Pau Hana Patrol: Tropics Tap House

Pau Hana Patrol: Tropics Tap House

The Tropics Tap House bar at Puck’s Alley offers more than 50 different types of beer. (Star-Advertiser photo illustration by Jason Genegabus)

Fans of the old Tropics Cafe Bar & Lounge at Ward Farmers Market will be excited to learn the shuttered establishment has been redeveloped and reincarnated as Tropics Tap House — and the potential is there for it to become a favorite spot for both old customers and new ones.

When the old Tropics closed about a year and a half ago, it was known as a bit of a dive bar that offered live entertainment and had quite a following in the local hip-hop and reggae music communities. Many were disappointed to see the bar go.

Tropics owner Pat Kashani missed running a bar, too. The 34-year-old had returned to where he started, focusing his efforts on interests in Auntie Pasto’s Beretania and My Big Fat Greek Restaurant (he’s also a partner in multiple restaurant ventures on the mainland) before realizing he missed pouring drinks and hosting live shows.

“I took a year and half getting back into restaurants and learned a ton,” Kashani said. “I was able to hone my skills and can now apply that knowledge to this bar.”

Kashani and partners Isaiah Delsi and Jason Silveria have signed a five-year lease to open Tropics Tap House at Puck’s Alley, and have an opportunity to remain in the neighborhood for years to come.

“They’re planning on redeveloping, but it’s written into our lease to guarantee us a spot,” Kashani said of landowners Kamehameha Schools.

DON’T GET too excited about the future just yet; there’s still plenty to be jazzed about right now at the new Tropics Tap House. With more than 50 taps pouring a variety of mainstream and craft brews — most in the $5 to $8 range — and a full kitchen serving up food, it’s only a matter of time before students heading to school at the University of Hawaii at Manoa rediscover this onetime college hangout, when the site was run as Magoo’s, and then The Varsity, which closed in 2012.

Tropics Tap House could be a first step to reclaiming the Puck’s Alley area as a destination for college students. RB Sportsbar is nearby on Coyne Street, and Anna O’Brien’s is a few blocks away; the more options UH-Manoa students have, the more likely they are to stay near the dorms and not venture out to other areas (or go home to stay with family on the weekends).

“I think we’re right where we want to be,” Kashani said. “We have 54 taps, and about 10 of those will be mainstream beers so we can offer cheaper pitchers. And then we’ll have 44 taps for craft beer.

“Every week we’ll be rotating in new beers. We’re working with the beer companies to get the best selection available to service the market and the demand that’s there.”

Happy hour prices, in effect from 4 to 6 p.m. daily, are another great way to quickly build a customer base. Looking at the chalkboard menu (designed by local artist Erin Mauro, who also creates chalkboard menus at bars like Pint + Jigger and REAL a Gastropub), some may be disappointed their favorite beer costs $6 or $8; but show up during happy hour and those prices drop as low as $3 a pint and $10 a pitcher, depending on the day and featured brewery.

During happy hour at Tropics Tap House, this meal will set you back just $9. Pictured, clockwise from top left, is a pint of the bar’s featured beer ($4), an order of french fries ($3) and a Tap House Slider ($2). (Star-Advertiser photo by Jason Genegabus)

What doesn’t change are the food deals during happy hour — from 4 to 6 p.m. you can order a featured pizza of the day for $5, Tap House Sliders for $2 each and $3 bowls of fresh-cut french fries or your choice of spicy or garlic edamame.

If price is not a factor, take some time to peruse the full menu, with kitchen offerings from chefs Casey Kusaka and Clark Newgold.

I’m also looking forward to a return visit to work my way through the bar’s lineup of beer cocktails, a drink concept that has yet to gain traction here in Honolulu.

With the NFL season, the Major League Baseball postseason, and the upcoming college football season looming, Kashani knows he needs to be ready for prime time soon.

“We’re looking forward to welcoming our old friends at the new location,” he said. “We’re trying not to be pretentious. We’re not going to overprice things. We just want to get beer to the people and have a good time doing it.”

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Jason Genegabus is Entertainment Editor/Online at the Honolulu Star-Advertiser.