Makai Restaurant

Makai Restaurant Voted Best Restaurant in Santa Cruz, 2024, Sentinel Readers Choice. We are the fully immersive tiki paradise on the Santa Cruz Wharf!
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Memorial Day on the Wharf ๐ŸŒบ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ธโฃโฃโฃโฃIf youโ€™re spending the day in Santa Cruz, come grab a drink, take in the ocean air, and...
05/25/2026

Memorial Day on the Wharf ๐ŸŒบ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ธโฃโฃ
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If youโ€™re spending the day in Santa Cruz, come grab a drink, take in the ocean air, and enjoy our May specials.โฃโฃ
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๐Ÿน ๐‹๐จ๐ฌ ๐…๐ฎ๐ž๐ซ๐ญ๐ž๐ฌ brings savory Clamato, tequila, citrus, chile liqueur, and draft lager together with a Tajin rim and fresh lime for something bright, spicy, salty, and seriously refreshing.โฃโฃ
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๐Ÿ‹ ๐“๐ก๐ž ๐Œ๐š๐ค๐š๐ข ๐Œ๐ž๐ณ๐ž ๐๐ฅ๐š๐ญ๐ญ๐ž๐ซ layers house-made hummus with fresh herbs, feta, olives, cucumber, tomato, lemon zest, and crisp pita chips made for sharing around the table.โฃโฃ
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๐ŸŒฟ ๐“๐ก๐ž ๐‹๐จ๐š๐๐ž๐ ๐‹๐ข๐ ๐ก๐ญ๐ก๐จ๐ฎ๐ฌ๐ž combines marinated chicken or plant-based chickโ€™n with chilled quinoa salad, artichokes, tzatziki, feta, and citrus for a fresh, colorful plate that feels just right by the water.โฃโฃ
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๐Ÿฅƒ And behind the bar, weโ€™re featuring ๐‘.๐‹. ๐’๐ž๐š๐ฅ๐žโ€™๐ฌ ๐Ÿ๐Ÿ ๐˜๐ž๐š๐ซ ๐‘๐ฎ๐ฆ ๐Ÿ๐ซ๐จ๐ฆ ๐๐š๐ซ๐›๐š๐๐จ๐ฌ with rich notes of toasted coconut, caramel, vanilla, and oak.โฃโฃ
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Today, we also pause to remember and honor those who served and sacrificed for others. Weโ€™re grateful for the chance to gather, celebrate, and share moments like these together. โœจโฃโฃ
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See you on the Wharf.

๐Ÿ“ Makai Island Kitchen & Groggeryโฃโฃ
๐ŸŒŠ Santa Cruz Wharfโฃ
๐Ÿคฉ Open M, T, Th, Sun 11-8 & W, Fri, Sat 11-9โฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃ
๐Ÿ˜€ Happy Hour M-F 3-6 PMโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃ
โ‰๏ธ Trivia Nights Wednesdays 7-9 PMโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃ
โฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃ
Photography by Jamie Hall Media
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Look closely. Three bottles. Three seats left.โฃโฃโฃโฃCoincidence? We think not. ๐Ÿฅƒโฃโฃโฃโฃ๐—ช๐ž๐๐ง๐ž๐ฌ๐๐š๐ฒ'๐ฌ ๐ˆ๐ง๐๐ข๐ž ๐‘๐ฎ๐ฆ ๐’๐ก๐จ๐ฐ๐œ๐š๐ฌ๐ž is almo...
05/17/2026

