The MONKEY’S PAW — Two (Opposable) Thumbs Up!

Where were we again? Springfield, Oregon? All I knew is that we were somewhere east of Eugene. I had looked up tiki spots in Oregon. Aside from the usual spots in Portland, there wasn’t much else…except for this new place called The Monkey’s Paw somewhere in the middle of the state. Maybe we could stop there on our way back from Whidbey Island in Washington on our way to Central California. But would it be worth a detour?

Erich was traveling with me on the long, l-o-n-g trip. He had been talking to his cousin Robin about meeting us at a tiki bar he mistakenly thought was in Eugene. When he later called her to explain that the place was actually in a town called Springfield, she apparently was not pleased. Springfield, she said, “was like Concord.”

I hadn’t been to the California town of Concord in many, many years–decades even. It had a bad reputation? What did I know about it? I was only born there (Really!), but hadn’t been back since.

The idea that Springfield was not a nice place only fed my doubt about the wisdom of seeking this Monkey’s Paw place out.

When Google Maps had us pull off of the freeway, we found ourselves on a nice, tree-lined avenue heading for a cute Main Street. It was early still and The Monkey’s Paw hadn’t been open long. Lucky us. We found parking right in front.

The big Sapporo sign on the door (Pushing beer at a tiki bar?) was off-putting. We’d just missed Happy Hour, but saw that if we stayed long enough, they’d be having karaoke. CRINGE! This wasn’t looking promising…

The hostess stand right inside the door was done up very nicely, but just a few feet away from it was a pool table. Ugh. Maybe this was going to turn out to be some crap-hole dive bar in the Concord of the North after all?

But in we walked. Aside from the pool table, it didn’t look too bad. I still had a glimmer of hope for the place.

We didn’t know if we should seat ourselves or what, so we awkwardly found a booth on the wall not too terribly far from the bar. We already knew we’d missed Happy Hour, but the flyer on the table explained just what we had missed. Look at those awesome prices! Cocktails for only $7 or $8? Wow!

A waiter appeared, welcomed us, and handed us some menus. They were certainly colorful and quite extensive. And the prices…$8, $9, $10…most were incredibly reasonable.

I was pretty impressed by the sheer number of cocktails available. There was a page of food items (which we didn’t try as we were planning on going to dinner directly following our tiki stop). There was also a page filled with beers. Hmm. Seeing it made me question the place again… How was this place going to be?

The waiter returned and took our order. Once he was done, tiki tourist that I am, I got up to give the place a once over. The first thing I noticed was a pinball machine. Hmm. That dive bar feeling hit again. I had a feeling the place was going to turn out to be awful and Erich would never let me hear the end of it. But if the place had to have a pinball machine, Attack From Mars? It looked pretty cool.

The hall to the bathrooms was simply, but effectively, done up with netting, starfish, and puffer fish. It was clear that this was a bar done on a budget—not some big Bamboo Ben or Tiki Diablo build out. And that was fine. So what if it wouldn’t be as immersive as some other bars? I thought they had done a fine job with whatever resources they had.

Just beyond the alcove with the restrooms was a jukebox. Oh no. It was a cool old juke, but did I really need to hear Hank Williams or Def Leopard or some hip hop while sipping cocktails in a tiki lounge? As I recall, some tiki-appropriate stuff was playing. That was a relief. At some point while standing there, the waiter passed by and I complimented him on the vintage jukebox. He thanked me, but said it was out of order. I hoped that it would stay permanently on the fritz and be nothing more than a vintage, decorative piece so that the exotica they were playing would become a permanent fixture.

I explored further, super curious about this place, wanting to give it every chance to shine. It was a big place, which really surprised me.

For such a big space, the decor seemed rather sparse. But what was there were all good choices. My optimism was trying so hard to beat out this pessimistic bent I’d entered the place with. It had been such a long (six or seven straight hours of driving) day. Maybe I was just cranky and tired…

Little touches here and there would perk me up and give me hope. This water feature surrounded by an oasis of palm trees was a nice plus.

There were food trucks nearby for patrons as well.

I think my favorite section of the place was this seating area in the far, front corner. The couch with coffee table looked very comfortable and inviting–much more so than a booth.

The real draw to the space though was an old TV set stuck in the corner. What was that on the screen? Some weird cartoon?

No. The TV had been turned into an aquarium. How cool.

I hurried back to the table when I saw the waiter carrying over our drinks. To drink, I had picked the bar’s namesake concoction, The Monkey’s Paw. Erich had a Creature From the Black Lagoon (which was yummy. He let me taste it.)

