Walk into any Kavasutra and you will hear it every few minutes: a shell goes up, somebody says Malo, and the room drinks. It is our cheers, and it has a story.
The Bula years
For years, every shell at Kavasutra went up with a “Bula.” It is the Fijian greeting, and almost every kava bar in the country borrowed it. Nobody thought twice about it.
The delegates
Then a group of United Nations delegates from Vanuatu visited our New York bar. They liked the kava, which made sense, because it came from home. What they did not love was the toast. Fiji is Fiji, and Vanuatu is Vanuatu. Our kava is grown in Vanuatu, and in Vanuatu the word is Malo. It comes from maloku (some say malogu), the local word for kava itself.
Malo ever since
We switched that week and never went back. It is a small thing, but it matters: we import our kava directly from Vanuatu, we name our strains after the crop, and we would rather raise a shell with the right word.
So next time you are in, at the 1pm or 1am shell ritual or any time in between, raise it, say it loud, and drink it down. Malo.
Questions about Malo
What does Malo mean?
Malo comes from maloku (some say malogu), the word for kava in Vanuatu. At Kavasutra it is what you say when a shell goes up, right before everyone drinks.
Why do most kava bars say Bula instead of Malo?
Bula is a Fijian greeting, and early kava bars in the United States borrowed it. Kavasutra used it for years too, until a group of Vanuatu delegates pointed out that our kava comes from Vanuatu, not Fiji.
How do you pronounce Malo?
MAH-lo, two syllables, said with the shell in the air. Nobody will correct you if you get it wrong, but you will hear the room say it right a few minutes later.
Is Malo the same as Bula?
No. They are words from two different island nations. Bula is Fijian and goes with Fijian kava. Malo comes from Vanuatu, where every shell Kavasutra pours is grown.
Do I have to say Malo when I drink?
You do not have to, but almost everyone does. Kava is a social drink, and raising the shell with the room is a big part of why people keep coming back.