Look closely. Three bottles. Three seats left.โฃโฃ
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Coincidence? We think not. ๐Ÿฅƒโฃโฃ
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๐—ช๐ž๐๐ง๐ž๐ฌ๐๐š๐ฒ'๐ฌ ๐ˆ๐ง๐๐ข๐ž ๐‘๐ฎ๐ฆ ๐’๐ก๐จ๐ฐ๐œ๐š๐ฌ๐ž is almost full. ๐‰๐จ๐ก๐ง ๐‡๐ฌ๐ฎ ๐š๐ง๐ ๐‹๐จ๐ซ๐ซ๐ข ๐Š๐ž๐ซ๐ง ๐จ๐Ÿ ๐‘๐š๐ข๐ฌ๐ข๐ง๐  ๐†๐ฅ๐š๐ฌ๐ฌ๐ž๐ฌ are bringing 8 of the rarest independent rums in the world โ€” and they're pouring them right here with the Rum Baron of Santa Cruz.โฃโฃ
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๐Ž๐ง๐ฅ๐ฒ ๐š๐ญ ๐Œ๐š๐ค๐š๐ข. ๐Ž๐ง ๐ญ๐ก๐ž ๐›๐ซ๐ž๐š๐ญ๐ก๐ญ๐š๐ค๐ข๐ง๐ ๐ฅ๐ฒ ๐›๐ž๐š๐ฎ๐ญ๐ข๐Ÿ๐ฎ๐ฅ ๐—ช๐ก๐š๐ซ๐Ÿ.โฃโฃ
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๐Ÿ“… Wednesday May 20 ยท 5:30pm ยท $25โฃโฃ
๐Ÿ“ 49A Municipal Wharf, Santa Cruzโฃโฃ
๐Ÿ“ž (831) 466-9766โฃโฃ
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๐“๐ก๐ซ๐ž๐ž ๐ฌ๐ž๐š๐ญ๐ฌ. ๐ƒ๐จ๐ง'๐ญ ๐ฅ๐ž๐ญ ๐ฌ๐จ๐ฆ๐ž๐จ๐ง๐ž ๐ž๐ฅ๐ฌ๐ž ๐ญ๐š๐ค๐ž ๐ฒ๐จ๐ฎ๐ซ๐ฌ.

That framed cover on our wall has a story.โฃโฃโฃโฃ๐€๐ฌ๐ค ๐ญ๐ก๐ž ๐‘๐ฎ๐ฆ ๐๐š๐ซ๐จ๐ง.โฃโฃโฃโฃAnd while you're here โ€” keep an eye out for events l...
05/15/2026

That framed cover on our wall has a story.โฃโฃ
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๐€๐ฌ๐ค ๐ญ๐ก๐ž ๐‘๐ฎ๐ฆ ๐๐š๐ซ๐จ๐ง.โฃโฃ
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And while you're here โ€” keep an eye out for events like this Wednesday's ๐‘๐š๐ข๐ฌ๐ข๐ง๐  ๐†๐ฅ๐š๐ฌ๐ฌ๐ž๐ฌ ๐ˆ๐ง๐๐ข๐ž ๐‘๐ฎ๐ฆ ๐’๐ก๐จ๐ฐ๐œ๐š๐ฌ๐ž. 8 exclusive pours, light pupus, Limited Seating, $25.โฃโฃ
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๐Ÿ“… ๐Œ๐š๐ฒ ๐Ÿ๐ŸŽ ยท ๐Ÿ“:๐Ÿ‘๐ŸŽ๐ฉ๐ฆ ยท (๐Ÿ–๐Ÿ‘๐Ÿ) ๐Ÿ’๐Ÿ”๐Ÿ”-๐Ÿ—๐Ÿ•๐Ÿ”๐Ÿ”โฃ
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๐Ÿ“ Makai Island Kitchen & Groggeryโฃโฃ
๐ŸŒŠ Santa Cruz Wharfโฃ
๐Ÿคฉ Open M, T, Th, Sun 11-8 & W, Fri, Sat 11-9โฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃ
๐Ÿ˜€ Happy Hour M-F 3-6 PMโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃ
๐Ÿ”Ÿ Tiki Tuesday All Day 10% Offโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃ
โ‰๏ธ Trivia Nights Wednesdays 7-9 PMโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃ
๐Ÿน Thirsty Thursday Happy Hour All Dayโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃ
โฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃ
Photography by Jamie Hall Media
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โ€œThe best gatherings usually begin with someone who knows how to bring people together.โ€โฃโฃThis Motherโ€™s Day weekend, Mak...
05/09/2026

