Trader Sam's;Polynesian Resort; Walt Disney World; Orlando, Florida

Well back to Japan after a nice almost two-week vacation in the U.S.  We did the Chicago thing with the family and then were off to Orlando with the sister and her family to play in the Parks.  And, as promised, here is a review of Trader Sam's Grog Grotto.

Welcome Tiki Fanatics 

First off, I'd like to thank my wonderful brother-in-law for the opportunity to go to Trader Sam's.  His meticulous planning allowed us to visit here even with our very busy schedule (which he planned as well).  In addition to his perfectly planned agenda, we were allowed to stay in their Bay Lake Tower Villa (DVC Contemporary Resort), so many more thanks.  We had perhaps the trip of our lives with my sister and her family.

Back to Trader Sam's, Trader Sam's authoritatively answers the question of who could create the best themed Tiki bar of all time.  Disney, of course!  There could not be a better place for a Tiki bar than the Polynesian Resort, a Polynesian-themed Tiki bar in a Polynesian-themed resort!!!  In addition to Trader Sam's, we were able to enjoy a dinner at Ohana, a Hawaiian-themed Brazilian-BBQ-like restaurant and a breakfast at Kona Cafe, a Hawaiian breakfast joint, both at the Polynesian resort.

The actual Trader Sam's bar is not the largest place, and from what I hear and how it appeared to be, it is very popular with Disney cast members and Orlando locals.  Accordingly, you may have to wait awhile to get into the bar. There is plenty of seating outside though near the pool.  Kids are allowed in the bar before 8pm (I think it is 8), but it is hard to get a table for more than 4.  Making it even more difficult to bring kids in the bar is the fact that when we finally were allowed in (party of 7 on the wait list), there were 7 seats available in the bar but they were not together.  That said, the bar is enjoyed best with a hot date or a cool brother-in-law as in my case.  We decided to let the wives and kids sit outside in the ample outdoor seating while we enjoyed a drink and the amazing scenery.

Let's start with the theming.  Man oh man is this place cool.   Everything from the Tikis...

Hello Mr. Tiki

To the views of the volcanoes outside...

Nice ocean view

To the Octopus waiting on the roof...

Somebody get the takoyaki maker ready

To the angry Tiki gods...

This might be a little too intense for the kiddies

Makes this a Disney masterpiece.

There are storms at times...

Get your ponchos ready

As well as volcano eruptions!

Volcano!!!

 There are some great drinks on the menu as can be seen below.

What shall we get next?

In the bar, I ordered the Hawaiian beer sampler, the Kona Beer Flight.  Let me explain why I made that choice in lieu of a Tiki drink. The brother-in-law and I decided to expedite our time in the bar since our families were waiting outside on the patio, so we ordered quick and easy to make drinks.  He ordered the Rum Flight, straight shots of rum, yummy!  Both of our samplers came out as three shots (5-once cups of beer for me) on surf boards.   I was familiar with all of my three brews since I regularly drink them in Japan as Hawaiian beer is popular here.

Triplets

Add 20 bucks for the souvenir shot glasses

While outside, I ordered the Nautilus and was not disappointed.  If you order the Nautilus in the bar, there is a whole production of shouts of "Nautilus!" and lighting effects when the servers bring it to your table.  I ordered it at our outside table, so instead it was brought out in two plastic cups and the souvenir mug was to be picked up later upon presentation of my receipt.  Disney does not want broken glassware like the mug in close proximity to the pool.  One warning is the mugs that come with the drinks are quite pricey.  My drink (which to my surprise, was for two) was 52 dollars.  You can ask for drinks without the mugs and they are considerably cheaper.   Here are the drink in cups and my mug, the biggest, second most expensive and perhaps the most impressive one of my collection.

Double the pleasure

Ahoy brave sailors

1st edition!

We also ordered some things to munch on with our drinks, the Chicken Lettuce Cups, Kalua Pork Tacos, Hawaiian Poke and Corn-battered Portuguese Sausages.  They all tasted very good, impressive but standard Tiki-bar fare.  Ironically, what impressed me the most of our food selections was the Pulled Pork Nachos from the nearby quick-service restaurant, Captain Cook's.  However, that didn't matter since we came to Trader Sam's for the drinks and the theming.

Some Tiki Delicacies

Pulled Pork Nachos

In addition to the great theming in the bar, the patio's theming wasn't too shabby with abundant Tikis and entertainment in the form of live Hawaiian music.  The performer sounded really good especially after a few drinks.

Tiki

More Tiki

Tiki butt!!!

Our performer is way in the back.

If we didn't have 3 kids with us and Fast Passes for Space Mountain, I could have spent all night at Trader Sam's.  Really.  Nothing like strong drinks, being with buddies (great family in my case) and enjoying a vacation at an awesome Tiki bar.  I give Trader Sam's five Tikis out of five Tikis for its well-mixed drinks, good food and awesome theming.

