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| - Fruity drinks, garnishes galore, and a whole lot of kitsch -- count me in!
Stopped in randomly one weekday afternoon in the heart of Chinatown. Yes, that's exactly where you'd expect a tiki bar to be, right? Parking is a little tough as the surrounding businesses all kind of share one lot, but once inside the bar, you'll be too distracted to care as you're instantly transported into a wacky realm of embellished South Pacific.
Twinkly ceiling? Check! Vintage video playback? Check. One big mamma-jamma clamshell for photo-ops? Check.
I think our bartender's name was Veronika. We were welcomed as we sat down and she asked if we've been there before. (We haven't.) She explained some of specialty drinks and even gave us some samples of the widely-acclaimed Dole whip. (Yup, like Disneyland and Hawaii.) Three of us chose the Painkiller and another one had a Dole whip a la carte, which she garnished so beautifully compared to other bartenders. My cousin appreciated the orchid, swizzle stick, paper umbrella. So fun, little things like that!
My drink wasn't as strong as say, a drink from Frankie's Tiki Room, but we were a little less smokey-smelling and we'd definitely be back to try other cocktails... and to find out what it means when the big bell is rung.
PS -- $5 mai tais from 2 to 6p.
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