Getting my tiki on in San Diego: FALSE IDOL, GRASS SKIRT, FORBIDDEN COVE, and BALI HAI

Last October, a friend and I headed for San Diego. He was going to visit family members down there. I came along to hit the tiki bars. It had been a long while since I was last in SD, and the tiki scene had really taken off since that last visit. I was really looking forward to this.

Unfortunately, we arrived almost two weeks after one of the places I hoped to hit, The Cat Eye Club, permanently closed its doors. Argh! We had booked our hotel room near the place to make commuting to/from the bar an easy task. Oh well. There were still several great tiki places to experience.

FALSE IDOL:

Our first night there, we ventured to FALSE IDOL. We had a bit of a hard time finding it, as it is sort of “hidden” inside of another bar, Craft & Commerce.

Thank goodness we had reservations as the place was crowded (on a Monday night? Yowza!). Directly behind the hostess table in Craft & Commerce is the spooky cave-like, skull-lined entrance to False Idol. Beyond that, there is an incredible tiki bar.

We were seated in the corner on the far side of the bar at a small table. Service was s-l-o-w, but that may have been because there was only ONE waitress working. Hello? It was a Monday night. Who’d have expected the place to be so hoppin’? Maybe word had gotten out that my friends and I were there? Ha!

Oh well, what can you do? The poor waitress was not slacking at all. She was really working it. But the time we spent just sitting was used in totally visually exploring the amazing space around us.

Renowned tiki artist Bosco did the wall treatments, which were pretty groovy.

The ceiling was an ocean of colorful glass floats.

There was a grotto-like area on the opposite side of the corner to add to the interest-factor of the bar as well.

There were two bartenders helping out the one waitress.

They were doing their best to keep up with the demand, but I think their necessary haste may have had something to do with the off-tasting quality of their drinks.

We started off simply. I tried a Coronado Luau Special while Erich went with a traditional Pain Killer. They were serviceable, but nothing special.

Next we tried some classics. Erich had a Macadamia Nut Chi Chi and I had a Zombie. Things really went wild when a Luau Scorpion arrived.

I had to, of course, ask about tiki mugs. The poor waitress brought several over.

I opted for the barrel-shaped mug with “False Idol” written on it.

The place was so crowded, we decided not to hang around much longer. I would definitely go back on a slower night or when the place had more help. It was everything I had heard it was…and probably more.

False Idol
675 W. Beech Street
San Diego, CA 92101
Website: https://falseidoltiki.com/
Critiki page: https://www.critiki.com/location/false-idol-san-diego-890/

THE GRASS SKIRT:

Oh my stars! This place was so on my list o’ places to stop. There are so many tiki spots in San Diego, many of them not exactly on the tiki radar. But this one was a bright beacon, calling out to me.

I had long heard of and wanted to visit Grass Skirt since it opened in 2016. I had heard about the speakeasy entrance (Hmm…) and was utterly curious. A co-worker friend of mine, Jenn, went on my blind recommendation and had a swell time. So I really needed the experience.

Although you know where the place is, there does not appear to be any entrance to it. A small Poke restaurant (Good Time Poke) sits next door. The Poke place has a few tables outside. Inside, there is just a counter. The rest of the interior is a large kitchen. When the hostess come up to the counter and you ask about The Grass Skirt (especially if you have a recommended reservation), she has you follow her into the kitchen…

And into the walk-in refrigerator…

And suddenly, you find yourself in the enchanted and swanky confines of The Grass Skirt, an ultra-fab-o-rama tiki bar.

Not long after we arrived, the first of several light storms went off.

We could tell that, not only was this a beautiful place—it was a fun place as well.

There were so many cool details inside. One seating area had a neon hula dancer (Wearing the namesake ‘grass skirt’?) over it.

At one end of the bar was this giant tiki with a seating area inside of its mouth.

At the opposite end was another giant tiki, only this time its mouth was a fireplace.

There was just coolness everywhere you looked.

There was a tiki mug on the table with napkins, straws and chopstix in it. Our table candle had a beach-y feel as well.

The menu was filled with traditional favorites as well as new creations. There was a Sunday brunch menu, which made us want to come back just to try. I already have my sights set on a Lychee Li…but if they can make the Good Morning Vietnam with decaf, I’m on board with trying that.

For cocktails, I started off with a Tipsy Tentacle. Erich had the cleverly named Oaxacan Dead.

Sucker that I am for a gimmick, I was utterly thrilled with my little banana octopus. The drink was tasty, also.

Alas, you can only sip a cocktail so long before (gasp) it evaporates. It soon became time to order another round. This time I opted to try Boozin’ Susan’s World Famous Chi Chi. Mmm Mmm Mmm.

Erich and I were so delighted with The Grass Skirt, we actually visited the place twice during our trip.

One the second trip, I’m not sure what Erich had (a Saturn?), but I tried a Professor Feathers.

For round two, I tried Tiki Tony’s Mai Tai. I’m not sure what Erich was drinking though.

This trip, I also visited the exotic and remote Men’s Room. Of course, I took pictures. Ha!

They even had tiki mugs for sale. The Gold Skully Mug would have been incredible…but it was $100. My friend Jenn had already gifted me with an Aku Aku Lapu Punch Bowl the year before. My choices were three below; the Benzart Mug, the Hula Mug, or the Palm Mug. I’m sure I must have gotten one, but at this point 6 months later and with the mug tucked away until I can make my tiki room (if that ever happens), I don’t recall which one I got.

Before long, it was time to say goodbye to the Grass Skirt. I took one last, longing look at this spectacular place. It had been a great place. It was a bit upscale looking, but still remarkably comfortable.

