Kiki Lounge: Building a Tropical Bar on a Not-So-Tropical Island

On this episode, Damian Cole sits down with Jamie Lewis and Drew Fleming from Kiki Lounge — the award-winning bar bringing tropical escapism to the windswept Isle of Man. The pair share how a pandemic pivot turned a small-island nightclub into one of the UK’s most talked-about cocktail destinations, and why they chose to drop the word tiki in favour of something more authentic and inclusive.

They talk origin stories, supply-chain nightmares, and the creative freedom that comes with isolation. With only 80 thousand residents and every delivery arriving by boat, Kiki’s team have learned to plan months ahead, reuse everything, and turn scarcity into a design principle. From fermenting pineapple trim into milk punch to developing house “super-juice” for consistency, they prove sustainability can be both pragmatic and profitable.

Jamie traces his path from McDonald’s in Sheffield to running Bath & Bottle and opening his first pop-up in a hotel basement. Drew recalls starting as a 17-year-old glass-washer before discovering hospitality’s addictive rhythm and rising to co-founder. Together they explain how Kiki Lounge began mid-COVID as a one-room experiment and evolved into a purpose-built venue mixing neon, pop culture, and tongue-in-cheek tropical style.

The conversation dives deep into:

• Island hospitality: how intimacy, consistency, and humour define service in a close-knit community.
• Cultural awareness: moving beyond tiki stereotypes to celebrate joy and colour without caricature.
• Sustainability by necessity: waste-free prep, local-first sourcing, and ingredient life-cycles that make sense on a small island.
• The zine menu: an ever-changing printed magazine that educates guests (“What the **** is Kiki?”) and keeps the team inspired.
• Hospitality outside the glass: the energy, soundtrack, and sense of fun that make a night at Kiki feel like an event.

Expect plenty of stories — from trading bar tabs for furniture in the early days to guest-shifts aboard the island’s heritage steam train. They also name their dream Kiki soundtrack (Spice Girls, Anderson .Paak, Madonna), confess the most Isle-of-Man thing that’s ever happened during service, and share their picks for overrated and underrated cocktails (spoiler: flavour-blaster bubbles out, 20th Century in).

Key takeaways for bar owners and bartenders:

• You don’t need a big city to build a world-class bar; you need a clear identity.
• Sustainability works best when it’s built into the workflow, not bolted on for PR.
• Fun and professionalism can coexist — “we take what we do seriously, but not ourselves.”
• Print menus can educate, entertain, and evolve with your guests.

Why it matters:

Kiki Lounge has redefined what island hospitality can be — proving that creativity, community, and a little irony can turn 36 miles of rock in the Irish Sea into a global cocktail destination.

Connect & Follow:

• Kiki Lounge @kikis.lounge
• Jamie Lewis @jamielewislewis
• Drew Fleming @drewfleming00
• The Cocktail Academy @welovecocktails | @welovecocktailsx
• sayhello@thecocktailacademy.com

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