The Search for the Ultimate Mai Tai
Traveling the Bay Area and beyond to find the best Mai Tai in the world! Tiki, cocktails, and adventures by Kevin Crossman
Another fabulous night of cocktails at The Kon-Tiki.
I’m still working on my DIY checklist of all the cocktails on their third published menu, and thanks to Chris Day for going off the current menu and making a Sunken Tugboat. I really enjoyed this Daiquiri style cocktail with a hint of cinnamon. Meanwhile, Mrs. Mai Tai had her favorite, the Uma Uma. I also sampled a freshly prepared Kon-Tiki Mai Tai that was quite delightful and had a rich mouthfeel that I very much enjoyed.
Pretty much like it was in the old days during our visit last night to The Kon-Tiki.
Bar seating is back! Lounge seating in the palapa is back. Indoors was filled. Rum lists were being worked on again. Burgers were consumed. Plenty of discussions amongst old and new friends. And for Ohana night, the music was classic exotica.
The cocktails were Donnie’s Element and Mrs. Mai Tai’s favorite, the Uma Uma. And then I had a Mai Tai with the Transcontinental Guadeloupe rum. Delicious!
Mrs. Mai Tai and I finally made it to Palmetto in Oakland, after some drinks next door at The Kon-Tiki Room. The neon and art-deco style of Palmetto is best experienced indoors, and the fine food seems like the stuff that might not travel so well for a 30 minute drive back home. We’re finally doing indoor dining, so it was time.
The food here is fantastic. Truly savory, and we both loved the scallops that were available as a starter. The shrimp cocktail was also very good. For the main course, I had the chicken and Julie had the yellowtail, both were excellent. Note that the menu changes frequently, so some things may be different on your visit. The quality of the flavors were truly gourmet, justifying the mid-tier pricing. There is a focus on steaks here too, if that’s your thing, including Prime Rib on Wednesdays.
Palmetto also has an active cocktail program (and wine and beer). Julie had the Girl Goes Walking, featuring Cachaca as the main spirit, paired with Armaretto, Tamarind, Grapefruit, Lemon, and Bitters. Quite delightful.
Located across the street from the Fox Theater in Uptown, Palmetto is a great Oakland destination and an upscale treat to pair with drinks next door at the Kon-Tiki Room.
Some additional shots of the newly soft-opened tiki bar in downtown Oakland, next door to Palmetto. The Kon-Tiki Room is a very nice space with plenty of room. You can see the nautical elements from artist Woody Miller, and the displays with nods to tiki bars past and present.
Congrats to the team for building a great space that is great out of the gate. This will evolve of course but has a strong foundation with some great cocktails, impressive decor, and bar bites paired with interesting sauces. Totally worth checking out (one block from 19th Street BART station), and sure to be a popular destination when the Fox Theater opens again across the street.
Noteworthy: The Kon-Tiki Room’s music included exotica when we entered, but transitioned to Yacht Rock. We think this retro-genre works in a tiki bar (famously employed at the sister location The Kon-Tiki), but we know it isn’t everyone’s cup of tea. I personally like that these guys do things a little different and are introducing some variety to the Bay Area’s plethora of tiki bar offerings.
Next door to Palmetto and from the same team behind The Kon-Tiki and Palmetto is The Kon-Tiki Room. The soft-open was last night and once again those of us in the Bay Area are spoiled by yet another awesome tiki bar.
Though it shares a kitchen with Palmetto and there is a door in between the two establishments, The Kon-Tiki Room is really it’s own standalone destination. The nondescript door awaits your entrance and inside there’s a nautical themed bar with bright colors to pair well with Palmetto’s art-deco vibe. But whereas Palmetto is bright and shiny, The Kon-Tiki Room is dark and mysterious. There are several little nooks and a large bar running through the space.
The nautical design from artist Woody Miller is inspired by ports of yore, with dramatic scenes of barrels, cargo, and some skeletons. Not really “pirate themed” per se but definitely a little bit of that. There’s a medium sized tiki in the back of the bar.
Small bar bites are available but cocktails are the focus here. We tried several and they ranged from good (Singapore Sling) to great (frozen Disco Banana, Cou-Cou Comber). The Mai Tai features Agricole rhum and is excellent. Not grassy at all, but the savory elements shine in this cocktail.
Hours will mirror Palmetto’s (closed Sun-Mon).
The Kon-Tiki has transitioned back to making freshly prepared cocktails and the crew last night were working like a well-oiled machine. I had a fab Daiquiri with Worthy Park rum and Mrs. Mai Tai had her go-to Uma Uma.
We got a little preview of the revised cocktail menu, coming soon. Chris Day’s excellent Donnie’s Element is available now (in non-frozen form) and we got to try this most excellent Blush Crush. This dainty cocktail has Rhum Agricole and Campari, two ingredients that are not usually in my wheelhouse. But there is something magical about the one – it is delicious.
It is so strange being inside the bar after so long, but also nice to see Kon-Tiki coming out of lockdown/to-go cocktail mode and thriving.
I heard The Kon-Tiki team put up a little tribute to Alex and so Mrs. Mai Tai and I made a quick trip up last night to check it out and say hello to the crew. Toasts were made in Alex’s honor.
Thanks Tony and everyone else at The Kon-Tiki who made it happen.
