Mike's Tiki Bar - East Burke, VT
Mike’s Tiki Bar in East Burke, Vermont, is a unique pet-friendly outdoor venue perfect for relaxing with your dog after exploring the region’s renowned pet-friendly trails and dog-friendly hiking. This hotspot features a large outdoor deck, craft beer selection, food trucks, and a casual, sociable atmosphere where both people and dogs gather after riding on the Kingdom Trails. With its welcoming vibe and dog-friendly policy, it’s a top choice for locals and visiting dog lovers looking to unwind in a scenic, social setting.
While this is not a traditional dog park with fenced-in play areas, Mike’s Tiki Bar openly welcomes dogs and provides ample outdoor seating for owners to relax. The expansive deck, shade from the covered bandstand, and open picnic-style seating offer a comfortable spot for both you and your furry friend. The venue is wheelchair accessible and there are restrooms on-site, making it convenient for all visitors. The energetic weekend crowd and live performances make it a vibrant place to connect with other pet owners in East Burke, Vermont.
Frequently Asked Questions
- Are dogs allowed at Mike’s Tiki Bar? Yes, dogs are allowed at this outdoor venue.
- Is there a fenced area for dogs? No, there is not a fenced dog play area at this location.
- Are there seating areas for owners? Yes, there are plenty of tables and chair groupings on a spacious deck.
- Is Mike’s Tiki Bar wheelchair accessible? Yes, there is a wheelchair accessible entrance, restrooms, and parking lot.
- Are restrooms available? Yes, restrooms are available for visitors.
- Where is the best place to park? There is a free parking lot and free street parking available on-site.
- Is there shade or shelter available? Yes, there is a covered bandstand and shaded areas on the deck.
- How busy does it get on weekends? It can be very busy, especially during local festivals or after big trail events.
- Are there pet-friendly cafes or stores nearby? Yes, East Burke is known for its outdoor and pet-friendly culture, with other options nearby.
Reviews
What a cool place to finish a ride at KT! Nice warm atmosphere. Good truck food to accompany your rounds of Fiddlehead after a spectacular ride. Also a nice change of pace from the other bar right around the corner. Definitely stop for a beer after earning it by finishing a nice ride!
Sorry, we were actually expecting a Tiki Bar. You know, something Caribbean-themed and colorful cocktails. So we were a little disappointed and didn’t stay. However, they did have a really nice large deck and an outdoor bar featuring a long list of craft beers, which we had already been drinking all day. Can’t say how the service or food was, but I can say it was really busy, so probably fine.
Nice outdoor deck but maybe skip the taco food truck. The bartender ordered from the pizza truck and that should have been a clue. This place seems designe for the weekend bro-bike-beer crowd rather than for families and riders.
Staff in need of hospitality training, stat!
Exterior venue serving beer, wine and root beer from a horse shoe shaped bar in the middle of a large deck with multiple table/chair groupings. There is a covered band stand adjacent to the parking lot with food trucks at the other end of the outdoor pavilion. It has potential, but needs to fix some serious staff issues.
The afternoon I was in town coincided with the annual Fall Festival, so the parking lot was crowded with festival goers added to the stream of mountain bikers coming off the Kingdom Trails.
It was poor planning by management to post a lone bartender when the place opened at noon for cyclists and festival goers. That is simply not conducive to a good customer experience. Going 15 mins before making eye contact with people sitting on the bar stools is too long—and the same bartender was expected to service the long queue of people standing patiently at the bar. Then the bar tender said the multitude of phones on their property knocked the Wi-Fi out so all sales were cash only, further slowing things down.
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Speaking of lacking customer service: We drove into town on an EV, and would have felt more comfortable being able to top off the battery. When the area is a bit remote, sometimes private enterprises will allow plugging into their exterior plug for an hour or two. The gesture costs them very little, and they sell more during the time people are waiting for their car battery to charge. I scoped out an exterior plug behind the building, but instead of just pulling in to sneak a charge, my husband did the right thing and approached an older woman wearing the Mike’s logoed shirt. We had seen her clearing glasses off the table earlier and she’d seemed to be in charge. He received an appalling response from her. She laughed and dismissed his request to plug in saying, “You bought it, it’s your problem.” Then she stated that if he plugged in all their circuits were going to blow.
That jarring note soured an otherwise pleasant visit to Burke Mountain. It is rumored that Vermonters are notoriously cheap, but what could electricity have cost after we’d already purchased several NULL beers— cash since their wifi was down—and we would have stayed to consume more. Vermonters are also famed environmentalists, and what could be greener than a vehicle that does not rely on fossil fuels to reach the nearest chargers in St Johnsbury.
I recommend leaf-peepers, hikers, bikers, and snow bunnies stay away from this bar– it’s incapable of handling a crowd, and staff needs a lesson in hospitality with a heavy dose of empathy thrown in.
PS: We plugged in our EV overnight at our condo rental, and we now know that a 10 hr top-off battery boost cost our host NULL. (NULL!) To save
This is a review of the Two Tamales truck, which aside from having run out of the eponymous tamales, had superb bowls with both omnivore and vegan options. Do not discount the contribution of farm-fresh lettuce, and do not assume it needs to be further clad in a tortilla. Atmosphere at Mike’s Tiki Bar was full of people and dogs, both generally social and sociable, and beverage selection was better than what one might expect given the lack of enclosure.