Tiki Boyd's was a tiki bar in Denver, Colorado in operation from 2005 to 2006. Experimental sound/noise musician Boyd Rice designed the bar, revamping the bar originally known as the East Coast Bar located in the Ramada Denver Downtown.[1] A tiki enthusiast, Rice provided art from his personal collection for the bar.[2] Rice is also a tiki scholar, having written an essay for Martin McIntosh's book, Taboo: The Art of Tiki.[3] Lorin Partridge, a friend of Rice, tended the bar, and the bar was known for a drink called a Bronze Serpent.[1][4] The music was played exclusively from vinyl including records by Martin Denny and Arthur Lyman, also from Rice's collection.[1][2]

Tiki Boyd's
Company typeTiki bar
Founded2005 (2005)
FounderBoyd Rice
Headquarters,
Area served
Capitol Hill (Denver)
ParentRamada Denver Downtown

Location edit

 
Heart o' Denver Motor Hotel - Aug 1975

Historically, site of the Ramada in which Tiki Boyd's was located used to be the Heart o' Denver Motor Hotel (1960-1975), which featured a bar called the Tiki Bar.[5][6] Eli Hedley, the man who popularized the beachcomber aesthetic, designed the tiki lounge at the motor hotel.[5][7] The site is also historically noteworthy for being located on Colfax Avenue, the longest commercial street in the United States of America.[8]

Closure edit

Tiki Boyd's changed names, themes, and management in early 2006, when Boyd Rice withdrew his support, decorations, and music collection from the bar.[2]

References edit

  1. ^ a b c Nguyen, Tuyet. "Boyd Ric [sic]". Westword. Retrieved 26 April 2015.
  2. ^ a b c "Tiki Boyd's, Denver". Critiki. Retrieved 26 April 2015.
  3. ^ Taboo: the art of tiki. OCLC. OCLC 44418626. Retrieved 26 April 2015 – via WorldCat.
  4. ^ Asakawa, Michelle (16 January 2006). "Sail off to Hawaii right here". Denver Post. Retrieved 26 April 2015.
  5. ^ a b "Heart o' Denver Motor Hotel". Colfax Avenue. Retrieved 26 April 2015.
  6. ^ "Eli Hedley's Tiki Lounge in the Heart O'Denver Motor Hotel, Denver, CO (bar)". Tiki Room. Retrieved 26 April 2015.
  7. ^ "Eli Hedley - The Original Beachcomber". Enter the Tiki. Retrieved 26 April 2015.
  8. ^ Bretz, James (2012). Early Denver. Arcadia Publishing. p. 8. ISBN 9780738588858. Retrieved 26 April 2015.

39°44′23″N 104°58′21″W / 39.73972°N 104.97250°W / 39.73972; -104.97250