Trader Sam's Enchanted Tiki Bar

Stoo

Well-known member
Tonga Room & HURRICANE BAR!

Plans for a group meet at Forbidden Island in Alameda didn't seem likely because of its location so the idea was scuttled. :( However...

My 1st full night on this trip was spent at the Tonga Room & Hurricane Bar at the 5-star, Fairmont Hotel atop Nob Hill. (It looked fairly close on a map but my girlfriend & I took a cable car, upon realizing how steep the walk would be!) Arriving a bit early, we went for a quick drink in the hotel's lobby bar before descending into the lower depths to meet up with Inexorable Tash & his wife.

Trying to find the meeting point resulted in some pressing, time-ticking exploration because we were a few minutes late and it was really hidden away, deep in a corner of the lower floors...until, voilà! We arrived (only 6 minutes late).

The entrance area was intriguing enough (with a fake rock formation & red light glow to simulate some kind of volcanic vibe) but when we entered?it was like stepping into a Wonderland. Ship rigging & sails, bamboo railings and thatched roofs adorned the place. Nice lighting & atmosphere. An outrigger canoe hung from the ceiling nearby our table and the band played on a (moving) boat in the pool. Rain fell periodically. Thunder & lightning struck. A veritable "faux" experience. I LOVED it!

Food & beverages were delicious. Us boys drank Zombies while the girls had Mai-Tai. As expected, each serving came topped with those miniature parasols/umbrellas so I remarked how "girly drinks" aren't usually my thing. Then it was pointed out, by Tash's wife, that my glass had a dancing, Polynesian babe moulded into the ceramic so the concoction was clearly meant for men! Ha! :D The 2nd Zombie came in a tall glass shaped & painted like an Easter Island statue (which I wish could've been a souvenir to take home). Fun, fun, fun.

Our company was good, too! Tash & his wife were delightful and their conversation was always interesting. We had a lot to talk about but time flew by much too quickly.

In true spirit, Tash wore his custom-made Tonga Room T-shirt:

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Afterwards, we all took a cable car down Nob Hill, hanging off the sides & talking to the driver. That was a special ride and one I'll never forget. Tash was wearing an Indy fedora & jacket so the moment reminded me of the preview for the "Staff of Kings" video game with Indy fightin' on top of a cable car (which we talked about while hanging off the side of the car).

---
A few days later, I managed to hook up with Le Saboteur in Oakland. He took us to a cool, Belgian pub (The Trappist) where we imbibed many beers until it was time for me to take the last BART train back. 'Twas extremely satisfying to finally meet him in person and I'm glad we had the chance for several hours worth of quality time, discussing travels & various 'adventurey' stuff. It wasn't a TIKI night but it was a great & memorable one!

As per Attila's suggestion for Chinatown, I did pay a visit the Li-Po Lounge on my last evening. The place was empty but I ordered a Mai-Tai and talked with the Chinese barman. The drink was VERY tasty (more than the Mai Tai at Tonga) so I ordered another. (Buddha Lounge across the street was packed to the hilt so I didn't go in.)

Did NOT make it to Smuggler's Cove! (n) Next time, boys!:whip:
 
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micsteam

New member
Good to hear you had a good time Stoo !! Sorry I missed it but maybe the next one !! It's good to hear that some of these places still exist or the motif is still popular. :hat:
 

InexorableTash

Active member
Good times were had by all! It was a pleasure to finally meet Stoo in person, as well as his delightful girlfriend.

Fortunately, I may be headed his direction in a few months, so we may have the opportunity to chat again.
 

Stoo

Well-known member
micsteam: The next time just might include a trip to Disneyland. We could plan a meet with the L.A. gang and go for beverages at Trader Sam's Enchanted Tiki Bar in-between rides on Forbidden Eye. First round of drinks will be on me!:)

Tash: Forgot to ask you about Trader Sam's name. As you mentioned in your 1st post, the Disney bar is named after the shrunken-head salesman in the Jungle Cruise ride/s. I'm wondering if he was named after the old Trad'r Sam's bar in San Fran?:confused:

To my eyes, Trader Sam looks more West African than Polynesian!

TraderSam_01_zps6422d2fc.jpg
 

InexorableTash

Active member
Stoo said:
Tash: Forgot to ask you about Trader Sam's name. As you mentioned in your 1st post, the Disney bar is named after the shrunken-head salesman in the Jungle Cruise ride/s. I'm wondering if he was named after the old Trad'r Sam's bar in San Fran?:confused:

I really doubt it. "Trader XXX" was a popular pattern for anything poly-pop related. Trader Vic's was the pre-eminent chain, but everyone wanted to be a "Trader" - Trader Dick's, Trader Nick's, Trader Frank's, .... Even the Trader Joe's grocery chain is an allusion to that. Trad'r Sam's may have inspired Trader Vic - who hailed from Oakland and originally called his place Hinky Dink's before jumping on the South Seas bandwagon - but that's speculation.

