Pau Hana Patrol: Chiko’s Tavern

If you crave a holiday pau hana but it’s not the season, you’re in luck. Head for Chiko’s Tavern, where the Christmas decor has been up since December 2013, according to bartender Leilani Young.

Founded in 2002 by owner Quinn Cosma, Chiko’s, which bills itself as a gay karaoke bar, is reputed for its welcoming, laid-back local atmosphere and reasonable prices.

THE EXPERIENCE

Not for nothing is Chiko’s called a tavern. It’s a throwback to the pre-gastropub era, with dart games, a bumper pool table and ’60s decor featuring black leather and rust-and-gold Ultrasuede in a barnlike, black-ceilinged space. Black winged chairs would make Batman feel at home.

Plentiful seating is available for large parties or couples at regular or bar-height wooden tables, or on armchairs and couches. On my visit, five tall paned windows along McCully Street glowed with high-summer evening light.

Round white paper lanterns, big silver snowflakes and glittery confetti (Happy New Year!) hang from the ceiling beams. There are posters from the Honolulu Rainbow Film Festival, and a Christmas tree stands in a corner by a stage area for $1-per-song karaoke.

On a broiling-hot July day, the wintry decorations helped us chill.

At 5 p.m. on a Thursday, it was empty except for a loquacious senior citizen in alohawear and a quiet young man in a business suit at the bar. My companion, who has been to Chiko’s with friends, said it’s quite a lively scene after 9 p.m. Live music plays on Thursdays starting at 9 p.m.

Chiko’s was renovated in 2011 after a fire, and some online reviews lament the loss of its dive bar look. If they’d visited the evening we did, they’d have had nothing to complain about: The upholstery was worn, the dark concrete floor was dirty and the bathroom wastebaskets were overflowing. It’s a pity, because the women’s and men’s bathrooms are spacious and decorated with marble countertops and blond wood.

Enter Chiko’s from the parking lot; a blue canopy leads to the back door. Be sure to avoid the first two stalls, claimed by the neighboring grocery store, or risk being towed.

THE DRINKS

All drinks are $1 off from 5 to 7 p.m. They were out of all diet sodas, Young said apologetically, so we each ordered a glass of club soda with lime ($1). We split a glass of the house white wine, Copper Ridge Chardonnay ($4.75), adding it to the soda for a spritzer effect.

I couldn’t resist trying the Drama Queen, a tall drink mixing strawberry Stoli, peach schnapps, cranberry juice and 7UP ($5.75). A couple of sweet sips put me in a carefree mood.

Beers on tap are Kona Long Board, Bud Light, Blue Moon and Angry Orchard, for $3.75 to $5.

Our bartender, friendly and quietly attentive, kept our glasses of iced tap water filled.

THE FOOD

There are no happy hour pupu deals; Chiko’s regular menu is reasonably priced and filling. The Spinach Artichoke Dip ($7) arrived hot and in a smallish white souffle dish — sadly, not filled to the brim — surrounded by house-fried tortilla chips. The warm dip was delicious; however, any health benefits of the vegetables were agreeably canceled out by the thick cheese base.

"The chips are kind of weird because they’re deep-fried, crunchy but softer than Doritos," my companion said. I liked their thick texture.

The Mo-Chiko Chicken ($7), cut in delicate pieces, golden-battered and glistening with oil, had a sweet-sour spareribs taste and texture. A little goes a long way; my companion, who now lives in San Francisco and misses local comfort food, took the leftovers home. 

Our favorite was the smoky Kalua Pork Sliders ($8); three palm-size buns stuffed with tall stacks of grease-free pork.

After that we were too full for anything else.

Next time I’ll try the Kalua Pork Cabbage ($7) and sauteed mushrooms ($4).

Rice ($1), edamame ($4, add $1 for special sauce), Spam musubi ($5) and chicken quesadillas ($6) are also on the large menu.

THE VERDICT

When it comes to housekeeping, Chiko’s could show more pride. Still, holiday decor or not, Chiko’s has got the spirit year-round.

Chiko’s relaxing, unpretentious, inclusive atmosphere makes it a great hangout for residents of the McCully/Moiliili/Kapahulu neighborhood, with their mixed demographics.