Kahala

Comments about Kahala

John Raccoon

John Raccoon has visited Kahala.

November 8, 2019, 12:18 PM

Dear Other! All my reviews are written individually for each bar and non of us are identical. The ones which are about spanish tiki bars, my reviews are pretty similar, because most of those bars are also pretty similar (great decor, unsuitable music and zero-quality drinks) and differences are only in small details. My reviews are as terrible as the bar itself. I do not have any business interests to put them down or anything like this, all my reviews are written neutrally according to my personal experience of each bar separately. Every bar (there's also some very good ones) earns their review by themselves.

tikiglees

tikiglees has visited Kahala.

November 3, 2019, 9:27 AM

Love the vibe here but didn't really dig the drinks or music. That being said - I had a nice chat with the bartender and she fixed me a much much better drink than the first. Super cool. Interesting to see how the tikis, mugs and stuff seem to have a much stronger African influence than bars stateside. Overall a total classic - just need to improve the cocktails!

AnnaChovie

AnnaChovie has visited Kahala.

August 27, 2019, 2:44 PM

The decor was fantastic, but the drinks were canned and terrible. The bartender we spoke with worked there for a job, but clearly had no interest in Tiki culture. We tried to quickly leave after my mai tai was made with sour mix, but the service was so slow it took over an hour to get out.

ScubaRoberta

ScubaRoberta has visited Kahala.

June 13, 2019, 3:20 PM

We love to this place! My husband and I are traveling the world this year and everywhere we go we’re visiting tiki bars. There weren’t a lot of people in when we went, but we still had a great time. The staff was friendly, the drinks were very tasty the atmosphere was fabulous! Wish they would’ve put a little more fanfare into decorating the cocktails, and was disappointed in the selection of tiki glasses you could purchase. The coolest one as shown in photos on this website, very tribal Tahitian, but they don’t have that one anymore. The one we purchased didn’t even have their name on it 😕, And the one that did have their name on it wasn’t very cool looking. But I highly recommend it, it was worth the trip!

Other

February 22, 2019, 5:09 AM

Did you notice Johns identical terrible reviews of every bar? My second favorite in Barcelona. It got jammed later night. Music was loud Spanish pop. I like the decor more then the drinks.

TikiKeith

TikiKeith has visited Kahala.

December 12, 2018, 8:15 AM

Visited last week. The decor was on point, particularly the entrance. Loved the fishtank behind the bar.

Drinks were weird. Mai Tai was a legitimate attempt, but it used some kind of Torani-style coffee syrup instead of proper orgeat, so it had a metallic taste. I've had worst mai tais, though - this was using a legit recipe. Other drinks were hit or miss. Most leaned too sweet, and always not enough ice. They were tasty. Just... odd.

Music was local top 40. Appropriate for the young couple dating crowd that was in there late on a Thursday night, but not all that tiki.

Overall... I like the place. Felt like an old school tiki bar that never updated their drink recipes since the 70s. Won't be my favorite ever, but we had a very good time. And isn't that the main point?

aaronraganfore

aaronraganfore has visited Kahala.

November 28, 2018, 11:02 AM

Look, there's no getting around it: the drinks are crummy. I had two, prepared by two different bartenders. The zombie may have been the worst I've consumed.

BUT! A lot can be said for a tiki bar's "entrance experience," like the moving water at Hale Pele or the piratical tunes at The Golden Tiki. And Kahala has one of the best I've seen... stone tiki ruins peek out from behind vines, with mysterious tropical birdsong filling the golden hour, late-afternoon sky.

No food, which was a bummer, but the staff was super-cool about me bringing a poke bowl from next door and eating it in the bar.

On the whole, the staff was very friendly and courteous. Very eager to please this American barfly.

The fishtanks were clean and well-stocked with interesting fish, always fun for a tiki bar!

John Raccoon

John Raccoon has visited Kahala.

October 28, 2018, 9:10 AM

The place is classic spanish crappy tiki-thematic bar, extremely popular for locals. At weekends, if you don't get there early enough, you propably need to wait for seat behind the red rope in the row of lot of people. I didn't like it, gives pretty lousy feeling for guests in my personal opinion.

It has good tiki decor as all those similar places in Spain.

Drinks are not tiki, same liquid crap in same porcelan spanish mugs as other similar places in Spain. They can do a little bit better than they are used to. Last drink I had, whatever it was, but it felt like real tiki cocktail as it should be. Nuts and popcorn were served sometimes together with drinks.

