Would you create a paradise for zombies?
Zach did, but not for the undead zombies that haunt your dreams. Building a paradise for the living dead would be a questionable pursuit. No, Zach created a paradise for his love of the palatable and potent potation type of Zombie. You know, that beloved 1934 Don the Beachcomber cocktail that inspired an entire century of tiki drinks? There’s no question the Zombie has earned its place in paradise, and Zach has cultivated just the spot.
It might have all started when he asked his mom about the closing of Trader Vic’s in Detroit. He saw the mysterious pictures of bamboo booths and the exotic tiki carvings and had to ask, “Hey, Mom … what is Trader Vic’s?” Mom’s answer was succinct and to the point, “It’s for adults.” That was the end of that discussion but the beginning of Zach’s obsession. The images started infecting his brain at an impressionable age.
First came the tropical garden and some custom glassware. Despite the harsh lake-effect winters in his hometown of Detroit, each spring, Zach plants a dozen majesty palms, a dozen red bananas, and various other tropical plants that he knows will proliferate in the short summer season. To pair with the garden, Zach also designed and procured sets of double old-fashioned glassware with a “Paradis du Zombi” logo. For over a decade, he’s been sipping tiki cocktails surrounded by fourteen-foot-tall foliage that flourishes until the first frost, around late October. When it all dies, he clears and preps the garden to plant it again in the spring.
Next came the home bar. With thirty years of experience collecting, Zach’s focus was unwavering. He knew exactly what he wanted. He would create a bar that was authentic to true Tiki Style. But he had to consider the basics before he could even think about the decor and details. He needed to shore up the concrete foundation of his then-sinking 1942 outdoor garage as a first step. Once the foundation was done, a friend helped him replace the roll-up garage doors with beautiful carriage doors and the old side entrance with new French doors. When the building was structurally sound and had new elements of architectural character, the fun part began.
“Tiki has a very defined style. I wanted that old-school, midcentury look for the Paradis du Zombi,” explained Zach.
What Zach wanted was precisely what he created. And he did it in two years. His decades of visits to antique shops, estate sales, and search for salvage from historic landmarks paid off famously. He has curated an envious collection of tikis and lamps that are authentic to classic Tiki Style and local to Detroit’s heyday of Polynesian Pop. From Detroit’s famous Mauna Loa, a lost “fantasyland with an outdoor man-made lagoon, imported palm trees, waterfalls, and even an indoor pool where a girl would dive for pearls,” Zach has two of the original ten-foot tikis that once graced the now-gone supper club. He has exquisite lamps salvaged from Ping On, one of Detroit’s elaborate Chinese Tiki palaces of yesteryear that featured a horseshoe bar and a Great Wall diorama. Given his proximity to Max’s South Sea’s Hideaway, he’s been fortunate to procure some items from Mark Seller’s collection, including an historic tiki by Ed Crissman, a prolific 1960s carver who is well-known for the tikis he produced for Oceanic Arts and the Palm Springs Tropics hotel (now Caliente Tropics). There’s a beautiful panel he found from Philadelphia’s Kona Kai. Zach’s collection includes multiple items from Oceanic Arts, including a giant clamshell punchbowl and catalog item #153a, tikis stacked on top of each other. It’s all complemented by the Papua New Guinea masks found locally and the detailed routed trim work from the revivalist artist Lake Tiki Woodcraft’s Dave Hansen. As you might imagine, Zach’s collection has impressive provenance and is stunningly exquisite. The charm of Paradis du Zombi is undeniable, drawing in any Polynesiac who appreciates the artistry and history of Tiki culture.
“There’s more I want to do. I have more lamps than I can hang,” Zach shared. We all know the feeling. A tiki bar is never finished. I’m just amazed that he’s accomplished so much while working full-time and managing other adult obligations. His downtime is rare, but Zach takes advantage of it whenever possible. Since my visit, he’s created a beautiful entry signpost, and another tropical garden has been planted and is now fading. He’s clearly no zombie, but Zach is infected with the Tiki virus in the best of possible ways.
Truth is, we’re all a bit infected, aren’t we? If I need to become a zombie to enter Zach’s version of paradise, then I’m down. Mix me a drink first, then you can bite me. As long as I get to spend my undead days here in paradise, I’m good.
