Big & Small Business Memories

[Pomai]

Re: Big & Small Business Memories

Brah, we gotta' hook up with Scrivener and his 'Wiki' idea on this stuff. So much classic information on Hawaii businesses!

[EastCoastTropics]

Re: Big & Small Business Memories

Hell yeah Oahu had a Wigwam. It's where the McCully Long's is now.

If I recall, there was one in Waipahu as well.

[Pomai]

Club 'n Nightlife from Oahu's Past

Bump to top...

CILLY's - formerly located in a front cellar space in the current building on the corner of McCully and Ala Wai Blvd., just before Jack-in-the-Box on Kalakaua ave. They closed doors some time in the early 90's.

• SPAT's - formerly in a cellar under the Hyatt Regency. I believe it's a Chinese restaurant now.

• MASQUERADE - formerly located on the property where KC Drive-In once stood and Waikiki Landmark now sits. Been there a few times just out of high school. I remember they had an upper mez' level.

• MAHARAJA - formerly in the Waikiki Trade Center where ZANZIBAR now operates. Maharaja introduced Honolulu to the high end glamour club concepts in LA & NYC. Zanzibar continues that tradition.

• BOBBY McGEE's Conglomeration - fomerly located in the new W hotel, across the Kapiolani Park water fountain. It's now occupied by the W restaurant. This was THE club for my generation and a few others before that. Remember their cool porcelain toilet bowl logo drinking glasses? When they closed, everyone migrated to Restaurant Row.

• POINT AFTER - fomerly located on the second floor ocean-front side of the Hawaiian Regent hotel. They operated for a long time before closing to become EURASIA, who also survived quite a long time. They then closed when Hawaiian Regent was bought out by the Marriot. The space is now a hotel spa.

• PINK CADDILAC - formerly located in an old building next to 7-11 on Ena Rd. in Waikiki. This was THE place for the younger crowd in the late 80's. It has since closed and morphed into many other nightclub concepts. It reopened recently as Pink Cadillac again, but not sure if it's still in operation.

• HAMBURGER MARY's - fomerly on Kuhio Ave., Waikiki in a cluster of old wood buildings with an old Banyan tree behind it. Canlis Restaurant was just in front on Kalakaua. Hamburger Mary's and HULA's became an icon of Hawaii's gay community. That entire corner property is now redeveloped as a high-end boutique retail mall. Hula's has since moved and still operates in a second floor open air hotel space across the Zoo on Kapahulu Blvd.

• HERNANDO's HIDEAWAY - A cozy little sports bar tucked way behind a small lot on Kuhio Ave. We used to go there for their ono hand-tossed Pizza. Not sure what's there now.

• STUDEBAKER's - fomerly located in Restaurant Row where OCEAN CLUB currently operates. Studebaker's was memorable for the bartop performances of their wait and bar staff.

• BLUE ZEBRA - formerly in the corner unit of Restaurant Row, adjacent to Sunset Grill. It closed then became MYSTIQUE, who also eventually closed. Both of these clubs attracted the younger hip-hop crowd. The space has been (mostly) vacant ever since.

• WORLD CAFE - They had their beginnings next to the unit where Hiroshi restuarant now operates (formerly Sansei) in Restaurant Row. World Cafe then moved to Nimitz Business Plaza in a large back area warehouse. They survived for a while, then closed to become VOLCANO Night Club. They then closed as well.

• ONE HONOLULU - formerly in a space somewhere? in Aloha Tower Market Place. They tried to give it lots of media hype and glamour glitz like celebrity red carpet grand openings and such. Not sure what happened, but they ended up closing.

• SLOPPY JOE's/FAT TUESDAY - another former Aloha Tower M.P. tenant who was very popular as restaurant by day, club by night. It then opened as WATERFRONT CAFE, another hybrid restaurant/nightclub. They have has also since closed.

• CHI CHI's - fomerly in Westridge Shopping Center next to Pearlridge. By day it was a Mexican restaurant, but by night it was a very popular nightclub for the west side community during the late 80's and early 90's. The space is now occupied by Makino Chiya Japanese Restuarant.

• FAST EDDIE's - formerly located on a corner property in the middle of Kailua town. This was the one and only nightclub in the area and was popular with servicemen from Kaneohe Marine Corps Air Station (known back then as KMCAS).

Two notable "old school" clubs that still operate to this day include WAVE WAIKIKI and RUMOURS in the Ala Moana Renaissance Hotel. Still going strong after all these years. WAVE WAIKIKI may soon have to relocate (or close?) due to plans for a condominium project coming up on that property.