โ€œThe best gatherings usually begin with someone who knows how to bring people together.โ€โฃ
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This Motherโ€™s Day weekend, Makai is celebrating the women who carry that gift naturally ๐ŸŒบโฃ
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The ones who host, guide, encourage, organize, calm the storm, and somehow still make everything feel effortless.โฃ
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Our May specials were built around that same feeling: bright, layered, welcoming, and full of life.โฃ
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๐Ÿน ๐‹๐จ๐ฌ ๐…๐ฎ๐ž๐ซ๐ญ๐ž๐ฌ brings savory citrus, tequila, chile liqueur, cilantro, and draft lager together in a cocktail thatโ€™s bold, refreshing, and full of personality.โฃ
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๐Ÿ‹ ๐“๐ก๐ž ๐Œ๐š๐ค๐š๐ข ๐Œ๐ž๐ณ๐ž ๐๐ฅ๐š๐ญ๐ญ๐ž๐ซ layers hummus, lemon zest, fresh herbs, feta, olives, and crisp vegetables into something colorful and made to pass around the table.โฃ
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๐ŸŒฟ ๐“๐ก๐ž ๐‹๐จ๐š๐๐ž๐ ๐‹๐ข๐ ๐ก๐ญ๐ก๐จ๐ฎ๐ฌ๐ž pairs marinated chicken or plant-based chickโ€™n with chilled quinoa salad, tzatziki, artichokes, herbs, and citrus for a plate that feels vibrant from the first bite to the last.โฃ
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๐Ÿฅƒ And for the rum lovers, ๐‘.๐‹. ๐’๐ž๐š๐ฅ๐žโ€™๐ฌ ๐Ÿ๐Ÿ ๐˜๐ž๐š๐ซ ๐Ÿ๐ซ๐จ๐ฆ ๐๐š๐ซ๐›๐š๐๐จ๐ฌ brings warm notes of toasted coconut, caramel, vanilla, and oak to the weekend.โฃ
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To the women who make gatherings feel fuller, brighter, and unforgettable. We raise a glass to you ๐Ÿนโœจโฃ
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๐‡๐š๐ฉ๐ฉ๐ฒ ๐Œ๐จ๐ญ๐ก๐ž๐ซ'๐ฌ ๐ƒ๐š๐ฒ!โฃ
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๐Ÿ“ Makai Island Kitchen & Groggeryโฃ
๐ŸŒŠ Santa Cruz Wharf
๐Ÿคฉ Open M, T, Th, Sun 11-8 & W, Fri, Sat 11-9โฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃ
๐Ÿ˜€ Happy Hour M-F 3-6 PMโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃ
๐Ÿ”Ÿ Tiki Tuesday All Day 10% Offโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃ
โ‰๏ธ Trivia Nights Wednesdays 7-9 PMโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃ
๐Ÿน Thirsty Thursday Happy Hour All Dayโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃ
โฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃ
Photography by Jamie Hall Media
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May has its own rhythm.โฃโฃLonger evenings, warmer air, and a table that fills with bold color and bright flavor.โฃโฃStart w...
05/05/2026

May has its own rhythm.โฃ
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Longer evenings, warmer air, and a table that fills with bold color and bright flavor.โฃ
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Start with ๐‹๐จ๐ฌ ๐…๐ฎ๐ž๐ซ๐ญ๐ž๐ฌ, our featured cocktail.โฃ A layered blend of Clamato, citrus, spices, and heat, built with tequila, cilantro, and chile liqueur, then topped with draft lager. Finished with a Tajin rim, lime, and pickled green beansโ€”itโ€™s savory, refreshing, and made to wake up your palate.โฃ
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On the table, the ๐Œ๐š๐ค๐š๐ข ๐Œ๐ž๐ณ๐ž ๐๐ฅ๐š๐ญ๐ญ๐ž๐ซ, house-made hummus, crisp pita chips, and a vibrant mix of cherry tomatoes, cucumber, kalamata olives, lemon zest, herbs, and feta, finished with your choice of olive oil. Bright, fresh, and made for sharing.โฃ
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And for something fresh and satisfying, ๐“๐ก๐ž ๐‹๐ข๐ ๐ก๐ญ๐ก๐จ๐ฎ๐ฌ๐ž,โฃ
marinated chicken or plant-based chickโ€™n over chilled quinoa with tomatoes, cucumber, olives, garbanzo beans, and fresh herbs, served with artichoke hearts and house-made tzatziki. Clean, balanced, and deeply satisfying.โฃ
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Behind the bar, our featured pour: ๐‘.๐‹. ๐’๐ž๐š๐ฅ๐žโ€™๐ฌ ๐Ÿ๐Ÿ ๐˜๐ž๐š๐ซ ๐‘๐ฎ๐ฆ from Barbados.โฃ Aged in ex-bourbon barrels with notes of chocolate, toasted coconut, caramel, and vanillaโ€”rich, smooth, and built to linger.โฃ
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May is now being served.โฃ
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๐Ÿ“ Makai Island Kitchen & Groggeryโฃ
๐ŸŒŠ Santa Cruz Wharf

