This week, Ryley and Ellie interview Jason Alexander, owner/operator of two bars in Tacoma, Devil’s Reef and Gilman House Room 428, about the process of opening a new commercial tiki bar, his unique original cocktails, and the trends he sees with tiki bars patrons over the last few years. This episode’s artist spotlight features Sam of Low Tiki, a ceramics sculptor who designs original tiki mugs and other functional art pieces. 

Jason Alexander was born and raised in the Pacific Northwest, but is no stranger to the tropical allures from distant beaches much different than Washington’s craggy shores. Between visiting his father’s condo in Hawaii and the time spent in sunny California courtesy of the Marine Corps, Jason had his share of Polynesian influences early on. After getting out of the Marine Corps in 2001, Jason went to work in construction which catapulted him into another phase of life, one in the food and beverage industry. Jason’s time as a bar owner and operator has brought some much needed tiki love to the Tacoma, Washington, area. His bar, Devil’s Reef has elements of traditional classic tiki bars mixed with nautical, Lovecraftian, and adventure themes. No matter what draws your eye inside Devil’s Reef, it’s Jason’s menu chock full of original tiki drinks that keeps patrons coming back night after night. His talent for combining flavors is not limited to simply following the formulas of tiki days long past, but he has really let his imagination run wild with all of the original libations available. Jason and his wife Robyn expanded their bar/restaurant world beyond Devil’s Reef in 2020 with a new bar, Gilman House Room 428. This speakeasy in Tacoma provides an intimate setting to enjoy tasty bites and more of Jason’s creative cocktails. If you haven’t had a chance to visit Devil’s Reef or Gilman House yet, put them at the top of your list!

You can find Jason on Instagram @tikicommando and his bars Devil’s Reef on Instagram @devils_reef and Gilman House Room 428 on Instagram @gilmanhouseroom428. 

Sam comes from a long line of artistic women, so it was no surprise when she took an interest in the more creative side of life from an early age. While traditional art mediums ruled the early years of Sam’s art journey she soon found herself seeking out challenges within the art world. This first led her to black velvet paintings, a difficult medium of its own right. Eventually, 3D functional art captured Sam’s attention and she took to ceramics sculpting. Her tiki mugs are inspired by time she spent in Hawaii with her auntie as well as time in Japan with her mother. These international and inter-cultural influences have played a big role in the imagery Sam puts into her mugs. From tropical ghosts to animal oddities and even Japanese good-luck charms, there is no shortage of creative and beautiful mugs hand sculpted by Sam.

You can find Sam on Instagram @lowtiki and buy her mugs on her website at lowtiki.com. 

Thank you for joining us on The Tiki Talk Show. If you’re interested in being interviewed or highlighted as our artist spotlight, send us an email at [email protected]. 

We are now on all major streaming platforms, so find us wherever you listen to podcasts! You can also find us on Instagram @konacove_hometikibar.

-Ryley and Ellie