Florida Roadside Attractions - TIKI GARDENS - History & What Remains of the Classic Tourist Stop
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- Опубліковано 22 сер 2024
- Tiki Gardens of Indian Shores, Florida was the most popular tourist attraction and the first tiki attraction of Florida. Today we will be diving into its history and exploring all that remains of this lost Florida roadside attraction. Also, lunch at Aloha To Go, Hawaiian BBQ. Dessert at Yellow River Citrus Stand of Largo, and more treats at the British Store in Largo, Florida. There’s so much ahead!
Sources:
Tampa Jay on Instagram @tampajay
Patreon link on main page
#floridaroadsideattractions #florida #tiki #tikigardens #clearwater #beach #new #history #food #british #mukbang
My grandmother was the piano player here. She was retired at this point but also was Sara Vaughns piano player. You could hum any tune and my grandmother played by ear. Sara paid for her to go to the Juilliard school of music. Such great memories coming here as a child.
Now I want that ice cream 💕👍😊
I grew up in Tiki Gardens as a Toddler. I have so many pictures and memories. My mom worked there, in the shop that sold Moccasins. I spent my days there wandering around watching the peacocks, walking the paths and getting candy at the shop. My grandmother was Mayor in Indian Shores, then my Dad, then My Aunt Connie at one point. We owned the Sand Key cottages across the road. It was a beautiful place.
Frank and jo byars is my 1st cousin 3x removed on my dad's side of the family love hearing about the history of the tiki gardens thank you Tampa Jay
I worked at Tiki Gardens as a line cook in 1976-1977. I didn't really see Mr Byars in the kitchen that much. He had a manager , Mr Gunn, that ran food preparation. I remember he had his own table in the dining room complete with Polynesian King chair. Those were good
times for a lot of people. To bad it had to end.
So it was basically Florida's Adventureland before the one at MK opened?
Shame not much remains. Never heard of this place before thanks for the history and showing us around
It seems it did have that Adventureland vibe would have loved to experienced it firsthand myself. Thanks buddy
It's so sad that we in the U.S. are losing many of the small tourist attractions. As a young kid in 1977, I remember going to a place called Circus World in Haines City, Florida; what a fun place that was! The next time I went to WDW in 1988, Circus World was closed. That honey looks amazing! Yeah, the old grapefruit ads in there look awesome. Thanks for sharing this Jay and God bless you. 🙏✝️
I would have loved to have gone to circus world I’ve ran into a lot of memorabilia from citrus world on my adventures in Florida it looks so cool. I so miss the old small-town Attractions myself buddy thanks for catching this video I’m glad I could bring back some warm memories
My grand parents lived in Largo and I spent every summer with them. Tiki Gardens was a huge part of my life! I wish I could take all of you back in time to experience that magical place! It was a beautiful, lush, tropical wonderland. I still have a couple of souvenirs from there. It breaks my heart that it’s gone. Another magical place was The Kapok Tree Restaurant.
L loooved that restaurant- and I loved Tiki Gardens
Oh! The Tiki Garden, back in the day when we enjoyed a fine dinner,good drinks,dancing, and able to drive home, no problem. Long gone.
I would have loved to have been there. I’m happy to bring back some great memories for you. Thank you Dorothy
Hi Jay, my name is Lana and I'm fairly new to your channel. I've watched a lot of your vlogs, and I've enjoyed each and every one of them. Thank you for all of the information about what's going on around the parks and all that you do. I just also wanted to let you know that I've been on the beach on a warm night in the rain, it is very relaxing and calming, as long as it's not a hard rain. I like just a steady slow rain. I live in North Myrtle Beach, S.C., it's fun, if you come this way soon, there are lots of fun things to do here, it'll be something different, and fun too. I just wanted to say thank you for everything you do and I can't wait to see the next vlog!!! Have a wonderful, beautiful and amazing day Jay. I'm sending hugs and hearts to you from me.🤗💕🤗💕🤗💕🤗
Hey Lana! Thank you so much for joining here on this journey you are ever been a part of it as I am. Your kind words and your encouragement means so much to me I hope all is well up there and I hope you have a wonderful weekend. Look forward to seeing you again in the comment section thank you again tremendously from the bottom of my heart. :-)
🤗💖🤗💖🤗💖🤗
I remember going to the Tiki Gardens as a little kid back in the early '70s! It used to be a nice Sunday excursion my Dad would take the family on. Other days we went to the Sunken Gardens or the London Wax Museum down at St Pete Beach. It is amazing how much our part of Florida has changed over the years. Looks like a great lunch spot at Hawaiian BBQ and have to love the retro citrus shop and that awesome orange/vanilla ice cream. The pictures of the Tiki Gardens did bring back great memories for me. Thanks for that.
