Mister Tiki Mai Tai Lounge
Categories: Lounges, Asian Fusion, Hawaiian [Edit]
Neighborhood: Gaslamp801 5th Ave
(between E St & F St)
San Diego, CA 92101 (619) 233-1183
- Price Range: $$
- Accepts Credit Cards: Yes
- Parking: Street
- Attire: Casual
- Good for Groups: Yes
- Good for Kids: No
- Takes Reservations: Yes
- Delivers: No
- Take-out: Yes
- Waiter Service: Yes
- Wheelchair Accessible: Yes
- Outdoor Seating: Yes
- Good for: Dinner
- Music: Music Videos
- Best Nights: Fri, Sat, Sun
- Happy Hour: Yes
- Alcohol: Full Bar
- Smoking: No
- Coat Check: No
73 Reviews for Mister Tiki Mai Tai Lounge
They recently changed their menu, but it's still delicious. The sushi was good, and so was the lettuce wrap. I wasn't terribly impressed with my salad. This place is overpriced and the fact that it's in gas lamp makes it almost not worth it on some nights. I was here a year or two ago and enjoyed it much more, but I was pleased to find it was still good. Staff was nice and attentive in spite of it being a busy night.
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Hmmm how shall I put this as nice as possible? Well, this place is KIND of fun to go with a group for Happy Hour...If you can find parking in the gaslamp. They have sushi although I've never tried it. One of my friends had sashimi & said it was pretty good, I'll take her word for it.
They have giant mixed drinks that are pretty good, aside from that I dont have much to say. Oh the decor is pretty cool, why is it always so dead in here? Maybe because it's too expensive for what you're getting? Ehhh I don't know, I feel this entire review was pointless.
Go here or dont, I dont care.
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The scallops are really good - but that polenta cake thing it's served with is kinda weird.
Happy hour's all right, the mai tais were big, apps were all $5. We got a variety of apps - nothing special.
Overall this place is all right, it wasn't crowded at all during happy hour which is nice except if you were planning on mingling.
park at Horton Plaza, it's right across the street and you get 3 hours of parking with validation. You now don't have to buy anything to validate, they have a machine in the mall.
We took one of my friend here for his bday dinner. The food was not too bad, but the drinks were ok. We ordered their special "Mango Mai Tai". We ordered a pitcher full of this but it was more ice than actual alcohol so we were pretty disappointed :( The service was pretty slow as well, it took a while for the drinks to come out. The vibe was really nice though and as I said the food was not bad. I ordered the lamb chop which really melted in my mouth. Some people ordered the Salmon Miso but it was not really what we expected - more like Salmon swimming in soup and lettuce...it was weird...I must say that it was hopping when we were there which was Saturday night - typical in the Gas Lamp District.
This place was great to me. We went in and despite not having reservations (on a busy Saturday evening), they still gave us a great booth. I love the lively atmosphere of the place and the decor was quite impressive. I couldn't take my eyes off the illuminated blue lava lamp at our booth, a nice touch! haha.
I ordered the Mister Tiki Mai Tai which was strong.. (I've kinda given up on hard alcohol) but it was still delicious and left me with a happy buzz (and it was only $5, hello?). Because we had just eaten before we got there, I didn't order anything big, just the Ginger Teriyaki Chicken Wings for all to share. Too bad I was full because I seriously could have eaten the whole thing and the servings are HUGE there!
The service was great and we came here for drinks a great time.. which was definitely what we had.
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A group of us went out the dinner and were not impressed at all. The service was slow; 10 minutes before we got our 1st drink. I think the waitress was new, but she could not answer any of our questions. We ordered several sushi platters to share. They were horrible! The rolls were small and not very tasty. Our last round of drinks took so long, we canceled to order. We left and went to another bar, only to be hungry again an hour later. Not a great sign.
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WOWZERS was this place expensive. Atleast the sushi was expensive and the variety of it was still ehh. The taste of the sushi was ehhh. I couldnt complain much about the price since it was Gaslamp area. Food was ehh okay. It was stuff that i couldve got somewhere else for a better price. But overally good place to go when your downtown. Easy place to spot and right next to local clubs.
I didn't have high hopes for this place, I'd heard who it's owned by and wasn't expecting too much. When we went in the girl at the desk was rude but I was surprised by the rest of the experience. The food is pretty good although a lot of it isn't really to my taste (lots of sweet stuff) I still enjoyed what I ate. The drinks menu is pretty impressive, the house speciality drinks are where it's at. The Zombie is my personal favorite but beware, it'll mess you up really quick. The wait and bar staff are really friendly and knowledgeable about the drinks so if you're unsure you can ask. Good times. Solid 4 stars.