๐Ÿคฉ Open M, T, Th, Sun 11-8 & W, Fri, Sat 11-9โฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃ
๐Ÿ˜€ Happy Hour M-F 3-6 PMโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃ
๐Ÿ”Ÿ Tiki Tuesday All Day 10% Offโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃ
โ‰๏ธ Trivia Nights Wednesdays 7-9 PMโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃ
๐Ÿน Thirsty Thursday Happy Hour All Dayโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃ
โฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃ
Photography by Jamie Hall Media
โฃโฃโฃโฃ

The ๐ง๐ž๐ฐ ๐’๐ข๐ ๐ง๐š๐ญ๐ฎ๐ซ๐ž ๐‚๐จ๐œ๐ค๐ญ๐š๐ข๐ฅ ๐Œ๐ž๐ง๐ฎ ๐ก๐š๐ฌ ๐š๐ซ๐ซ๐ข๐ฏ๐ž๐ at Makai, bringing a fresh wave of flavor just as Santa Cruz leans into long...
04/29/2026

The ๐ง๐ž๐ฐ ๐’๐ข๐ ๐ง๐š๐ญ๐ฎ๐ซ๐ž ๐‚๐จ๐œ๐ค๐ญ๐š๐ข๐ฅ ๐Œ๐ž๐ง๐ฎ ๐ก๐š๐ฌ ๐š๐ซ๐ซ๐ข๐ฏ๐ž๐ at Makai, bringing a fresh wave of flavor just as Santa Cruz leans into longer light, warmer nights, salt in the air, and music somewhere in the distanceโ€”that first real taste of almost-summer on the Wharf.โฃ
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Meet the newest additions to the menu, created by the Makai team:โฃ
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๐๐š๐ฎ ๐‡๐š๐ง๐š, floral, bright, and elegant, by ๐‡๐š๐ง๐š ๐Š๐ข๐ง๐ ๐ฌ๐›๐ฎ๐ซ๐ฒโฃ
๐‘๐จ๐ฎ๐ญ๐ž ๐Ÿ๐Ÿ“๐Ÿ, warm, spiced, and adventurous, by ๐Œ๐ข๐ค๐ž๐ฒ ๐‚๐ซ๐ข๐ฆ๐ฆ๐ข๐ง๐ฌโฃ
๐๐ข๐ซ๐š๐ญ๐žโ€™๐ฌ ๐๐ฎ๐ฅ๐ฅ๐ž๐ข๐ญ, tropical, bourbon-kissed, and smooth, by ๐‰๐š๐ค๐ž ๐„๐๐ฐ๐š๐ซ๐๐ฌโฃ
๐“๐ก๐ž ๐Œ๐ข๐œ๐ก๐ข๐ฌ, juicy, vibrant, and zero-proof, by ๐€๐ง๐ ๐ž๐ฅ๐ข๐œ๐š ๐‰๐š๐ซ๐š๐ฆ๐ข๐ฅ๐ฅ๐จโฃ
๐™๐ž๐ซ๐จ ๐”๐ฉ, rich, bittersweet, and zero-proof, by ๐€๐ง๐ ๐ž๐ฅ๐ข๐œ๐š ๐‰๐š๐ซ๐š๐ฆ๐ข๐ฅ๐ฅ๐จโฃ
โฃ
Also now pouring: ๐๐ฎ๐ข ๐๐ฎ๐ข, citrusy, warm-spiced, and legendary, from ๐ƒ๐จ๐ง ๐ญ๐ก๐ž ๐๐ž๐š๐œ๐ก๐œ๐จ๐ฆ๐›๐ž๐ซ.โฃ
โฃ
๐€๐ฅ๐ฅ ๐ฌ๐ฎ๐ง, ๐œ๐จ๐ฅ๐จ๐ซ, ๐š๐ง๐ ๐ค๐ข๐œ๐ค.โฃ
โฃ
And while youโ€™re making your way through the new menu, consider this your ๐ฅ๐š๐ฌ๐ญ ๐œ๐š๐ฅ๐ฅ ๐Ÿ๐จ๐ซ ๐€๐ฉ๐ซ๐ข๐ฅ ๐ฌ๐ฉ๐ž๐œ๐ข๐š๐ฅ๐ฌ before the month slips away.โฃ
โฃ
Come in, find your favorite, and catch April while itโ€™s still here.โฃ
โฃ
๐Œ๐š๐ค๐š๐ข ๐ˆ๐ฌ๐ฅ๐š๐ง๐ ๐Š๐ข๐ญ๐œ๐ก๐ž๐ง & ๐†๐ซ๐จ๐ ๐ ๐ž๐ซ๐ฒโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃ
49A Municipal Wharfโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃ
โฃโฃโฃโฃโฃ
๐Ÿคฉ Open M, T, Th, Sun 11-8 & W, Fri, Sat 11-9โฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃ
๐Ÿ˜€ Happy Hour M-F 3-6 PMโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃ
๐Ÿ”Ÿ Tiki Tuesday All Day 10% Offโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃ
โ‰๏ธ Trivia Nights Wednesdays 7-9 PMโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃ
๐Ÿน Thirsty Thursday Happy Hour All Dayโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃ
โฃ
โฃโฃโฃโฃโฃ

