2025 Panels and presentations

Overwhelmed by the idea of hosting a tiki bash? Let Tiki Lindy guide you through the process with her expert tips on everything from creating easy large group tidbits, crafting the perfect cocktail menu, batching drinks, and more! Presented by Tiki Lindy, the author of “Tiki Lindy’s Field Guide to Pupus, Tidbits & Exotic Provisions,” and a seasoned caterer and bartender with nearly two decades of experience, this seminar is your ticket to throwing the ultimate tiki party. Don't miss out on this opportunity to learn from a pro and make your next luau a legendary success!

Let's swap our closets!  Please bring your valued, but no longer used, tropical clothing and accessories to swap with other Inuhele guests. Please bring CLEAN clothes, pins, buttons, flower clips, hats, necklaces, and handbags to barter, trade one for one, or to giveaway. There is no limit to how many items you can bring.

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Tiki Lindy will be signing copies of her new book "Guide to Tropical Potions & Exotic Elixirs" and more!

Step into the Tiki Lab with Tiki Lindy for an exhilarating one-hour seminar tailored for home bar enthusiasts who love to nerd out on mixology. This session delves into the science and precision of crafting extraordinary tiki cocktails. Discover the geeky side of bartending with Master the math of ice: learn to calculate the perfect amount for your glass size and recipe volume. Playing with Color: Experiment with vibrant hues to make your drinks visually stunning. Acid/Base Fun & Fermentation: Dive into the chemistry and techniques of super juice, tepache, and more. Molecular Mixology: popping pearls, liquid nitrogen, and clarifying your cocktails   

This documentary portrait of artist Bosko Hrnjak follows him from his formative years growing up among the Tiki apartment buildings in Los Angeles, to his unsung, pioneering work as the first individual to revive the lost art of carving Tikis and sculpting Tiki ceramics. Q&A With the artist and the director to follow.

Bosko discusses his career covering the early Tiki revival and it’s growth to what we celebrate today.  Follows Bosko’s childhood influences beginning in Los Angeles, what inspired Bosko to make art and begin his journey with Tiki.

Mid Century San Diego had planned and developed the most elaborate “Polynesian (pop)” themed areas in all of the United States.   Bosko will discuss the history of some of these amazing creations, he’ll show many never before seen period photographs and ephemera.    He will also speak about the forgotten influence the South had on San Diego and other curious bits of history and Tiki related topics.

After three years and more than $15 million, South Florida's 68-year-old mid-century marvel has been lovingly returned to its vintage glory by a dedicated team of Tiki imagineers and artisans. Now featuring modern infrastructure and an enhanced experiential entryway, the historic Polynesian restaurant is poised to remain relevant for decades to come.  

Journalist Jim "Hurricane" Hayward of The Atomic Grog blog has covered the project in rich detail since the 2020 closing. In this multimedia presentation, he'll take you into every nook and cranny of the 2.7-acre property for an exclusive look at the reimagination and revival with photos, video and tips for your next trip.

Have you ever wondered how your favorite bartenders come up with new and interesting cocktails? Have you ever thought that YOU can do the same thing? We'll guide you through a simple and systematic approach to guide your own cocktail experimentation, with notes, tips, and tricks to get your potations fresh and fancy in time for your next party. 

Kevin Quigley presents NEW ENGLAND TIKI, a dive into the unusual Tiki history of a nautical region whose history is more North Atlantic than South Pacific. New England's history with Tiki winds through traditional tropical bars and revival waystations, as well as a fascinating regional tradition of Asian-American restaurants forging a unique new path. It's a tale of pilfering beachcombers, enterprising women, and one of the country's last grand Tiki temples left standing.

New Englanders are as far away from the South Pacific as any American can be, yet when tiki fever gripped the country in the mid-twentieth century, even they were not immune.  Tropical-themed restaurants and bars sprang up in the unlikeliest of places, from coastal cities to far-flung suburbs. Places like the Hu Ke Lau, the Aku-Aku and the Kowloon were packed every night.  Meet the author and get a book signed!

If you are like me, when you plan a trip, the first thing you do is figure out where all the tiki bars are in the city you are going to. But have you ever got home from that trip and realize you missed the best tiki bar in that city? This symposium will give you all the tips and tricks to plotting out your travels and not miss any tikiness, no matter where you are going. In addition, the tips and tricks will also male sure you don't end up at a bar calling itself a tiki bar when in reality it is a thatched beach bar in Florida that sells Malibu cocktails by the bucket. Think of it as the Clark Griswold approach to tiki travel. As an added bonus, we will be discussing the Top 8 cities/areas with the deepest concentration of tiki bars so you can plan a week-long vacation of just tiki bars. And for you international travelers, there will be a breakdown in tiki bars throughout Europe. Never miss a tiki bar again.

From Hollywood to the Mob to the Big Screen: the Mostly true story of Don the Beachcomer (with Marie King)

The first Don The Beachcomber opened in Hollywood in 1933 and was a smash success. Such a success that Don married one of the patrons, Cora Sunny Sund, and she took them to Chicago to open their 2nd location. To make sure Chicago was successful too, Cora handed over half of the business to the mob. Following a stint in the armed forces during WWII, Don moved his operations to Hawaii and Cora carried on with the mainland expansion. Fast Forward to 2024 and the documentary The Donn Of Tiki made it's Hollywood debut at Grauman's Chinese Theatre. Joining Jason in this mostly true history symposium is Marie King, Director Of Beverage for 23 Restaurant Services (aka Don The Beachcomber). Both Marie and Jason are in The Donn Of Tiki and Marie will be sharing where the modern rebirth of DTB is heading.  

Do you have a home time bar? Have you named it? Do you have a logo? If you answered yes to those questions, the next logical step is to have a tiki mug made for your home bar. But where do you start? This panel will be focused on the small tiki mug makers and the home tiki bar enthusiasts that figured out how to get mugs made. Many tiki mug making panels throughout time and tiki events have been the bigger producer and although fun to listen to how they do what they do, doesn't really spell out to the person with a home tiki bar how to get a mug made. Most of us would not need 1,000 Tiki Farm mugs. Jason T. Smith has had 7 different glazes of his home bar devil mug produced and will Moderate the panel. On the panel will be Jeremy Harger, Tiki Maniacs, who started a small mug business out of his garage as a side hustle. Gabriel Bascom, The Search For Tiki, who had mugs produced to compliment his website, out of his apartment. And our host, Jonathan Chaffin who also became a mug producer as a side hustle. Join us to find out how to get from having a mug idea to a finished product to drink out of at your bar and sell to other tiki enthusiasts. 

This presentation will help give the basics of creating your own syrups and infusions. From simple syrups to tea syrups to orgeat, from spice and fruit infused spirits to fat washes, we'll talk about it all! With the essentials learned in this presentation, you should be ready to head home and experiment with your own favorite ingredients.

Swizzle swappin'!

Making a Milk Punch with Luau Lads Michael Bloom and Kurt Rogers; step through the process of making and clarifying a batched cocktail for parties and such!