Glad I could bring back some memories for you buddy would have loved to seen that place. Thanks for watching
I love the tiki craze! I believe it was so popular bc so many men returned from the Pacific after the war and brought the aesthetic with them. It's such a fun style. I want to have a tiki themed pool one day 😍
Dang, why would anyone raze Tiki Gardens? Looked so cool. Aloha to go and the orange whip looked delicious! Great adventure today, Jay! Thanks.
Thanks you Diane I would love to see a place like TG pop again somewhere
I like the shirt Jay! That vanilla orange ice cream looked good. Did it taste like a creamsicle?
It does taste like a creamsicle but the orange and vanilla are more refined. So fresh. Thank you Nick
Oh yeah, it's another great vlog with Tampa Jay! ;)
Thank you Time Chasers :)
That meal looks Great! I'm Hungry now
I learned about Tiki Gardens a couple of years ago after we moved here. Sounded like an amazing place. Aloha to Go is on my list of places to eat as we live near the one in Seminole. Also, have wanted to go to the British Shop as we've driven by it a few times. Great video of local sights!
Thanks Dan I hope you enjoy the shop. Tell them I said hello
My Grandparents lived in Clearwater back in the 60’s, Tiki Gardens and Busch Gardens were the highlights of our visits. I still have a Trader Joe rubber tomahawk kicking around here somewhere.
Trader Frank
Went there as kid back in early 80”s good times!
What a gem! We ❤ ya Tampa Jay..you bring so much energy and fascinating history to your videos in FL and beyond ..we have loved living in Tampa Bay since 2004 🌴 🌞 Pinellas County has so many fantastic places to visit..ps. any plans on visiting the Skunkape Headquarters? Lol I've always loved that crazy story. 😂
17 years ago on this June 1 will be my 17th here here I also moved here in 2004 that is so fascinating! So happy to hear that you are enjoying the videos mean so much to me
Wow! I haven't seen that in years, Decades? Great vlog TJ. And almost to that 26k subscribers. Congratulations man.
Thanks Mike appreciate it man so grateful
i faintly remember driving past the attraction as a young child, but never stopped with family. (longtime resident of the area). glad to know there's a place that sells ketchup crisps! ( there's Lays Ketchup Chips that's sold only in Canada). thank you for another great video!!
Wow Tiki Gardens l have so many great memories from back in the early seventies my family used to stay at one of the cottages on Indian rocks ⛱ almost every summer when i was a kid.
I’m happy I could bring back some warm memories, would loved to have made some there myself. Thank you for watching my friend
What a terrific day of exploring Jay. From one side of the world to another with your meal and snacks. This was fun. Thanks!
Thank you Lisa I didn’t put that together until you said it. All the way across the world for sure ha ha all the food was terrific
A Fantastic veiw! Thanks so very much Jay for taking us along with you! Luv&Peace Cheers from Sean&family!
Thank you Shawn happy you enjoyed it it was a good time inside that store
I remember those place from when my fam moved here in the 70s So cool
America's entrepreneurial spirit always amazes me. I sure appreciate that you and a few others document these lost road-side attractions of yesterday. Thank you, Jay! Wow, dining next to a waterfall? People would pay a lot of money to do that!. I probably would have passed right by that British shop, but now I'm intrigued. Again, thank you, Jay!
Dude I would so have loved to of been there I feel so bad I didn’t live during the tiki crazy hopefully one day the tiki crazy will come back hopefully sometime in the near future thank you so much for always watching a supporting me my good friend! Hope you have the most wonderful day
British shop looked great...thanks.
