A Moment of Tiki 34: Kon-Tiki, Tucson

In this episode of A Moment of Tiki, we visit the venerable Kon-Tiki restaurant in Tucson, Arizona. Founded in 1963 in the middle of tiki's golden era, this outpost of tropical goodness in the middle of the desert is a delightful surprise. It has weathered the changing tastes and fickle winds of time to remarkable survive into the new tiki renaissance we are enjoying today. Join me for a video tour of the restaurant and short reviews of their dining and cocktail options. If you're ever passing through southern Arizona, Kon-Tiki is worth a stop!
Kon-Tiki, Tucson may be found online at kontikitucson.com/
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[@chriscurtis7254]

We went on an AZ/NM roadtrip last fall and, for the history, we had to stop at Kon Tiki. I think our experience was a lot like yours. You see the outside and think you'll be disappointed. As soon as you walk in the history hits you in the face 😄. A beautiful time capsule of tiki. The food was amazing! The drinks just ok. Not bad at all just not overwhelming. But looking at the decor you could see and feel the history. The TVs do distract but they're easy to ignore. There aren't many of the vintage places left and this one is definitely worth checking out.

[@LagoonofMystery]

I agree completely! If they just improved the cocktails a little, it'd be fantastic. I get that university students flocking to cheap booze kept them alive during the Tiki Dark Ages, but that's in the past. There's no reason not to up their game a bit now.

[@chriscurtis7254]

A friend of ours in Phoenix had the same idea. They are catering to the college crowd more than the tiki crowd. That's why they have all the TVs 😄. But our friend said he was ok with that because if the college kids weren't spending their money there the place may have closed years ago. He can forgive the TVs and weak drinks as long as it helps keep the history alive.

[@MegaIkedog]

If I'm ever in Tucson, I will definitely have to check out the Kon-Tiki! I discovered a fantastic tiki restaurant in Longmont, Colorado called Swaylo's Tiki! They're in an old Outback Steakhouse, and the bar is inside the entire back half of a pirate ship! They opened about a month ago, and have a very family friendly atmosphere, with a variety of virgin drinks to choose from including a POG, Blue Hawaiian, and Lava Flow. Think the same layout as an Outback Steakhouse: about 80% booths and tables for families and 20% bar. The food is really good too! They even have desserts! If you ever make it up to CO from TX, I recommend the Kalua pork sliders, Luau Chicken, Huli Huli Ribs, and the Dole Whip. Swaylo's has some of the best food I've had in a long time!

[@LagoonofMystery]

I've heard good things about Swaylo's! I've never been to Colorado, but that seems like a good excuse to visit!

[@robcschweitzer]

Now, I need to drive back down to Tucson… that food looked really good

[@LagoonofMystery]

It was!

[@HootOwl513]

Tucson local here. Thanks for covering the KonTiki. Always been a local fave. I agree they didn't quite get the Tiki Cocktail vibe right -- too sweet. ''Marryatt MaiTais'' I have heard them derisively called. I've memorized the 1944 Trader Vic's MaiTai formula, and they will make me one at the bar if I watch the bartender like a hawk. [An 'Original Vic's MaiTai' was on the menu a few years ago, but they probably got into legal issues with a Bay Area-based restaurant/bar chain that I will not name.] My grown nephews will take me there for my birthday, some years. About the smoke residue: True, everyone smoked up thru the Sixties, but back in the '90s [?] there was a fire. It was contained quickly. The palm fringe decor motif was a lot ''fluffier'' back in the day. Some of the booths were subdivided into cozier small cells, with copra/palm mat walls. Also they used to offer ''Monkey Meat-on a-Stick'' [Kalbi marinated beef strips] that you could grill yourself on a little tabletop hibachi (originally charcoal, later sterno-fired). It was a lot of fun to cook your own meat sticks. But one night, some U of A sorority girls in a back booth got too stewed and allowed the open fire to light off the desert-dried tapa cloth and copra. While they got the conflag under control before losing the place, ever after, ''Monkey Meat'' at a table top hibachi was 86'ed. They still sell the grilled Kalbi Beef Strips, but they are done in the kitchen. Just not as fun.

