Category: Tiki Bar

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Tonga Room

Mrs Mai Tai and I made a special trek to the City to have dinner at the Tonga Room. We were last here in 2019, and we’ve missed the incredible atmosphere and dining at the historical tiki bar at the Fairmont Hotel. There’s always a line when the place opens (was told they don’t offer reservations anymore, even to hotel guests), and even more so this week after a nice writeup in the local SFGate news site.

Unlike our last attempt before a Go-Go’s show a couple months ago, traffic was light and so we arrived super early and were first in line. Definitely a big difference between the “Tonga line” 30 mins before opening and 15 mins before. We were seated poolside, which is always our favorite place.

The food menu is a little more limited than in our previous visits, and noteworthy doesn’t offer much for kids or picky eaters. I ordered the spam appetizer which I expected would be like sliders – but it most certainly wasn’t. This was very tasty, but difficult to eat and would be hard to share. Even better was my Grilled Miso Salmon over fried rice that was really delicious. Julie loved her Coconut Curry Seafood, though I had to convince her to try the Calamari.

There’s something off in the tart Mai Tai (I’m guessing cheap orgeat), though we loved our other cocktails including the coffee-coconut Tonga Kong and the lemon-coconut Adult Swim (normally served with vodka, I asked for rum to be subbed). The cocktails here are very pricey and the quality is okay – but balanced with the friendly service and amazingly immersive decor inside.

The Tonga Room is very expensive and hard to get in, but for special occasions or just as an occasional treat we think it is worth it. There’s no doubt that the business is booming, though an upcoming three-week closure for refurbishments will be a bummer for some. The rain and thunderstorms that happen every 15-30 minutes are a big hit with customers, and the decor and artwork is a sight to be behold.

Adult Swim and Tonga Kong
Mai Tai
Spam appetizer
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Trader Vic’s Tiki Stem Coupe

Picked up a couple of these very nice Tiki Stem Coupes from the Trader Vic’s online store. The 7 ounce glass is a little larger than my current coupes, and looks fabulous as well. Vic’s also has a couple smaller glass options, while still keeping the tiki stem.

The cocktail is the Blue Caribbean, a Blue Hawaiian riff featuring Rhum Agricole.

Blue Caribbean
½ oz Lime Juice
3 oz Pineapple Juice
1½ oz Cream of Coconut
½ oz Blue Curacao
1¾ oz Clement Premiere Canne (or other unaged Rhum Agricole)
¼ oz Dark Jamaican rum
Shake with Crushed Ice

A bit of a tight fit into this particular glass.

When I first developed this cocktail I served it in a Collins glass with crushed ice and that’s probably a better format than being served up. I do like how the Rhum Agricole works with the Pineapple and Cream of Coconut, provide a more complex flavor. Adding a tiny bit of flavorful Dark Jamaican rum adds an additional bit complexity without darkening up the cocktail.

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Jet Pilot at Dr. Funk

Several people ordered these when I was there on Thursday, but it was too much booze for me to have that night, so I picked one up on an impromptu visit on Saturday. This off-menu cocktail seems to be made to classic specs, using good ingredients that Dr. Funk is always known for. Fantastic, so layered and flavorful.

For dinner, I did the chicken skewers again and Mrs. Mai Tai and I split the Nacho Fries which were pretty good. Julie had the mushroom curry she’s had before and says it is still  very good.

Dr. Funk’s new outdoor bar space is open now on the weekends starting at 8 pm. Dubbed “Bootleggers Bay,” the venue’s menu includes the full food menu from Dr. Funk and a smaller selection of cocktails: Daiquiri, Mojito, Scotch Colada, Mexican Firing Squad, Caipirinha, Bitter Hurricane, Spanish Paloma, and Mai Tai – plus several beer options. Plenty to choose from considering the party crowd I’m sure will be present.

Menu photo via @socy.delreal stories

Bootleggers Bay Menu
Bootleggers Bay
Bar view of Bootleggers Bay
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Ohana Thursday at Dr. Funk

The mid-month Ohana meetup is now the 3rd Thursday starting this month and based on last night seemed like a good change. We had a nice group of folks attending. Join us starting at 5:00 and ending … later.  We still have a standing meetup on the 1st Sunday staring at 5:00 – remember, no food at Dr. Funk on Sundays/Mondays.

