The History of the Tiki Bar

The origin of the tiki bar dates back to shortly before World War I. Travel by ship and airplane was finally becoming affordable for people other than the extremely wealthy in America and Europe. So began the "Golden Age of Travel." Taking a vacation to an exotic island in the "South Seas" became a status symbol.

Soon, new nightclubs and bars began to open throughout the America, especially in southern California. They all had one thing in common capitalizing on this new trend: a South Seas island theme.

The Beginning of a Trend

The first tiki bar is largely accepted to have been Hollywood's "Don the Beachcomber Restaurant." Donn Beach, who had renamed himself such in 1934 after previously being known as Earnest Raymond Beaumont Gantt, started with the popular beach theme, decorating his restaurant and bar with nets, starfish, and shells.

When Donn Beach decided to add real artifacts to his tiki decor (such as diving masks, spears, and most importantly carved idols from a variety of islands), his restaurant became different from all of the other island-themed establishments. This was the first introduction of the tiki to the bar.

Soon, many other bars began to follow the lead of "Don the Beachcomber." Art and artifacts from almost any tropical island, from Hawaii and New Guinea to New Zealand and Easter Island, was brought in to decorate the tiki bars and create an environment of escapism. Anything exotic and an ocean-themed added to the mood.

The Excitement Grows

World War II led to an even bigger tiki bar craze in the United States. American G.I.s that had actually spent time in the South Pacific headed to Don's and other tiki bars in masses when they returned home from duty.

It was about this time that Hawaii became a state, and this further fueled the trend. Americans fell in love with the romanticized idea of a warm tropical paradise. Almost every city in America had at least one tiki bar.

Tiki becomes a Culture

Not all the proprietors of these new tiki bars could acquire, or afford, authentic artifacts from exotic islands to decorate their establishments. Companies began to open that specialized in carved tikis and other reproduction island artifacts.

Many popular tropical drinks, such as the famous tiki bar Trader Vic's Mai Tai, were originally created in tiki bars as business owners looked for ways to expand on the popular theme. The many island cultures all were blended and overlapped until they became one fantasy culture that didn'teven exist in reality

Just like that, the tiki bar had been formed. Since then, tiki bars have found a permanent place in American nightlife as a fun escape to paradise, even if only for a night.