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Trader Sam's Enchanted Tiki Bar & Tangaroa Terrace, Anaheim, CA (bar) |
Luckydesigns
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Sep 15, 2002
Posts: 1985
From: Costa Mesa
|  Posted: 2011-07-11 11:32 pm Permalink
Name:Trader Sam's Enchanted Tiki Bar & Tangaroa Terrace
Type:bar
Street:1150 Magic Way
City:Anaheim
State:CA
Zip:
country:USA
Phone:(714) 778-6600
Status:operational
Description:
From the OC Weekly, Thursday, Jun 30 2011
For those of you who aren't able to get the Weekly, here is the article:
Trader Sam's Enchanted Tiki Bar Has a Tiki Track of Mind
The food at the Disneyland Hotel's new Polynesian-themed bar and eatery is beside the point
By EDWIN GOEI Thursday, Jun 30 2011
Trader Sam's Enchanted Tiki Bar at the Disneyland Hotel is a full-circle distillation of everything that came before it, descended from the kitschy Polynesian-themed tiki bars pioneered by Donn Beach in the 1930s (yes, the name behind Don the Beachcomber) and Walt Disney's own Tiki Room. The bar has totems with roving animatronic eyes and walls covered with tropical trinkets. At random moments, the lights darken and the room rumbles as if a storm cloud had settled atop the structure. Then comes the rain, a downpour projected onto the walls while the thunder claps. This, you realize quickly, is not just a tiki bar, but a bona-fide new Disney attraction.
One tall drink!
Trader Sam's Enchanted Tiki Bar & Tangaroa Terrace at Disneyland Hotel. Trader Sam's open daily, 9 a.m.-1:30 a.m.; Tangaroa Terrace open for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Dinner and drinks for two, $40-$60. Full bar. Parking is free for three hours at the Downtown Disney lot; neither restaurant offers validation if you park at the Disneyland Hotel lot.
A volcano erupts, a pirate ship in a bottle sinks, and at least a few bar stools lower unexpectedly as if you sat in quicksand. Each effect is triggered when someone orders a specific drink. Which drink? Well, it's easy to figure out, as they have such fanciful names as Shipwreck On the Rocks. But interactive Easter eggs of this kind are best discovered on your own. At least one drink glows red from an LED-lit ice cube; another is served in an oversized ashtray in which alcohol-soaked sugar cubes are set aflame and straws are inserted through the sides for two or more people to share. If you order the potent-like-cough-syrup HippopotoMai-Tai, an upgrade fee lets you take home the totem-head glass as a souvenir. I can also tell you that if you order the Tiki Tiki Tiki Tiki Tiki Rum, a creamy version of piƱa colada sprinkled with cinnamon, it's required that you recite all the "tikis." I didn't, and the waitress shook her head disapprovingly. "Nope, can't let you have it," she said. "You missed two tikis." We all laughed. Then I complied by singing the order (it's the easiest way), and we all laughed some more.
As with most things inside the Disney fold, the cuisine is almost beside the point. Disney may be an innovator of rides and theming, but it follows the model set by quick-serve chains when it comes to food, resorting to easily and consistently reproduced items served to thousands. Trader Sam's menu of pupus is no exception, with a level of execution on par with Elephant Bar or Chili's. They've got a wasabi-and-yuzu-dressed ahi tuna poke and avocado presented in the usual cylindrical shape of a ring mold; as you scoop a few silken cubes of fish onto yet another wonton chip, you'll think to yourself how often you've had the dish before and how this one is just as luscious as any of those.
Most barflies will gravitate toward the bento box with a sampler of four items. The syrupy glaze that coats the notably well-fried chicken wings makes the meat dangerously close to cloying, but it's better than the bite-sized pork short ribs, which are dry despite being on the bone and shellacked in a tamarind-based barbecue sauce. The third and fourth bento-box compartments hold a flat papaya slaw and panko-breaded green beans owing a debt of flavor to the spicy sriracha aioli dip. For more substantial bites, chicken lettuce cups feature a bigger-than-typical mince of the meat, but it'll likely be the soggiest rendition you'll encounter of something that's supposed to sizzle. Far better is the kalua pork flatbread, a dead ringer for barbecued-chicken pizza, if you can excuse the lifeless cardboard texture of a crust so thin it could be lavash.
If it's a full meal you want, you have to leave Trader Sam's and walk over to Tangaroa Terrace. At this boring-by-comparison, no-frills quick-service restaurant and cafeteria next door, the most exciting feature is the touch-screen kiosks that send your orders to the kitchen, thereby eliminating waiters. But maybe the Mouse could've shifted some of the money saved from not hiring cast members toward the food instead of gizmos. A miso-glazed salmon was encased in an unidentifiable but strange cocoon too soggy to be tempura, deep-fried and served with a viscous, sugary, white liquid that's more melted cake frosting than any known variant of miso. The burger meat retained the shape of its original machine-formed frozen patty; the fried, breaded fish sticks and the chicken katsu were indistinguishable. Stay away from Tangaroa Terrace; instead, rush back to the bar for another drink that makes the room and your spirit come alive again.
