The best themed restaurants in America

What is it? The Mai-Kai opened in 1956 and is the longest-running Polynesian revue in the country. Diners from around the world come to transport themselves to the South Seas through cascading waterfalls and tropical gardens, feast on pupu platters and suckling pig, and watch the famous floor show directed and choreographed by native Tahitian Mireille Thornton. 

Why we love it: The floorshow changes every year January, so the experience always stays fresh. 

Time Out tip: Happy hour at both the Molokai and Bora Bara Bar lasts until 7pm and offers 50 percent off tiki drinks. 

Address: 3599 N Federal Hwy, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33308

Opening hours: Mon-Thu 4pm–midnight; Fri 4pm–2am; Sat 3pm–2am; Sun noon-midnight

What is it? Founded in 1931 as a pay-what-you-can Art Deco cafeteria, Clifton’s reopened for the third time in July 2024. The forest theme remains intact, but has evolved into a drinking den, offering a variety of cocktails, dancing, music, and live shows across five themed floors.

Why we love it: The whimsical themes. At the center of the space stands a 40-foot-tall fake redwood tree; its base is located near the Monarch Bar on the second level, and it reaches up to the ceiling with reinforced branches designed to hold aerialists. The other sections include the Gothic Bar—built around a repurposed 19th-century altar—Forest Glen, and the tiki-themed Pacific Seas.

Time Out tip: There’s also a food menu with skewers and burgers, but by and large, people come for the drinks and nightclub vibes.

Address: 648 S Broadway, Los Angeles, CA 90014

Opening hours: Fri, Sat 6pm–2am

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What is it? This small chain, with locations in Nashville, Denver, Kemah, and Houston, combines an aquarium visit with a seafood restaurant. Diners are seated around a 200,000-gallon tank, where they can view tropical fish, sharks and stingrays.

Why we love it: Though guests can’t partake in the rare species on display, fish is at the center of the menu, too. Ahi tuna nachos, sautéed redfish with a topping of lump crabmeat, and gator and shrimp tacos all appeal to guests who crave edible enchantment under the sea.

Time Out tip: Check the schedule for days featuring the Mystic Mermaids, a choreographed show in the aquarium tank featuring the restaurant’s infamous mermaid team. 

Address: 516 Opry Mills Dr, Nashville, TN 37214

Opening hours: Mon-Sat 11am–8pm; Sun 11am–6pm

What is it? Leave it to Vegas to host this over-the-top restaurant where waitresses dress as nurses and the kitchen serves the most unhealthy, widowmaker-inducing food chefs can dream up. Customers don hospital gowns as they await towering, loaded burgers and fries cooked in pure lard. 

Why we love it: Heart Attack Grill goes hard on the hospital theme—from shots served in pill containers to the wait staff decked out in full doctor and nurse gear. Additionally, the single bypass burger, featuring one patty and five strips of bacon, makes for a solid meal. But if you’re really aiming for its namesake, the octuple bypass with eight patties and 40 strips of bacon is your Everest.

Time Out tip: Find the smallest plate and don’t upsize anything, unless you want to become one of Heart Attack Grill’s statistics. 

Address: 450 Fremont St, Las Vegas, NV 89101

Opening hours: Seven days a week, 11am-10pm

What is it? Located inside the iconic Fairmont hotel, the Polynesian-inspired bar-slash-restaurant has been pouring mai tais since 1945, but in 2010 benefited from a $1 million renovation and facelift.

Why we love it: While we love the balanced drinks, the ambiance at Tonga Room is unparalleled. Be prepared for a man-made rain, thunder and lightning storm to hit the “lagoon” that was once the hotel’s swimming pool.

Time Out tip: Skip the food—it’s overpriced and mediocre. You’re here for the mai tais and kitsch. 

Address: 950 Mason Street, San Francisco, CA 94108

Opening hours: Wed–Thu 5–10pm; Fri, Sat, 5-11pm

What is it? South Park creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone rescued this formerly floundering house of wonders and reopened it in 2023 as a full-service restaurant with cliff divers, a puppet show, roving mariachi bands, and a magic performance by the Insanely Mysterious Sorsoro. 

Why we love it: Each reservation includes an entrée of Mexican food, chips and salsa, a soft drink, and of course, their world-famous sopapillas—all of which are okay. But what we really love is the absurd randomness of all the attractions. A wandering gorilla in a Mexican courtyard? Sign us up. 

Time Out tip: Absolutely be sure to make reservations first. Casa Bonita doesn’t accept walk-ins.

Address: 6715 W Colfax Ave, Lakewood, CO 80214

Opening hours: Tues, Wed 4º10:30pm; Thu-Sat 11am-10:30pm; Sun 11am-4:30pm

What is it? What started as The Mandarin House in 1950 has grown to become one of New England’s most pan-Asian restaurants, with a massive menu, sushi bar, and a quirky Luau Room and Tiki Lagoon.

Why we love it: The Wong family, which has owned the restaurant for three generations, does so much more than just American Chinese food. The restaurant can pack in over 1,200 customers who also enjoy Thai and Japanese dishes. 

Time Out tip: Portions are huge and can easily be shared or taken home as leftovers. 

