Tiki takeover: Exploring a surging tropical cocktail craze at three new-ish Las Vegas bars

Chris Gutierrez, partner at the Arts District’s charming Stray Pirate, is facing a conundrum: How does one decorate a buccaneer-and-dog-themed tiki bar for Halloween when it’s always in costume?

“I don’t even know if I can put any more skulls in here,” says Gutierrez. “Am I gonna go to Party City and buy a foam skull when I have a genuine Bamboo Ben molded skull-encrusted cave?”

Regardless, a salute is in order. Stray Pirate, celebrating its one-year anniversary this October, is the first of several new tropically inspired bars that have washed ashore in the last year, joining established spots like Frankie’s Tiki Room and the Golden Tiki.

Tiki culture has seen its ups and downs in the last 90 years, but island-style drinks and decor have evolved as cocktail culture gets more complex and our thirst for a vacation in a glass intensifies.

Todo Bien, billed as a “tiki tequilería,” arrived at UnCommons in March. Meanwhile, Glitter Gulch Tiki, a kitschy new lounge from Nacho Daddy, has staked its claim on Fourth Street near the Fremont Street Experience. All three bar operators do tiki a bit differently, and for that reason, they also have varied opinions on why it’s so popular and fun to execute.

Glitter Gulch Tiki

For Paul Hymas, co-owner at Glitter Gulch Tiki (113 N. 4th St., glittergulchtiki.com), the allure all comes down to the experience.

“If you go to a speakeasy, it’s more about the intimacy and the social aspect of it,” Hymas says. “I think tiki bars are very similar, where they’re usually not super-big, they’re drink-focused and they usually have booths or seating arrangements meant for people to sit and talk.”

Hymas worked with two consultants, including the previously mentioned world-famous tiki designer Bamboo Ben, who created the bar’s neon-splashed, retro-Vegas interior.

“It’s an oxymoron to have a tiki bar in the desert, so that’s how we came up with the Glitter Gulch idea, because Glitter Gulch used to be referenced for the entire area,” Hymas explains. “What’s a tiki bar that Frank Sinatra and the Rat Pack would hang out at? What would it look like? When you actually go into the place, there’s going to be some very traditional key elements. But we’re still Vegas. Even though it’s a tiki bar, we still have some velvet, we have a fair amount of gold.”

For Matty Salazar, managing partner at Todo Bien (8533 Rozita Lee Ave. #110, todobientiki.com), the transportive nature of a tiki bar is what “ties into me still being a child at heart.

“I honestly feel like it’s the escape,” says Salazar. “It’s the reason why we go to Disneyland. It’s the reason why Rainforest Cafe was so big. Nothing was really super-great about that, but it’s the transportation, the wow factor when you go in.”

The Cantarito at Todo Bien.

At Todo Bien, imbibers get immersed into the thicket of a Mexican jungle, with a conservatory-like layout of lush plants. Salazar, whose great-grandparents were from Mexico City and northern Chihuahua, views the decor and agave-based menu as an homage to his upbringing and all the flavorful recipes that were passed on.

“A lot of the winter drinks are really going to showcase a lot of these really old recipes,” Salazar says. “My biggest things were showing our culture in a new light, and obviously tying it in with something that I love, with the spirit that I love, too. Before any of this came and I was just a tiki fan, I was not a big rum or gin person, so I was always asking to substitute.”

That is one major bonus of the modern tiki Renaissance: drink diversity. As much as we love a good rum punch, island-style cocktails have gotten a little more balanced and interesting. Take for instance, Stray Pirate’s Get It Kraken, which “uses coconut, kaffir lime leaf and lime juice. That’s three ingredients towards tom kha soup, if you’re into Thai food,” Gutierrez says.

Stray Pirate (1321 S. Commerce St., straypirate.com) also offers a Spare the Sugarcane drink section with decidedly less sweeteners. But that doesn’t mean the ingredients get any less dynamic. In some cases, a Stray Pirate cocktail can call for up to nine ingredients.

“I’m a firm believer that drinking should be fun. I definitely believe in having things that automatically look appetizing, without forcing the guests to Google an ingredient,” says Gutierrez. “This whole tropical scene, it’s all these fun flavors like guava, strawberry, pineapple and pomegranate. Who doesn’t like that little guilty pleasure of drinking something that’s fun?”

For photos and more details visit LasVegasWeekly.com