Thoughtful Tropical: The Necessary Evolution of Tiki
I grew up in Los Angeles, the birthplace of Tiki, and home to Hollywood, where we really have the market cornered on fantasy and escapism.
As much as I’ve always appreciated some aspects of what Tiki is, and mid-century aesthetics, there has always been something that hasn’t sat quite right with me, and I know I’m not alone in this. It has been a source of conversation and conflict that in the last year has really come to the forefront both within industry and wider consumer circles, getting the attention it deserves. These conversations are being led by the Pasifika community, and people are finally listening, and are embracing learning. I’m not here to rehash what is now a commonly known conversation, there are many articles online from sources ranging from PUNCH to the New York Times, but rather to discuss what’s next.
One of the fundamental differences that is important to note is that while in Europe Tiki is more or less a cocktail subculture, in America, it’s an entire, all-encompassing lifestyle; people dress, decorate entire houses and socialise completely immersed in all aspects of what you would imagine this entails. In general, America has a sense of cultural nostalgia for a reality that never existed. Tiki was born out of escapism, fantasy, and a need for profit, the colonial nostalgia is just part of the package. Some of the socialite Tiki community - while embracing and molding their lives around a bartender’s creation - are reluctant to embrace change, and have a perplexing distrust of modern bartenders. Inasmuch as people are willing to overlook the problems within the foundation on which they base much of their lives, there is a balance of cultural appropriation as well as there is cultural appreciation.
Cultural appropriation refers to the use of objects or elements of a non-dominant culture in a way that doesn’t respect their original meaning, give credit to their source, or reinforce stereotypes or contributes to oppression. Cultural appreciation involves a desire for knowledge and deeper understanding of a culture. People who truly want to appreciate a culture offer respect to members of that culture and their traditions by participating only when invited to do so. Cultural exchange implies a mutual and beneficial sharing of cultures and beliefs as well as a level power dynamic. I’m defining these clearly because exchange is one of the most important aspects of what the future holds. Also, when discussing issues pertaining to culture, it’s important to note that there isn’t a one size fits all solution: no one person can tell you what to do. My general rule is: if you think it might be a problem, it probably is, and don’t be an asshole. Another thing that is important to note is that cultures do not exist in a vacuum; individuals are not a monolithic representation of an entire culture and their opinions.
Those of you that are familiar with my work know that I created and then Austin Hartman and I co-founded Doom Tiki in 2019 as a different re-imagining of Tiki that substitutes satanic imagery and doom and stoner metal in place of sexually exploitative and other problematic elements, as well as having a fundraising aspect, to not only create awareness of some of the issues affecting the cultures that Tiki has stolen much of its aesthetic from, but to make people aware of how rich and interesting they are as well. We’ve fully embraced the absurdity and immersive elements and utilise familiar cocktail structures. We went with doom and stoner metal, because out of all the metal subgenres, they are the easiest to listen to when sitting in a bar for a few hours. Many people from the Pasifika community find the use of a sacred word like Tiki problematic, and part of the reason we still use the name is to reach the right people and make them think. Due to the limitations of ‘COVID world’, we’ve created Zoom Tiki, which takes bartenders from multiple cultural backgrounds, and reimagines their traditional flavours and ingredients in the context of Tiki-style drinks, while also creating cultural exchange, and giving bartenders from cultures often misrepresented or reduced to stereotypes a platform to show off their culture in a way they want to.
Some of the guidelines that we provide our guest bartenders are pretty simple:
1. Be thoughtful, don’t be an asshole.
2. No mugs with bastardised versions of Pasifika, Indigenous, or explicitly racist caricatures (note: Christian imagery is up for grabs due to its problematic history with missionaries, and its use tends to shock people to think and personalise what we’re saying).
3. Avoid sexually exploitative mugs and Available Island Maiden tropes.
4. Learn about the people and the organisation that we’re raising money for.
5. Don’t limit yourself to just rum, embrace diversity in spirits.
6. Listen to the music provided for naming inspiration, as to avoid co-opting language and shitty imagery for drink names (we work with some of the biggest names in the scene to create our event playlists).
Because Tiki is an abomination of a culture, taken from many places, the classic primary ingredients are very limited and trapped in the past as well. One of the cornerstones of our cocktail creation, and my personal cocktail building philosophy, is based on finding commonalities in flavour profiles, ingredients, and exploring the many different ways they’re used across different cuisines. I think this can also be applied to the philosophy of tropical cocktails; if we’re going to move forward in Tiki, embracing the use of diversity in spirits is key. Creating immersive bar experiences and the cocktails that go with it should also reflect the actual cultures, rather than a Hollywood version of them. Yaki-Tiki by Brian Evans in Brooklyn, as well as Jeepney in New York, are both great examples of this. Yaki-Tiki embraces Japanese spirits and ingredients along with well-known Tiki staples, while Jeepney does something similar, but with Filipino ingredients and flavors.
One of my favourite “Tiki” concepts was developed by Nickel Morris (owner of Expo in Louisville, Kentucky and guest bartender on Doom Tiki: War Party, our Indigenous edition of Zoom Tiki). While working at The Pontiac in Hong Kong, he came up with Pon-Tiki. His idea was, if you’re already in the South Pacific, what’s the point of doing another Tiki night? So rather than relying on the same expected tropes that wouldn’t make sense, he created Pon-Tiki, a pun, and reversal on Kon-Tiki. This was done embracing aspects of Americana and sharing that with the Hong Kong bar scene. Using the same tired concepts is boring. One of the best parts about being a bartender is being able to come up with, and create new drinks. I think we should be putting as much into the experience as we put into garnishing our drinks. As bartenders, if one were to create new and amazing cocktails, sticking to the same tired Tiki blueprint all around, interesting new concepts can get lost. Rather than worrying about creating an experience based on somewhere far away, embracing and sharing what you have and know is pretty fucking cool.
Some of the things that we found helpful are:
1. When I am consulting with bars and brands, use our Thoughtful Tropical approach: creating an immersive bar experience doesn’t have to mean taking from others, you have the tools and flavours already available, even if you haven’t thought about applying it to Tiki (we have done Scandinavian, Puerto Rican and Indigenous editions, using flavours and ingredients native to that part of the world).
2. Bars like Lost Lake, and Shore Leave have managed to create a cocktail-focused immersive bar while avoiding the typical problematic and tried trappings.
3. Bars such as the Inferno Room and Laki Kane have worked with various Pasifika communities to create a respectful, educational and authentic environment.
4. Embrace change, whether in your ingredients, or like how my favourite bar in London, Trailer Happiness has, by getting rid of Bianca, and working on a more thoughtful mug display.
5. If you like things about these cultures, learn about them! Reach out respectfully out to them; if you’re earning money from creating an experience based on them, understand that a lot of them might not be here in fifty years due to climate issues, and give back.
Because this is not a black and white issue, we can hold on to many things: we can appreciate what has drawn us to Tiki, but we can understand what’s not good about it, and move forward at least in the bar and cocktail sense. From an American perspective, a lot of people that I know and am friends with in the socialite segment of Tiki have been having quite the reckoning with Fox News taking a very clear side on the issue, which brings me to my final point - at the end of the day, is it more important to hold onto what you like, or to create a more welcoming and thoughtful environment to everyone? As that is what hospitality is about.