As we sat there and sipped, I asked him what he thought of the place. He was unimpressed. He just thought it was too big, too cavernous. He thought it would be better if it were smaller and more intimate. I had to agree, but at the same time I had to think about the owners. I’m sure they wanted to be in the general location they set up shop. The space they found available to rent was the space they got. They really had no control over the size, and you could see they were trying to set up intimate seating areas.

Besides, the drinks were tasty and you couldn’t beat the prices. I thought they were doing a fine job.

The waiter eventually came back after we had finished our drinks. I thought the service was kind of slow, until I realized our waiter was also the bartender. Wow! The guy was friendly and helpful—and working his butt off. While we waited for our next round, I wandered some more and Erich patiently waited at the table (and played games on his phone. Ha!).

With our second round of drinks, Erich began to change his tune. He was already impressed with the prices, but his second drink, the El Diablo, really pleased him. I had chosen a Sidewinder’s Fang…and I really was thrilled at how they created “fangs” for the orange peel “snake”. Ha!

Erich was so delighted with his El Diablo, he wanted to order another. I was game for another drink. Why not? It meant we could stay at The Monkey’s Paw longer–especially since it was highly unlikely we’d ever pass this way again. Once the waiter/bartender returned and took our orders. (His name was Scott—I think. I know he was terribly busy, but I picked his brain a bit, wanting information on the bar. I was digging the place more and more.), I got up to poke around again. While I walked and was snapping pictures, I encountered this woman who was waiting for some friends. She really liked the place and I concurred. It was a good place and it growing on me the longer I was there.

She said she had been to all of the “dive bars” that had been housed in the space over the years, but The Monkey’s Paw “was by far the nicest.” She also talked a bit about Springfield and its downtown, saying it used to be horrible and she was afraid to go out here by herself. I guess it has undergone a sort of gentrification as she says now there are lots of businesses in the area and she feels safe being there alone at night. That’s great to hear. (Eat your heart out, Concord!)

The third batch of drinks arrived. Erich had his El Diablo again and I had gone for a Zombie. Erich was ecstatic over his cocktail and was already planning to try and emulate it when he got back home. I enjoyed my fruity, boozy, very spirited Zombie as well. (A very appropriate drink for this place, especially if you are familiar with the Monkey’s Paw story the bar takes its name from…)

When it came time to pay the check, I took the bill up to the bar. I had seen a notice on the menu about buying Money’s Paw mugs.

Scott (??) was busy, but he paused to help me. There were three examples of the mugs on the bar. Each mug (in the shape of a zombie head) is different. No two are the same. They are individually made by hand. There is no mold. I found that quite amazing and novel. I’d never heard of a bar going to that much effort for their signature tiki mug before.

Scott brought out several more from a back room for me to pick from. I opted for this guy. I liked that the flesh around his mouth appeared to have been ripped away (or chewed off?) and that his left eye was bulging out and looking in the wrong direction. The backs of all of the mugs have the name of the bar stamped into them. They’re quite a nice piece of work.

As I looked at the mugs, I asked Scott more questions. He said the bar had only been open a short time, having made its debut on Cinco de Mayo, 2021. When I asked why he and his partners had decided on opening a tiki bar, he said they wanted to do something fun. When it came out that I was from California, he wanted to know if I’d been to Smuggler’s Cove in San Francisco. I have. He was in awe of Smuggler’s Cove (and The Alibi and Hale Pele, both in Portland…and yes, I informed him after he asked, I had been to those as well).

I told him that I really liked his bar and I was glad we had stopped in. I asked Scott if I could get a photo of him and he gave me a thumbs up. About that time, another guy came walking up to the bar. It turned out that he was one of the co-owners, too. His name is Teren and I quickly snapped a shot of him.

It was time to go. The Monkey’s Paw had proven to be far nicer than I imagined. It’s a simple place, but you can tell it really has heart and they’ve really tried to make it the best they could. From great drinks at affordable prices, creative mugs, and very friendly service, what is not to like? I was pleasantly surprised at how much I really enjoyed it and was glad we went out of our way so we could check it out. Here’s hoping that Scott, Teren, their other business partner(s) — and The Monkey’s Paw itself — are a huge success.

Cheers!

The Monkey’s Paw
420 Main St.
Springfield, OR 97477
(541) 505-7975
https://www.facebook.com/themonkeyspawtikibar