Category Archives: Bar & Restaurant Reviews

Ohana Restaurant & Tambu Lounge – Orlando, FL

Posted by The Tiki Chick in Bar & Restaurant Reviews and tagged with , ,

Ohana restaurant at Disney's Polynesian Resort

‘Ohana is the main dining event at Disney’s Polynesian Resort, located upstairs in the Great Ceremonial House near the Kona Cafe. It serves “character breakfasts” where folks dressed up like Disney characters visit your table, and also AYCE dinners of barbecued meats and Asian-inspired side dishes.

Tikis at Ohana

Flanking the entrance are these awesome tall tiki statues. Now, if you’ve seen “Lilo & Stitch” then you should know that “ohana” means “family,” so it should be no surprise that the food here is served family-style. (Of course, after I write that sentence I look at their official site and they said pretty much the same thing…guess I could be a copywriter for Disney.)

Ohana dining room

It’s too bright to see, but these second-story windows look out over the Polynesian Resort grounds and the lake. In the distance you can even see Space Mountain, which was kind of surreal to spot something retro high-tech in contrast to this faux-natural paradise. (Although, the whole Disney experience is pretty surreal, I suppose.)

Slurp

When I showed Mr. Baseball my photos from this trip, he thought this tiki was posed rather…suggestively. There are a bunch of these standing sentry around the room.

Tambu Lounge

The plan had been to have a drink at the Tambu Lounge next to the restaurant, but it didn’t open until 1 p.m., which was about an hour away. The staff at the Polynesian Resort recommended we go to the Barefoot Pool Bar instead to get our drink on, so off we went. To be continued…

Polynesian Resort at Disney World

‘Ohana Restaurant & Tambu Lounge
Disney’s Polynesian Resort
1600 Seven Seas Dr.
Lake Buena Vista, FL 32830
407-WDW-DINE

Capt. Cook’s & Kona Cafe at Disney’s Polynesian Resort

Posted by The Tiki Chick in Bar & Restaurant Reviews and tagged with , , ,

Capt. Cook's

On our expedition around Disney’s Polynesian Resort, we also looked at the various dining options on the property. They’re mostly oriented around the Great Ceremonial House a.k.a. the lobby.

Inside Captain Cook's

Captain Cooks is on the ground floor on your way to the pool, and there are tables outside among the tropical foliage where it would be nice to eat if it isn’t a thousand degrees and humid. (Not likely.) This Hawaiian/American hybrid restaurant is counter service and is the best option for a cheap meal—apparently they even offer the famous Tonga Toast that’s a specialty of the Kona Cafe. (More on that later…)

Dole Whip!

I wouldn’t have considered Capt. Cook’s to be very noteworthy if it weren’t for this! I really like the fact that you can get Pineapple Dole Whip here at the Polynesian Resort, not just at The Enchanted Tiki Room in the park.

Kona Cafe

On the second floor is Kona Cafe, which has an unenclosed design that reminds me of Vegas casino restaurants. They’re known for their Tonga Toast, which is banana-stuffed sourdough french toast rolled in cinnamon and sugar. Now if only it wasn’t stuffed with something I’m allergic to, then I would be all over it…

Tikis on the wall of Kona

I dig the tikis on the wall, of course. I think it saves Kona Cafe from looking like an Elephant Bar. Still more to come from the Polynesian Resort at Disney World!

EDITOR’S NOTE: Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort is undergoing extensive renovations in 2014. Capt. Cook’s has reopened, but there’s no longer a self-service Dole Whip machine. Instead, it will be available at the Pinapple Lanai. More information can be found on the Disney Parks Blog.

Hala Kahiki – River Grove, IL

Posted by The Tiki Chick in Bar & Restaurant Reviews and tagged with , ,

Outside the Hala Kahiki

For the third and final stop of the day in our Pre-Birthday Chicago Tiki Blitz, we headed back out to the suburbs to the Hala Kahiki in River Grove. (Part one was Tiki Terrace, and Part two took us to Trader Vic’s Chicago).

The bar of the Hala Kahiki in River Grove

The bar had lots of lanterns and nautical touches, it was probably my favorite area of the Hala Kahiki. There was a group of folks there that seemed to be having happy hour after work, and several couples showed up later that seemed to have made special trips to check out the tiki temple.

IMG_5222

They don’t muck about trying to serve anything edible (besides bowls of pretzels)—it’s strictly beverages only. The sheer amount of variations is impressive; there are classic martinis, several fruity incarnations of pina coladas and daiquiris, and even alcoholic ice cream floats.

IMG_5226

This tiki bar is apparently pretty popular with the kids on the weekends (lines out the door, even), and there are several rooms to go get lost in.

IMG_5234

Like Chef Shangri-La, there’s a nice collection of Witco wood carvings.

Hala Kahiki garden

The patio had a bit of a tropical vibe with its fountain and hibiscus, but the Midwest summers are just too humid to sit outside. I also checked out the souvenir shop, which stocked tchotchkes, made-in-China Hawaiian-themed things (which you’ve already seen plenty of if you’ve been to Hawaii) and a Mai Tiki or two.

Planter's Punch

I had the Planter’s Punch (a blend of rum and fruit juices, per their menu) and it appeared to be half foam. It wasn’t bad, but I would go for something else. I’d had my eye on a different cocktail, I think it might have been the Hawaiian Caress, but I went with the punch as they said it was less alcoholic. (It’d been a long day of drinking!)

Hala Kahiki

Hala Kahiki
2834 River Rd.
River Grove, IL 60171
708-456-3222

Hala Kahiki on Urbanspoon