Post #566806 by JOHN-O on Sun, Nov 28, 2010 1:16 PM

"Honolulu Confidential" Part 7 of 10

Curious to sample the Mai Tai at Jimmy Buffett's place, I walked over to the Beachcomber Hotel adjacent to the International Market Place.

I spotted the 2nd floor restaurant from the street but couldn't figure out where the entrance was. I asked in the downstairs gift shop and they directed me towards the escalator. Vaguely remembering my Tiki history, I asked if this hotel was where the old Don the Beachcomber's used to be (can anyone here confirm this?). The sales lady said it didn't ring a bell, but upstairs was where Don Ho's old showroom used to be.

Don Ho's old space is now occupied by Jimmy Buffett ?? !! :evil:

Now to me, Don Ho is one of Poly-Pop’s biggest icons and deserves our Tiki respect. If anything, he validates Tiki’s lounge roots even if he bookends its last golden days. I sometimes get the feeling however, he’s only remembered for “Tiny Bubbles” and his final “Fat Elvis” period. Even on the Tiki Music forum, you’ll find very few threads that cover his career.

It’s always been one of my biggest Tiki regrets that I never saw him perform in Waikiki, even though I had many opportunities. Now it’s too late.

As I stood outside Jimmy B.’s restaurant, I just couldn’t bring myself to step inside. Out of respect for Poly-pop’s other great “Don”, I just turned around and walked away.

As I headed back towards the escalators, this place caught my eye...

Cool !! Could this place have a connection to the Huntington Beach Surfing Museum? Maybe they’ve heard of BigTikiDude (who’s a board member there and is internationally known in the Surf Music community).

As I entered through the door, I was puzzled to see what was essentially a bar with a few display cases of surf boards. The bartender asked “Can I get you a drink?” I responded “Oh sorry, I thought this was a museum.” She said “It is. It’s owned by Jimmy Buffett and those display cases are filled with his collection of vintage surf boards.”

A Jimmy Buffett Surfing Museum ?? !! :evil:

Sorry BigTikiDude. :( :( :(

This was really turning out to be a disappointing day !!

To try to salvage things, I decided to continue with my Mai Tai research and check out another Honolulu haven of high-end mixology, the Waikiki Edition Hotel.

This new hotel was originally one of the Ilikai’s towers. Wow, the stark modern design made me feel like I was in a West Hollywood boutique hotel. I wanted to try their “deconstructed” take on the Mai Tai…

It was a subtle and sophisticated drink, topped with an almond-tasting foam. Interesting but frankly I like my cocktails with more punch. Next I had the Japanese Julep which was unique as well.

I also tried one of their bar sandwiches which was a take on a Cuban sandwich. It was good but so small I could have eaten two.

This place was a little too "hip" for my tastes, I felt like I needed to get back to my mid-century comfort zone. I wasn’t too far from the old-school Wailana Cocktail Lounge, so I walked the few blocks there and enjoyed a bourbon on the rocks in their unique octagonal room.

Good enough for 1958. Good enough for 2010. :)