Thanks to Trader Don for the photo of Sean and me.

Music last night was a playlist of Ukulele covers of Bob Marley and Eagles songs, which I thought fit in just fine and was more than reasonable. There was even a little exotica, and in any case it is always appreciated when the venue sticks to the atmospheric theme rather than giving in to playing classic rock and ruining the vibe.

Dr. Funk has added on to their outdoor patio, just in time for summer. There are even plans for an outdoor bar for certain days (presumably weekends) when crowds are heavier.

The Mai Tai was Dr. Funk’s standard, with Plantation Xaymaca subbing for their standard rum blend. I keep throwing different rums at the Dr. Funk Mai Tai and it never disappoints.

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The Cure for a Case of the Mondays: Dr. Funk

Was pleased to take a trip to downtown San Jose to meet up with Stephen Curran and his wife Heidi at Dr. Funk. It was their first time to visit Dr. Funk and though food isn’t served on Mondays, we had a great time. I’ve been watching Stephen’s many appearances on the Tiki with Ray YouTube show and we briefly met at the Aloha OA event a few weeks ago. It’s always nice to meet new tiki people and learn about their lives and travels. We’ll be seeing the Curran’s at Tiki Kon in July and made plans to check out their home bar near Tacoma in the days thereafter.

Mondays aren’t the busiest nights at Dr. Funk so there was plenty of space to stretch out and our service was quite fast. Even more importantly, the drinks were really great once again. I revisited two favorites, the Planters Punch and the Mai Tai – and man that Mai Tai was next level last night. I mean, so great. Stephen and Heidi recommended the nearby Hotel De Anza for out-of-towners, just one block away.

It looks like the city of San Jose is going to permanently close San Pedro St. to cars between Santa Clara and St. John St, which bodes well for Dr. Funk and all the other cool restaurants and bars on the street. Party in the streets this summer! We continue to enjoy fairly easy trips to downtown, even at commute time. And the parking garage across the street is fantastic.

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Central California Tiki

Ran into Wayne Stonecipher at Arizona Tiki Oasis and he gifted me this cool Central California Tiki bottle opener. Wayne is the head honcho for the Central California Tiki Facebook group, and has been doing a great job helping to plan events up and down the Central Valley.

The group has done meet-ups at Bakersfield’s amazing world-class Tiki-Ko and the Sinking Ship, along with vendor events, meetups at home tiki bars, parties with guest bartenders like Skipper Christian and B-Rex, and more. It is really cool to see the folks coming together including those new to tiki along with veterans. If you’re in the area and aren’t already connected then be sure to look for the Central California Tiki group in Facebook and on Instagram.

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The Drunk Munk

We checked out this Scottsdale restaurant and bar for dinner. It clearly comes from the modern tiki side of things, though with considerably more and better decor than Hula’s a few blocks away. The nicely appointed lounge would be fab at night.

During the later afternoon the patio was rocking with young people enjoying the drinks. We sat inside across the bar where a group of young men were getting psyched up to go outside and, uh, mingle.

Drinks here lean sugary and with flavored spirits. Mrs Mai Tai’s Almond Joy was a Chi-Chi with chocolate syrup. Yet, amazingly, the Mai Tai seemed to be prepared according the original 1944 recipe, albeit with aged Bacardi from Puerto Rico. And you know, the Drunk Munk Mai Tai was actually pretty good. I enjoyed the blend of lime and orange, and the rum was a wonderful accent.

There are some “premium” rums on the menu, though the top shelf held better options. The large Moai behind the bar was a cool focal point. There are several tikis inside and a nice retro vibe.

The food include some traditional favorite and plenty of seafood. I liked the chicken skewers and my California roll, and Julie’s Mahi was very good too. Service was prompt and friendly.

As we left, two attractive brand reps from White Claw were passing out swag and samples. Which seems to be the right place at the right time for them, and our cue to depart.