I assume (with no evidence) that while trying to pick a name for (or pitch the concept of) the Enchanted Tiki Bar they were inspired by that naming convention and the existing Trader Sam character from the JC, and decided to run with it and weave it into the narrative. And yeah, his outfit looks more African... but "tiki" blurs with many other things into the idealized escapist "exotica".

So maybe Trad'r Sam's -> Trader Vic's -> Trader XXX's + Jungle Cruise -> Trader Sam's.

I don't know how long Trader Sam has had the nickname - Wikipedia says 1957 but I don't know if that can be trusted - it may be referring to the character, not necessarily the nickname and corny joke.
 

Pale Horse

Moderator
Staff member
InexorableTash said:
I really doubt it. "Trader XXX" was a popular pattern for anything poly-pop related...

Whoa Whoa Whoa....are you telling me Vin Diesal is now Indy V?
 

Le Saboteur

Active member
WilliamBoyd8 said:
I visited the Tonga Room last week for their 5:00pm Happy Hour.

You weren't the only one!

<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/42281656@N05/13576432665" title="DSC01707 by rdbell25, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3695/13576432665_af41b0c167_c.jpg" width="800" height="600" alt="DSC01707"></a>

Hey, Mola Ram! Come on in, the water's fine!

<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/42281656@N05/13576820154" title="DSC01716 by rdbell25, on Flickr"><img src="https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3699/13576820154_bc6f0d9e42.jpg" width="600" height="800" alt="DSC01716"></a>
 

InexorableTash

Active member
The wife and I finally made it to Trad'r Sam's (in SF) the other week. About as terrible as I expected, but in totally different ways. :) I was expecting a dank and dark dive bar with hints of bamboo serving crusty old locals and poorly mixed drinks. Instead it was brightly lit, full of bamboo and other mediocre kitsch, full of young 20-somethings, some of whom looked like they'd probably never been in a bar before. And poorly mixed drinks.

(The bartender was quite pleasant, though.)
 

Forbidden Eye

Well-known member
This may not be the right place to put this but...

I'll be visiting Disneyland through-out the week. If any TheRaven members want to meet at Disneyland, Trader's Sams etc. I'll be happy to swing by(er...stop by, I'm not Mutt Williams after all).
 

Lance Quazar

Well-known member
Too funny. My girlfriend and I were all set to go to Disneyland tomorrow -including Trader Sam's - but decided to postpone as the Friday hours are going to be truncated for a while for the superlame "Mickey's Halloween Party" nonsense, which requires a separate admission!

I call b.s.!

Have fun...
 

AustrianGoodbye

New member
Man this whole thread has me missing California, Disney, and TRADER SAMS!!! Haven't visited that place since I joined the Army in 2012. Former CM and used to frequent that bar religiously back in the day! Still have my collector tiki cups somewhere...

:whip:
 

IndyBuff

Well-known member
I haven't been to Disneyland since the beginning of 2011. We really need to save up and take another trip, especially so my wife can ride the Indy attraction. She's never been on it before and we're hoping to remedy that somewhere in the not-to-distant future.;)

I've never been to Trader Sam's but it looks super cool!
 

Le Saboteur

Active member
Feel my serpentine!

InexorableTash said:
I have the Shipwrecked barrel and the Uh Oa! bowl, need the zombie head (which is brand new)

But are you going to get the Hitchhiking Ghosts Tiki Mug?

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From Inside the Magic:

Corinne Andersson said:
For the Mahalloween 2016 season Trader Sam?s patrons at the Disneyland Resort will be able to get a pretty special new Tiki mug. Pictures have surfaced of a ?Hitchhiking Ghost Tiki Mug? that will be available for sale at Trader Sam?s Enchanted Tiki Bar at the Disneyland Hotel in the next couple of weeks. Some rumors are hinting at a September 9th release date.

No word yet if the sister outpost in Florida is going to get this yet, so it might be unique to the West Coast.
 

InexorableTash

Active member
Le Saboteur said:
But are you going to get the Hitchhiking Ghosts Tiki Mug?

No plans to visit the DL any time soon. Maybe just before Star Wars Land opens when everyone else is holding off. (The crowds were so bad the last few visits and the security theater, boosted volume, and incessant parades have made for a less pleasant time. Don't want it to tarnish our memories.)

Apparently a hundred folks were in line to pick up those mugs on the first day so they sold out immediately - not unexpected.
 

Pale Horse

Moderator
Staff member
The line was out there door 20 people deep yesterday when kiddo and I were there. Walked by two hours later and saw the same scene.

Crazy.
 
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