In Louisville, Kentucky, there is an amazing and fortunate anomaly — a Polynesian restaurant that could be reopened today, despite having been closed for many, many years. The Luau Room, which was a dramatic A-framed Polynesian restaurant with large tikis, two bars, and thatching and huts to create intimate subrooms, later became a Mexican restaurant, a Salvation Army (!), and most recently a nightclub. Here’s the amazing-and-fortunate-anomaly part: the owner of the space has insisted that the tiki decor remain through all these incarnations, and in fact reportedly has more decor stored in a warehouse. The space is now for lease again. Louisville resident and tikiphile Nancy Beranek has made it a personal quest to see the Luau Room reopened and restored to its tiki glory, and has been working to get the word out to those who might be able to make it happen. If you are interested in learning more about the possibility of leasing this space and opening your very own palace of paradise, the leasing agent is Jody Zimmerman, (502)562-9200.

• Save Luau Room in Louisville, KY [Tiki Central]
• The Luau Room, Louisville, KY [Recent Past Preservation Network]
• Luau Room [Critiki]