Kavikas Grill & Bar

Never ever go to their open interviews here! Recently applied, and it was the weirdest interview process. No questions, but just a meet and greet. The manager (some Eastern European guy named Misko) told me to come back down on a Friday so I could see what it was like. Mind you I live in West LA so it was a bit of a drive. A friend and I go down hoping to talk to said manager and maybe have a drink or two. Make contact with the manager and he says, " give me five minutes and then we'll chat". This was at 11pm. After patiently waiting until close (2am) I finally spot this "manager" standing around. I go over to make small talk and ask how his night was and he acts like he is this big deal! Very snobbish and standoffish. Spoke to a few other people that were at the open interview and they got the same "I am better than all of you minions" attitude from Misko. Here's a news flash for you Misko: you are a foreigner in his 50's managing a bar. You are pretty much not worth the air you breathe. Get over yourself. Basically what we all decided is that Misko was trying to fill the bar and get cover out of all the potential job candidates. I refused to pay the $10 cover to the hostess for a job lead and after some protest she relented. The only positive experience was the bar manager Anthony who I'm certain knew of the scam and felt bad for us. He was very friendly and comped about 4 rounds for the two of us. To Anthony: sorry you have to work for such a douche. If the owner of this place ever fires that idiot Misko (I'm guessing he is a family friend and that's the only reason he has the job) it might be an okay place. In closing: Misko is an idiot.

Sent from my iPhone

Went for dinner on Saturday night. Cool decor with a wall of fire behind glass. Loud music; expected for a lounge style restaurant and bar.

Food was excellent: Calamari Steak? It's actually one large piece of calamari, no little rings, sliced into about 10 pieces. Lightly fried and it had great taste. Sweet potato stack with coconut was great too. No complaints about the food!

Service was quite slow -1 star. The food didn't take too long but for anything else we asked for it was about 10 minutes until the server returned.

Dessert was a lava cake (half cooked brownie, nice!) with vanilla ice cream and whipped topping. Awesome!

They also have a more relaxed, quieter seating area, bu if you opt for the lounge be ready for loud music and people all over the place.

Impressed for our first visit!

A solid 3-Stars. I'm here in Long Beach visiting my little sister in school, and we came here to take advantage of their special $6.00-$8.00 Appetizer menu from 11-7 everyday. Their Happy Hour is also everyday from 3-7pm.

The bar area is a very spacious venue about 6 flat screen TVs surrounding all around. There is also a long fireplace in the back of the bar seating area. I can imagine Kavikas would be a great place to watch a good sports game going on.
http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/vUvo3KWH4-gDxUWDgtfGfA?select=ulehgBuDR2sjRuNf5oCAXg

As for our late lunch, we stuck with a few of their appetizers. While most of the apps were, for the most part, quite uneventful, the one that stood out was the North Shore Nachos. What I particularly liked about these nachos was the fact that instead of using regular tortilla chips, they used fried won-ton skins--interesting concept.

The nachos were topped with grilled chicken, pepper jack, mozzarella and cheddar cheese, light sour cream, and topped with a yummy tropical mango salsa. Mango salsa was so refreshing, with the perfect amount of sweet and tartness of the mango, and light chili pepper flavor.
http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/vUvo3KWH4-gDxUWDgtfGfA?select=frqbki7pqhlkNdFxrPRMuw

However, aside from the nachos which were different, and quite flavorful, the rest of the appetizers that we ordered were a bit of a disappointment.

We both shared the following:

Chicken Fingers, as described on the menu: with house fries, and choice of Huli Huli Sauce (I have no idea what this is), Hawaiian BBQ Sauce, and Ranch Sauce. The chicken fingers were a sad case of chicken that I've ever seen. While the inside of the chicken was nice and juicy, the batter was extremely dry and flavorless. Furthermore, for sauces, we received only Ranch and Ketchup for dipping, as opposed to the Huli Huli Sauce, and Hawaiian BBQ. I guess maybe Huli Huli Sauce is an exotic way of describing ketchup somewhere on this earth.
http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/vUvo3KWH4-gDxUWDgtfGfA?select=SvYXbjlM7ZgGMup2NNbDig
http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/vUvo3KWH4-gDxUWDgtfGfA?select=I8jDTnIEIt9qt0a2Hj35_g

The Kalua Pork Sliders were basically pulled pork sliders with BBQ Sauce. They are described to have a grilled pineapple and Napa Cabbage to garnish, neither of which the two of us seemed to have notice.
http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/vUvo3KWH4-gDxUWDgtfGfA?select=AiVe-WaWqFXJumAJpv7b0w

Our server was quick, helpful, and very accommodating when I requested for a to-go menu. He checked back on us regularly and refilled our beverages when needed in a timely manner.

Aside from a variety of so-so appetizers, the price was reasonable for what you get during this Happy Hour. I would recommend this place for a large get-together and to enjoy a good sports event on the numerous TVs. But for the most part, the majority appetizers (with the exception of the Nachos) failed to impress and excite me into wanting to try their main courses.

Happy Hour at Kavikas Grill and Bar at the Pike was a convenient discovery after an afternoon at the Aquarium of the Pacific. Advertised prices between 3-7 p.m. included Draft Beers for $3 (Premium $4), Well Drinks @ $3, and House Cocktails & Martinis for $7. We opted for a Newcastle and a Bud Light.

The bartender recommended Kavikas signature Northshore Nachos and I have to agree that these are not your everyday nachos. The difference is the base of Won Ton Crisps instead of corn chips and a Tropical Salsa rather than a spicy one. It comes topped with Grilled Chicken, 3 Cheeses (Pepper Jack, Mozzarella, & Cheddar), and streams of Sour Cream. It's a nice change of pace when wanting something different.