Something is arriving.โฃโฃOut on the water, you can feel itโ€”the slow glide of a sail, sunlight dancing across the surface,...
04/28/2026

Something is arriving.โฃ
โฃ
Out on the water, you can feel itโ€”the slow glide of a sail, sunlight dancing across the surface, that quiet moment just before everything shifts. The season is turning, and something new is just over the horizon.โฃ
โฃ
A fresh cocktail menu is on the wayโ€ฆ and itโ€™s worth the wait. ๐Ÿธโฃ
โฃ
But before it landsโ€”thereโ€™s still time.โฃ
โฃ
๐ŸŒŠ R๐ข๐ฏ๐ž๐ซ ๐’๐ญ. ๐‘๐ž๐ž๐Ÿ ๐‘๐จ๐ฅ๐ฅโฃ
๐Ÿ‹ ๐’๐ฎ๐ง๐ง๐ฒ ๐‚๐จ๐ฏ๐ž ๐‚๐ซ๐ข๐ฌ๐ฉ๐ฒ ๐‹๐ž๐ฆ๐จ๐ง ๐…๐ข๐ฌ๐กโฃ
๐Ÿ ๐’๐ฅ๐š๐ญ๐ž๐ซ ๐’๐š๐ง๐ ๐ซ๐ข๐šโฃ
๐Ÿฅƒ ๐‘.๐‹. ๐’๐ž๐š๐ฅ๐žโ€™๐ฌ ๐Ÿ๐Ÿ ๐˜๐ž๐š๐ซโฃ
โฃ
Aprilโ€™s specials are in their final days, and once theyโ€™re gone, theyโ€™re gone.โฃ
โฃ
Catch them while you can.

๐Œ๐š๐ค๐š๐ข ๐ˆ๐ฌ๐ฅ๐š๐ง๐ ๐Š๐ข๐ญ๐œ๐ก๐ž๐ง & ๐†๐ซ๐จ๐ ๐ ๐ž๐ซ๐ฒโฃโฃโฃโฃ
49A Municipal Wharfโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃ
โฃโฃโฃโฃ
๐Ÿคฉ Open M, T, Th, Sun 11-8 & W, Fri, Sat 11-9โฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃ
๐Ÿ˜€ Happy Hour M-F 3-6 PMโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃ
๐Ÿ”Ÿ Tiki Tuesday All Day 10% Offโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃ
โ‰๏ธ Trivia Nights Wednesdays 7-9 PMโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃ
๐Ÿน Thirsty Thursday Happy Hour All Dayโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃ
โฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃโฃ
Photography by Jamie Hall Media
โฃโฃโฃโฃ

Address

49A Municipal Wharf
Santa Cruz, CA
95060

Opening Hours

Monday 11am - 8pm
Tuesday 11am - 8pm
Wednesday 11am - 9pm
Thursday 11am - 9pm
Friday 11am - 9pm
Saturday 11am - 9pm
Sunday 11am - 9pm

Telephone

+18314669766

Website

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