Get Your Butt Over to False Idol, San Diego's First Hidden, Immersive Tiki Bar

Just when you thought Little Italy could n’t possibly get any hotter comesFalse Idol , the new tiki legal community hide within Craft & Commerce , which itself just reopened after a multi - million one dollar bill top - to - bottom renovation . The project is a partnership between CH Projects and renowned tiki expertMartin Cate , whose other labor includeSmuggler ’s CoveandWhitechapelin San Francisco , Hale Pelein Portland , andLost Lakein Chicago . He has , quite literally , written the bookon all things tiki .

Cate has been shoot the breeze San Diego for the annualTiki Oasisevent for the retiring decade and has long thought a tiki bar would mesh with the local dining and drinking scene . So , when an opportunity to partner with CH Projects arose , he seized it .

The space , replete with wall - to - wall Polynesian pop - inspired artefact and tiki decor , was design by a squad of fabled artists , let in Bosko Hrnjak ( whose elaborate wood carvings adorn the measure and rampart ) and designerIgnacio “ Notch ” Gonzalez . Cate describes the aesthetic as a " completely escapist immersive environment ” – clip does n’t quite exist in this erectile space , and the everyday mankind is easily forgotten . The menu of 36 exotic , tropical drinks developed by Cate and CH Beverage Director Anthony Schmidt surely helps .

false idol

COURTESY OF ZACK BENSON/FALSE IDOL

To get the full sensory experience , you really have to see the space IRL , but in the interim , here ’s everything you need to get laid about San Diego ’s first fully immersive tiki bar .

The entrance is hidden

To pull ahead entry to False Idol , you first go by through this stainless steel door on the left side of the main legal community of Craft & Commerce , which opens into a walk - in cooler where crate of ananas and citrus yield are stored , along with a shelf hold meth jarful with ( false ) skulls and human principal . “ They ’re all heads of general contractor we had to kindle , ” jokes Cate . Inside the cooler , there ’s a second door that open to the tiki measure . Besides impart the bar a mystifying , hidden quality , Cate say the strange method of entranceway takes the guest on a journeying from the open , aery environment of Craft & Commerce into a dreary , atmospheric place with a vibration he name as “ unceasing dusk . ”

The rock/water/fire wall is incredible

The first thing you ’ll likely notice once you ’re through the cool door is the impressive water ( and fire ! ) feature shroud an entire wall . The dramatically lit social system has stream of pee be given down careen walls , skulls mounted on stiletto heel and clustered in dark corners , and the ability to burgeon forth flames or fireballs . “ It ’s an awe-inspiring feature and to have something like that OKed for indoor use is incredible , ” says Cate , noting the installation was build by the same team that design Treasure Island in Las Vegas .

The bar top is a mini memorabilia archive

Beneath the shabu of the bar top , there ’s a 4 ft case fill with a ingathering of postcards , swizzle sticks , mug , menus , salt and pepper shaker , and matchbooks that reward and celebrate San Diego ’s colorful tiki past . “ you could ride at the bar and get a optical history of all the tiki that ’s come and gone in San Diego , ” Cate notes , adding “ we ’re just one chapter in a long account . ”

Even the ceiling is exciting

Look up and you ’ll see hundreds of colorful frosted glass buoy and spiky puffer fish debar from the ceiling in vintage sportfishing nets . The upshot is intended to mimic what it would appear like to be just under the surface of the water supply .

Wood carvings are everywhere

Bosco , a San Diego artist with a deep appreciation of mid - hundred Polynesian popping artistry , designed and created all of the wood carvings on the front of the streak , by hand and part by piece . To reach the aged smell , the panels were buried in his backyard for a couple of months before being installed . “ We oft jest that the best way to make a tiki bar is to contrive a space that looks like mass have been fume cigaret within of for 40 years , ” tell Cate , who says the Sir Henry Wood carvings give the blank a multi - layered , visual vividness . “ It ’s a lot for your eyes to absorb , so you see new thing each time you visit . ”

With 18 classic crapulence and 18 modern tiki interpretations , if you ca n’t find something you like at False Idol , we further you to reconsider your excessively picky palate . If you ’re all about souse and fruity drinks , you ’re in luck , but there ’s also several pick that are more teetotal and snappy , as well as a few boozing on the other end of that spectrum – decadent and sweet - corresponding .

Cate and Schmidt fit one of the standout options is the Panther ’s Fang ( discover above ) , made with a blend of rum , honey , orange , lime , and sparkling pee . Lovely dry and tonic choice include the 151 Swizzle , which Schmidt describes as “ complex and crisp , ” and the Demerara Dry Float , a citrus - heavy drink with Demerara rum , maraschino cordial , love yield , and refreshful lime that ’s accompanied by a shot of 151 on the side . If you ’d rather have something luxurious and sweet , try the Tradewinds ( with racy coconut amiable ) or Pearl Diver , made with a spiced butter syrup .

When you want the better bang for your sawhorse , consider one of the six “ exceptionally strong ” cocktail . “ They ’re literally triples , ” Schmidt aver . “ They have close to six ounces of booze in a normal sized glassful . ” Some of these “ freak drinks ” have a two - cocktail limit , which he notes is more for the safety of the guest than anything else . Despite the high-pitched alcoholic beverage content , they go down smooth .

False Idol

ERIN JACKSON/THRILLIST

There are shareable cocktails, too

If you ’re tempt by the approximation of a slurp a communal cocktail out of an extra - long straw , Alkala the Fierce is a good way to go . At $ 45 , it does n’t come up cheap , but the chai - infused Bourbon dynasty beverage with aged and dark rum , vanilla , pimento dram , and orgeat is big enough to break up between three or four mass . Besides , who ca n’t get down with sharing a drinking with friends ? “ People bang leaning over the flaming bowl together , ” says Cate . “ It ’s sociable , it ’s engaging . You ca n’t see at your phone while you ’re imbibe , you have to look at your friends . ”

Reservations are recommended but not strictly required

It ’s good to make a reservationvia Open Tablein advance , but do n’t sweat it if you ca n’t . If you show up without one , the delay metre is already around an hour , which leaves you with enough fourth dimension to seize a bite at Craft & Commerce while you hold back . That ’s really a perfect plan , since False Idol does n’t assist food . And you ’re gon na need a meal in your belly to handle Cate ’s newest concoction .

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False Idol