That sign has always caught my eye when I traveled by it. I did look it up once but you did a lot more research than I did. Thanks for the little history lesson of that location. I wish I could travel back in time to pre- Disney and see all the roadside attractions that don’t exist anymore. That stuff fascinates me and it would have been cool to see.
It’s fascinates me too thank you Cindy
Well done. Sad, i loved the good ole' days, back in the mom and pop motel and hotel days, and small homes & cottages all along the beach.....before the county was all built up like it is now. Remember the Indian Rocks Long Pier ? If not research it. That little place on Walsingham where you got your Orange Whip is like the old school places.(not many around anymore) You were in my neck of the woods and didn't call me ?☹️
Thanks for all the great history and phots from the old Tiki Gardens. I love hearing about some of the lesser known stories behind these places. I think you are right about that old seawall being part of the original. Also I think that really tall palm is indeed an exotic “Washingtonian” type palm tree.
Thanks for making me feel better about my assumptions Russell LOL I appreciate you watching man happy to hear you enjoyed it
Was born in Clearwater in the 50s , used to go there several times a year everytime we had kin come for vacation 😁 there and several others like Sunken Gardens , Tarpon Zoo , and Cypress Gardens, there were quite a few locally around the area, PRE-Disney , good times , thanks for the video , great as usual 👍
I remember the peacocks that roamed around. I was heart broken to find out years later that it became a parking lot.
Thanks for the adventure Tampa Jay! Recently found your channel and I am enjoying it!!
OMG Flashback! I complete forgot about this place. I know I have tons of pics of me there as a child. Thanks for sharing!
Thankyou Tampa another fabulous video my friend ♥️🙏🙏
Thank you Mary :-)
Oh , what a great beach ! So sad Tiki Gardens is gone but its still quiet. Super video .
Oooh I've been to the Aloha in Seminole! The beef was to die for!! And I love that British shop!
It’s so good can’t wait to return for the bbq
You are adorable. Loved the Tiki history. One of my favorite places as a child.
Absolutely love your videos Jay
Thank you Stephanie means so much to me
Your very welcome Jay can I please ask you something
This was great! Thanks so much for sharing the history of the Tiki Gardens. It was really interesting. I also loved the roadside attractions/shops. It reminded me of traveling to Florida as a kid.
Thank you Karen I’m happy to hear you enjoyed it
Great video buddy. Shame this one is all gone but that small reference on that sign. From the old pictures, looks like it would had been great to go check out. Love the old school Florida attractions.
Mum and dad used to make Ginger beer until the bottles exploded one year 🤭🤭🤭♥️🙏
That’s so cool Mary it was tasty
3 towns up from where this is located and didn't know any of this was here. I'm excited
Great video TJ. Now I want to visit that little British shop and try that food truck too.
Thank you Ernest
This was fabulous, I have vacationed on Indian Rocks Beach a few times, beautiful area. Thank you
Thank you Harry
Interesting bit of history Jay. Great video. 🙂👍
Neat to know about. BTW I saw those same rental scooter cars in Daytona beach! Saw that little Cuban place right next to where you ate at! It's so neat that the 'Tiki" vibe is still there! The ice Cream looked Fabulous! And that Brit Shop has inspired me to stop there when I go eventually to Tarpon Springs!
Thanks Doug this is one of my favorite EDventures because the food was on point every single thing I tried even the snacks later… Were so good! I sure do miss the tiki crazy I hope we see another wave of tiki in the future
The proof of the wall is in the photo you showed with the woman standing by the wall leaning over the water,
they filled in the spot where you are standing when you asked for proof. Look down by your
shoes in the video and you can see the angle the wall is laid so the water would flow over and make a small waterfall.
So yes, you found part of the OG Tiki Gardens wall, good job Jay!
Very cool video! Loved it all! That British sho is great!
Kong Tiki, the sun god
I would have loved to Ben able to experience that place in its heyday, I’ll bet it was so much fun. Thank you so much for the history of roadside attractions and such, you do such a wonderful job, I really enjoy all of it, thanks for all you do and all my best to you.
