Houston – In a town known for towering buildings, concrete, and the occasional cow in a random place, you never know what you’ll find in Houston. But if you’re in need of a tropical getaway, heading over the Heights for a few cocktails at the Lei Low Tiki Bar is just the evening you’re looking for.
“Tiki is something that I think everybody should experience in their life,” said Russell Theode.
Russell was born in Houston and opened his tavern with a tiki them back in 2014. Why a tiki bar, you ask? “Well, I like rum,” said Russell.
Russell’s colorful bar really does put you in a tropical state of mind despite the fact the front facade looks anything but inviting. “Oh yeah, you can say what you… It looks sketchy,” said Russell. “We get that all the time. We have people send their husbands in and they open the door and they look and they’re like, ‘Okay, it’s safe, babe. You can come in.’”
A bartender most of his life, Russell really had a thing for libations that celebrated the island lifestyle. “Anywhere I worked, if somebody came and asked me for a bartender’s choice, I’d make them some sort of rum drink, like a Planter’s Punch or a Mai Tai or something like that,” said Russell. “Then I found Don the Beachcomber.”
Originally known as Ernest Gantt, Don the Beachcomber is the godfather of the tiki bar, he invented it, and he happens to be from Texas. “He was a lover of the tropics,” said Russell. “He, in true Texas style, sort of told tall tales. He told tales of him and his grandfather spending time in Jamaica. His grandfather was a bootlegger, even though his grandfather died before he was born. I guess back then, he didn’t think one day we have genealogy that you could look up.”
Funny enough, prohibition was the catalyst for Don’s journey to becoming the Beachcomber. “He got involved in bootlegging,” said Russell. “He was an expert in rum. At one point, the rum industry gave him an award, called him the Ambassador of Rum. They said that at Don the Beachcombers, single-handedly sold more rum than anywhere else in the world.”
Don started his bar in Hollywood back in 1933. “It was supposed to be the day after prohibition was lifted,” said Russell. “That’s what he told everybody. But they had already been sort of operating as a speakeasy for a little while. They were doing something that was fun. They were sort of not making fun of themselves, but laughing, having a good time, creating things, being real creative, putting on a performance, if you will. A lot of times we say in the bar business, that’s what we’re doing is we’re putting on a performance. So it was just sort of like a natural thing for me to kind of progress down that hole.”
Russell wanted to show off his skills and school us on some drinks invented by Don the Beachcomber, so he started with something called The Zombie. It consists of three different types of rum, a syrup made of cinnamon and grapefruit, lime juice, falernum, bitters, and absinthe, a first on The Texas Bucket List. “So I’m going to give it a little bit of shake,” said Russell. “For as much rum that’s in it, it’s actually pretty balanced and really crushable. Best food and drinks are a whole body experience, right?”
Next up was Don’s Own Grog. Made with Texas Rum, blackberry brandy, house made grenadine, lime juice, bitters, mint, and a lime wheel with a high flying Texas flag. This drink is worth ordering just for the decorations. “That’s one of the things that drew me as a bartender was when I started making people tiki drinks,” said Russell. “I’d make somebody a Mai Tai and I put an umbrella in it. They light up. Their face lights up. They think, ‘Oh, man, this is so special.’ It’s unlike any other drinking experience or dining experience you can really get. I mean, you can be transported, I guess, to Mexico at a Mexican restaurant, but I feel like Hawaii and Polynesia is a much better place to go.”
Back to the task at hand with the Pearl Diver which starts with “tiki butter,” a mixture of vanilla ice cream, butter, brown sugar and caramel. “It’s a lot like creme anglaise, the dessert sauce,” said Russell.
Two different types of rum along with a spice blend and lime juice are added before Russel pours it in a big shell and tops the drink with a pearl. “So Don the Beachcomber would put a pearl in every fifth drink and you got a prize if you got the pearl,” said Russell. “Well, we use gumballs, It’s not a real pearl.”
Getting a chance to experience this unique atmosphere and libations is the reason people come to this place and the most popular question they get here. “People ask, ‘What’s the best tiki bar in Hawaii?’” said Russell. “Well, there’s not really a good tiki bar in Hawaii because you’re in Hawaii. You don’t really need a tiki bar. You’re there.”
No need to head to Hawaii, just head to Houston to visit the Lei Low Tiki Bar, a tiki-riffic stop on The Texas Bucket List. “This is such a great place to come to work every day,” said Russell. “It’s fun. It’s colorful. Yeah, I don’t think I would enjoy doing anything else, no.”