Amazing bar with a highly skilled bartender (on a Tuesday night) who managed to deliver…read moreconsistently perfect cocktails with zero help, to a crowd. The cocktails are highly creative, diverse in flavor and design, and really could stand up to any you would find at a top cocktail bar in a major city. The exterior doesn't scream "must come in" but you absolutely should. Is it a tiki bar? Yes, but in the best way. And the bartender deserves applause for pulling off 3+ quite complex cocktails every 5 minutes off of memory and without any support.

Test Pilot lands somewhere in the orbit of tiki without fully crash-landing on a bamboo runway, and…read morehonestly, that works in its favor. In a stretch of Lower State packed with breweries, wine bars, and roaming weekend energy-drink humans in vintage bowling shirts, it threads the needle nicely between cocktail bar and tropical escape pod. The menu leans tiki-adjacent rather than deep-cut exotica, but the drinks are smartly built and avoid the "every problem can be solved with more rum" philosophy. There's a solid spread of spirits across the board, which makes the place feel more welcoming to a broader nightlife crowd instead of strictly rum disciples clutching vintage Trader Vic's mugs. The Oaxacan Dead was the standout for me. Smoky, balanced, endlessly sippable. One of those drinks where every sip quietly talks you into ordering another without turning into a sugar avalanche. The Jungle Bird was also great, though presented more in the direction of a Negroni than the punchier tropical versions you usually see. Bitter, restrained, and easy to settle into. Crowd-wise, things tilted a little frat-floaty as the night rolled on, but the staff handled everything smoothly and kept the vibe from turning into full pirate mutiny. Service stayed friendly and composed even when the volume of the room started climbing like a malfunctioning theremin. Big bonus points for the location and outdoor seating. Being right in the middle of Lower State makes it an easy launch point or final stop depending on your evening trajectory. Grab a drink, people-watch, drift between breweries and wine spots, repeat as necessary.

Such a fun tiki bar in Torrance! My friend brought me here, and I can see why she keeps coming…read moreback. Since it was my first visit, the bartender walked us through the menu and shared some great recommendations. They even let us sample the frozen drinks before we ordered. We got the matchamacallit, makahiki mua, frozen ube, and frozen dole whip. Every drink was creative and delicious. This is the perfect spot for a laid-back night out. It's casual and relaxed, but with a lively atmosphere (there's a DJ) and excellent tiki cocktails.

The Hula Hula Room is incredible! We had such a fun time and will definitely be back…read more The cocktails here are inventive and bring the perfect combo of the South Bay and aloha spirit. The frozen drinks are dangerously good since you cannot taste the alcohol at all. The decorations are great and I absolutely love the art. It even features my favorite Hawaiian artist, Nick Kuchar! The space has a great layout. There are two large high top booths in the back that are perfect for groups of 8 to 10 people. The bathroom I used was gender neutral, and there is a convenient parking lot right in front. They do not serve food here, so some folks bring their own. We will definitely bring a meal with us next time! To top it all off, the service was very friendly. They were so patient explaining the whole menu to our large group.

Oh boy the amount of times I have been inebriated here. Birthday parties, coming home celebrations,…read morecheeky post-work cocktails that accidentally turn into two in the mornings; New Years Eves, Potlucks, Aloha Sundays, Halloweens and everything in between. This is a great bar and there's just no way around that. The drinks are tough, the vibes are immaculate, the bartenders have teeth and the regulars are absolutely bananas. I love it here. It's probably the only bar you can roll into by yourself as a woman and feel comfortable. As if things couldn't get any better, there's a treasure of a human in there who spins vinyl on Friday nights (maybe Saturdays also, but don't quote me) and you really shouldn't miss that experience. Thank you Imperial and staff for your phenomenal service. You've truly cultivated something wonderful.

What an amazing hidden gem in Goleta!…read more While visiting the town, we were looking for a lounge walking distance from our hotel. We found this cool spot via yelp. A for atmosphere. You are transformed into a tiki/tropical/ vintage/bohemian not sure what to call it atmosphere. Super mellow and chill. We sat at a corner couch across from the bar. Comfy and relaxing, and dim lighting. Drink menu was diverse. Great selection. From cocktails to all types of alcohol. With an average price range of $15. Bartender knew his craft. All drinks ordered were great! C for service. The service dept needs some help, and I get it, with one person serving 15+ people. It is impossible to provide a5 star service. Initially service was great with a smile when we first arrived @ 6 pm. But soon after the bar became super busy. The wait was 20-30 minutes for an order. It was time to leave. We asked for our check and it came non-itemized. If it was 2 or 4 drinks that would be fine, but we were party of 3 with over 10 drinks. Then we had to wait again after asking for an itemized check. Waiter stated they need to hand write as their "machine" was not working. That took more time than needed. Ahhhhhh.... Ah well.. you can't get it all. Hence the 3.5 stars. I recommend, to sit at the bar and maybe pay cash to avoid hurdles I experienced.