Thank you dude! I am always very grateful of your support. Happy you enjoy them
I watched the whole video. It was a great adventure. Thanks buddy!
Thank you Mark
LOVE PJ's seafood... yum!
As a Brit abroad that shop looks like a must visit from our home here in Orlando
They have a ton of stuff in that shop and it’s right before the beach. I think you will enjoy it my friend
Love beach and rain. Awesome story, tho also quite sad. That food makes me hungry! Love ure shoes 👌Interesting vid, bro.
The food was great thanks Bernard
Love your vlogs! Love seeing all the cool places you visit.
I love the tiki style of the 50s to 60s its so retro. I want to do my backyard like that. I also love the architecture from that era too that have that space age design too. They don't make em like that anymore. That's why I also love the tiki room in Disneyland with dole whip is the bomb.
Whole heartedly agree with all the statements made in this comment thank you so much. Hope to see more tea stuff come back alive again across the country
Spent many an evening at TIKI GARDENS when I was a kid in the mid 70's
Wish I could have seen that place that’s so cool
@@TampaJay There must be a bunch of drink glasses still kicking around from the restaurant. You got to keep you glass when you bought an exotic drink. Now if can find info on Jerry's Rock'n Disco , that would be cool. So many goodtimes at that bar. Or The Penguin restaurant. These were all along the beach. I'm from Toronto , but I spent alot of time in St Pete growing up in the 70's and 80's. I still stop at Ted Peter's before even checking into my hotel , but I haven't been back since 2016
Dang, a lot of the roadside attractions I remember as a kid here in Florida have vanished.
That Orange Swirl looked legit! Next time you're at a British shop see if they have a candy bar called AERO. It used to be called Chocolight when Nestle made it in the 80's. It's really good. Also, the British Cadbury is better imo from ours here in the states. Thanks for the vid man, safe travels.
I live in Belleair Bluffs right near Indian Rocks Beach. Thanks for the info on Tiki Gardens. I was wondering about that parking lot
The bbq looked good but I would've made tacos) tortillas outta that! I'm so jealous of you getting that custard!! I've never had orange ice cream before other than sherbet if that counts. You've never had ketchup potato chips? They're my fav! There used to be Charley's Chips years ago that sold them in the tin can & would deliver them to our house when I was little. I'm 5 yrs older than you, btw! It's hard to get ketchup potato chips.
Still haven’t ate them lol thank you my friend
Many thanks, that was a great video!
Definitely liked the British food shop & bus, I hope you enjoyed your snacks but I’d like to hear your opinion on those fish and chips!
Thanks so much! I really enjoyed those snacks especially the Jelly’s
Me and my wife were parked in that same lot on Friday...thats our beach
It’s such a great spot. I know you guys have a wonderful Friday then :-)
Jay, love your content! You'll have to visit the legendary Mai Kai when it reopens this year
Seem to learn about new things on Jays videos. I eat at the Hawaiian place in Seminole and agree it is really good. Oh and Celtic shop of Dunedin is similar to the British shop. Good stuff
We will definitely check out that orange juice shop in Largo. Not a bad price for a gallon of fresh orange juice!
It’s a great stop tell them I said hello
Sad about Tiki Gardens, I think that remains one cherished childhood place during my family's annual summer vacation trips in Florida as we lived in Connecticut. We also went to Kai Kai in Fort Lauderdale on more than one occasion, so it's nice to see some remnant of tiki culture survive in this state. There's probably other small pockets of tiki/South Pacific culture I am no familiar with in Florida.
Ahhhh that British shop is so cool! We've watched so many British UA-camrs over the years that we recognized almost all of the brands in there lol Would love to check it out and try some of them sometime! Also, the orange ice-cream looks delicious! Gotta try that too! AND we need to try walking on the beach at night in the rain, that sounds awesome! Amazing video as always, Tampa Jay!
You gals would love it for sure! Let’s go!!
Thanks for another great video and I hope you are doing well. Have a great day buddy.
Thank you Matt
@@TampaJay my pleasure. Feel free to text me anytime. Have a great day.
