Tropicana Gives Tarzan Something to Crow About

OK, OK . . . so it’s a yuppie joint. The bright colors, the funky cartoon mural splashed across one wall and the Southwestern menu that’s heavy on Mexican food are dead giveaways.

But the Tropicana Bar and Grill, located on the ground floor of the newly opened Casa Tropicana Bed and Breakfast, has a definite charm that makes a visit for one of the bar’s various happy hour specials or for a late night snack a pleasure.

One can sit leisurely under the thatched roof that wraps around the short bar and sip tropical drinks or the latest fad, Trestles Beer, while getting a fantastic birds-eye view of the pier and the surfers below.

The prices--unlike those of the establishment’s bed and breakfast rooms above--are not astronomical.

The menu ranges in price from a generous helping of Trop Fries for $1.95 (fried in peanut oil for added flavor) to a double order of Ragin’ Cajun Garlic Ribs for $12.95.

The only disappointments are the so-called specialty drinks, a selection of fruity concoctions with names like Bahama Mama, Seal Rock Cooler and Tropicana Sunset. They seemed too watery and sugary -- especially at $3.75 and $4 apiece.

The Seal Rock Cooler, for instance, contains lemon-flavored Stolichnaya vodka, Midori melon liquor and triple sec. But it tastes more like lemonade.

The daily happy hours, from 4 to 7 p.m., may turn out to be the bar’s biggest draw. There are no free eatsto complement the drinks. But the dollar beers and two-buck margaritas have a definite appeal to most seasoned happy hour patrons.

Because the Casa Tropicana is a bed and breakfast inn, the bar and grill offers something most other drinking establishments lack: breakfast. But only on the weekends. Omelets range from $4.95 to $6.95, and other egg dishes run about $6.

Probably the most memorable feature of this trendy bistro is enjoyed only by the female patrons. In the ladies room is a mural of Tarzan sailing through the air on a vine. When visitors to the restroom pull down his loincloth, they get a peek at the Jungleman’s BVDs.

But they also activate a tape in the bar that fills the room with Tarzan’s trademark yell. (There you have it, guys. The mystery is solved. And you thought they played the yell whenever the bartender got a good tip.)

The Tropicana Bar and Grill, 610 Avenida Victoria (across from the San Clemente Municipal Pier), San Clemente. Open Sundays through Thursdays till 11, Fridays and Saturdays till midnight. (714) 498-TROP.