GRAYSTONE LOUNGE — There’s A Tiki Bar WHERE!?!

Whenever I travel, I try my best to sniff out the odd tiki bar here or there; ones that are off of the radar as well as those that are on it. During a recent road trip through Oregon, I did a quick Google search. Aside from the usual suspects (Hale Pele, the Alibi, Monkey’s Paw, etc.), I spotted something further down the search list. Graystone Lounge Tiki Bar. I’d never heard of it. It is in the town of Silverton. I’d never heard of that either. Silverton was only about 20 minutes or so east of Salem, Oregon, which I’d be passing right through. I decided I needed to make a detour and check the place out…

As we drove through rural farmland, passing vineyards and other crops of various sorts, my traveling companion, Erich, was incredulous that there could possibly be a tiki bar out there anywhere.

“Where are we? Hooterville?”

I was a bit apprehensive myself. The bar’s website listed it as a tiki bar and as an Irish pub. I had a bad feeling it would be a jumbled mishmash of a place, offering various things to cater to various types of people—and not a full-on tiki bar. I had emailed (through the website) the bar’s owner, but hadn’t heard back yet. Salem has a population approaching 180,000 people and the tiki bar there (just called Tiki Lounge), while better than the tiki bars where I live (There are NONE.), was very disappointing. Silverton has a population of just over 10,000 — a mere fraction of the population Salem has. I was keeping myself open to experiencing it though, but admittedly my expectations were limbo-ing about as low as they could go-go.

We drove into town. It’s older downtown section was charming—and surprisingly vibrant. And there it was, right on Main Street, Graystone Lounge.

After parking (in a convenient lot right next door, with all of the stalls on one side reserved for Graystone Lounge customers only), we walked around to the front. The facade out on the street had used thatch. That, I felt, was a very positive sign. We went in…

The first thing I saw inside was a corner filled with several slot machines. My heart sank a little bit.

But as my head turned to take in the place, that sinking feeling suddenly got a bit more buoyant. Hmm. There seemed to be potential there.

I walked up to the bar and stared at the menus on display. True, there was mostly beer on the menu and some typical bar food items…but there was also a small (just eight cocktails, seven if you exclude the margarita–which I do) tiki menu. And, what was that? A Graystone Lounge tiki mug for only $16 (marked down from $19)? Sold!

I tried a Pineapple Express (in the mug). Erich went for a Blue Hawaiian. The bartender, Troy, was friendly and willingly answered my questions about the place. The first thing I asked was how long the bar had been there.

“We got the keys a few days before COVID hit,” he said. “The owners are really big into tiki.”

Lockdown gave the owners, Joshua and Paige Echo-Hawk, time to get their tiki on and do the place up. Yes, it is small-town tiki. Yes, it appears to be done on a limited budget. But there is something about the place, a can-do spirit, that made me want to give it a chance.

The bar is long with thatch covering. Lighting is important in any tiki bar. While there wasn’t the oddball collection of exotic lamps that is common in a lot of tiki establishments, there was plenty of black lighting to give it that dark, yet oddly glowing look.

Opposite the bar, there is a row of bar tables. There are several of those large digital windows/pictures showing tropical scenes or life beneath the waves. Whimsical old decanters line the shelves above them.

Beyond the bar area is a more lounge-y space with plenty of room and a small, elevated stage. Karaoke? Perhaps an area for dancing as well?

There is another room directly behind the bar. This room also has its own bar, as well as a pool table, several large-screen televisions and more natural lighting. Clearly it was designed with the watching of sporting events in mind–but cleverly kept separate from the rest of the bar so as not to destroy Graystone Lounge’s ambiance.

The space is a lot larger than it originally appears to be. It has been smartly divided up to keep various factions of clients (karaoke folks, sports enthusiasts, slot machine players, or just those wanting to hit the bar) happy–and coming back. It can’t be easy to operate a tiki bar in such a small town. The Echo-Hawks seem to be putting their whole hearts into making the business work, while keeping their tiki dreams alive. (And just for the record, the Irish Pub portion is next door, with a completely separate entrance and not part of the tiki experience at all.)

I really liked my Pineapple Express. It wasn’t great, but it was tasty. Erich’s Blue Hawaiian was…serviceable. It wasn’t horrible, but wasn’t as good as my drink. This wasn’t a crafted cocktail kind of place, but we could have guessed that walking in. The drinks were also fairly inexpensive. None were more than $9, with a happy hour later in the day that would have dropped prices even further.

I was impressed by the fact the place had its own mug. While I am fairly certain the mugs were generic from some company that gladly stamped the Graystone Lounge name on them for a small fee, I found that extra bit of effort commendable.

There was a sign advertising a luau that coming weekend. Among other things that were planned for it was a whole roasted pork and Polynesian dancers. How admirable of them. I’m sure it was one of the social events of the year for the town.

I later had a response to my pre-visit inquiry on the website from Joshua Echo-Hawk, the co-owner. (Graystone is his middle name.)

“I wanted to let you know that we’re not a ‘classic drinks’ tiki bar,” he said. “It’s a small town. Our food menu is basically bar food, and we don’t really get busy until the evening (during karaoke). I don’t think a true tiki person such as yourself would find (the bar) special.”

I couldn’t believe he seemed to be apologizing for being a humble, small-town bar. I wasn’t expecting Frankie’s or Trader Vic’s or Tiki Ti. I knew I wasn’t in Los Angeles, or the Bay Area, or even Portland.

At first (or second or even third) glance, most tiki purists (aka tiki snobs) would probably just dismiss the bar. I see it differently. Graystone Lounge may not be Hale Pale, The Alibi, or even Monkey’s Paw. It’s a long ways from any of those places, actually. It won’t go down in history as one of the great tiki palaces. It isn’t a “must-see” destination bar. But if Graystone Lounge were in my hometown, I’d be glad it was there and would be there as often as I could be.

CHEERS!

Graystone Lounge
203 E Main St.
Silverton, Oregon 97381
(971) 343-1116
www.graystonelounge.com
www.facebook.com/graystonelounge/