If you are wondering where you can meet the actual Trader Sam, please proceed to the Jungle Cruise and your tour guide will introduce him to you.

Trader Sam has some deals you'll lose your head over.

 

Bad Ass Coffee, Makuhari, Chiba

Bad Ass Coffee...  From the name, who would know that Bad Ass Coffee is a chain of Hawaiian-themed coffee shops?  While the name of the shop is funny because it is based on the asses used to climb mountains that coffee grows on, most people don't get the connection between the name and Hawaii.  As a result, perhaps the theming aspect of the coffee shop might fail to attract customers with an interest in Hawaii.  The name even caused some controversy as I remember reading a story about how the city of West Dundee initially opposed the name of the shop when a West Dundee shop opened in the mid-2000's (it folded pretty quickly from my understanding).  However, the name is unforgettable and might help it stand out.  The theming is pretty good with palm trees, Hawaiian motif furniture and Hawaiian music.  No tikis though...
Unlike Honolulu Coffee Company, Bad Ass does not originally hail from Hawaii.

I visited Bad Ass on a Saturday a little after 2pm, and people were still eating lunch.  The place was absolutely packed as along with the coffee, it serves Hawaiian-style food.

 To get an idea of what is on the menu, please refer to the following picture.  Don't you love the Japanese-English with "The dish of legend" and "Pan Cake"?  At least they tried though; I can't imagine House of Kobe (a Japanese restaurant in Merrillville owned by a Taiwanese American family) trying to create a Japanese menu.

Here is one of the legendary bad asses:

They have a good variety of coffee blends such as Hawaiian Pie and Coconut Macadamia, but I was interested in the 100% Kona.  A large ice 100% Kona set me back 530 yen, which is about 6 bucks.  They had malasadas too, and I couldn't resist getting one.

 My meal looked like this:

The malasada was the bomb.  For a second, I thought it was fresh out of the deep fryer.  Maybe it was...  My little golden puff of joy was warm, slightly firm but soft on the inside, and had just the right amount of sugar.  The coffee was, well great.  You can't lose with 100% Kona, the king of coffees.  I definitely recommend that you make it out to Makuhari for this place.  Although the website still lists the Jimbocho location, it closed about 2 years ago.  The closure is a shame as I have some good memories of the Jimbocho location- I spent one of my birthdays there with a buddy and also it was the place where I learned of some great news.  For all of you Chicago people, there is a Bad Ass somewhere in the city.  Please try it and let me know what you think.

The bottom line- for the malasada, Kona and theming, I give Bad Ass Coffee five coconuts out of five coconuts.

Honolulu Coffee Company in Odaiba, Japan and Honolulu, Hawaii

Well, to start, I love coffee.  I love going to coffee shops.  You are going to see various coffee shop reviews here in the next few months and years.　Why do I love coffee shops so much?  Nothing beats 1. Having free time, 2. the caffeine boost from the coffee, 3. the opportunity to learn more by studying books, notes, etc., 4. listening to jazz, bossa nova, or whatever music the coffee shop is playing, and 5. often having attractive people around you (I like watching people) doing the same thing you are doing.

Of all coffees, I feel that Kona is king.  It just tastes so good compared to the others.  Here in Tokyo, a normal bag (the size you see at  Starbucks, supermarkets, etc.) of 100% Kona coffee will easily set you back 35 bucks while you can get the same in Oahu for 9.95.  There used to be a Hawaii coffee joint in Jimbocho called Bad Ass Coffee but unfortunately it closed.  It was pretty well-themed, all the way from the spam musubi to the picture of the Duke on the wall.  Luckily, there still is one in Makuhari.

Recently, while visiting Odaiba, I was able to go to Honolulu Coffee at the food court of Diver City.  They have 100% Kona and an assortment of things that Japanese people believe that Hawaiian coffee shops should have such as pancakes and melted cheese sandwiches.  I believe that Honolulu Coffee is a licensee/franchisee (it might be company owned though) of Honolulu Coffee Company in Honolulu, and I suspect for trademark reasons, the Company portion could not be added to the name here in Japan.  If a licensee/franchisee, I was surprised at the poor quality of the Honolulu Coffee sign as it was pixilated, like it was a computer graphic blown up to the proportion of the sign (not pictured).  If I were a licensor/franchisor, I would definitely want approval rights over something as important as signs.  However, the coffee was great and the pancakes were pretty good.  I think breakfast was something around 2,500 yen or 30 dollars.  That said, I give Honolulu Coffee four out of five Kona shots for the all-around experience.

It was pretty crowded

Nice artwork

 Pancakes, a truly Hawaiian meal.

 Nice decor

Well, not too long after my trip to Honolulu Coffee, I was in Honolulu and was actually able to have coffee at Honolulu Coffee Company at Ala Moana Mall.  Much cheaper, I think my Kona was something like 3 dollars.  

The sign looked much better too.  

Honolulu Coffee Company actually had a sign talking about the Odaiba location.   

I look forward to going to both locations again.