Inside, the visual details run deep, but there are some standouts, including the giant red letters spelling ‘dare’ above the bar. The mirror that runs along a good portion of the bar has been covered up almost entirely with stickers from all walks of life (including Scoundrel’s Field Guide). The array of liquor bottles behind the bar serves as just one aspect of a pretty dense setup, with what looks like the clearance aisle of a Halloween store mixed in with New Orleans Saints gear and a handful of framed pictures.
Opposite the bar is where the real show can be found, where sporadic seating leaves ample room for decoration, a large neon sign inscribed with “Billy’s, Home of the Famous Volcano” serving as the centerpiece. Having visited Aunt Tiki’s many times at all hours of the day and night, the color inside is always the same, the faint red glow of the neon sign permeating the dive bar’s space.
The rest of the wall is a shrine to tiki bar decorations of years gone by, framed tiki-inspired poster prints mixed in with metal sculptures and what look to be original pieces of art. The display stretches back to a series of video poker machines the vending machine portion of the dive bar (e.g. cigarettes). Beyond those machines, a tiny alcove made up of church pews circling what looks to be some kind of shrine (or just an old fireplace) sits completely secluded from the rest of the bar.
