, CA 94102
http://www.honeyhoneycafeandcrepery.com/

#bobisback

Alec Yuill-Thornton
Born in Manila, PI on April 29, 1917, in 1933 Alec Yuill-Thornton moved to San Diego, CA to attend the Army & Navy Academy. He then studied architecture at San Mateo Junior College and UC Berkeley. Following a few years in Boulder City, NV, he returned to San Francisco and worked as an architect for Gardner Dailey and others. He provided the illustrations for Trader Vic’s Kitchen Kibitzer in 1952 and designed the iconic Tiki Bob in 1955. In the 1960s he took up etching, which he studied at the San Francisco Art Institute, as well as metalsmithing, calligraphy, and jewelry making. His watercolors include scenes of Yosemite, the Mother Lode country, and San Francisco. He died in San Francisco on Nov. 14, 1986.

Donald Harvey
Donald Harvey is an artist who has worked in San Francisco as a decorative painter and muralist for over thirty-five years. He has done work for San Francisco company Evans & Brown at the Monaco Hotel as well as hotels in Las Vegas, Japan, Singapore, Disneyworld, and many more. He currently works for Willem Racke studio working on Decorator Showcase houses and private residences in Los Angeles, New York, and San Francisco. Most recently, he restored the famed Laughing Gorilla mural on 19th Street in the Castro District. He is a lifelong Tiki enthusiast and collector, whose very first mug was a Tiki Bob from a thrift store in the 1980s.

Heather M. David
Heather M. David is a San Francisco Bay Area-based cultural historian and freelance writer. She is the author of the books "Mid-Century by the Bay," "Motel California," and numerous articles on American popular culture and historic preservation. She is an advocate for the preservation of mid-century architecture, art, and signage - with a special interest in the California roadside.

Martin Cate
Martin Cate is a James Beard Award-winning author and the owner of Smuggler’s Cove and Whitechapel in San Francisco. He has been enchanted by Bob for decades.

This is amazing news! Thanks for sharing it here.

For years I day dreamed of doing this project. It's so much better that I just get to admire your work. Thank you all. Now it will be a destination for photos. Cheers, Wendy

It's definitely time for a return visit!

Awesome

I posted this in Bilge, but then remembered this thread and figured it may as well go here.

Dog plays in mud, turns into Tiki Bob.

It's TikiDog!

https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/beautiful-samoyed-puppy-gets-muddy-195159022.html

I spotted this Tiki Bob's reference in a collection of personal adds posted on Instagram, classy 🤔

[ Edited by atomictonytiki on 2022-03-17 07:59:19 ]

We have had to go back for a few touch ups now and then. He is due for a bath soon.

My journey with Bob!

Thanks Don for your continued love and care for Bob. And for the photos! Looks like Bob has been white, red, and green prior to being returned to his former glory. I visited Bob just last month and had a pretty okay sandwich inside Honey Honey.