[kimo55]

Re: Club 'n Nightlife from Oahu's Past

• ONE HONOLULU - formerly in a space somewhere? in Aloha Tower Market Place. They tried to give it lots of media hype and glamour glitz like celebrity red carpet grand openings and such. Not sure what happened, but they ended up closing.

wasn't that DH makai side? makai of Hooter's? GB took it over for storage and extra banquet space.

[kimo55]

Re: Club 'n Nightlife from Oahu's Past

• PINK CADDILAC - formerly located in an old building next to 7-11 on Ena Rd. in Waikiki. This was THE place for the younger crowd in the late 80's. It has since closed and morphed into many other nightclub concepts. It reopened recently as Pink Cadillac again, but not sure if it's still in operation.

yea. the goth punk crowd hangs there.
leastwise they did about a year ago, last time i slipped into da hideaway for my weekly fight.

This location was mama's mexican kitchen back in the 70's. I worked there then.

[EastCoastTropics]

Re: Retailers of Yesteryears

*Source: the Companies we Keep by Bob Sigall and his students at HPU.

I ordered this book last Thursday and just got it in my mail today!! Bob Sigall also signed to book to me!! Can't wait to get started on reading it!

[tutusue]

Re: Club 'n Nightlife from Oahu's Past

wasn't that DH makai side? makai of Hooter's? GB took it over for storage and extra banquet space.

Hmmm, iirc (always questionable!), One Honolulu was on the ewa side, near the old Pier Bar (now Kapono's) and the tower clock. And I think one of the investors was the jewelry guy who had all those commercials! Jerry <fill in the blank>? And wasn't that during the late 1990s? Anyway, this is my first memory test of the morning so it could be short circuiting! Please correct me if I'm wrong!

[tutusue]

Re: Retailers of Yesteryears

I ordered this book last Thursday and just got it in my mail today!! Bob Sigall also signed to book to me!! Can't wait to get started on reading it!

It's a very interesting read...esp. how the idea for the book came about! Enjoy...

[Pomai]

the Companies We Keep by Bob Sigall and his students at HPU

I ordered this book last Thursday and just got it in my mail today!! Bob Sigall also signed to book to me!! Can't wait to get started on reading it!

I'm glad you got it. This is a MUST HAVE coffee table discussion piece that should be in every Hawaii home.

The media industry would be especially interested in chapter 8: Behind the scenes at Hawaii Radio & TV stations. Mel knows all about that.

[LikaNui]

Re: Club 'n Nightlife from Oahu's Past

Hmmm, iirc (always questionable!), One Honolulu was on the ewa side, near the old Pier Bar (now Kapono's) and the tower clock. And I think one of the investors was the jewelry guy who had all those commercials! Jerry <fill in the blank>? And wasn't that during the late 1990s? Anyway, this is my first memory test of the morning so it could be short circuiting! Please correct me if I'm wrong!

It was called Studio One (not One Honolulu, unless that was a different place). Kapono's has taken over that Studio One spot as a lounge, bar and restrooms, with the Kapono's office upstairs.
Studio One was indeed owned by that jewelry guy with the big old red Bentley convertible that was always parked in front of his mansion in Kahala on Diamond Head Road.
Studio One had a pretty stiff dress code and a high entrance fee on top of the high annual membership fee. Destined for failure from the very start.
As I recall, he spent about two million to build the place, and it only stayed open for five or six months before closing due to (ahem) fire code violations in parts of their remodeling.
Rumor has it that the whole deal was set up to fail from the beginning in order to create a nice tax writeoff.

[Pomai]

Ward Farmer's Market

Tell me this isn't so! Farmer's Market rocked as a one-stop anykine Hawaiian food place to find grinds. And speaking of poke, I was very pleasantly surprised to find that the Sam's Club on Ke'eaumoku St. has a counter that sells all kinds of poke that is freshly made right there in the store, and the poke was really ono too.

Took a quick stroll through Ward Farmer's Market today. Here's the current tenants:

On the far left is MARUKAI MARKET PLACE. A members-only asian grocery store. They have expanded and now take up most of the left portion of what was previously for Farmer's Market tenants. As of this writing, they only had make-shift plywood walls that separate Marukai from what's left of Farmer's Market.

As you enter the middle door, there's a Shave Ice Stand on the left. They also sell boiled peanuts and few other knick-knacks. Remember Bob's Boiled Peanuts? Looks like he's gone. Correct me if I'm wrong on that though.

