Author: Kevin Crossman

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Joe Kent Completes Kon-Tiki Expedition

Congrats to the Oakland tiki ohana’s resident wildman Joe Kent for finishing 100 rums to complete the Kon-Tiki Expedition. It is always a pleasure to see someone else be celebrated for the accomplishment.

As is the custom, there was a special menu in Joe’s honor. I had to try the delicious Ports of Despair, which is basically what Trader Vic’s calls a “San Francisco Mai Tai” that has a 151 float added. Per the note, it is “sort of” a thing, though mostly at Vic’s. Just don’t call it an “old way” Mai Tai since that can mean something else.

The Scavenger special with Montucky beer and a shot was fun. The shot had bitters and pimento dram and who knows what else but was very tasty. Montucky is cheap and light lager that is about my style when it comes to beer.

Lots of familiar faces in attendance and Joe’s wife Shannon made a truly excellent rum cake. Fun times at Kon-Tiki.

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Creeky Tiki in San Luis Obispo

Mrs. Mai Tai suggested checking this place out in downtown SLO after our lunch in Morro Bay. This restaurant and bar includes a creekside patio and second bar out back. The menu is obviously tiki inspired, though from a surf and boat drink point of view. There are a few tiki elements here, but for sure this isn’t a dark tiki bar; it’s a fun bar with a tiki theme. Mrs. Mai Tai ate here a couple years ago and said the bar food menu was pretty good.

Some plusses here. The spirit options were quite reasonable, in addition to a variety of beers and wine options as you’d expect. Mrs. Mai Tai thought the Blood Orange Mule was fantastic and while I’m not normally a ginger beer/mule fan myself, I had to admit it was quite tasty.

The weird thing is that although most of the spirit categories had at least a couple quality offerings, the rums were disappointingly aligned to super sweet cocktails. Bacardi, Malibu, Sailor Jerry, and several Captain Morgan flavors. Myers’s was by far the best here.

The “Tiki Tai” has white rum, spiced rum, orange and pineapple juice, a dark rum float, and “drizzled with grenadine.” I give a lot of leeway to bars serving Island Style Mai Tais (including the Harbor Hut in Morro Bay), but the Tiki Tai was very Rose’s Grenadine forward and so very very sweet. Sweeter than is even my preference.

Which isn’t to say that Creeky Tiki was terrible. The patio out back or the parklet out front offered some nice shaded seating on a Saturday afternoon, so if you’re looking for a place to hoist a few with friends in SLO then Creeky Tiki could be great.

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Harbor Hut in Morro Bay

Finally got to visit Harbor Hut this past weekend. You can see there are good Polynesian bones here, even if the food is basically standard steak and seafood. There are a number of tikis and nautical elements on the properly, and the indoor space is well appointed with tiki artwork and an aquarium. The outside Lil’ Hut is open for Fish & Chips and similar quick service offerings.



Mrs. Mai Tai and I stopped inside for a drink in their bar in the early afternoon. Their signature cocktail is The Big Kahuna aka “The Ultimate Mai-Tai” and was the largest Mai Tai I’ve ever seen. It wasn’t too bad if Island Mai Tais are your thing, and the rum in the float tasted great. The Cucumber cocktail Mrs. Mai Tai had was merely okay.



This place clearly isn’t “high tiki” but isn’t bad for what it is. Staff was friendly, and while that bar doesn’t have too many seats there are plenty of tables in the lounge. The main dining room has great views of Morro Rock.

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The Kon-Tiki Happy Hour Mai Tai

Happy hour is back at Oakland’s The Kon-Tiki, Tuesday-Thursdays from 4:00-6:00 pm. There are some food favorites including a grilled cheese sandwich, plus some familiar cocktails. Next time I need to try that Stiggins Pineapple rum on draft.

The Mai Tai previously graced the happy hour menu at Kon-Tiki, but this version is even better that previous one. The new Happy Hour Mai Tai features Jamaican, Martinique, and St. Luician rum and very good for a $10 Mai Tai in the Bay Area. The initial taste was a little bland, but as the cocktail diluted a little bit over a couple minutes the true flavor of this delightful Mai Tai began to shine.

There is a different Mai Tai on the regular Kon-Tiki menu, and it might be worth the $13 price to include some darker rums in the blend. But the Happy Hour Mai Tai is pretty great too.

I still enjoy the easy listening music at The Kon-Tiki. During this visit they played a song that sounded like retro 1970s soft rock but was actually the 2013 track “Don’t Know What’s Normal” from Shintaro Sakamoto. New music with a vintage sound.

Edit: Chris Day from The Kon-Tiki confirmed that the Happy Hour Mai Tai is the same as their regular menu, just lower priced. So go get it!

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Party Night at The Kon-Tiki Room

A big week for The Kon-Tiki room at Palmetto, Oakland’s newest tiki bar. They opened on Wednesday this week to coincide with a show at the Fox Theater across the street. Sounds like business was booming, which is the whole idea of the bar in this location.

Thursday wasn’t a show night but the Oakhana brought the party over from the original Kon-Tiki on 14th and Webster. Lots of fun.

The Grogs were a suggestion and were spicy and boozy. I also tried the Hash Browns that had a lovely sauce. Bar staff remains super friendly and accommodating, even making some off-menu Mai Tais with Saint Benevolence aged rum. Thanks to Bob Stear for the pour of Foursquare 2009, a very fine rum.

Longtime readers know we try to keep reviews and trip reports fair handed here. And despite my frequent advocacy of the Yacht Rock that is often played at The Kon-Tiki, I was not loving the 80s top 40 being played at Kon-Tiki Room on Thursday. I shouldn’t hear any Phil Collins songs in a tiki bar, much less four.

The Kon-Tiki Room is a lot of fun and the cocktails continue to impress.

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Mount Gay Rum Night at The Kon-Tiki

First brand sponsored rum tasting at The Kon-Tiki in quite some time. Mount Gay is a great choice, and I’m a big fan of their XO expression.

The special menu had some nice offerings. I’ve had the copper still rum expressions before so I tried the Barbados Slim; very good up cocktail with rich flavors of honey and Falernum.

The rum tasting was outside and we got to sample small portions of a cognac barrel aged sample. Hey, Mount Gay this rum is delicious, make it a limited edition retail product, please.

The food menu seemed a little larger than last time. In addition to the always fab Kon-Tiki Burger, I sampled the Calamari and Pork Bellies and both were great. More great service and a goovy vibe that Kon-Tiki is famous for.

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Painkiller Navy Rum Shootout

I had some Valencia oranges so was looking for a recipe only using OJ. Why not a Painkiller?

And why not experiment with the rum?

As has been well-documented (and well-litigated!) the Painkiller is supposed to be made with Pusser’s Navy-Style rum. They have a trademark on it, too.

There is nothing wrong with a Pusser’s Painkiller, and I prefer the higher percentage ABV of Pusser’s Gunpowder Proof for any of my Pussers-based cocktails. But since I had some extra OJ I thought I’d try giving the Gunpowder Proof a challenge but making one with Smith & Cross Jamaican Rum to compare to. Their ABVs are similar, but how about the taste?

Verdict: Everything is better with Jamaican rum!

It wasn’t even close; the Painkiller made with Smith & Cross was so much more flavorful and satisfying than the one made with Gunpowder Proof. I know I’m totally biased for Jamaican rum, but honestly I think anyone would prefer this.

Don’t Sue Me Painkiller
3 oz Pineapple Juice
1 oz Orange Juice
1 oz Coconut Creme
2½ oz Smith & Cross Jamaican Rum

Glassware by Trader Vic’s and B-Rex. I like this blue color on this style glass.