My husband and I really like this place, however, its not the place to go for good sushi, the sushi is just okay, and they lack variety. We tend to get the same things when we come, the goat cheese wontons are a must have. The atmosphere here is very fun, as you would expect it has a hawaain "tiki" vibe. If you can get one of the big booths complete with lava lamp go for it. Lettuce wraps are quite good, and the szechuan skewers are really good too, they also have an awesome pork quesadilla. It's a fun place to go and get a couple drinks and a bunch of little things to share.
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This is a good date or happy hour place. The decor is very "island-ish" and the TV's are usually playing something surf/snowboard related. There is usual seating and a sushi bar. I have never had the sushi but the other items on the menu are good. I do think they need to update the menu as things have been on their since they opened and there aren't that many choices.
I do recommend the specialty drinks. They are all very good and have enough alcohol to creep up on you. If you are on a date the mai tai made for 2 is GOOD!! But watch out for the 151!
This is a great place for happy hour. The drink prices are reasonable and the appetizer specials are yummy (but portions aren't the best).
I like the coconut kiss martini, mai tai, and of course the volcano bowl is lots of fun!
Neat atmosphere. Makes you feel like you're on vacation.
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I ate here last night with some friends with reservations that my dinner wasn't going to be all that great. I was there four months ago and hated my dinner, I barely touched it, the ribs tasted awful.
So we ate here last night because we were walking around aimlessly trying to find a place to grub and this place had some immediate seating available. It was odd how we were assisted by the manager(?) when we walked in, he was dressed in a dark suit looking very investment banker-ish when this place is overly decorated like Hawaii threw up in there. Our server, Bernice was very friendly, but she had to switch the area back to the other server who was not so warm and fuzzy with us, we wished she didn't have to go!
We ordered the appetizer platter that came with two teeny tiny crab cakes, some calamari strips and two pieces of ahi wrapped in something. That platter cost $22 bucks, so not worth it. I ordered the shrimp tempura roll, it was good, but not the best. We also ordered some spring rolls that tasted okay as well.
When my friend ordered another Captain & Diet, our server came back with another drink for me (not Captain & Diet). When we told him that wasn't the drink, our server blurted out "Oh crap." I told him I'll keep the drink since I was probably going to order another one anyway, but when he walked away to get the right drink, we laughed at how unprofessional he was by saying "oh crap" about f-ing up the drink order...oh well, our server's mind was obviously somewhere else last night...we wanted Bernice back!
This place wasn't a hit when I was there four months ago and it still isn't. I guess it's more of a place for tourists, it's at a perfect location in the midst of the hustle & bustle of the Gaslamp, but I can't tell you that you have to check this place out if you're in the area.
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ok they get 3 stars because the food was really tasty but the service was HORRIBLE... before we even ordered we wanted to get separate checks... well the waitress said, "don't worry about it, when you get your check you can just put a check next to what you ordered and then we will figure it out..." Are you kidding me!
In the end, we figured everything out but it took so long we were hungry before we finished paying for the check...
We went here last night for happy hour/dinner with a few friends.
1 star for proximity to the Horton Plaza parking garage and the decoration committee... I've never been to Hawai'i or anywhere tropical, really, but I would assume that Mr. Tiki's would make you feel like you were there. We were lucky to grab a booth, perfect for 6 people, and we enjoyed the next 3 hours comfortably sipping on their happy hour specials and eating our dinner.
The happy hour is very much 3 stars - there were only a few specials, but with hours from 5-7:30pm, who wouldn't like it? I mean, where can you find a place nowadays that serves happy hour past 6 (I would LOVE to hear some suggestions, because I've been looking! :])? Well drinks $3, draft beers $3.50 (i think) and a few of their "signature" cocktails - Volcano Bowl and Mai Tai Carafe - were only $7! That's a deal itself. The food specials were all pretty much half price.. I didn't get to order any, but my friends seemed to enjoy 'em.
The food... eh, minus 1 star. It's basically sushi... overpriced, tiny sushi. Their rolls were REALLY thin compared to "real" sushi places. The prices were a little too extravagant for me.
All-in-all, I enjoyed the place. I may come back again when I'm looking for a happy hour but I most likely will not be back for dinner.
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This place had a LOVELY atmosphere.
as for the food and drinks, I was very very disappointed. I came here for my friends birthday and the drinks were very weak. I ordered one of the most strongest drinks at our table and I didn't even feel any kind of buzz of anything from there.
also their food was very bland and didn't have any flavor at all. I thought there food was small and ok, but pricey for what I saw when it really came out. I couldn't believe that my friend and I paid so much for such little food.
