Tiki from Far, Far Away

Good afternoon from the Banana Hammock, and now back to our regularly scheduled programming.

A lot to share and update this week.

A couple weeks ago I trekked to Austin, Texas and found myself at Tiki Tatsu-ya. I was absolutely floored. Everything, EVERYTHING, was fantastic. The drinks were fantastic, the music was top notch and the whole experience was completely immersive. Most impressive was the staff; they were a little shorthanded in the area upstairs, but the staff still managed to take everyone’s experience to the next level.

I tasted the Mai Tai (very well-balanced), Slurping Bastard (great garnish), Pain Killer (miso was a nice touch) and Forbidden Grog (maybe the best Grog I’ve tried). I’m not sure there’s a drink there that I wouldn’t have liked. The small plates of food were a good opening act, but the cocktails are definitely the main show.

I can not recommend Tiki Tatsu-ya highly enough. It’s an absolute must-visit if you find yourself in Austin.

Continuing with our Artist series, we’re going far, far away. Like to another galaxy.

Allan “Trader Vader” Thompson was born in La Jolla, California to a Naval family and grew up between CA and Washington DC. His interest in art and kinship to CA drove him to attend art school in Laguna, where he settled in Orange County for the next 20 years.

A chance birthday present set of themed Adirondack chairs led Trader Vader to to build his own Star Wars Tiki Bar in his backyard. His quest for even more themed wares and wears started with designing a Hawaiian shirt and eventually mugs.

This includes one of my favorite mugs recently: the Mustafar Lava mug. Designed by Allan, 3D sculpted by Thor and produced by Bauer Pottery.

Allan’s got a lot more cooking too. Most recently he’s been working on the DroidFink mug, with a little help from Robert Maya. Allan’s putting the finishing touches on these now. I’m hearing these are going for sale next spring and will have several variants.

Big thanks to Allan for sharing a bit about himself and his story. You can find him, his home bar and work on Instagram @trader_vader or support him at https://www.etsy.com/shop/TraderVader 

Lastly, from my own studio, nothing to reveal yet. But a hint at what we have cooking. A small morsel before the big reveal:

See you next week. Don’t forget to follow us on Instagram @jadebananatelegraph