Disrespectfully they are using some of the names of classic tiki cocktails for their worthless liquids.

Staff tries to act friendly and English is well spoken.

Music is not tiki.

Aquarium with water and fish in it.

Not much worth to visit, but if you do, order Crazy Coconut (Coco Loco) or Coco Pae-pae, coconut drink which is popular for locals.

NYC Tiki

NYC Tiki has visited Kahala.

March 5, 2018, 6:19 PM

If you are in Barcelona, this bar is worth the detour for a tikiphile. It is the first tiki bar in Spain, and still has all the original fixings. You cross a waterfall to a long bar space, with various private seating areas, including King chairs. Staff wears Hawaiian shirts and the mugs are all original with a massive selection. The only thing blatantly wrong was the music....this place is dying for some classic exotica or Hawaiian music. Service was great, and there is free popcorn in the back. The bathrooms are also meant to look like you are in a hut. A cab ride a way from the center of town, but worth it

DrumJames

DrumJames has visited Kahala.

September 4, 2016, 5:57 AM

The establishment has a restaurant and a bar in adjoining storefronts but drinks for the restaurant are made in the bar. Had dinner with two others in the restaurant before moving to the bar. Food selection nice mix of Chinese and Hawaiian. I had a panko chicken and my wife the loco moco. Our friend what he thought would be a side salad, but which turned out to be meal-sized. All of us found the food delicious. At dinner I ordered the Mai Tai and was asked if I wanted it regular or special. I was informed that the special had different rums. "Which rums?" I asked, whereupon I was escorted back to the bar where the bartender lined up all of their rums and we picked a combo together. Any rums I didn't know were immediately presented for me to taste. The care and pride the staff put into drinks, service, and hospitality was remarkable. The decor is fantastic and drinks are served in an astonishing array of custom mugs. We were the first ones there but when we left around midnight they had a substantial waiting line out the door. I look forward to my next visit!

Paella747

Paella747 has visited Kahala.

August 1, 2013, 4:13 AM

In town for the FINA World Swimming Championships, and dropped by this place last night. Pretty great décor. Was with people who aren't necessarily Tiki fanatics, so I didn't get to fully appreciate the experience.

Other reviewer was correct in that this bar isn't close to the main drag of the tourist parts of Barcelona, but it's worth a visit. We took a taxi, and the driver even made a wrong turn or two (even with the exact address in hand). Drinks were a little on the fruity/heavy syrup side for me, including the Mai Tai. Didn't seem like much alcohol. My friends noted that they felt 'full' after drinking two. You'd probably be able to do a several drinks without getting too tipsy at all. The cups the drinks came in were amazing. I bought one......

abtiki

abtiki has visited Kahala.

June 26, 2012, 2:27 PM

I went to this bar this evening and it lived up to the expectations of a really long walk from the center of Barcelona, a lot of interesting diversions on the way, but probably you will want to take the subway one way or both ways. It currently opens at 7. The entrance has a fantastic tiki waterfall and the bar is well stocked with tikis and exotic lamps and such. The drink selection was spot-on and they have a hug variety of mugs. Highly recommended!

Regulars and Visitors of Kahala

Regulars

People who go to Kahala at least a few times a month.

• Kahalabar
  Every day

Visitors

People who have been to Kahala at least once.

• 
  MrBaliHai
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  The Jab
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  NautiTiki
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  tikitabby
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  Flamingo Fred
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  djmagus
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  Line&Stefano
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  tiki paul
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  hoho
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  Aquatic Safarinaut
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  HelveTiki
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  DrumJames
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  horgaloha
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  tikiwagon
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  always on the beach
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  jonvon
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  abtiki
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  Paella747
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  Fritiof
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  A'Pau-ling
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  TahitiTiki
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  Noland Nocount
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  aaronraganfore
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  NYC Tiki
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  capt. catnip
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  TikiKeith
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  tikiglees
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  Lio
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  maxelman
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  evanssc
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  Apocryphanow
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  Farbror Fuzz
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  1Tikibird
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  Katstiki
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  tikihausen
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  alohaboydean
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  TikiMichelle
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  harro
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  terrylee
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  NatalievonTiki
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  tikijoe34
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  Tikicruiser
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  AnnaChovie
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  AlohaEric
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  Fafi
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  Tikiprincess
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  thegreaserandthedoll
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  Frenchy
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  Ashleymunster
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  mable31
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  Tongku
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  NareTikiCult
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  TikiTor
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  John Raccoon
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  Duke BossaNova
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  ScubaRoberta