As you walk a fashionable stretch of W1 dotted with Dover Street Market and Brown’s Hotel, the last thing you would think of stumbling on is a renegade tiki bar. But within an otherwise nondescript mid-rise building that’s exactly what you will find, London’s latest it-bar known as Mahiki. It’s been given the seal of approval by for rum-loving royals and their Hollywood admirers, this bi-level lounge space overflowing with kitschy references to ‘70s Gilligan’s Island. <br /><br />Visitors arrive to a dimly lit cocktail lounge divided between several smaller lounges offering circular banquettes engulfed in a tropical forest of indoor foliage. The ceiling is strewn with strands of tiki lights that offset the flicker of a single disco ball and endless red jam jar votives. A long bar features a creative cocktail menu of fruity concoctions like the Daddy-O Daiquiri and Good Time Girl, often shared by a long straw for two. By 11pm the space fills to capacity as local DJs spin pop anthems and classic rock tunes that roll till 2am.<br />
Tips
The bar also serves a light dim sum menu or steamed dumplings, Singapore noodles and hearty Peking Duck on certain nights.
Last Word
London tiki-bar lures not-so-kitschy contingent of VIP revelers looking for frilly drink fun.
