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Tiki Central / General Tiki / Honolulu Harry's Coming Soon

Post #19674 by Traderpup on Wed, Jan 15, 2003 9:47 AM

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I wonder if this "Honolulu Harry's" relates at all to the real estate tycoon Harry Weinberg? Here's an abstract from a Baltimore article:

As businesses big and small withered, an intractable investor named Harry Weinberg was there to snatch up the properties.

Weinberg, a middle-school dropout who had come to Baltimore from Austria as a child, once sold newspapers along Howard Street. Following a lucrative career as an auto-tire recapper and transit mogul, he became the area's land baron. This obdurate, driven businessman eschewed social gatherings and personal luxury to concentrate on savvy business dealings based on the timeless principal of "buy low, sell high." After decamping to Hawaii in 1968, he gained the moniker "Honolulu Harry"--and a reputation as the quintessential absentee landlord, sitting on his properties rather than developing them.
"he owned so much land [in Hawaii] and had so much power he was able to get them established."

Another article about him here:

Harry Weinberg, Honolulu Star article

Here's a photo:

And here's a postcard of an old Polynesian restaurant in Chicago:

And Westmoore Investments listed "Honolulu Harry's Restaurants" as a partner.

There's a song named "Honolulu Harry" that Gonzo plays on the ukulele in "The Muppets Take Manhattan"

Other than that, found no specific info on a new restaurant coming.

:tiki: