The Tiki Bar Review Pages / Tiki Road Trip

This is a selection of favorite writings and images from the now-defunct TBRP,
which was very active from 1995 to 2003, and sort of half-active from 2003 to 2007.
Now it is gone.

The Tiki Bar Review Pages site was replaced by the book Tiki Road Trip in 2003 - the second edition of which (2007) is available NOW.

This is an archive - these pages are no longer updated!
Some information will be out of date. Some of this writing goes back to 1995.
See Tiki Road Trip (2007 edition) for the most up-to-date information.

Hale Tiki
Augusta, Georgia
HALE TIKI HAS CLOSED.

November, 2004

The number of new Tiki bars that have opened in the last ten years or so now numbers in the dozens.

The number of new Tiki bars that have opened in the last ten years or so that rock my little world, number in single digits.

Hale Tiki rocks my little world.

Big time.

Opened by Brad Owens in 2003, Hale Tiki is everything a great little Tiki bar should be.

The drink menu is a combination of lovingly researched classics and brand new concoctions (including the house drink, the Concubine), the music is classic Exotica, there is no television in sight, and the decor is perfect.

Were it not for the modern sign outside, one might give Hale Tiki the distinction of being the only modern-era Tiki bar to look so authentic that at first glance, that it might fool visitors into thinking it has been in place for 40 years. All that is missing is the inch of dust on the swag lamps and the stink of decades of nicotine. And we can live without those two particular details, thank you.

The (hundreds?) of carvings and the (miles?) of bamboo decor were provided by Bamboo Ben and Al Evans from California, an Indiana-based dealer of New Guinea artifacts, and Georgia resident Dave Wolfe, who also designed the Concubine drink.

Hale Tiki (loosely: house of Tiki) is a long, narrow room, with the bar on the left as you enter. Beyond the bar is a group of tables, and at the end of the room is a little alcove with a table and a big queen's chair. This little "VIP area" has a view of the whole place.

To the right of that is another room, which seats about 25 people.

This side room, like the main room, has an extreme TiPSY Factor*, perhaps the best of any post-1995 Tiki bar I have seen.

Every inch of the walls and ceiling are covered with tapa cloth and bamboo as well.

This attention to detail also extends to the bar itself, where Brad has made sure to train his bartenders quite well in the art of making quality drinks.

I would state with confidence that the number one problem facing most new Tiki bars is that a vast, vast majority of the bartenders out there are only tending bar because they see it as a way to make some quick cash. For many of them, serving anything more challenging than a beer, or a simpe rum n' cola, is a hassle they'd just as soon not undertake. Especially when they're busy. They want to crack open three beers and collect a tip. Quick and easy. Very few of them know anything about the history of cocktails, very few care about complex recipes and exotic ingredients, very few take pleasure in creating something that approaches a liquid work of art. They just want your dollar.

Therefore, it is extremely hard to get good help in Tiki bars, where taking the time to make a drink into something special, and having a passion for the craft of mixology is a crucical attitude.

There still exists an old-school viewpoint towards bartending, and interestingly it is most commonly found in places like Tiki Ti in Los Angeles, and the various Trader Vic's locations. It is not a stretch to speculate that the bartenders at these places are so competent and care so much about their craft because they were directly trianed by the mixologists working for Victor Bergeron or Donn Beach in their heyday.

If one looks at all of the vintage Tiki spots still existing, in almost all cases one of the bartenders (usually the owner!) was, at one point, employed by either Donn Beach, Victor Bergeron, or Stephen Crane. But, like classic Tiki bars theselves, these wizards of libation are a sadly dying breed.

And so: finding bar help who really care is tough.

Hale Tiki has mustered the best August has to offer, however, and pays careful attention to details like using exclusively fresh fruit juice in the drinks, and high quality rums. They even have their own custom-designed Tiki mug, which is available to keep. Brilliant.

Certainly, all of this makes the drinks more expensive and it also takes longer to make them, but if Trader Vic's and Tiki Ti can hold out this long, training their customers to appriciate the quality and craft in the beverages, and to understand that the higher price of the beverages is a reasonable amount to pay considering the quality of the ingredients - and the quantity of booze usually included - then perhaps Hale Tiki can too.

I hope so, and I am rooting for them.

Downtown Augusta is currently undergoing a bit of a renaissance; look for a nice array of classic architecture along the main drag near Hale Tiki.

*TiPSY = Tikis Per Square Yard