Tiki and the Great White North might not seem like a great fit, and it’s true that Canada isn’t the hotbed for tiki bars (modern or classic) that America is. Of course Canada only has like a 10th of the population of the US, and significantly less cities to support a thriving tiki scene, so even without the environmental and cultural differences it makes sense that it would have a much smaller tiki scene than the US. Still, I’ve personally been to five different really good tiki bars in Canada, and if you’re thinking that five is just enough for a list, well, you’re thinking like an editor right now, my friend. So here they are: the five best tiki bars in Canada, according to a guy who has been to exactly five Canadian tiki bars. (Or maybe more like four and a half…)
Vancouver: The Shameful Tiki Room
Perhaps the most famous tiki bar in Canada (at least, it’s the one I most heard mentioned by American tiki fans), The Shameful Tiki Room has everything you’re looking for in a classic tiki bar. The decor and atmosphere are on point, with classic tiki signifiers everywhere, and when I went the music was a nice mix of Polynesian, exotica, and the occasional surf tune. (I could do without the last genre at a tiki bar, but it wasn’t obtrusive here.) And of course the drinks are fantastic—strong, sweet, and traditional, with a few originals on the menu. It really does feel like an escape from the real world, especially with its unassuming exterior—it can be hard to find, as its entrance is nondescript and plain, with only a small sign to indicate what’s inside. When that door opens, it’s like being instantly transported to the past. Shameful also puts on a bit of a show when you order a few specific drinks; with one, colored lights will shine and smoke will billow out as the drink is served, and with another the bartenders will chant on the way to the table. It’s not overly Disneyfied, though, so don’t worry if that bothers you (uh, I love that stuff). All in all the Vancouver location of Shameful is neck-and-neck for the best tiki bar in Canada.
Montreal: Snowbird Tiki Bar
This is Shameful’s major competition. Another small, unassuming, hard-to-find tiki bar, the Snowbird is a second-story walk-up in Montreal that is an instant retreat from those brutal Quebec winters. It’s heavily decorated with lots of lights and color, including a small corner room bathed in red with a giant wall-sized projection of a volcano that periodically erupts. It’s definitely courting the social media crowd with its decor, but it still creates a blissful, transformative environment that nicely complements the drinks. And yes, the drinks are great, and served up by friendly, knowledgeable bartenders. There’s even a small outdoor area for that brief Montreal summer. The Snowbird is far more colorful than the earthtones you typically expect from a tiki bar, but hey, it’s in Quebec: people need all the warmth they can get up here. It’s a must-visit the next time you’re in Montreal.
Edmonton: Honi Honi Lounge
The new-ish Honi Honi Lounge is the best (and, as far as I know, only) tiki bar in Edmonton. Again, it hits all the necessary notes for a good tiki bar: Polynesian-inspired design, splashes of colored lights, appropriate music, and, most importantly, stiff, delicious, well-mixed drinks. I talked to one of the owners, an Edmonton local who works in the film industry and spends a lot of time in California, and trying to bring the kind of tiki bars he loves in L.A. to his hometown was the genesis of Honi Honi. If only every city had somebody like that looking out for them. Hell, I liked it so much I bought a ballcap with its name on it.
Toronto: The Shameful Tiki Room
Shameful also has a spot in Toronto, and it’s worth visiting just as much as the Vancouver one. It’s a really good tiki bar (and, thus, a great bar, overall, since tiki bars sit atop Martin’s hierarchy of bars), with the same commitment to theming and design as the original, and that similar relief of leaving the real world behind as soon as you step inside. And yes, the drinks are fantastic. It doesn’t feel quite as cozy as the Vancouver location; I’m not sure if the capacity is actually any higher, but it felt a little roomier than the one in British Columbia, and that kind of makes me prefer that one over this one. I’m picking nits, here, though. Both are top-notch examples of what a tiki bar can and should be, and anybody remotely interested in this stuff should stop by at some point. And if you’re a nut about tiki history (which I feel like a good number of tiki fans are), you’ll want to check out Shameful Toronto’s semi-private Christian’s Hut area; it’s named after the legendary first wave tiki chain that started on Catalina in the mid ’30s and had various locations around California for decades.
Calgary: Paper Lantern
Okay, technically Paper Lantern isn’t really a tiki bar, but it does bear many of the hallmarks—colored lights, jungle wallpaper that gives it a lush ambiance, and a number of great tiki-inspired cocktails. So it’s not a real tiki bar, but it’s close enough, and as close as any bar gets in Calgary. The self-described “underground tropical Vietnamese cocktail lounge” doesn’t have a sign, per se, and can only be entered through a nondescript basement door in Calgary’s Chinatown. You’ll be glad you searched for it, though; it serves up delicious drinks of the tiki bent, including a superb Mai Tai, a stiff Cương thi (what English speakers would call a Zombie), and a pineapple-and-coconut heavy Staycation, which is served in a coconut cream can. You’ll also find great snacks along with small and medium plates from a Vietnamese menu derived in part by the owner’s mother and aunt. If I lived in Calgary I’d be a regular here.
Senior editor Garrett Martin writes about videogames, comedy, travel, theme parks, wrestling, and anything else that gets in his way. He’s also on Twitter @grmartin.