Friday, December 6, 2024

TikiTiki in Downtown Long Beach is hidden behind a wall just for you

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Yes, TikiTiki is a tiki bar hidden inside Beer Belly in Downtown Long Beach. And it just opened. But there’s more to it than just being a new part of the bourgeoning cocktail scene

TikiTiki inside Beer Belly is now open Thursday through Saturday weekly

There are two things Beer Belly has never been lighthearted on: its food and its drinks—the latter of which are perhaps its most underrated aspect thanks to a spectacular bar program headed by James Squire and Sherwood Souzankari.

The Downtown business can now add a hidden tiki bar to its list of accomplishments.

Every Thursday through Saturday, beginning at 6 p.m. until midnight, one has to simply venture toward the western wall inside Beer Belly, push on it, and enter Tikitiki, a dark, red-and-blue tinged, pufferfish lantern-lit space offering up classics like Frozen Birds to Souzankari’s more creative creations. (Like the Desert Daiquiri, a blend of rum and aloe liqueur with hints of pineapple-and-sugar and lime-and-salt.)

How TikiTiki came to be

With flexibility in terms of management—maintaining a permanent tiki bar could be financial ruin in some cases, but with an offshoot attached to a restaurant, stability remains viable—and a genuine cool factor in terms of vibes—the room is devoid of any outside light and creates a sense of total escape—Tikitiki is the type of space needed in what was becoming a monotonous bar scene.

“We [Squire and I] wanted something cool—we wanted to build something that was like a hidden tiki bar but wasn’t completely held down to being a traditional tiki,” Souzankari said. “Wanted something we would both visit if we were a patron. We decided to approach the menu in the same way, building out drinks that people could be familiar with but with a more modern tiki twist, like an old fashioned, but with a rum base instead of whiskey base.”

Rum reigns supreme at this hidden tiki bar

Rum is where Tikitki shines thanks to the liqueur-centric talents of Souzankari.

His approach is far more reflective of the L.A. cocktail scene as a whole than it is Long Beach-specific. Sometimes challenging, oftentimes rewarding. This also goes for his approach to the rum selection as well. You’ll find a Oaxacan rum that leans toward the savory. (I am being quite serious. it tastes similar to Spaghetti-Os and it’s strangely satisfying.) And you can find a Haitian rum aged for eight years.

Add onto this punch bowls (complete with a mini-fire spectacular), music that serenades while you intoxicate, and an overall sense of escape and you have little wonder that is Tikitiki.

Brian Addison
Brian Addisonhttp://www.longbeachize.com
Brian Addison has been a writer, editor, and photographer for more than 15 years, covering everything from food and culture to transportation and housing. In 2015, he was named Journalist of the Year by the Los Angeles Press Club and has since garnered 30 nominations and three additional wins. In 2019, he was awarded the Food/Culture Critic of the Year across any platform at the National Arts & Entertainment Journalism Awards. He has since been nominated in that category every year, joining fellow food writers from the Los Angeles Times, the New York Times, Eater, the Orange County Register, and more.

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