Hey Beauties! (shamefully finishing American Horror Story Apocalypse in one day) There are some places you encounter by complete accident and it sparks up this curiosity in you to just “check it out”. I like to think I’m pretty familiar with Austin Texas and its downtown bar scene. I frequent the city quite often and am literally ready to pack my bags and move there at any given moment. I was headed to a “go-to” spot of mine for an espresso martini and on my walk headed down 4th street to get there, I walked right by a staircase leading underground and a sign at the very bottom. If there’s something new and hidden in the area, (especially a bar) your gurl will find it. My radar went off as soon as I walked by and saw a light flickering. I could tell something was going on down there with the lights and lit up staircase, but I couldn’t hear anything (music wise) and I didn’t really see any movement. I knew I had never seen a spark of life down there before and whatever it was, it was new. I was intrigued but honestly on a mission to head to the caffeine that I didn’t give it a proper peek.
The Secret Staircase
It was in the back of my head while I was enjoying my tini and I decided to hop on the world wide web and get to the bottom of this hidden staircase. I came up empty, nothing anywhere was pulling up the location and I usually don’t give up so easily, but the caffeine kicked in and your girl was ready to partttyyyy!! I went about my business and it wasn’t till a separate visit that I was without fail, going down that staircase. I arrived in the city ready and willing to get my afternoon started. I usually make my rounds up and around downtown, have an early dinner and a few (several) cocktails before I make my way back to the hotel and freshen up for some night life. I decided on a newer restaurant on 4th street which was literally above the same staircase leading to the mystery underground location. After I enjoyed my lunch, I made my way around the building and noticed they now had the sign that was at the bottom of the stairs on my previous sighting, actually up on the sidewalk to attract people passing by promoting Tiki drinks and a Happy Hour schedule. There was a small sign suspended above that read “The Lost Lei”, I immediately tried putting the pieces together with it either being a Tiki inspired restaurant or a Tiki bar/lounge. Judging by the overall appearance of the sidewalk advertisement I leaned more towards a tiki bar and was ready to get the scoop.
Brr… It’s Cold In Here
Making my way down the stairs for the first time was exciting and gave me a little adrenaline rush… anything leading you down a set of stairs to a location “underground” has to be good. Getting to the door and seeing flashing lights coming from inside the tinted windows had me excited and anxious. Opening the door, I sadly didn’t get that blast of music or chatter but I did indeed get a blast of cold air on what was a 100 degree weather day (this was during the day). Sis, it was cold but I wasn’t complaining *sigh of relief* for the most part, places downtown in the summer aren’t cool AT ALL. The area is considered a “warehouse district” so I’m sure you can imagine that most places aren’t as refreshing as this one. The cool air I appreciated, but the silence coming from inside wasn’t as “inviting.” I always stay with an open mind so finding something different in the area is always a win. I made my way down what was yet another staircase and hit the main floor. It was about 6pm at this point and the place was very dim, almost completely dark (pretty dope honestly), there were maybe 10 customers tops in there. I could hear a very light sound of music coming from a Touch Tunes jukebox and there was a Tiki Room motif throughout the place but it wasn’t overly done. There were string lights crossed along the ceiling beams and large wooden columns wrapped with skulls and rope. Pirate ship vibes.. for sure. Being that it was a “basement” it was completely re-done and nothing was left behind to imply what it once was. Everything was new and modernized.
Anybody Got a Light?
I made my way to the bar and took a seat; I was immediately greeted and presented a “Happy Hour ” menu. Winning! I will honestly say that I couldn’t see a thing on the menu due to the lighting or lack thereof. It was dark! I noticed that there were spotlights coming from the ceiling and bouncing off the bar where the bartenders would place the cups and prepare the drinks almost showcasing them in a way. I of course sat right in front of one of the spotlights and was ready to get my TIKI on. I went straight for the specialty cocktails or what I could see of it haha (you know I took out my phone flashlight for assistance) I noticed all the drinks had really cool names and a very detailed description under each title. I scrolled through and decided on the “Washed Ashore” mainly because it called for passion fruit and seemed the least sweet in my mind. It called for Coconut Rum and Black Strap Rum, so I was optimistic and ready for the experience.
Sweet Tooth Much?!
As expected, my cup was selected and placed right under one of the spotlights for preparation. In true Tiki bar fashion, they used the small crunchy ice (you know which one I’m talking about) an extremely detailed inspired cup and just went in pouring all the mixtures together. I watched as everything was being prepared and realized that they do indeed take their time and really invest in the preparation by adding flowers and decorative straws. Keep this in mind when you’re ordering, it did take about 10 minutes for my drink to be served. I can’t say I was shocked when I tasted this drink and it was SWWWEEETTT! I knew what I was getting myself in to but at the same time I will never get used to super sweet drinks. As we all know, I am a vodka soda girl so I enjoy a strong no flavor drink but if you enjoy sweet drinks, this is it. I can’t say I tasted the rum per say as much as I tasted the coconut flavoring. The drink called for 2 types of rums, lemon, orange, passion fruit, and cranberry. I tasted mainly coconut and cranberry. I’m not a huge Tiki enthusiast but I can tell you that while these drinks are in “tiki” glasses and have the full presentation, they don’t taste very “tiki” like. How many times can we say “tiki”? *cringe* A friend of mine ordered a paloma and same thing, the flavor was there but I didn’t get that tequila punch I usually get.. you know the one that makes you go “ahhh” the mixer was decent but not strong at all. I was aware of the price of my drink when I ordered it and while I can say the $12 happy hour price tag was justifiable for the size and presentation, the punch just wasn’t there.
TIKI or No TIKI!?
I suggest maybe hitting them up during the Happy Hour hour to experience it for the first time. I have to make one thing clear, I appreciate the dark and social nature of the spot and would definitely take a friend here to socialize and catch up. It was perfect to hold a conversation and get some dope drink footage for your socials. There was a lit wall camera which I appreciated to document my visit, you were able to email yourself the photo with the bar name on the border and (VOILA) Instagram ready. I’m not mad I took the stairs to the secret underground bar and would maybe even head back for a vodka soda in the evening to see the difference between day and night vibes! It’s definitely worth going to have a drink to cool down and experience something different for downtown Austin. There’s nothing quite like it that I know of and its a cool spot to get ready for your night out on the town.
What’s your take on Tiki style drinks? Are they your cup of tea? Do you have any suggestions for me if I ever end up in another Tiki bar? Fill your girl in!
