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Trader Vic's, Oakland, CA (restaurant) |
Dustycajun
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Nov 16, 2007
Posts: 5125
From: Santa Barbara, CA
|  Posted: 2010-02-28 07:48 am Permalink
Tradr Bill,
Nice singed menu, and thanks for those photos. Can't quite make out the logo on the front of old menu, is it the same one used on others?
Here are a few more photos from the web site showing a young Trader Vic and the small confines of the original restaurant.
DC
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Trad'r Bill
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Oct 14, 2008
Posts: 493
From: Hercules, CA
| Posted: 2010-02-28 3:01 pm Permalink
Hey DC-
It looks like a more primitive version of the later logo...
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Trad'r Bill
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Oct 14, 2008
Posts: 493
From: Hercules, CA
| Posted: 2010-03-02 10:38 pm Permalink
Here's some pics of the gift shop in the Oakland location. I used to think this was actually in SF at 20 Cosmo, but this shot is from the August 1950 Holiday Magazine. 20 Cosmo didn't open until 1951:
From SF Public Library:
SFPL archive again:
...and another picture of a picture from the TVs warehouse (sorry about the glare):
Trad'r Bill
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Sabu The Coconut Boy
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Aug 20, 2002
Posts: 2804
From: Carson, California
| Posted: 2010-03-02 11:11 pm Permalink
Excellent photos, Trad'r Bill!
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Hakalugi
Site Administrator
Joined: Aug 10, 2004
Posts: 3444
From: Redondo Beach, CA
| Posted: 2010-03-02 11:18 pm Permalink
Do I see PNW?
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Dustycajun
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Nov 16, 2007
Posts: 5125
From: Santa Barbara, CA
| Posted: 2010-03-03 8:08 pm Permalink
Trad'r Bill,
Thanks for the new photos, here is one more of Trader Vic at the Oakland bar and the sawfish sign from Life magazine.
DC
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Trad'r Bill
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Oct 14, 2008
Posts: 493
From: Hercules, CA
| Posted: 2010-03-16 8:40 pm Permalink
...some more photos of photos I snagged - this time they were hanging in TVs Emeryville:
full photo:
posed? I think yes - what's up with that crooked stogie?
here's the sawfish rostrum as it looks now... you can barely make out the writing:
and here's the same (pnw?) carving which used to be in the Oakland gift shop...
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Sabu The Coconut Boy
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Aug 20, 2002
Posts: 2804
From: Carson, California
| Posted: 2010-03-18 5:59 pm Permalink
Thanks for all the great photos you keep adding, Bill!
I really like that porcelain tile on the previous page with the artist's rendering of the building.
Here's an article from the July 28, 1938 edition of the "Oakland Tribune". It pins-down the 1938 date of Vic's first trip to Havana that's mentioned over in the Chicago TV thread:
http://www.tikiroom.com/tikicentral/bb/viewtopic.php?topic=31374&forum=2&vpost=512265
It also gives great insight into the early conversion of Hinky Dinks from a antler-decorated sandwich/beer bar to a mixed-drink bar. At this stage it looks like he's still harvesting drink recipes from his travels, but hasn't started inventing his own yet. The tropical decor is just starting, and he hasn't changed the name of the restaurant yet to "Trader Vic's".
_________________
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Trad'r Bill
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Oct 14, 2008
Posts: 493
From: Hercules, CA
| Posted: 2010-03-19 12:05 am Permalink
Whoa, thanks for the article Sabu! That really captures the major turning point in Trader Vic's history. I never knew about this early "Ladies Lounge". I wonder: was that just a ploy to get more guys in the door? Probably...
On that note, I'm going to add the early famous pictures:
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Dustycajun
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Nov 16, 2007
Posts: 5125
From: Santa Barbara, CA
| Posted: 2010-03-20 10:33 am Permalink
Here is a matchbook featuring Trader Vic at Hinky Dinks during that transition period. Less antlers and more tropical drinks.
DC
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Koolau
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Sep 23, 2006
Posts: 323
From: Oahu, Hawaii
| Posted: 2010-03-27 01:36 am Permalink
Trad'r Bill asked "what's up with that crooked stogie?"
That's a culebra . . .
. . . which consists of three panatella cigars braided together. The story is that back in the day cigar factory workers were given three free cigars per day - in order to keep them from stealing the product, they were only allowed cigars with this unusual shape.
You cut the three cigars apart and smoke them separately - that's what you see in Vic's mouth - one of the three culebras which still retains it's crooked shape from the braiding.
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tikiskip
Grand Member (8 years) 
Joined: Nov 26, 2005
Posts: 4888 | Posted: 2010-03-27 06:56 am Permalink
Love these old photos!!!
Thanks all.
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Trad'r Bill
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Oct 14, 2008
Posts: 493
From: Hercules, CA
| Posted: 2010-03-27 08:11 am Permalink
Thanks Koolau!
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1961surf
Tiki Socialite
Joined: May 03, 2007
Posts: 2010
From: Newport Beach, Ca .
| Posted: 2010-03-27 5:15 pm Permalink
Koolau you are right on the money on the info of the cigars.Nice to hear someone once
in a while that knows what they are talking about when it comes to cigars.
Nice job Koolau .
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abstractiki
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Aug 29, 2009
Posts: 606
From: Lodi, CA
| Posted: 2010-03-27 6:45 pm Permalink
Great thread here Trad'r Bill, some interesting stuff you all have posted. Thanks!
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