As usual on an early Saturday evening, there was a queue for golf but we bypassed it and walked straight into The Tiki Bar, which is located behind the main reception desk.  My first impression was good.  Touches of neon and strings of lights create a soft, warm glow in The Tiki Bar, which is furnished with cosy wicker tables and chairs and topped off with a bamboo and palm leaf roof, giving the impression of a rather funky treehouse. The music is pitched at a good level and atmosphere is relaxed and calm.

We settled down in a seat overlooking the golf course and got stuck into the food menu.  Currently, it’s quite small and the food is described as Light Bites – so it’s probably somewhere for a pit-stop rather than a full-blown meal – although the portions are well sized and certainly filling enough for us and make perfect sharers.  We chose the Tanis Sweet Potato – sweet potato bites at £4.00; Sacred Skull Butternut Squash Bites – Butternut squash croquets at £4.25; and Reggie’s Falafel Bites at £4.25.  You get a choice of dip for each dish too – salsa, guacamole, red pepper humous and tzatziki.  You can mix and match the bites and get 3 for £12 and all 4 dips, so it’s good value. 

Food chosen, we moved onto the cocktail menu and there is plenty of choice.  From soft to hot, mocktails to cocktails, beers, wines and spirits, the menu offers a wide range.  They even have their own Lost City Cocktail!  We plumped for a Tiger Paw and a Mary’s Twist (costing £7 each) although, quite frankly, I would have been happy with any of the interestingly-named cocktails available.  The choice proved good – the cocktails were absolutely bursting with flavour and alcohol but after one and the realisation that I was driving, it was a good opportunity to do something unfamiliar and try a mocktail (£4) which, again, was delicious and more like a dessert.

The food is cooked to order and arrived promptly and, more importantly, hot.  Absolutely nothing to complain about here – all of the bites were tasty and came in decent portion sizes and the dips were the ideal complements.

So, is The Tiki Bar one of our recommended things to do?  Absolutely.  I don’t like to overuse the phrase ‘Hidden Gem’ but I really do think that, in this case, it’s deserved.  With giant screens depicting tropical weather, live music from 7.30 pm on a Saturday night and corking cocktails, it should definitely be on your list of places to visit on an evening out in Nottingham.  Be careful though – it would be very easy to believe you aren’t in Nottingham anymore – especially after a few cocktails – so prepare for the shock when you leave!

Drinks Menu