This review appeared in print as "A Tiki Track of Mind: The food at the Disneyland Hotel's new Polynesian-themed bar and eatery is beside the point."
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Luckydesigns
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Sep 15, 2002
Posts: 1985
From: Costa Mesa
| Posted: 2011-07-11 11:35 pm Permalink
By the way, the article featured the The Hula Girls'cover model, Miss Dinah DeRosa.
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tikiyaki
Grand Member (7 years) 
Joined: May 18, 2004
Posts: 2682
From: The Exotic Port of REDONDO BEACH, CA
| Posted: 2011-07-12 06:56 am Permalink
Very Cool, congratz to Dinah ! (and you too Spike 
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King Bushwich the 33rd
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Jan 10, 2005
Posts: 1064
From: Ling Cod Beach, CA 90803
| Posted: 2011-07-12 10:31 am Permalink
Thanks,Spike, for making an entry for the place under locating tiki. About time someone did. I think the experts have determined that Trader Sams is a legit location and not some wannabee poseur. So here is the ...
Official Trader Sams at Disneyland Hotel page
and a blog authored by an artist who has the respect from everybody here a Tiki Central...
Kevin Kidney Blogspot
And those are great photos of Dinah in that article.
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[ This Message was edited by: King Bushwich the 33rd 2011-07-12 10:33 ]
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King Bushwich the 33rd
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Jan 10, 2005
Posts: 1064
From: Ling Cod Beach, CA 90803
| Posted: 2011-08-17 1:23 pm Permalink
Article about the place with lots of back stories, details, inverviews, opionions and things...
Themepark Adventure: Trader Sams
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robtikiti
Tiki Centralite
Joined: Nov 10, 2008
Posts: 22 | Posted: 2011-08-25 3:41 pm Permalink
Nice write up and photo gallery from the LA Weekly:
http://blogs.laweekly.com/squidink/2011/08/trader_sams_enchanted_tiki_bar_disneyland.php
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King Bushwich the 33rd
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Jan 10, 2005
Posts: 1064
From: Ling Cod Beach, CA 90803
| Posted: 2011-09-18 5:48 pm Permalink
Will Walt Disney World be getting a Trader Sam's also? It is mentioned here and there are actual photos but not much information out there on it.
MiceAge Weekend Update
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King Bushwich the 33rd
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Jan 10, 2005
Posts: 1064
From: Ling Cod Beach, CA 90803
| Posted: 2012-05-21 12:44 pm Permalink
Another Article/Blog about Trader Sam's
Samsland: Trader Sam's
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kenbo-jitsu
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Jul 27, 2011
Posts: 135 | Posted: 2012-06-19 2:52 pm Permalink
Here's a short video showing Trader Sams. It's on the Disney web site.
http://disney.go.com/videos/?channel=1293072&content=1938555
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tikilongbeach
Grand Member (first year) 
Joined: Aug 05, 2011
Posts: 996
From: Long Beach, CA via Dallas, TX
| Posted: 2012-12-30 1:01 pm Permalink
The design element continues into the ladies room. I'm assuming the mens room looks the same.
sconce
door handle
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hiltiki
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Jun 10, 2004
Posts: 2904
From: Reseda, calif.
| Posted: 2012-12-30 9:00 pm Permalink
I just went to Trader Sam's for the first time this afternoon. Really enjoyed the place the drinks were good and the service was good. We had the fish tacos and they were very tasty. They were playing old Hawaiian Christmas music mixed in with some exotica which set a very nice mood for the place. I would go back any time.
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RevBambooBen
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Nov 12, 2002
Posts: 7345
From: Huntikington Beach
| Posted: 2013-01-02 09:15 am Permalink
Is it just me or does the ceiling need something more ...??
Would be nice to see a Bamboo (pvc) drop grid with some lashing.
The walls are packed with stuff then it's just blank up there.
If you agree let them know.
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nui 'umi 'umi
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Feb 21, 2011
Posts: 620
From: La Mirada Atoll
| Posted: 2013-03-25 10:35 pm Permalink
Was at Trader Sam's last night and watched in awe as Bernardo prepared eight "Krakatoa's". My wife CeCe captured the moment with her Iphone's camera.
[ This Message was edited by: nui 'umi 'umi 2013-03-25 22:39 ]
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MaukaHale
Tiki Socialite
Joined: May 07, 2012
Posts: 197
From: The base of the Volcano
| Posted: 2013-03-26 08:06 am Permalink
Some of my favorite things at Trader Sam's are outside.
These two tikis are next door in front of Tangaroo Terrace:
The doors to Trader Sam's has some great referrence material for carving:
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nui 'umi 'umi
Tiki Socialite
Joined: Feb 21, 2011
Posts: 620
From: La Mirada Atoll
| Posted: 2013-03-26 10:22 am Permalink
Quote:
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On 2013-03-26 08:06, MaukaHale wrote:
Some of my favorite things at Trader Sam's are outside.
The doors to Trader Sam's has some great referrence material for carving:
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I think Danny Gallrdo (Tiki Disablo) carved those. Nice!
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