I feel like I could have gone to a Jack in a Box or Burger King and gotten more food that could have filled me up for that price.
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This is not your faded-grass tiki bar, but its more trendy palm-leaves-ceiling-fan cousin.
I went early on Friday (8ish). The servers were nice & attentive; they set up our table outside quickly at our request.
We had the killa kilauea -- the rum cocktail bowl with the long straws & flaming center. The server kindly told us that we should blow out the center and mix the bacardi151 with our drink to make it stronger. The drink still wasn't that strong, but it was cheesy fun.
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We ordered an appetizer platter and several happy hour Mai Tai's and everything was really good after a day of convention center overload.
Since it's in the Gaslamp district and near the convention center it was busy every night we walked past. The night we ate there, we sat outside under the heaters and listened to other neuroscientists talk about how much they knew and how big their brains were.
The prices were comparable to other restaurants in the area but the food was a lot better - but maybe that's because we both drank several Mai Tai's before it arrived.
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1st Stop in our "Dining Experience" -- mini appetizer tour at several gaslamp stops.
The appetizers we had were pretty good... calamari, spring rolls, something else, and goat cheese wontons. The wontons were a BIT interesting, as I'm not really a goat cheese fan... but it was good.
The drinks were STRONG. Our server recommended the "Horny Monkey" -- which was very strong banana-flavored cocktail topped with a quarter of a banana with a plastic monkey. It definitely got stronger as I worked my way to the bottom.
My co-workers shared a couple Volcano bowls, which was a bowl-sized drink complete with a small fire in the middle. They definitely seemed to enjoy drinking out of the bowls with 2 foot long straws that they brought with them to the rest of our stops.
The staff was great. The atmosphere was good... definitely wouldn't mind coming back again.
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Took my little sis here for her 21st birthday dinner and we all had a good time! They have the best drinks, food, and friendly staff (even the door guy! ) =)
This place is pretty nice. The service was excellent, from the hostess, to the waitress to the servers, all the people were nice and did a great job. The waitress was very nice, gave good recommendations, and checked with us to make sure things were ok.
The food was interesting. I had the lobster goyza and the shrimp tempura roll. We also shared the tempura sweet potato fries. Also, one of our party, an extremely beautiful, kind, and fun person, was celebrating her birthday. The whole place joined into our birthday song and they brought her some tasty deserts to share with us all.
I remember saying... "I have been to better restaurants"
(pluses) our server is very sweet and very patient as well AND the ambiance reminded me of Kahunaville in Las Vegas which brought back fun memories when I was there last summer
(cons) I didn't really like the taste of my food... it was pricey as well... and the portioning is not even enough for a 6 year old... you pay a lot for a dinner so you expect to be wowed at least... you only get wowed i guess when the bill comes and you're like "wtf $40 for an entree that seemed like it was an appetizer"
very disappointed, some of my friends rave about this place, well they better retract those reviews
... and lastly, given that the names of the drinks and the food are very creative, but then the choices were very limited and within 10 seconds i was like "that's all they have"...
this place may redeem itself if their happy hour is worth trying, but then again i'm already thinking there's other places out there that has better happy hour food and price... im not sure if i should go back???
went here for dinner once. ive never been a big fan of fusion, but some places have really impressed me. this place did not. the sushi was ok, the wonton was ok. shumai was pretty good and so was the quesadilla. this was expensive for the kinds of food served, though, and for the amount you'll get. decor was very appropriate and gave off a relaxing atmosphere. i like the booths they have ..makes it very cozy :)
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I have only been here for happy hour and it's been pretty good. $5 specialty drinks, appetizers, and sushi rolls.
If nothing else, this place makes the best fruity-tropical drinks in downtown. The presentation of the drinks is also very well done, with each of the specialty drinks coming in its own type of cup. The Volcano drink is especially fun, with the dry-ice "smoke" coming out of the top. Don't come here expecting to get drunk, though, unless you order a big bottle of beer during happy hour.
The appetizers are decent. Stay away from the calamari, but the mushroom-goat cheese wontons were surprisingly delicious.
Overall, a good place to go after work for a quick pick me up....
