Category: Tiki Bar

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Return to Tacoma’s Da Tiki Hut

Mrs Mai Tai and I spent Saturday morning beachcombing at various beaches in Tacoma, thanks to a respite from the rain. We saw marine animals, ferry boats, and all sort of finds along the beach. After a few hours it was time for lunch so we drove over to Da Tiki Hut for a Hawaiian lunch.



I enjoyed my visit here last year and this year’s lunch was similar with focus on plate lunch options and a pretty nice Loco Moco (I ordered gravy on the side). Julie thought the Chicken Katsu was just okay but I really liked it.

The interior of Da Tiki Hut remains a surprising gem, far more elaborate than you’d expect from a smallish local restaurant. The decor is so relaxing, as was the Hawaiian music that was playing.

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Double Tais at Trader Vic’s SJC

Mrs. Mai Tai is joining me in Tacoma for the weekend and we got things started over dinner and drinks at Trader Vic’s San Jose Airport. In our case we went with the standard Original Mai Tai for me and the Guava Tai for Mrs. Mai Tai, both wonderful.

I was intrigued by the Angry Bastard cocktail which is described as being “A spiced concoction with coconut, orange and pineapple” which sounds like a Painkiller. Our server Maria said it wasn’t a Painkiller and indeed it was anything but with some very pleasant and sweet fruity flavors (guava, likely) to go along with that coconut. Really great, nicely served in the classic Suffering Bastard mug.

Trader Vic’s was really busy at dinner, so the extra seating they added last year really came in handy. The Spam Musubi and the Vic’s Chicken Salad were prepared very well and we enjoyed some exotica music playing in the bar too. I looked at the back bar and spotted a Mount Gay 1703 but sadly SJC is unable to make an alternate rum Mai Tai.

TV SJC remains the greatest airport bar in this writer’s opinion, and we are so looking forward to the Vic’s location at the Oakland Airport supposedly coming later this year.

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Sunset Passion Tai at Trader Vic’s

We had a great dinner at sunset over at Trader Vic’s Emeryville on Saturday, including a great view of the harbor. I enjoyed my all-time favorite Crab Rangoon plus a Trader Vic’s Salad with salmon so tasty. There were at least four tables with people celebrating birthdays, and the staff led the venue in multiple “Happy Birthday” rounds and a bowl of ice cream.

Mrs. Mai Tai got the seating going in style, ordering a Smoke Show that provided a wonderful unveiling experience and a smoky flavor to the clarified cocktail.

Meanwhile, I went a little off script by choosing one of the Tropical Tais from the menu, choosing the passionfruit version. That little extra passionfruit is nice in that it does not overpower the cocktail but provides a different flavor from a traditional Mai Tai. I’ve also enjoyed the guava and Mango versions in the past.

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Dublin Tai

Had a fantastic cocktail at Trader Vic’s Emeryville, where I’ve often called a different top-shelf rum for a Mai Tai to great result. This time, I celebrated St. Patrick’s Day two days early by having a “Dublin Tai,” a Mai Tai with Jameson Irish Whiskey replacing the rum.

Irish Whiskeys tend to be lighter in overall character than Scotch or Bourbon, and in this case the cocktail was not unlike the light rum variant of the Mai Tai called Menehune Juice where the less assertive rum turns the cocktail into brighter and fruitier variant. Such was the case of the Dublin Tai where you could taste the whiskey but it was an accent flavor and not up front.

The lounge in Trader Vic’s was hopping on Saturday but our friends were lucky to snag a hi-top just in time so we could have a drink before our dinner reservation. Always nice to see things busy at Trader Vic’s and to still have a fabulous cocktail.

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Sunday Rum Tasting: Jamaica Rum is the Best Rum

We dropped into Dr. Funk near opening on Sunday for a chill time relaxing with some rums from Jamaica that are on the Rum Asylum Level 1 list.

I compared two rums that have different approaches to the market, choosing Dr. Funk’s allocation of Myers’s Single Barrel Select rum and Worthy Park 109 dark rum. Both are affordable and approachable expressions, the Myers’s best for sipping and comparable to some of the lower aged Appleton rums. Worth Park is my go-to for cocktails when a “dark Jamaican rum” is called for and tastes a lot better in a glass than Pusser’s which I also tried during the sitting.

Meanwhile, Mrs. Mai Tai tried Planteray Xaymaca in the Daiquiri format and it turned out really great. Very drinkable and so much more flavorful than a cocktail made with light rum.

A portion of Dr. Funk’s Rum Collection

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Trader Vic Alley

We recently popped by Cosmo Alley / Trader Vic Alley in San Francisco.

This was the location of the then-flagship location of Trader Vic’s when it opened in 1950 and eventually became so famous that the Queen of England dined with President Reagan and had her first meal in any restaurant. This Vic’s location closed in 1994 before I got into tiki, so was never able to visit. The restaurant’s successor Le Colonial closed a while back and recent news indicates there’s a desire to transform the area from a parking lot into an urban park.

This is across the street from the old Tiki Bob’s location, now the Honey Honey cafe. We also noticed there’s a Vic’s Cleaners around the corner and wondered if this business might date from the days when Trader Vic’s was one of the leading restaurants in the city.

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Daiquiri and Big Rock at Dr. Funk

We rolled into Dr. Funk on Friday around 6:30 for more Rum Asylum Club rum tastings, plus a cheat day with Nacho Fries.

When working through the Rum Asylum list you can have the rum in a Daiquiri for $3 more. I wisely decided this was a great perk for the Denizen White (to up) 5 Year, a crisp lighter leaning rum that’s perfect in this format when expertly prepared and balanced like it was during our visit. I then chose Planteray Xaymaca Jamaica rum with an ice cube, so Dr. Funk dropped in a big ol’ rock in there and it tasted great.

Crowd wasn’t too bad when we got there, apart from the chick at the table next to us who had an extremely high pitched laugh that was constantly irritating us even we went around the corner to the restroom. There were also plenty of people enjoying the heat lamps out on the patio and music was on point as well.