Category Archives: Events

Tiki Wonderland at the Tonga Hut

Posted by The Tiki Chick in Events and tagged with , ,

Tiki Wonderland flyer

It was sort of surreal to sit in a tiki bar and listen to Bing Crosby’s rendition of “Let it Snow” while it was over 70 degrees outside. But that’s what we were doing on Saturday at the annual Tiki Wonderland event at the Tonga Hut.

Tiki Wonderland cocktail at the Tonga Hut

Every person that brought a gift to donate to the Toys for Tots drive got a free Tiki Wonderland cocktail garnished with a mini candy cane. Later I ordered the Little Buddy, which Kelly created last month in honor of “Gilligan’s Island,” and it was all kinds of deliciousness. I hope it keeps making encore appearances!

Tonga Hut tiki mugs

The real hot ticket were these Tonga Hut tiki mugs, made by Kirby and Grog, that made their debut that night. (The two artist proofs are shown above.) They’re based on the moai that stands at the entrance, cracks and all.

Mele Kalikimaka signs by Lake Surfer

Lake Surfer (who hails from Wisconsin, hence the alias) had these very cool carved Mele Kalikimaka signs, and I snapped one up for the tiki room, along with a tiki ornament. I can’t help but adore tiki-holiday mashups.

Tonga Hut fountain

Even the Tonga Hut’s fountain was in a festive spirit and donned one of Eric October‘s Tiki Bob Santa hats, complete with a fluffy green fish float on the end.

Halloween Art Show at the Tonga Hut

Posted by The Tiki Chick in Events and tagged with , , ,

I started off my Halloween festivities over the weekend with a theme-appropriate cocktail at the Tonga Hut: The Zombie (recipe circa 1934), garnished for the occasion with a gummy eyeball and fake finger.

It was the perfect potion to sip while browsing the art that had been brought in for this special Halloween show. Here’s a peek at some of what was on display. (From left: Painting by Kirby and Stephen Sandoval‘s “The Best Candy” & “Rebirth”)

I was blown away by these black velvets by Thor. Although the subject of shrunken heads might not normally be my cup of tea, it’s hard to look away from the golden glow of these paintings.

Eric October has a knack for making tikis look cute, like this happy Ku toasting a Dia de Los Muertos figure. And I love how the scrap wood frame looks with Kirby’s “Skully Brains Cocktail” on the right.

MP found inspiration for this very cool “Keep to the Code” piece from the movie “Treasure Island” and a hot buttered rum. (I could go for one of those right now, if it wasn’t 88 degrees outside!)

Speaking of salty old pirates, I’ve always admired this Cap’n Sqully mug by Squid, so I snapped one up from the Taboo Island tent that was set up in the vending area in the parking lot.

Coming up at the Hut are a Gilligan’s Island-inspired gig on November 21, and the Christmas-themed Tiki Wonderland on December 11. I’ll be there with bells on! (Quite possibly literally.)

Tiki Farm’s 10 Years of Tiki Mugs Exhibition

Posted by The Tiki Chick in Events and tagged with , ,

If you picked up any tiki mug from my collection, there’s a good chance that you would find the words “Tiki Farm” emblazoned on the bottom. Over the last 10 years, “the hardest working company in tiki” has produced hundreds of designs, including the locale specific ones I’ve picked up at Frankie’s Tiki Room, The Beachcomber Cafe, and Psycho Suzi’s, to barely name a few.

In celebration of this milestone, they put together an exhibition that’s at La Luz de Jesus gallery through the end of the month. The opening night shindig last weekend drew a ton of people and once again I got to experience the joys of trying to find a parking space in Silverlake (totally worth it, though).

Tiki Farm also rolled out these new limited-edition mugs that night: Mana-Mana by Atomic Tony Tiki (Mahna Mahna?), Makalani mermaid bowl by Tiki Shark, Slickster by Ghost, Local Boy by Tiki Shark, Lil Waha Nui by Joe Vitale, and Mr. G Is Stoked by Mr. G. Each was part of a run of only 120 or fewer.

There were lots of long sold-out specimens on display, but I was really taken aback by the test glazes of some familiar faces, like this lilac-colored version of the Tiki Bandit. It was like Bizarro Tiki World.

The parking lot behind the gallery was packed—that’s where the Mai Tais were served up and surf band The Dynotones performed. In fact, I spent so much time chatting with some friendly folks that came down from Fresno that I’ll have to make another visit to really go through the exhibition (in a sober state of mind).

I also got to meet this little friend, who came over to say hi while I was crouching down to get a gander at some mugs on the bottom shelf. I hope Charlie won’t be too jealous!