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This place is pretty decent. One of my friends LOVES this place so I have much experience at the Mai Tai Lounge. The atmosphere here is pretty cool. They have these cool large circular booths with high backs that create a bit of privacy so you can actually hear/talk to everyone at your table. We always just get appetizers and sushi (tip: go on Thursday nights for $2 sushi rolls and drink specials). The sushi is good and basic. I'm a big fan of the philly, the spicy tuna, and the Cadillac roll. Also If you don't get the cream cheese wantons you will be sorry. I think these are on my list of most delicious foods ever eaten. Caution: you will get hot pocket mouth burns b/c these puppies are hot! The service is usually good and the owner is nice and helpful, should anything go wrong.
P.S. Volcano bowls are fun.
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This place is fun. Or maybe it's just the umbrella in my drink?
I like this place for a girls happy hour. It's a good place to sit, drink, nosh, chat and giggle. I absolutely looooove the appetizers. The big bowl drink with fire in the middle is always a good way to start. The decor is pretty great, I could and have - spent hours drinking and laughing the afternoon away in great company. It would give it more stars if the regular dinner was actually good - it's only so-so. I'd skip the sushi here. 3 stars for a great place to drink, Minus 2 for it's limited scope.
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For some super-cheese fun with a big crowd, Mister Tiki is great! A big tiki head welcomes visitors, and the inside is sort of tiki-bar-meets-sports-bar; it's comfortable and casual.
Our party of eight opened with two Mondo Martikis--fruity rum punch served in a giant martini glass with super-long straws--which was a good icebreaker. Since they're totally sippable, my stomach got all hot and rumbly from the influx of sugar. They're not the greatest quality of drink, but they're fun and tasty for a once-in-awhile treat. We also ordered an appetizer sampler that had about eight items total, which ended up being the perfect amuse-bouche. Nearly everything is fish or chicken, with nothing being too heavy.
I ordered edamame and a few pieces of sushi, which was fresh but neither particularly well-cut nor otherwise greatly prepared. It was so-so... but I was tipsy and a little numbed by the Martiki. Other entrees at our table included sushi rolls, shrimp fried rice, coconut shrimp, and a bunch o' other stuff, and everyone was happy. The dessert tree had seven or eight "mousses" to be passed around, and just a taste of each was enough to satisfy. Again, this wasn't high-quality dessert (and definitely not innovative), but the presentation and exercise of sharing was fun.
The prices generally are reasonable, although I did marvel at the cost of miso soup - $10! Even if it's a gallon-sized trough, isn't that like a three-million percent mark-up?
I give three stars because three-and-a-half isn't possible. One snafu: It was one girl's birthday. Despite telling the hostess in advance via telephone, the message didn't get to our waiter, so we just had to muster a singing of "Happy Birthday" upon her egress from the bathroom. (The manager apologized and told me to send him an email when we're coming back so he can treat us to a round. Nice gesture, but I doubt he'd remember.) Service was otherwise decent, but not outstanding.
I guess I love this place since I end up taking my friends or out of town guests here before we go shake our rumps in the gaslamp some where.
I come for the strong Mai Tai's especially the ones you can share with 2-4 people. But really I like to drink all that myself, and if you want something light to go along with it, they have some killer calamari appetizer and sushi.
A bit pricey, but its all worth if you're out having fun. =)
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The gaslamp is not really my scene, but the one time I was at Mr. Tiki, I watched a car in the street catch fire, so that's pretty cool. It burned for a good 15 minutes before the FD put it out. A large crowd gathered around it (of course), but then cops tried to clear the crowd. One cop said, "Move along, it's not like you've never seen fire before." Well, yeah, I've seen fire, but not a whole car on fire for 15 minutes. And why didn't it explode like in the movies?
After that, it was back to drinking, and they are strong. The food was meh.
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The Volcano drink is a huge cup (actually it's more like a bowl) of deliciousness. They light the little volcano in the center of the bowl on fire, which is fun but we had trouble picking the fruit out of the bowl without burning ourselves, haha. I bet a lot of people don't buy it because it's expensive (I think it was $18, but it's worth it because it's the size of three or four regular sized drinks. I saw on the menu that it's $7 during Happy Hour, which is just awesome. Their other drinks are great too and have entertaining names. I've never gotten food there so I can't review it. The tropical decor is awesome and the staff is really friendly. One time we went early and it was really crowded and another time we went later in the night and it was pretty dead. Overall, it's a fun place to chill and get drinks, especially before or after going somewhere crazier downtown.
It's fun. Not the best food but you really come here to have drinks and good conversation anyways. It's the kinda spot I'd want to go on a 3rd or 4th date (which I think is when you start meeting their friends). Not the first. It's a bit loud sometimes. I had their swordfish which was great. Food can be a bit salty though so if you're not too big on sodium, let them know.
P.S. Like the name says, try their mai tais. They'll leave you flabbergasted in all the right ways.