[@LagoonofMystery]

Oh my goodness! That story is INCREDIBLE! Thank you so much for sharing! I sincerely wish I had a vintage tiki palace as cool as the Kon-Tiki near me. Alas, I do not, but the story of "cook your own monkey meat" will send me to bed giggling tonight! 😅

[@HootOwl513]

@@LagoonofMystery That's what me and my crew of sarcastic ne'er-do-wells called it. No monkeys were harmed in the production of meat-sticks.

[@mjcontos1119]

When we first went to the Kon Tiki the bridge crossed over a koi pond.

[@LagoonofMystery]

Yes, what used to be the pond was still there, only dry. I doubt they've had fish there for a decade or more. Disappointing, but then again Tuscon isn't the most hospitable place for a shallow water fish pond!

[@HootOwl513]

We have been in a deep drought for decades. I remember the fish. I also remember a couple of other polynesian-themed restaurant/bars in town. Gone now.

[@shlomster6256]

Nice review!

[@LagoonofMystery]

Thank you!

[@jackimyers9364]

Yeah, I agree with all the comments: great interior, best carvings, and drinks too sweet.

[@LagoonofMystery]

Great minds think alike, Jacki!

[@capitansangre]

I’ll have to go when I head to the Prowl in Bisbee next month 🤩

[@LagoonofMystery]

It's definitely worth a visit! As I said in the video, the cocktails aren't great, but the food's delicious!

[@jcost0099]

I really like Kon Tiki.. even though it kind of misses marks on the "purists" checklist. I just remember going in there as a kid on 72 when my Dad was at Davis Monthan AFB.

[@LagoonofMystery]

The Kon-Tiki needs just a tiny push to make it back into the pantheon of tiki greats. They survived the 80s and 90s by catering to college students with cheap, fruity drinks, so I can understand why they'd be hesitant to move away from that. That also explains the (unfortunate) flat screen TVs throughout. But still, the food is great, the staff super-friendly and the decor, as I said, is evocative of the great Mai Kai. It's definitely worth a visit.

[@glennkoenig6078]

In this day and age, it must be scary to move back to the classic style and drinks. It really depends on who consists of the main customer base. I would tend to think that tiki purists are not their main revenue stream. Since the bones of the place are solid, it would be a matter of making retro feel like new. Can only be done by a full commitment to the historical style and making it a destination spot even for the locals.

[@LagoonofMystery]

@@glennkoenig6078 Right. Any business planning to economically depend on tiki purists will go out of business quickly. There's just not enough of them around--certainly not in Tucson. The trick is to provide a product that appeals to them without alienating a broader audience. Craft cocktails have become the standard across the U.S., while the drinks at Kon-Tiki are, for the most part, still firmly of the 1990s sour mix era. That can be upgraded and even increase profitability. The Tiki Ti, for example, is not a craft cocktail bar. Many of their ingredients are not what would pass for premium, yet they're well-balanced and delicious. Kon-Tiki could do a lot worse than to hire Mike Sr. to come in and revamp their cocktail program. A Martin Cate blow-it-up-and-rebuild-from-scratch approach probably wouldn't work, but Mike Sr. dialing in their recipes with what's on hand? That's could be brilliant. The revamped Painkiller is a step in the right direction, although I hope they're using at least a token amount of Pusser's, otherwise they might be getting a lawyer call...

[@pkdiddy]

I live in Tucson and frequent Kon Tiki. The owners of this place will be its failure. Resistant to upgrades, resistant to changing their horrible drink recipes to actual representations of the names of the drinks they use. They are content to serving Bud Light to old men during the week and hope their crappy recipes will pacify the college kids during the weekends. So sad.

[@LagoonofMystery]

In their defense, that approach is what enabled them to survive the Dark Ages when tiki bars and restaurants across the country went extinct. So they're hardwired to the "ain't broke, don't fix" mindset. The Alibi in Portland followed a similar path, although I understand new(ish) ownership has improved the cocktails somewhat. Ditto Trad'r Sam in San Francisco (although the drinks there remain dubious). The Tonga Hut in LA had degenerated into a mediocre dive bar until new owners a decade back restored quality cocktails to the menu to great success. The most important thing is survival. As long as that happens, there's always the possibility for improvement in other areas.