Tiki came over on the waves of the pacific and landed in Europe in the sixties, a full decade after it’s popularity boomed in the United States. Restaurants and bars popped up with a Polynesian theme, with great attention to detail going into the menu, the exotic drinks, and even in the naming of the establishment. In 1963, Trader Vic’s, a California restaurant chain, opened its first tiki bar on the European continent, in London’s Hilton Hotel. In 1974, Trader Vic’s opened their second restaurant in Munich’s famed Bayerischer Hof Hotel, the same year that Germany hosted the Soccer World Cup. Trader Vic’s has now five locations in Europe, the newest one opening in Berlin in 2003. Astonishingly enough, many authentic Polynesian themed restaurants throughout Europe have survived through the decades and remain today a delightful discovery for younger patrons. This is due in part to the Post-Tiki wave that has swept through America over the past ten years and has finally come to Europe. Another great influence are the publications Book of Tiki and Tiki Modern, written by the German Urban Archeologist Sven Kirsten, who has resided for many years in California. Until recently, many of the European Tiki locations have not been documented. The Tiki Road Trip by James Teitelbaum and the City in Space guides www.cityinspace.com have some locations listed, but not all. We would like to change this, and we need your help in the first phase of the project, to use this site as a European tiki bar and restaurant guide. In a later second phase, when all of the locations are documented, we will turn this site into a book for all the tikiphiles out there! For this huge undertaking we will need any information and hints that you can give us. You will automatically be listed as a Co-author and as thanks, will be given a free copy of the book. What we are looking for: Any information on restaurants and bars that have to do with the South Pacific Islands in any form. Neo-tikibars and businesses that have a tiki theme can also be included, but our main topic will be tiki bars from the 1950’s-1980’s. If the location that you know about is already listed on our website, your information is still wanted! Perhaps you have different photographs, stories, or knowledge about current or past changes in the structure or decoration. This will not only be a guide for current bars, but also a history of past locations. Any information including photography, postcards, and newspaper articles on previous locations, for example the Butlin’s Vacation Camps in England, are greatly appreciated. What we are NOT looking for: Anyone can decorate using a plastic lei and cheap bamboo and call it a tiki bar, so please use your discretion upon submitting your location to this website. If they serve caipirinias and call them exotic drinks, chances are they shouldn’t appear in this book. Submitting your information: There is now a new upload feature available. Please review always first the existing locations and if you don't find a tiki place that you know, submit it to us. 1) View the existing gallery 2) Submit a new location We have three tiki icons below with three names to submit general information to. E-Mail: haikai@forbidden-paradise.com E-Mail: lurker@klangundkleid.ch E-Mail: sventiki@aol.com