Fun concept, good service, terrible food.
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Well, Well, Well where can I start. The atmosphere of this place isn't bad. The bar is nice and the layout of the restaurant is pretty cool. It is a pretty chill spot. The food and the service isn't very good for the price you pay to eat their. The drinks were really weak too. The waitress take there time in getting to you. I told the waitress to bring over my bill after about 20min I get tired of waiting so I have to go track someone down to finally pay my bill and leave.
I was highly disappointed in the place, the restaurant is really nice inside but the service and the food does this place a disservice. There are so many nice places to check out in the Gaslamp area this is one I would say clear of.
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One of the first places I had dinner once I moved to San Diego. We were there for all you can eat sushi night.
First off was a umbrella drink, which was very tasty, great balance of fruit juice and booze...
LIke i said, it was all you can eat sushi night for like 20.00, of course we took the deal. what came out were smaller anorexic looking rolls and it was ok, for all you can eat, there is a good amount to eat, nothing really stood out as awesome...
i will def. go back and check out the rest of the menu, which did have some interesting, but nothing out of the ordinary, items on the menu....
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We had reservations for about 25 people and unfortunately our party got larger at the last minute. They couldn't accomodate us inside so some of our party had to sit outside which was not bad considering how packed the restaurant already was.
I had the spicy miso seared salmon (roasted fingerling potatoes, mango seaweed salad, macadamia brown butter) and it was a very big portion. I got tired eating it halfway because it was just too much of one thing. The salmon was cooked nicely though, a little raw in the middle which is how it should be.
This place is pretty trendy, pricey & not so authentic but it's in Gaslamp so it's all for the atmosphere.
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My bf and I went here during happy hour on a weekday and had some good sushi and lotsa relatively cheap drinks. I had a huge drink that they set fire to- I can't even remember what it was called, but it came with two long straws for my bf and I to share. I love the decor. It would have been really pricey if it wasn't happy hour.
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I carry a (tiki) torch for any place that markets itself as tropical! And Mr. Tiki delivers!
This is the best for happy hour. The calamari fries are awesome - a perfect balance of calamari to friedness. And of course, tiki drinks!
I've eaten here several times and I don't love the menu quite as much. There are a lot of pork dishes (another white meat I don't eat). I just have a hard time finding something that makes me say, "ooh, I want that"!!
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I've been here on different occasions either for lounging with drinks or for dinner. I think I'd rather return here more for lounging & not for meals For dinner I had this Miso Salmon dish, which wasn't bad, but nothing special. The drink I had was something called Paradise which had Malibu rum+ grenadine, which was weak tasting. However, the time I went there w/ a couple of friends at the bar, I recall this huge fun drink that we shared w/ large straws out of one bowl was good & for sure gave that nice buzz. However, I do recall our waiter being nice & stopping by to check up on us, but when it came time to ask for the bill he wasn't passing by as much so we were left wondering where he went.
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Gotta love a place whose menu reads "Dim Sum an' Den Sum!"
On a seriously note - this place is great! The ambiance is welcoming...and tropical (added bonus) the drinks are STRONG (another added bonus) and the Dim Sum is amazing! I highly recommend the mushroom and cream cheese wontons and the crispy ahi tuna firecracker rolls...
Mister Tiki + Mai Tai's + Lounge = the perfect starting point for an evening downtown or for a happy hour to end a long work day.
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Mr. Tiki is found on the corner of 5th. The waiting isn't bad and the service is adequate. The decorations are soooo adorable, really makes you feel like you're in a Hawaiian lounge. When you get there, look up at the ceiling and admire the fans, those caught my eye. The flat screen tvs play surf videos, which is cool. Second, look down at the tables. They are glass with slices of bamboo or some other type of wood inside. There is a booth available right by the window which I always try to land to observe the passer-bys.
Their menu is extensive. You can order Hawaiian inspired dishes, sushi, or a regular burger. The appeitizers are fun. I ordered the Pink Cadillac, was tasty and the calamari wasn't too great. To be on the safe side, I ordered the rainbow roll, which was typical yet I was sad because they had no jalapenos to put on top.
Our server was quick, really informative and made good suggestions.
I haven't had the opportunity to sample the drinks, but I am looking forward to testing some whenever I get the chance. I've heard good things.
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I love taking my friends and co-workers here for great food and more importantly, light and fun atmosphere!
The decor is that of the Islands, the lamps are unique and the flaming drinks are awesome!
The food doesn't disappoint either. I love the mushroom and cream cheese won tons... everything is reasonably priced. I go back again and again....
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