Just after that on the entrance side is HAILI'S HAWAIIAN FOOD, which makes up most of that half of the market. I've never tried this place, but the food looks reasonably priced. Especially considering how expensive these type of ingredients can be. You can get a variety of Hawaiian food combo plates, including Poi for about $7 to $8. They also have all the Hawaiian food ingredients you might need. Various types of dry fish, inamona, raw taro, pipikaula, Fresh Opihi (black gold), Limu Kohu (purple gold), Luau leaves.. da' whole spread. They even have Tripe stew and Oxtail Soup! I'll make it a point to try a Hawaiian plate from them soon.

On the back side is a small store called LINS MARKET. They offer mostly snack foods and cracked seed items. They used to be in the outter front of the market, but were moved after Marukai took over that side.

On the right there's TROPIC FISH & VEGETABLE MARKET. This is wonderful little grocery store with cheap produce, plenty of fresh fish and freshly-prepared breakfast and lunch bento selections.

At the very end, just next to Tropics Market is TROPIC DINER. A dine-in/take-out plate lunch restaurant.

Folks probably remember the romance the old Farmer's Market had with the variety of small tenants that made up the place. Also the open, spacious feel.. and ohhh da' smell of fresh fish and Hawaiian food wafting in the air. Fortunately HAILI'S HAWAIIAN FOOD preserves some of that ambiance.

[lurkah]

Re: Ward Farmer's Market

Took a quick stroll through Ward Farmer's Market today. Here's the current tenants:

Mahalo nui for following up on this! I have an expat friend now living in Torrance, CA who's always made it a point during his visits back home to head over to Farmers Market to order local kine grinds and reserve a large order of frozen laulaus to take back with him on the plane, and he does all of this even before checking into their hotel. He'll be happy to learn that at least Haili's Hawaiian Foods is still there.

[Kalihiboy]

Re: Waialae Drive In/Jolly Rogers

IT was the Waialae Drive In and the ghost story was valid only at Midnight.

Did anybody ever think that the ghost story derived from the cemetary that is located next to the Self Storage place?

Also, I never saw a movie at the Drive In, I'm curious did the highway traffic ever bother anyone when trying to hear the movies?

What killed that JR location was when in the early 70's around 1971-72 the Waialae overpass was built extending the H1 to the corner of Ainakoa and Kalanianaole Highway.

Interesting. I wonder why they extended the overpass just a little bit more.
When was the overall overpass built that goes thru town by chance?

For instance what came first, the Pensacola Post Office or the overpass that sits on top of it?

We had Wigmam, Woolworths and Jolly Rogers in Phoenix during the 80's when I lived there. Woolworths was also in Chicago until the early 90's I think.

I also remember when K-Mart used to have cafeteria's, not the junk food Little Caesar's pizza joints they have now. Yuck!!

Bob Sigall's book is the BEST! I cant wait for another edition to come out.

Also EVERYONE, PLEASE write Thunder Bay Press (http://www.thunderbaybooks.com) an email and tell them you want a Honolulu Then & Now Book. I wrote them and they said if there is enough demand they would definitely do one. Many major cities have been covered thus far from Las Vegas (its neat to see the old and new casinos),
Chicago, New York, London, etc. Honolulu deserves one and it fits the exact topic we're currently discussing now!

Also check out:

http://www.thunderbaybooks.com/detai...sbn=1592233023

so you can see the Then and Now books I am talking about that we need for Honolulu.

KalihiBoy

[Pomai]

Wave Waikiki Celebrates 25th Anniversary

There's an interesting cover story in today's Advertiser TGIF section about WAVE WAIKIKI. Sorry, don't have the link. Reading the print version.

Jack Law, who also owns Hula's Bar and Lei Stand owns the Wave too.

Most interesting to me was the fact that the current location used to be Fast Eddie's. I thought Fast Eddie's was only in Kailua! The current Wave building was also The Dragon Lady, The Royal Lei, and Lava Lava.

Man, that must've been WAY before my time.

Mr. Law also mentioned that if/when they get kicked out of the current location (they're on month-to-month lease), he plans on continuing the club under the same name at a new location, just like he did with Hula's.

Those places must be rollin' $$$$$$$

[Pomai]

Queen's Surf Night Club in Waikiki

Someone brought up Queen's Surf night club here before. Forget who.

My mother said this was THE hot spot back in the old days of Waikiki.

It came to an end I think in the 70's when then-mayor Frank Fasi took upon the condemnation of land beneath it and tore it down. Some were not very happy about this, while others felt it was the right thing to do.

I think Sam Kapu (KINE 105) got his start at Queen's Surf, along with many other familiar names in local entertainment.