Reminds me of losing Cypress Gardens where my daughter got married - now Legoland and a bit of CypressGardens left!!
I’ve got family photos of my dad and his family there wish I could’ve seen it back in the heyday but it is nice to see what is left out there at Legoland. Thanks for watching Connie
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Wow... Very cool and now I'm hungry to eat chocolate. ☺🍫🍫🍫
Jay...... you rock
You rock Gary! Thank you
Great vlog and video, I think that’s where we park to go to Indian Rocks beach if I’m not wrong and also I need to go and try that Hawaiian food sometime, thanks for another great video😁
Thank you Laurence it’s a great spot
I have faint memories of visiting Tiki Gardens as a kid. I think I was about 10 when it closed. From what I've heard the actual Gardens were basically abandoned and left alone and are beyond the boundary of the parking lot, so whatever is left of them may still be there underneath all the overgrowth. Which is really unfortunate, because it would have been a cool County Park to go along with the beach access.
I was thinking the same I mean 12 acres is a lot of land there have to be something more there! It would have been cool if they would have done what was done with Silver Springs
I was so bummed when it closed. I would go with my parents many times. It was so magical and amazing! There's a tiki gardens album that exists and it's highly collectable and worth a lot of money so always be on the lookout for one. The albums audio is here on UA-cam so go listen to it.
I have not been able to find it. Do you have a link?
@@zigzag1734 I guess it was deleted. That's a shame. I'll keep an eye out for it if it's ever re-uploaded.
flroida lifestyles yay go there when we rent a condo on the beach.
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Love your you tube channel.
Thank you my friend
I hate that all of the Tiki has been removed from Florida
Me too man it would be cool to see a tiki craze
Idk about Tiki but I love that JP shirt u wearing
Ha ha thanks buddy
makes me want to take a trip back to Indian rocks and check out the orange grove then go to jimmy gunas restaurant for a key club wrap
Sounds like a good plan to me :)
Great video Jay. Being from the UK, loved the Britsh Shop. It was great to catch the British accent in the background of an American video when helping out with the pronunciation of Cornish Pasty! - it would be great for the shop owner to say a few words on camera if they so desired.
The Voice you heard was the shop owner LOL Thanks so much David I had a great time inside that store I only showed a small amount of their goods, there was so much in store!
Top dog Jay
Reminds me of the Tiki room at Disneyland. I wonder which came first?
The Spam Musubi "Moo So Bee" is always so good.
Highly recommended.
Enjoyed the Brit store more than expected.
Thanks for that explanation of the proper pronunciation ha ha I’m happy enjoyed it . Thank you friend
@@TampaJay Would love to see you back at the Aloha place trying many Musubis 😀 let me know what you think.
Blessed Up!!
@@SuperEvilC Right on I love spam! Maybe I’ll visit the other location sometime and spam it up
@@TampaJay 🔥❤🔥
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Tiki Gardens was a nice place been there many times since i lived just down the road in Redington Shores . Do you know if Crabby Bills has reopened after the fire they had there in Indian Rocks
It looked open! Not entirely sure tho didn’t know about the fire. I used to work at Crabby Bills
Tampa Jay, could you do a video about Sulpher Springs in Tampa.It was located near Tampa Greyhound track near Waters ave. North Tampa
I have before but it was a long time ago but I plan on doing something specific in that area again, thanks for watching my friend. I appreciate your suggestions thank yoib
Google “Tampa sign Adventure Tampa Jay” old school stuff when I first started
You must be a big fan of Adam the Woo
any other tiki around in florida from around that time? sucks for a parking lot
Are you related or from the same place as Adam the Woo, close my eyes and listen to your accent it’s almost identical your vocal on inflections and speed you talk ?
Check out my last video before this one lol just a coincidence
Just saw it when I subbed , I watched that vlog from Adam and just said to the missus , Jay was the other chap with Adam at the strawberry festival lol
@@ThemeParkBazza glad you saw it buddy thank you for watching
Don’t buy the Easter eggs 😂the prices are way to high 😂
Lol nooooooooooo!!!!!!!!!!!
You need to quit breaking your neck so much. But we appreciate the effort.
Hahaha yep thank you
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