This chic pseudo-tropical excursion-replete with flavorful libations and tasty bites-is a must-visit for Bostonians yearning for summer’s return. Looking for a full repast? Tiki Rock’s “Trust the Chef” tasting menus include multiple pieces of sushi and sashimi. You’re also in good hands on the snack front at Tiki Rock there’s a fully-stocked sushi bar that serves up specialty rolls like the Lotus Flower, with spicy tuna, tempura crab, avocado maki and crispy lotus chips. On the subject of cocktails, Tiki Rock offers up an array of craft beverages with tropical flair, like Our Tai, their proprietary take on the classic Mai Tai made with a house rum blend, kumquat, lime, orgeat and tiki bitters, served on the rocks. The wood-paneled interior feels elegant and upscale, but includes on-theme elements like hanging lanterns and Easter Island-head cocktail mugs. Instagram/TikirockbostonĪ downtown Boston newcomer, Tiki Rock brings Polynesian cuisine, expertly-curated tiki cocktails and just a touch of kitsch to Broad Street. Thank goodness for that.Boston: Tiki Rock Pork Buns with Chili-Maple Soy Glaze, Lettuce, Uni Mayo, and Nori Seasoning. Either way, the LuWow is still ridiculous. Maybe that’s Skipper Josh’s sense of humour, or maybe it’s pure coincidence. It’s all set to a soundtrack that spans everything from Elvis Presley’s Do the Clam to modern surf rock such as Zombi Hut by the Tiki Tones.Īs I get up to leave, Under the Sea begins to play on the speakers. Rattan and bamboo ceilings, booths made from repurposed car upholstery, fishing nets, fake plants and flashes of leopard print adorn the 50-person room, which is aglow in green and blue lights. Tikis are everywhere you look – Skipper Josh built most of them himself. There’s Jamaican fried chicken and crisp tempura-like prawns to snack on while downing your Voodoo Volcano or Gruesome Grog. Head chef Jun Lee also worked at Hana and, as with all things tiki, his menu has a lot of cultural influences. It’s in the space formerly occupied by Hawaiian-themed restaurant Hana. There’s a greater focus on food at the new LuWow. And instead of a Long Island Iced Tea there’s an Easter Island Iced Tea, which adds coconut tequila and blue curacao to the classic five-spirit cocktail. Other cocktails include a classic Mai Tai the Pain Killer, a pineapple and orange-juice punch combining dark rum and coconut and the Bo-Na-Na – banana, pineapple and passionfruit mixed with rum and coulis. It’s a highly alcoholic, dangerously easy-to-drink cocktail. A very boozy falernum (a sweet alcoholic cordial made from lime zest, spices and almonds) is added in for good measure. It uses three kinds of rum shaken with grapefruit and pomegranate juice. It’s the fantasy,” says Skipper Josh.Īny tiki bar worth its cocktail salt should know how to make a good Zombie, and LuWow 2.0’s is a doozy. “There’s something about tiki bars that’s eternal. And it’s nice to have a point of difference to Melbourne’s countless serious bars. Tiki can rightfully be viewed as reductive in the way it lumps dozens of island cultures together under the one “exotic” banner, but its proponents see it as a good-natured, affectionate flight of imagination. Tiki culture (and bars), on the other hand, is a heavily romanticised colonial interpretation that exploded in popularity when the US emerged from World War II with a renewed taste for rum – and all things Pacific. Tikis themselves are stone or wooden humanoid totems found throughout Polynesia they often represent deified ancestors and mark the boundaries of sacred sites. The tiki-bar aesthetic typically combines visual and cultural motifs from coastal Africa, South America and islands throughout the Pacific (especially Polynesia) and the Caribbean. Tiki bars began popping up at the end of Prohibition in the United States following the opening of Polynesian-themed Hollywood bar and restaurant Don's Beachcomber in 1933. If you’re unacquainted with tiki bars, here’s a crash course: It's now re-opened, this time in the CBD. But the original LuWow called it a day at the end of 2016 when its lease expired. It had a reputation for loose evenings and earned a place in many hearts. It turns out drinking from ludicrously large tiki mugs is a great social leveller. It was the kind of place that attracted everyone: uni students, ironic navel-gazers, hens’ nights and lovers of tiki. At the time Broadsheet described it as “a mecca to both tiki and fun”. When it opened on Johnston Street in 2011, the LuWow was a little bit bar and a little bit nightclub.
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