 In 1960, the media described Shelter Island as "something from nothing", "a testimonial to human ingenuity", and "a man made wonderland of sub-tropical splendor".Per a special city overlay zone, all buildings on Shelter Island are supposed to follow a "Polynesian" theme, which was very popular in the 1950s when the area was first developed and attracted a concentration of multiple exotically themed restaurants and "tiki bars".Still operating since 1954, the famous Bali Hai restaurant has a tiki bar and its own yacht dock; in its early days it had Polynesian floor shows.