SFist Reprint

A weekly escape from the humdrum world of going to bars without writing reviews of them. By stalwart barrespondent, Drew.

I believe several months ago we put forth the notion that "Pirate" was the new "Tiki." Well, since that time "Pirate" has become the "Old Pirate" and "Tiki" has taken back its crown as... well...as "Tiki." Of course in Canada the whole thing's flip-flopped, but we digress.

The San Francisco Bay Area, along with the Southland, Barcelona, Spain (it's true) and bits of Florida, is without a doubt one of the premier tiki hotspots in the entire world. And no, Hawaii doesn't count because, c'mon, it's Hawaii. From Oakland to Fairfax and all over the peninsula, there's a lot more South Pacific-themed establishments than you would think our weather calls for.

Trad'r Sam, way out on 26th and Geary, is an all-time classic. It's not jammed with tourists and overpriced like the Tonga, and consistently makes better drinks as well. Sam's may not be the visual spectacle that some other tiki establishments are, but if it's finely crafted girlie drinks you're craving, this is the spot to go to.

There's only a couple of caveats we would offer about Sam's. One is that some of the bartenders there can be a real pain in the ass. They're clearly trying to be funny, but after the third or fourth time staring you down as if you ordered your drink wrong, the joke tends to wear a bit thin. They make up for it by truly being masters of their craft, however, and I'll take a great drink from a surly bartender over the alternative anytime. That, and this is still primarily a college bar, so expect a certain amount of "baseball-hat-wearing jockocracy" once you get inside. Those slight annoyances aside, If you can find yourself a non-sticky part of the bar to hang on to, their drinks are worth any other hassles you might be put through.

So instead of spending all that cash on a plane ticket to Hawaii, go to Trad'r Sam and after a few Zombie/Hurricane/Scorpion Bowls, you'll be easily convinced that you are in Hawaii and that it's just really cloudy.

Liver... Out!!