Address: 948 Broadway, Saugus, MA 01906

Opening hours: Mon, Tues 11:30am–9:30pm; Wed, Thu 11:30am–11:30pm; Fri, Sat 11:30am–12:30am; Sun 11:30am-10:30pm

What is it? A Northern Virginia restaurant that uses cocoa and cacao in just about every aspect of the menu. Most of the chefs are trained in pastry arts and are also known as chocolatiers. 

Why we love it: There are chocoholics, then there is chef Santosh Tiptur. Trained as a pastry chef and chocolatier, he uses his favorite ingredient in practically everything. Diners can order crispy calamari in cocoa beer batter; Caesar salad with cocoa nib brittle and cocoa-infused, cured yolk; and short ribs in chocolate-Burgundy reduction to go with their Moussetache cocktail.

Time Out tip: Watch chocolate being made in the pastry kitchen while you take in the edible spectacle that is the flame-fueled Conche Entremet.

Address: 1605 Village Market Blvd SE, Leesburg, VA 20175

Opening hours: Mon-Thu 4–8:30pm; Fri 4–9pm; Sat 11am-3pm, 4-9pm; Sun 11am-2pm, 4–8:30pm

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What is it? This railroad-themed restaurant (with additional locations in Shawnee and Kansas City, Kansas) has delighted diners since it opened in KC in 1954. At cherry-red vinyl booths among railroad memorabilia like wooden train sets and crossroads signs, visitors order tried-and-true burgers, crinkle-cut fries and thick milkshakes.

Why we love it: Your wait staff comes in the form of a ceiling-mounted “train” that runs on tracks to deliver the order right to the table. It’s an old-fashioned good time that kids, in particular, are sure to love.

Time Out tip: Orders are placed via the phone at your table, but you might have to wait a second for someone to pick up. 

Address: 250 N. 18th St., Kansas City, KS 66102

Opening hours: Tue–Sat 6am-3pm

What is it? Located within a stone’s throw of Colorado Springs’ small, city-owned airport, the Airplane Restaurant is housed within a converted KC-97 U.S. Air Force tanker. Diners can sit at small tables within the plane itself or in “the terminal,” an attached dining room.

Why we love it: While the food isn’t anything special—don’t expect much more than burgers, steaks and a few straightforward salads—the fun involved in eating non-airplane food while inside an airplane is, well, totally worth it. Plus, the hundreds of photos and pieces of aviation memorabilia housed around the tanker. 

Time Out tip: If you can manage the steps, ask to be seated in the fuselage of the craft for a more unique experience. 

Address: 1665 Newport Road, Colorado Springs, CO 

Opening hours: Sun–Thu 11am–8pm; Fri, Sat 11am–9pm

What is it? Anything goes at this San Antonio classic, which opened in 1973 and added a location in Addison six years later. The theme is broad, embracing everything from Marvel comics to Pirates of the Caribbean, and the dining room is a hodgepodge of seating areas, including the attic, a tiki hut and even an old refrigerator where you can enjoy an American menu of steaks, burgers, ribs and catfish. 

Why we love it: The decor isn’t the only thing rocking the wild hodgepodge of themes here. Servers are dressed as all kinds of characters: Spider-Man, Robin Hood, and Jack Sparrow, too. 

Time Out tip: The fun is clearly aimed at kids, though the menu’s Roman Orgy—a “conglomerate” of smoked brisket, chicken and fresh fruits—might require some explanation.

Address: 902 NE Interstate 410 Loop, San Antonio, TX 78209

Opening hours: Mon–Thu 5:30-9pm; Fri 5–10pm; Sat 4-10pm; Sun 4-9pm

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What is it? A Wyatt Earp-esque experience in the heart of the West that’s accompanied by nightly live music and a themed menu that includes the “Kate’s Breast” sandwich and both the “Topless” and “Big Ass” Burger. Naturally, the movie Tombstone plays on an endless loop on screens behind the bar.

Why we love it: Tombstone should be considered a compulsory stopover for any true Wild West enthusiast and part of the history to be absorbed is Big Nose Kate's Saloon. The establishment is reportedly haunted and features an underground level where a worker spent years tunneling a secret entrance into a nearby silver mine.

Time Out tip: Bring your best western garb. Visitors are encouraged to dress up in period-style attire, and they can freely snap selfies on the bar or draped across the piano if they are so inclined.

Address: 417 E Allen Street, Tombstone, AZ 85638

Opening hours: Sun–Thu 10am–9pm; Fri, Sat 10am–11pm

What is it? This LAX-adjacent spot began life in 1967 as an aviation-themed restaurant but was reborn as a modern food hall in 2017. It now features six stalls serving salmon teriyaki bowls, barbecue brisket and mushroom-truffle pizza topped with a fried egg.

Why we love it: They’ve worked hard to preserve the aviation theme: Giant model planes hang from the ceiling, and the lingo echoes travel language ('Arrival' is where you place your order, 'Departure' is where you pick it up).

Time Out tip: Don’t forget to visit the Mile High Club bar and lounge to pick up a cocktail or a glass of wine and admire the view.

Address: 11022 Aviation Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA 90045

Opening hours: Mon–Thu 11am–7pm; Fri, Sat 11am–9pm; Sun 10am–7pm