We visited Tonga Hut during their recent "Spring Time Schenanigans" tiki marketplace event. They…read morehave a tiki marketplace several times a year, and this one was held on a Sunday afternoon from noon to 6pm. It takes place mostly in their rear patio area and parking lot, but a good number of vendors were also in an adjacent air conditioned event room. They have a very small parking lot, but it was occupied by vendors during this event. Do not park in the parking lots of the adjacent businesses, as we were warned when entering the Tonga Hut that cars get towed regularly. There's plenty of street parking in the nearby neighborhood. Entering from the rear, there is a good sized covered patio with around eight benches. We went inside to check it out and grab a drink. The interior is fairly small with four good sized booths, a lounge area with a large J-shaped couch with several small tables, and around ten seats at the bar. It is dimly lit with some basic tiki décor, and has an old-school feel. They had a fixed cocktail menu for this event which is understandable. We stood in line at the bar for about ten minutes, got our drinks and went out to the patio. The bartender was friendly, and didn't seem flustered by the high volume of patrons. I had the Horned Beast O' The Celtic Sea (Oceanus Hibernicus Irish Malt, Jamacian Rum, House Made Falernum & Orgeat, Peach, Citrus, Dash of Cherry Heering, $13). She had the Leprechaun Grog (Three Rums, Lime, Grapefruit, Honey, Spice, Soda, $14). Both drinks were good, were served in souvenir plastic cups, and were a bargain at $13 to $14. If you ordered a drink containing Oceanus whiskey, the bartender gave you a gold coin and you could exchange it with the Oceanus representative on the patio for a free T-shirt. Durango Tacos was setup near the rear entrance for food. We had four tacos (two carne asada and two veggie), and they were good and reasonably priced. This was the first tiki marketplace we have attended. There were around twenty vendors with a good assortment of art work, tiki mugs, tiki clothing, tiki décor, and other miscellaneous items. I purchased a few nice tiki shirts which were a steal at $20 and $25. The vendors and visitors were all very friendly and in a festive mood. We hung out for about ninety minutes and had a good time. We will return at some point to try their regular cocktail menu and see what it's like on a non-event night.

Tonga hut is my favorite local tiki bar, but it is such a hit or miss when I go!…read more On a weekend, you could easily walk in with no problem or be hit with a one-hour wait. Sometimes they have servers, other times you order at the bar. The last time I went, there was a long line as only one bartender was making drinks, yikes! Despite that, the drinks are solid, reasonably priced, and strong! They have a variety of drinks and nightly specials. Each bartender also has their own "secret menu" specials that only they can make. The decor is very on theme, and they have a fire pit and heaters outside for when it is chilly.

Jupiter always makes me and my friend feel super welcome whenever we walk in for trivia on Sundays…read more We love her!!!!!!!

Such a cute place and bartenders were all so sweet !! food and drinks were good as well ,only…read morecomplaint I have was the rude ass security at the end kicking us out, me and my friend were by no means being annoying drunks and the place hadn't even closed yet .... once we were getting ready to leave he still had the audacity to come bang on the bathroom door when we were using the restroom before we left (mind you it was not even 2 am yet) .... i see why he was missing all his teeth , i hope someone taught his rude ass a lesson .

FAVORITE IN ALL OF CA! STAFF...always awesome! Everything…read moreabout this place is amazing. All of the pizzas are delicious. The menu continues to grow and get more interesting every time I visit. Actually live in San Diego and find reasons to travel up here "for work"...buuuut, also PIZZA. NO TVs! ALWAYS a killer Playlist! The beer is so interesting from light to dark. I always enjoy a little light reading when I review the different beer writeups. It's a buzzing cacophony of pizza-fueled jubilation!

Came here for dinner with my family. This is an order at the counter, sit yourself down kinda…read moreplace. We were able to find street parking and a table easily. Ordered a few slices and a few other best sellers. 1. Dr Pepperoni -- Kids loved their slice. Thin crust with crunchy pepperoni. I went for the same and really liked the sourdough crust. 2. Fungus Amungus -- This had a generous amount of toppings on it and was flavorful. 3. Garlic Fries -- I loved that these were thin. Had the right amount of garlic flavor. 4. Pizza Fries -- This is one of their best sellers so had to try. It didn't disappoint. Was yummy. Interesting concept. I also got one of the rice beers (lager) which I really liked. The staff were friendly. Will come back here if in the area.

Such a fun place to get tiki drinks!! Speakeasy vibes, you enter through the opening a small door…read moreon the barrel inside Tail of the Pup, ring the bell, and they buzz the door to let you in. You have to let your eyes adjust because it's quite dim inside, but adorned with lots of colorful lighting. It's usually reservation only but I called ahead to see if they had availability for us to pop in and luckily they had room for us. Everyone here is so friendly and seems to love what they do. Our bartender was Shane and he was wonderful and really made our experience memorable. Zeke was the other bartender who was great as well. We ordered a Painkiller and a Captain's Inner Circle. Each drink comes in its own unique cup/glass and has such a fun presentation. The painkiller was presented to us with some fire elements and the captain's inner circle was hilarious - they ring a bell and all the workers join in on saying you're a part of the inner circle. Now the taste. Both of the drinks were delicious! We love a painkiller and this one definitely didn't disappoint, it totally hit the spot. I also loved the inner circle drink, it was coconutty and had fruity elements like apricot in it. There are so many drinks on their menu, we wish we could try them all! We'll have to come back next time to try more. They also have food but we didn't have time to try any dishes this time.

The bar atmosphere and staff are great, but my biggest problem is with the cocktails. They need a…read moreserious overhaul. Please stop it with the gimmicky flare, smoke and song and focus on making better tasting drinks. I ordered a Painkiller and it was stuffed with charred cinnamon sticks and a lime on fire that made my drink taste awful. They staff were nice enough to comp my drink, but to be honest the drinks are never good or balanced. There are much better tiki bars in LA, and I recommend you go elsewhere for a really good cocktail.