The punk rock/Tiki connection is alive and well with Frankie’s Tiki Room in Las Vegas, NV. If you’re a touring punk rock band, you’re well aware of the Double Down Saloon, which is “the” place to play in Vegas. Punk shows at the Double Down are legendary and the man behind such a cool place is P. Moss. P. Moss got together with Chris Andrasfay and bought Frankie’s, an old Vegas bar that only locals knew about, and made it what it is today: an incredible Tiki bar!
Frankie’s Tiki Room opened for business in December of 2008 and business has been great. I can tell you why: they did everything right! On the outside, Frankie’s looks like a giant white box with no windows. If the neon sign didn’t say “Tiki Room,” you’d never know what’s inside…
No windows are a very important factor in making a great Tiki bar. You want to create an escape and you can’t get away from the real world when you can look outside while drinking a Mai Tai!
Frankie’s Tiki Room is exactly what it says it is. It’s one room, not too big, not too small, and it’s dark. It’s takes a couple minutes for your eyes to adjust. Once you get sight back, you can tell you are in a really cool place. At first glance, you’d assume that Frankie’s has been a Tiki bar since the ’50s, but it wasn’t. Frankie’s has only been a Tiki bar for not even a decade!
Let’s talk about the drink menu at Frankie’s…
The list of drinks is long and includes all the classics, standards, and most importantly, Frankie’s original drinks.
I hooked up with my friend Tonia who grew up in the coal region of Pennsylvania with me. Tonia’s husband Kent came along as well. We got a table an ordered a round of drinks.
Tonia ordered the classic Tiki cocktail: The 3 Dots and a Dash and Kent went with the old standard: The Mai Tai…
I ordered a Frankie’s original: A Nakalele Knockout…
All the drinks were very tasty and strong! Kent and I had another round. This time, I ordered a Zombie, while Kent went with another Mai Tai. I didn’t need anything else after that!
Making our drinks was the lovely Tawnya…
It ends up that she’s from Seattle, which is where I live! What a small world. She’s been living in Vegas since 2000 and loves it here! She must have been making drinks for a long time because I tell you people, she has skills!
Las Vegas is a vacation spot and that means people want souvenirs. Frankie’s Tiki Room has no shortage of souvenirs you can purchase…
There is a book called Liquid Vacation which is filled with cocktail recipes and Tiki history in Las Vegas…
There are Tiki Mugs, which are all-original designs made for Frankie’s. I had to get the Tiki Bandit and I snagged a menu as well…
I left Frankie’s with everything listed above and I had to get a shirt too!
When people think of Las Vegas, they usually think of the Strip, Fremont Street, the Stratosphere, and the big shows. When I think of Vegas, I think of Frankie’s Tiki Room!
Here is the website for Frankie’s Tiki Room.
And Facebook page.
Want to learn more about the punk rock/Tiki connection? Click here to read my write up!