Home Sweet Tiki Home #6 The Mainlander Room – Tacoma WA

Before you reach Susan and Eddie Pena’s home tiki bar, you have to walk through the kitchen, then the dining room, then the living room and finally you turn to your right and bam! You are in The Mainlander Room. Susan and Eddie Pena’s home is a totally mid-century modern time capsule and once you step inside their home, you are transported back to a time before the internet and cable television.

The Mainlander Room is right next to the living room and the transition between the two is seamless, with some of the tiki and mcm blending the two styles together. When I visited The Mainlander Room, I honestly didn’t want to leave! Susan and Eddie, I can’t wait to come back, in the meantime, here is their story …

What is the Tiki scene like where you are?

Eddie- If you mean UP or University Place, “Nada!”, Although, as you can attest, Devil’s Reef is pretty nifty to have in Tacoma. It’s the hot bed of Tacoma’s Tiki scene and I’m grateful to have it in our own backyard.

What brought you into the “Tiki lifestyle” and how long has it been part of your life?

Eddie-That’s tough. It literally started one day sitting in the Tommy Bahama bar in Maui about 13 years ago. My family and I were visiting my parents. During that trip, I was thinking about a small room at the back of the garage and was wondering what to do with it, but I knew it would have a bar in some way. I wanted something interesting. The tiki idea came later, but the original idea was a tropical, Hawaiian, 1930s Adventurer’s Club.

I was clueless that Tiki had or was making a come-back. I happened upon a copy of Sven Kirsten’s book, “Tiki Modern”, during some research. It was then that I changed the direction to a Tiki theme. When I purchased a subscription to Tiki Magazine I found the sub culture that was fully underway. It at once started my obsession. (Old Sci-Fi was another dream idea). Finally getting a chance to attend Tiki Kon really opened it up. I tried to get tickets for a few years and attending really concreted it for me. I do wish I could have had a few more years to attend when it was at the Red Lion in Vancouver.

Any story behind the name of your bar?

Eddie- Not so much, but the final commitment to a name came in a moment of “go with it”. I wasn’t sure about a final name, but “Mainlander” was floating around in my head. We managed to attend a Disneyland Trader Sam’s Mahaloween event in 2015. During the mug signing with Tim Wollweber, I was asked about my bar name and I committed to it on the spot. Then I was obsessed with designing a logo.

What is your favorite Tiki bar? Not including your own?

Eddie-At present, the Kon Tiki, in Tucson, AZ. It’s an original, still has a great feel, the tiki drinks are decent (maybe not pure craft, but inexpensive) and good bar food. An honorable mention would be The Under Tow in Phoenix, AZ. I went last month, it was small but very cool.

Also, the Crow’s Nest, undergoing some new work, but my first visit felt like I wasn’t the only one and other people do this too – I’m not crazy! …

The Crow's Nest

Outside of the great drinks, what do you think are essential elements in creating the perfect Tiki environment?

Eddie-Another toughie, clearly opinions abound on what is and isn’t part of the Tiki-philosophy. My 2 cents are whatever that thing is that makes you feel that tiki vibe, but there are some essentials I think: