LOS FELIZ—There are few places in Los Angeles where you can truly get away. No matter where you go, inevitably you will have to deal with one of the downsides of living here: Traffic, hipsters, trash, overcrowded scenes. But there are a few places where you can escape all of that and take a little vacation for a few hours. Tiki Ti is one of them.

Ok, so you may not escape the crowding issue, the tiny Tiki Ti Bar has just 12 barstools and a few tiny tables pushed up against the wall. You may not escape all the hipsters either, but for the most part, at this authentic Hawaii bar, you’ll experience a mix of the young and old, the hip and the not-so-hip, all trying to take a break while sipping on a tropical drinks.

Make it through the line into the door, and the first thing you’re stuck by is the amount of color and decoration. Colorful lights are everywhere, and hanging from above the bar are countless decorations straight from the islands (no the shrunken head is not real). Cigar smoke fills the room, and your first thought when you see the small “Smoking Permitted” sign, will probably be the same as my own “isn’t that illegal?” But I learned since Tiki Ti is owner operated and they have no employees, they can pretty much do whatever they want.

If you think you’re an expert on tropical drinks, you’re wrong. Trust me. The menu has 92 drinks on it, none of which are labeled with ingredients. As my eyes scanned through the odd names “Vicious Virgin”and “Puka Puka”, a friend who had been there before read my mind and gave me the perfect piece of advice for a newcomer “Just order something you don’t mind shouting the name of!”

After deciding on something called “Hong Kong” I receive an orange-brown drink that when I sip, takes me to a place of warm tropical breezes and soft music. Looking around the bar I see drinks of various shades of green, blue, pink. I look up and notice the hundreds of cards pinned to the wall, signed with the names of the regulars that have frequented Tiki Ti over the years since the bar opened in 1961. I briefly wonder what it takes to become a regular at a bar that offers nearly 100 drinks.

Michael and Mike Buhen both stand behind the bar, they are the sons of legendary mixologist Ray Buhen, who opened Tiki Ti. Carrying on their father’s tradition of practicing the “Lost Art” of Exotic Cocktail mixing, the two brothers are maintaining something very rare in LA: a momentary vacation, a brief getaway from the modern problems that come with being a Los Angeles Resident.

Walking out of Tiki Ti, I half expected to step out onto a dark beach in Hawaii, waves rolling in the distance. I was slightly disappointed when I made it out onto the sidewalk of Hollywood Blvd instead, and realized I would probably have to face LA traffic on my way home.

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