Call me superficial but I only have to hear the word “tiki” and I”™m already horizontal on a tropical beach, watching the gently swaying palms while a Tom Cruise-in-“Cocktail” bartender-type is whizzing me up the perfect piña colada to the sound of The Beach Boys singing “Kokomo” or Israel Kamikawiwo”™ole strumming his ukulele and warbling “Over the Rainbow/What a Wonderful World.”
That, of course, is the reverie, but somewhere over the Cross Westchester Expressway, if not the rainbow, a tiki bar does exist ”“ at Tiki Beach, on the historic Art Deco boardwalk of Rye”™s Playland amusement park, the former Charley”™s Pier Restaurant, now humming under new ownership.
With several distinct dining areas, including a covered conservatory, a lower boardwalk terrace and an expansive upper terrace, Tiki Beach is that rare beast ”“ a massive restaurant but one, as far as I can tell, with no duff tables. Each area looks so inviting, you”™ll have a hard job deciding where you want to sit.
Another area is the arcade at the head of the pier, a vast timber structure the size of an aircraft hangar but open to the elements. Although it was closed on the day of our visit ”“”¯“because of the birds,” our server, rather chirpy himself, told us with a grin, leaving us to our own Hitchcockian imaginings ”“ a host later told me that the area was used for private events and as a bookable VIP area and would be opening later that evening. Perhaps after the birds had gone to sleep?
Last but not least, is the adjacent Biergarten, a slightly sparse patch of Astroturf with tables, chairs and a small bar of its own, where diners can enjoy lighter snacks such as burgers, wings and pretzels, with cocktails and the latest brews from Elmsford-based Captain Lawrence Brewing Co., with which it is aligned.
Open less than a month, Tiki Beach was operating at full-tilt on the Sunday of our visit. With its blue-and-white French bistro chairs, blue sun umbrellas and hanging branches of faux wisteria ”“ common to all the areas ”“ this massive, democratic restaurant has a nice upscale feel. A DJ, set up on a rostrum at the entrance to the pier, spinning 1970s and ”™80s summer sounds (as well as Rick Astley”™s immortal “Together Forever”) also adds to the vibe.
I say “democratic” in the sense that everyone seems to feel welcome ”“ couples, families, large groups of friends, singles at the bar, all equal under the summer sky. This is reflected in the menu, where welcome moderate pricing (at least by post-Covid standards) makes the attractively presented dishes, prepared with far more diligence than you might normally find in a beach bar or lobster shack, an especially nice surprise. Which is not to say Tiki Beach is remotely fancy, because it isn”™t. It”™s just plain good and good value.
YouӪll find squeaky-fresh Blue Point Oysters, Little Neck clams and chilled lobster, from the raw bar, as well as a handful of well-made salads to start. Other appetizers we enjoyed were artisanal charcuterie, slow roasted mussels with tomato and olives and a crisp crab cake with lemon aioli. Steamed clams in an oregano cream sauce, served with two crisp slices of toasted baguette, was a masterpiece of a dish that any starred Proven̤al Michelin chefs would be proud to serve.
Next came the “handhelds” ”“ crispy fish tacos; lobster roll (which could have done with a touch more drawn butter) ;and a Tiki burger for hard-bitten carnivores with grass-fed beef, chorizo, guac and the kitchen sink. In the section labeled “large plates,” a 1 and a half-pound lobster was sweet and tender in its lobster cognac reduction, served with corn on the cobb. Mind you, a lovely slab of blackened ahi tuna was also a contender here, as was a decidedly non-piscine pan-roasted Berkshire pork chop, almost regally cloaked in its bourbon barbecue glaze.
A chocolate mousse cheesecake, the kind of dessert that usually has me asking the question, “Well, is it chocolate or is it cheese? I wish it”™d make up its mind,” made up my mind for me. It was excellent ”“ rich, dense and delicious, a full-on, unabashed, calorific onslaught.
I wax lyrical because that”™s how Tiki Beach made me feel. And how nice to find a restaurant right on the ocean ”“ or, at any rate, the Long Island Sound ”“ that has not traduced its menu with samey, fried junk food for the quick-fix gratification of the crowd. I”™m not saying there”™s no fried food ”“ there”™s plenty of it and, while I”™m about it, the French fries were excellent. No, what I”™m really trying to emphasize is that Tiki Beach, which could be just another of Playland”™s fast food joints, actually believes in itself and the integrity of its product.
Drinks, too, are reassuringly summery and beach-like, rum and vodka “tini” and “tiki” cocktails along with the classics, although I do think it”™s time that old chestnut of a cocktail, Ted Pizio”™s Sex on the Beach, amusing when it first came to prominence in the 1980s, was pensioned off.
And at a time when it”™s notoriously difficult to find front-of-house restaurant staff, Tiki Beach has somehow cracked it. Our server, Javon, looked after the table with a pleasant efficiency, and when he asked at the end of the meal how we had enjoyed ourselves, he sounded as if he really meant it. I once read that the flight attendants walk more than seven miles on a transatlantic flight. I can”™t think these guys walk any less on an eight-hour shift.
The only ripple of discord? While you won”™t need an entrance ticket to Playland to access the restaurant, you are pretty much obliged to use the amusement park”™s parking lot, which means paying the $20 fee. That”™s quite a surcharge on a meal. But there is an alternative: Arrive by boat, use one of the moorings (the same people who now own the restaurant run the marina) and hail the new water taxi to take you practically to your table.
Very chic and thoroughly tiki.
For more, visit www.tikibeachrye.com
