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IN 1984, Alan Beall of The Beall Companies got a telephone call from fellow developer Bruce Stark. Stark was in the initial planning stages of his One Waterfront Plaza, the $100-million office project in Kakaako, and wanted recommendations for possible use of the ground floor retail space. Beall agreed to take on what he first thought was just another mundane consultation. But after taking a walking tour of the site, his pulse began to race. "The Ala Moana corridor was the ideal restaurant area, especially if it could be tied into the noontime trade downtown," says Beall. "I remembered all the statistics showing that Hawaii was very under-restauranted. Diners here go to the same places over and over again."
Nearly every major Mainland city had a "restaurant row," says Beall. Now, he remembered thinking, it was Honolulu's turn. The next time he saw Stark, Beall floored his longtime friend and business associate with a stunning proposition. "I told Bruce that I wanted to lease the whole 95,000 square feet myself," says Beall. "And after I showed him my plans, he got excited too and said he'd go in with me."
In April of this year, Restaurant Row, a complex of 50 retail stores and seven major restaurants -- Hawaii's largest ensemble of eateries (based on number of operations, seating capacity and square footage) -- will officially open after three-and-a-half years of feverish activity and media hype. "I'm not Alan Beall anymore, I'm Mr. Restaurant Row," he says with a laugh. "I can't go to a party without 15 people asking me about the project. I feel like I should carry flash cards to answer all the questions."
But the opening of the much-awaited and highly touted complex is more than just another project for the longtime local developer. It's a personal victory against the doubting Thomases who are still shaking their heads, says Beall, who will turn 50 on April 11. "First they wanted proof that it was really going to happen. Well, here it is," he says. "Now, they want proof that it's really going to work."
Part of that skepticism is based on restaurants being a new direction for Beall. He has actually established a stellar track record in the creation and renovation...