Tag: HomeTikiBar

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Hala Kahiki Derby

We had the fortunate pleasure to have a visit with the lovely Carla and Neil Smith and to check out their home tiki bar Hala Kahiki Derby. Nicely appointed with room for a couple bar stools, a relaxing couch and peacock chair, plus so much artwork and displays of tiki mugs. The working vintage jukebox was a great centerpiece.

Neil had a delicious clarified punch ready once we arrived allowing everyone to relax immediately and for him to prep some ice and such. Thereafter he asked what we liked and Mrs Mai Tai requested something from the coconut branch of exotic cocktails, so he made a fab Tradewinds for her.

Of course I requested their house Mai Tai which as well as was quite fab. A Smuggler’s Cove devotee, Neil uses Denizen Merchant’s Reserve which is difficult to get in the UK but I was more than happy to mule a bottle over from California. I also brought the Smiths a bottle of the very good but somewhat scarce Hamilton Rum Florida Rum Society blend. Neil says this rum works great in a Banana Daiquiri. Neil also shared a dram of some locally made rum which I also enjoyed.

We are indebted to the Smiths for being wonderful hosts. Truly above and beyond for us fairly inexperienced UK travelers. Cheers to Carla and Neil!

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Fremont Mai Tai at Home Tiki Bar

The OG name for the Ultimate Mai Tai and featured on a party menu from our friends Brenda and Glen’s place. Always honored when people want to put my Mai Tai on a menu and make it the right way.

Their home tiki bar has a namesake cocktail The Cannibal’s Eye that is absolutely fantastic too.

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Birds of Paradise Lounge

We were lucky to snag tickets to the @sac_ohana monthly gathering this month, since the event sold out in just 3 minutes. It seems everyone made this month’s event at Birds of Paradise Lounge a priority, even on Easter. Easy to see why, though, since the house is so well appointed and the homeowners @mrs_bravo and @midcenturytiki are even nicer.

Truly a sight to behold, with a nondescript living room transformed into a tiki bar with artwork, mugs, and spirits galore. And then there’s the living room with wood paneling and wall to wall Witco. And finally the spectacular pool in the very large backyard. What a dream.


We were quite impressed by the cocktails, which included a cinnamon-forward Zombie and a light and refreshing Pisco Punch. And the Mai Tai? The best I’ve had all year. The Birds of Paradise Mai Tai includes a rum blend of Appleton 12, Smith & Cross, Plantation Xaymaca, and Kō Hana Kea. So flavorful, with a savory finish that was fantastic.



The Sac Ohana group is doing a great job with these monthly meetups, and certainly are a model for any local community of tikiphiles to follow. Nice to see some familiar faces, even if our visit was not quite as long as we would have liked.

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Lehi Lanai Home Bar

Thanks so much to @melissafuentes777 for having us over to her home bar the Lehi Lanai in Lehi, UT. This is a basement makeover with good bones that was transformed by Melissa along with @woodyworld and @midcenturytiki who both know a thing or two about tiki bar builds (see @thekontikiroom and @birdsofparadiselounge). The decor has that great Woody Miller art design vibe.

It was quite the party with neighbors and Utah Tiki Ohana. Melissa has several cocktails on her house menu, include a delicious Mai Tai. The photo is a Shrunken Skull that was also quite the hit. It was such a great time learning more about what’s happening in Utah and even hearing about some of the local delicacies.

Shrunken Skull cocktail
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New Jumbo Sized Hay! Straws

I’m loving these new jumbo sized Hay! Straws. I ditched plastic a while back but can’t deal with steel or glass. These don’t get soggy like paper straws and I like the smaller “cocktail straw” sized diameter straws which are great for Mai Tais (5”) or tall drinks (7.75”). These work great but Mrs Mai Tai prefers larger straws.


Now these Jumbo Straws will do the trick, and obviously seem better for frozen drinks that are more in Mrs Mai Tai’s wheelhouse.

Highly recommended.

Visit HayStraws.com