Aloha, Grass Skirt…until it’s tiki time again.

Grass Skirt
910 Grand Avenue
San Diego, CA 92109
(858) 412-5237
Website: https://www.thegrassskirt.com/
Critiki page: https://www.critiki.com/location/the-grass-skirt-san-diego-913/

FORBIDDEN COVE:

While we may have missed The Cat Eye Club, we did get to experience Forbidden Cove, a new, speakeasy-type tiki bar hidden inside of Kilowatt Brewing, which had only recently had a soft opening (It’s grand opening wouldn’t come until early November).

Forbidden Cove is an unusual tiki bar in that all of the cocktails are beer based. Normally this would have been a turn off, but I was open minded about it. After all, I’d had a fabulous time at High Rollers Tiki Lounge in Solvang, California, where all of the cocktails served were wine based. This would be interesting…

I made a reservation for the earliest time I could. There is another bar within Kilowatt Brewing for the craft beer crowd. We headed there first when we arrived, as we knew Forbidden Cove was a speakeasy and we had no idea how to get in.

Forbidden Cove was running behind in opening, so we sat at the bar and tried a beer. I wasn’t in a beer mood and wanted to save my alcoholic intake for the tiki cocktails. But, hello? The cocktails are beer and/or seltzer based. What did it matter?

I opted to try a Wilson the Coconut IPA. It was interesting, but not what I was wanting. I drank it anyway and soon Forbidden Cove was ready for us.

We were given a small wooden tiki and told to place it on a barrel near the entrance. There was some sort of electric eye in the barrel that could read something on the bottom of the tiki. The door unlocked and—wow! We found ourselves walking into a tiki wonderland.

The place is fantastic. We had the place to ourselves for a good period of time, so I freely walked about and took pictures.

Even the gender-neutral bathroom was tiki-interesting.

The bar was tucked away in the back. It was small but fit nicely in the space.

There was even a “secret window” into the outside bar through which you could obtain certain beer beverages from.

The drinks were different. They were hit or miss to my palette, but I am a cocktail kind of guy and not so much a beer man. However, we did find one cocktail that we both enjoyed. It was the Lono’s Delight, a mix of seltzer and various tropical flavors. I also enjoyed the Pineapple Coconut Blonde, a beer-based cocktail.

This place is awesome. And we were instantly bummed when we learned it would only be around for the next 18 months or so. The owner of the building wants to demolish it and put in housing. What an incredible loss that will be. But while we were there, we soaked in all of the magic and enchantment of this place as best we could.

At one point, the bartender (who had witnessed my tiki geekiness as I snapped a lot of photos) called me to the bar. The great tiki god overhead was angry (or maybe it was just gas?). Zowie!

Of course, no one but our bartender knew what secrets lay beyond the “Aloha” door. Perhaps those secrets can be revealed another time…

Erich and I were both happy to have visited this little slice o’ tiki paradise. It was, without a doubt, the best lil’ beer-based tiki speakeasy we had ever been to.

Forbidden Cove
7576 Clairemont Mesa Blvd
San Diego, CA 92111
(858) 715-3998
website: https://forbiddencovesd.com/

BALI HAI RESTAURANT:

As our trip was winding down, we decided to spend the last evening at San Diego’s grand dame of tiki-dom, Bali Hai.

The building is a fun, old, two-story round building with dining on the top floor. It sits on the north point of Shelter Island and features dynamic views of San Diego Harbor and downtown San Diego in the distance.

As you approach the restaurant, the famed Goof on the Roof becomes visible as does the the carved Mr. Bali Hai at the entrance.

Although the place is legendary, it is decidedly tiki lite. Aside from the actual structure itself, there is very little Polynesian décor to be seen or found. Oh, there were a few pieces in the entryway and along the walls near the hostess desk, but that is about it.

Upstairs, aside from the view, there really is not much to see.

But we were there. We might as well make the most of it. Right?

The menus came and I took a look.

One page gave the history of the place.

I had to have one of Bali Hai’s World Famous Mai Tais, of course. There have been more than 2.5 million of them sold. In fact, there is a little counter on the Bali Hai website that changes every time one is ordered. How was it? Well, I can say I’ve had one. It was strong, but not exactly a drink I’d order again.

Dinner was okay. The drink I had to follow the Mai Tai was something called Pele’s Relief, a combination of spiced rum, cream of coconut, a variety of juices and a Hamilton Demerara 151.

I realize that Bali Hai has become a San Diego institution. It’s unique shape coupled with gorgeous views of the city across the bay make for a spectacular dining experience. But as a tiki bar/restaurant? I’m sorry. It’s rather…lacking.

There was a nice little display that discussed the founder of the restaurant on the ground floor.

As twilight crept in, we finished out dinner and walked around a bit. There was a wedding party going on in the private event dining room downstairs. We didn’t disturb them, but did walk around a bit to enjoy what the restaurant had to offer as evening came on.

Bali Hai wasn’t a bad place. It’s just that, having such a long and storied history (and such incredible views), the place just didn’t live up to its expectations. Would I go back? Sure…but I’d rather have a repeat visit to one of San Diego’s other tiki wonders…or possible hit some of the ones I missed.

We gave one last wave to the Goof on the Roof (His one eye now glowing red in the darkness), and that was the end of our tiki travels in San Diego.

Bali Hai Restaurant
2230 Shelter Island Drive
San Diego, CA 92106
(619) 222-1181
Website: https://www.balihairestaurant.com/
Critiki page: https://www.critiki.com/location/bali-hai-restaurant-san-diego-150/