UP IN FLAMES @ RumFire

This past Sunday I decided to check out the scene at RumFire, a sleek oceanfront bar and lounge at the Sheraton Waikiki. Every last Sunday from 7-11pm the venue plays host to a homo-centric dance party. Just moments after I walked in, a kind soul bought me a drink, earning the scene some early points.

I had gone to the outdoor cash-only bar overlooking the pool deck, and the bartender was so apologetic that she had run out of the night’s $5 special - skyy vanilla- and insisted on mixing any other drink for the same price. At any rate, I hadn’t had vanilla vodka since early college, and I wasn’t looking to revisit that unfortunate flavor of hangover. So I let the lovely bartender choose a drink for me. She insisted on a Bacardi Melon with Sprite. Hmm, it tasted like cavities, but I figured I shouldn’t go to Rum Fire without touching the rum.

The Fire Wall

While many guests lounged inside RumFire by the light of the illuminated bar, glowing orange from ceiling to floor, others were scattered about the outdoor tables, lit and warmed by torches and caldrons of fire. The dancing was outside too, with the DJ and sound system set-up on this first terrace of the pool deck. Sweet tea in hand I headed toward the small mass of people on the dance floor to meet a friend. In the midst of the dancing I also met the evening’s birthday boy, adorned with leis and moving to the rhythm of PCD’s “Buttons” ft. Snoop Dogg. I got in on the action when the beat dropped on “New York.” I did the Jay-Z part of that once at Wang’s (probably woulda been better off doing any of Nicole’s parts in “Buttons”).

concrete jungle where dreams are made of...

I had met a fun group dancing - the birthday entourage - including the event’s promoter Kevin, who apparently makes sure the party’s crackin’ at RumFire on a monthly basis. The DJ packed up around 11pm, and after consulting with the man of the hour on his B’day wishes, it was on to the next one…

DOA? : Drunk on arrival? I was.


HAUNT OR EXORCISE? : The outdoor dance party, the hospitable staff, and the warm ambience makes RumFire a hauntable hot spot.

RUMFIRE
2255 Kalakaua Ave (Lobby level of the Sheraton Waikiki)
Honolulu, HI 96815

Your Own.... Personal.... Pitchers

What's good on a Sunday night after you've had your share of soul-searching at Lulu's?  Double-down Sunday at Hula's Bar & Lei Stand.  You get a double for the price of a single on all well drinks, making it about $5 a cocktail.  I prefer my vodka tonics by the pint, so it seems like a fair drink special to me.  Make it a bloody Sunday and for a little extra bartender Talon will mix you up a scratch bloody Mary, made to order - you choose the heat, and he adds the pickle.  And olives.  And salt if you like.

But if you've had your fill of hard-A, maybe the personal pitcher is right for you.  Hula's pours Miller Light Drafts in pitchers perfect for a pair to share, or a single lush to suck down with a straw.  The last time I brought some fresh faces to the bar, they all were green with envy after ordering their Coronas and then seeing me with my pitcher of Miller Light for the same price.  In the end, we all had our own personals.  Needless to say everyone was pretty belige by closing. 

On Sundays at Hula's you can grab a seat at the bar or a table by the dance floor and talk story with friends while watching a mix of house/pop/hip-hop music videos on the two big screens.  Or if that's a little too impersonal, there's always the 808 boyz tearing up center stage.  They all got rhythm and their own style of dancing, but there's one in particular who could probably make it all the way to Vegas on SYTYCD based soley on his Jazz-inspired use of suspenders and bandana.  Not kidding, he's a very talented dancer.  I really think he should try out.  I believe his name is James.

If you wanna compete with center stage then go on and break it down on the dance floor.  Sundays are definitely a mixed bag for dancing at Hula's, with usually a meager crowd later in the night making it happen.  Nonetheless it's hard not to when David Guetta and Kelly Rowland command you to DANCE!

DOA:  Drunk on arival? Only if you're looking to B.O.

HAUNT OR EXORCISE:  Haunt away.  Sundays are fun days, but there's much ado Thursdays-Saturdays at Hula's too. 

HULA'S BAR & LEI STAND
134 Kapahulu Avenue (2nd Floor of the Waikiki Grand Hotel)
Honolulu, HI 96815

Flashback - RED LION

RED LION WAIKIKI is a basement dive-bar bar in a surprisingly upscale location - the Hyatt Regency on Kalakaua. While it boasts DJ and dancing till 4am every night, the floor is rarely occupied by a soul. The exception is Broke-ass mondays (RL's bread-winner, with real cheap beer specials but a $10 cover) and occasionally dollar drink night (formerly Thursdays, moved to Tuesdays, $10 cover). Although the last few dollar nights I went to, my group had to break the dancing ice, and found few others willing to get down on the floor. The music is a mild, no frills mix of top-40 and old-school R&B.  I used to bring my friends there all the time, but then I realized other venues have so much more to offer, like patrons and friendly bartenders.

No one knows what theme they're going for, with booths shaped as baseball gloves, walls adorned with swiftly painted images of bull dogs and scottish coat of arms, and a disco-lit dance floor. Maybe they've got the right demographic in mind though: people who don't care that they're spending their time in Waikiki consuming marginal bar food and weak well drinks in a basement.  

REVIEW:

DOA? Yes, drunk on arrival is recommended for a more enjoyable experience.

HAUNT OR EXORCISE? Exorcise this bitch - haunt something in a more hospitable environment.  Unless it's Monday night, in which case go for broke!

RED LION WAIKIKI
2424 Kalakaua Avenue (Basment of the Hyatt Regnecy, diamond head tower)
Honolulu, HI 96815