Tiki/Luau/Beach themed bars/restaurants anywhere? (Hendersonville, Henderson: house, heat pump)

[alwayschaos]

My fiancé's birthday is at the end of January when it's cold and grey and often wet. He had wanted us to go on a beach vacation sometime this winter but unexpected house expenses (ug, heat pumps!) and general scheduling is not going to let us go on a vacation until the spring or early summer.

So I'm trying to plan a surprise staycation the weekend of his birthday and it's beach themed! I already have a lot of it figured out - from rearranging our living room to put down beach towels and beach chairs, beach theme movies, some ocean-scented candles, fun tropical mix drinks, a stack of magazines, fresh fruit & nuts for snacking and dollar store luau supplies, etc. I figured one night we could go to a seafood restaurant (since I'm not a good cook) but I also thought it would be fun to go to a tiki bar of some sort. I know we have Margaritaville and Shipwreck Cove at the Elm Hill Marina, but are there ANY OTHER bars/restaurants that are tropical/beach/ocean/luau/tiki themed?

(Ever since I visited my bff in Tallahassee and went to this awesome bar called Waterworks that is themed like a 1960s tiki bar WATERWORKS Open Every Night I've been wanting to find something similar here.)

Even if it's not a bar or restaurant. Like if the science center was doing something vaguely tropical-themed, that could work too.

Any ideas are appreciated Thanks everyone!!

[alleycat]

I've heard of Barefoot Charlie's in Hendersonville, but I've never been there myself. It's supposed to be fairly good. And there's Calypso Cafe on Elliston Place; the menu is tropical themed, but the interior is just ordinary casual.

You might consider the Sunset Grill, even though it's not beach themed.

There used to be several beach/tropical themed restaurant in town (one on White Bridge, one in MetroCenter), but most of them seemed to have closed.

[DonCorleone]

I was going to recommend Barefoot Charlie's. It's pretty good, definitely a beach shack vibe there. They also have a partial lake view from the back porch if it happens to be warm enough to enjoy it out there...it's Nashville, you never know when you'll get a 65 degree January day but it's possible. Here's their website: Barefoot Charlie's.

I've been there twice and had a mixed experience the first time (think we caught them in an off night) and the second was good. It's a tad pricey, but a pretty cool environment.

[dafunk10]

there used to be a place on 21st across from Vandy called Beach Bar, but I believe it has closed recently

[Crakaveli]

omni hut is a Polynesian themed restaurant in smyrna. no bar.

[alwayschaos]

Thanks everyone!! These are all great. I remember hearing about Barefoot Charlie's too now that you mention it. Excellent.

[yank283]

Calypso Cafe is a restaurant, probably not what your looking for. Dick's Last Resort (or maybe Joe's Crab Shack) on 2nd Ave has sort of the theme your looking for as well.

[nashvols]

Omni Hut is a neat old place. It's been in existence for more than 50 years. It survived when a lot of the other tiki places died out.

It scores well in terms of theme, but the restaurant itself is quite dark...so if you're looking to 'escape' the grey of January, don't expect a sunshiny feel here. The place is definitely a blast from the past. Very cool. Food is OK, not exceptional. It's more about the experience. The Pupu platter (appetizer with a fun little 'fire' grill in the middle of it) is a must. The 'main' dinner isn't anything to write home about. No bar, but it is BYOB.

Home Page

[alleycat]

When I was in college I had a friend who worked at the Omni Hut. He would bring us leftovers (egg rolls and such). I have probably had more food from the Omni than anyone else who has never actually been there.

[bigcitymike]

Originally Posted by nashvols

Omni Hut is a neat old place. It's been in existence for more than 50 years. It survived when a lot of the other tiki places died out.

It scores well in terms of theme, but the restaurant itself is quite dark...so if you're looking to 'escape' the grey of January, don't expect a sunshiny feel here. The place is definitely a blast from the past. Very cool. Food is OK, not exceptional. It's more about the experience. The Pupu platter (appetizer with a fun little 'fire' grill in the middle of it) is a must. The 'main' dinner isn't anything to write home about. No bar, but it is BYOB.

Home Page

I love the Omni Hut, and recommend the trip out. The ambiance and the decorations are a blast from the past.

For full on Tiki, there's tradervicsatl.com in the ATL. A bit of a drive though. You can also hit up the Ikea in ATL too. Ikea is always worth a walk though at the very least.