Night Shift

Love this shack

by Dean Carrico | Apr 26, 2006

Almost immediately after exiting highway 72 into the Hawai’i Kai area, mini-malls dot the landscape, making it an easy one-stop run for errands. There’s a chain supermarket, drugstore, discount warehouse store and a plethora of restaurants, both of the sit-down and drive-through variety. The one thing that isn’t in abundance is places to get beer.

Except for The Shack. And with its ‘Thirsty Thursday’ special, this is one weekly errand nobody puts off. Indeed, many patrons regularly make the trek from their usual spots around Waikiki and Chinatown just to order round after round of not-quite pints for just $2, as all of their drafts sell for that price, including the top shelf lagers, ales and stouts.

For Hawai’i Kai residents, The Shack is a blessing because it’s one of the only spots for nightlife (and if you live in Kailua or Mililani, take heart–you have your very own locations). Despite the potential for it to turn into a melancholy hangout of the Tom Waits sort, they keep the joint clean and family friendly with a mishmash of students, professors, family and friends. And if Thursday coincides with a major sports event–forget about it. Every square inch of seating space fills up with screaming fans, and on special NFL events, they’ll open early so you can have a front row seat to one of the many televisions lining the walls.

So beloved is The Shack with its patrons that when Thursday regular Kyle Schaeffer was deployed to Afghanistan, his father made arrangements to print 60 special military approved colored T-shirts featuring The Shack logo for his outfit to remind them of something to look forward to coming home for.

The Hawai’i Kai location looks deceptively small when you first step in, surrounded by heavy wooden stairs and an overlapping bamboo hut motif. But step past the slapdash arrangement of tables near the entrance, and the place opens up to enormous proportions, featuring a pool room with two tables, a spot for arcade games and dartboards, a great back lanai overlooking the marina and a huge front patio.

Of course, The Shack operates as a grill first and a bar second. They even offer chartered deep-sea fishing excursions where they will grill your catch upon your return. After five rounds of Newcastle and a bill that only totals up to $10, their generous offerings of burgers and sandwiches look mighty appealing.

But not nearly as appealing as another Newcastle.

Thirsty Thursday at The Shack Hawai’i Kai

377 Keahole St. #C2, 396-1919

Getting in: Open 11-2am, no cover, 21+ for drinks with IDDress code: Super casual–tank tops, shorts, sneakers Soundtrack: Varies, but usually concentrates on EZ pop hits Sightings: Mariah Carey, Metallica (not at the same time) Signature Drink: Dude, it’s $2 beers. What more could you want?

Celebrating Hawaii, nature, culture and wellness for over 35 years!
SURFER, The Bar

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