The Angus Pike Bomber appetizer is a pair of small slider-esque mini-burgers and comes with Kavikas Seasoned House Fries. The bombers are ok. However, the fries are addictively good cause their Beer-Battered Shoestring Potatoes, tossed in Parmesan, Roasted Garlic, and Shallots.

To round out the seating, we chose Chicken Lollipops. Their similar to buffalo wings, but instead of being coated in Buffalo Sauce, the chicken is lightly fried and tossed in the spicy sauce. We eat wings a lot and these stood out as being different. Their served with Carrots, Celery and Ranch Dressing.

It took a while to get service even though we were sitting at the bar. Once we did get helped, the rest of our hour at Kavikas was indeed happy.

We went here because of a Groupon we received and are always looking for new restaurants to try in the area. It was a bad sign when we arrived on a Friday evening and the place was dead. There was a knitting convention in town that weekend and there were two other groups there from this convention.

The menu was very limited. Our server lacked any knowledge of what was on the menu and could not answer some of our basic questions but would only give half answers with a giggle. I ordered a Grey Goose martini which contained a flavor of the last fruity berrytini that was made. This is a pet peeve of mine as an ex bartender. Please wash the mixer cup before making a martini!

The food was OK, but from what I later learned, this place is more of a "club" rather than a restaurant. We won't be coming back.

Do you Love waiting?

then this is the spot for you!

the food was good but the service was absolutely horrible. Our waitress put in our order but we only got 2 of 3 items. she kept telling us our last item would be coming any minute after we finished our food she finally came up to us and said i don't know what you want me to do i keep putting the order in for your last item and I dont have it.

seriously? you don't know what to do? i was baffled.

she said she would knock stuff off our bill for the inconvenience but she didn't.

not loving this place especially when there is Mai Tai right next door who know how to make their customers happy.

I love coming here. I'm a regular even though Yelp doesn't recognize my "duke ship" but I'm not going to always remember to check into everywhere I go.

Kavikas is like my 3rd family, work is 2nd. And I find this place ever changing, in music and people. Very diverse. Sure this place have the new hip and epic tracks on the turn table but every now and then there would be a little old school which some could appreciate. Not everyone enjoys House music and vise versa. But I do! Drinks are always made with "LOVE".... And I'll be on the floor by the end of the night.

I haven't been here for lunch in awhile but I could still tell you all this:
NORTH SHORE NACHOS are delicious. Fresh, crispy... It's something different.

Respect the bar and the bar will respect.


My FYI list to you:
-North shore nachos are a must try.
-come before 11pm on Fridays and Saturdays and your admission is free. But if you find yourself after 11 don't sweat, 10 Dollars at the door.
BUT, your 10 denaro gets you 1 drink OR 2 beers at the bar. SO BASICALLY YOU'RE PAYING FOR YOUR DRINKS AT THE DOOR SO DO NOT GET ALL BITCHY WITH THE PEOPLE IN FRONT!
If you do sweat it, go next door I'm sure there are plenty of open spaces for you to breath. LOL! ;) and it's probably 20 bucks to get in.
- just remember, this is not like a Hollywood night club thing where everyone is on something. No! This is loungey- chill place with crazy people (i.e. yours truly) shaking it up on my own dances floor.
- have fun and stop being a little Bitch! ;)

So, I made reservations for 6 PM to watch the UFC fight with some friends where they wer showing it for free.
Got there early and there were a lot of people waiting to be seated which by the way, the restaurant was only 1/3 full.
They were still setting up tables and by the time I got seated, it was 6:30 pm. Talk about poor planning.
The main menu look appealing but didn't order from it. Ordered appetizers which are a bit pricey and not much of either. The won ton nachos weren't that appealing, but I was hungry. Sorry, but won tons don't go as nachos. Drinks were so so but at least on the strong side. Drink menu isn't that great. No top shelf liquors or even middle of the line. Waitresses are somewhat ditzy... They couldn't even remember liquors they carry and had to come back 10 minutes later to write it down.

Overall, so so... Could be a better expereince with more professional management and staff. Hey, at least I got to watch the fight..

2 weeks consecutive sessions, and 2 weeks of awesome :)

DJ Goose runs the show on Thursdays and the place has no cover. 80's and 90's jams with some of the new, but music appeals to the crowd, which is probably more of the working crowd comin out for a somewhat relaxing yet eventful night. If you want to go where you can't really hear your friends talkin to you and just drink your a$$, go to Mai Tai next door. But Kavika's is the place for me :) Drinks are typically priced for a bar...but a bottle of Jack is about $125 I think, that's not bad at all; if you and your chums are planning on hanging for a while.

Service staff members are very friendly and accommodating :)

Only thing that sucks is that the parking structure charges $8 in the evenings...when we go. So if you're planning to have dinner in the area, or even at Kavika's(I have yet to try the fare there - but I've looked at the menu and it doesn't seem too bad), I would suggest to maybe come around 7 or 8 and enter the parking structure when you get a ticket(no pre-paid charge) and by the time the evening rolls around, the gates will be open and you can leave for free; not counting what you spent on dinner :)

*Owner & manager are elitist In my opinion.

*Did not honor a non-expired restaurant.com certificate. Asked before ordering if certificate will be honored including "kids eat for free day"...waitress said yes.

*Kavekas gave aquarium tickets instead but these tickets are not accepted at the aquarium! The Aquarium have asked kavekas to stop printing and giving them out.