French fries are on menus everywhere today, but a few readers told me one place in Hawaii was the first to sell them. I was not able to verify that they were the first, or just one of the first to sell french fries, but Scotty’s Drive-In sold tons of them. Literally.
Scotty’s Drive-In, at 655 Keeaumoku St., was in the site currently occupied by Samsung Plaza, across from Walmart. Conklin Nakamura told me he was a fry cook and later a manager at Scotty’s, which opened on July 6, 1956.
The then-unfamiliar french-fried potatoes became so popular they went through 25 100-pound bags of potatoes daily almost from the day they opened, Nakamura recalls.
“We peeled, sliced, deep-fried, salted, packaged and sold more than a ton of french-fried potatoes a day. All the other drive-ins were selling noodles or rice. We had something different.”
One reader told me he remembers long lines going around the block so people could try this new thing.
On Fridays, sacks of potatoes filled their storeroom. Tom Fraser remembers playing king of the mountain on top of them with his brother, Peter. There was no room for the trays of hamburger buns, so Love’s Bakery left a trailer filled with them in the back parking lot.
Scotty’s was founded by Tom and Peter’s father, Charles Fraser, whom everyone called “Chuck.” He was a Scotsman and loved Scottish names, Tom says. Fraser also owned Rob Roy’s in Kailua, named for a Scottish outlaw.
Fraser grew up in Los Angeles, and a new place there, named McDonald’s, inspired his drive-in concept.
A small loan from his father-in-law — M.G. Augustine — who knew the landowner, got him started. At the time, Keeaumoku Street was in the middle of nowhere, Tom says. All the shopping was downtown until Ala Moana Center opened in 1959.
“A lot of people told Dad he was never going to make it because he was ‘way, way out of town.’ The huge crowds on Day One put that to rest!”
Scotty’s benefited from the building of Ala Moana, as many construction workers came for lunch. It also benefited from the nearby Kapiolani Drive-In Theater, which was in the area now occupied by Don Quijote and held 700 cars. The land between the theater and Scotty’s Drive-In was vacant, so the movie screen was visible from its parking lot.
“We’d have someone watch the movie,” Nakamura says, “and when it was about to end, our ‘lookout’ would holler, ‘Movie pau!’ We would then start cooking hamburgers and french fries frantically to prepare for an onslaught.
“We’d get hit by a seemingly endless line of cars entering the parking lot a few minutes later. Cars waiting to turn into the driveway would be backed up on Keeaumoku Street in both directions, and the frenzy would last for about two hours.”
“Friday and Saturday nights were so busy that when the movie let out we’d usually grill 72 burgers at a time, but even that failed to keep up with demand when customers would stand 20 or 25 deep at each of three service windows.”
Fran Bellinger told me that “during the early 1960s Scotty’s Drive-In was a thrill for local teenagers because french fries were 14 cents, burgers were 20 cents and malts were 24 cents.
“Scotty’s vanilla and chocolate malts were the ‘talk of the town’ where a large malt cup would fill you up! (Burp.)”
Scotty’s didn’t have carhops, Bellinger says. “One had to park the car and go in to order. After getting our food, we’d sit in the car and eat.”
Audrey Braun Lopes remembers that in the 1960s her parents would take her to Scotty’s Drive-In.
“It was my favorite place to go. They had the best cheeseburgers topped with an ono special sauce” (one a combination of mayonnaise, mustard and spices, and the other a mix of ketchup and relish). “They also had the best malts and milkshakes.
“Right next to Scotty’s there was a trampoline place (I can’t recall the name), and right next to that was another one of my favorites, Rainbow Rollerland. In addition to roller-skating, they had teen dances on the weekends.
“I remember all these places provided good, clean fun for us kids when we were growing up,” Lopes laments. “Sadly, they are all gone now, replaced by video games, computers and phones. What happened to the good old days when all our fun was done outdoors in the company of good friends?”
Chuck Fraser was successful with Scotty’s and opened a second one in Pearl City in 1958. He then opened Chip’s Coffee Shop mauka of Scotty’s on Keeaumoku Street in 1959. All three closed in 1974.
He also owned the Village Inn in Kahala (opened in the early 1960s and closed in the late 1970s), Rob Roy’s restaurant in Kailua (1969-1987) and the Crouching Lion Inn in Kaaawa (1964 to 1975).
Nakamura said two servers at Chip’s were loved by their customers. “Thelma and Helen ruled the counter. They knew what their favorite customers liked and brought it to them without their having to order. Lex Brodie was a regular. He’d come by after surfing in the morning for breakfast, before work.”
Bacon, ham or sausage and eggs was $1.40. For dinner, beef stew, mahimahi, filet mignon and other entrees ranged from $1.70 to $2.85. They came with juice, soup or salad; rice, fries or mashed potatoes; dinner roll; beverage; and Jell-O or pudding.
Chip’s also had salads, sandwiches, chili and desserts. It was open 24 hours a day.
Just makai of Scotty’s on Keeaumoku Street was another favorite haunt, Nakamura recalls: a bowling alley named Stardust Lanes.
“Pearl City Scotty’s was a huge hangout on weekends,” Tom says. “It was the ‘in place.’ Years after it closed, an alumni group tracked my dad down and invited him to their celebration.”
Rob Roy’s in Kailua was famous for prime rib and a surf-and-turf special they called “Sea Beef” — a combo of shrimp tempura and teriyaki steak.
Namamura said his starting pay was 98 cents an hour. For that he’d cook, act as janitor and lot maintenance man and, “with the help of Honolulu Police Department’s metro squad,” evict troublemakers from the parking lot.
Many police officers patronized Scotty’s or Chip’s, including three chiefs of police. At one point Fraser instructed the crew to leave several hamburger sandwiches out for them after they closed at night.
“He thought that their presence on the premises was a good way to keep burglars and other undesirables out,” Nakamura says. “At first there were only two or three police officers from the midnight shift, but once the word went out that there were free sandwiches at Scotty’s, officers from other areas came. Eventually, because there were more takers than sandwiches, they began suggesting we leave more, and the practice was discontinued.
“Chuck treated all the employees well,” Nakamura concludes. “It was a family kind of business and a great place to work. It was a truly unforgettable experience!”
“Restaurants were my dad’s first passion,” Tom Fraser says, “but he did buy Hawaii Blueprint in 1964 as an investment.” Tom has been president of that company for the past 31 years.
Do you have a Scotty’s, Chip’s, Rainbow Rollerland, Stardust Lanes or other drive-in story? If so, send me an email.
Bob Sigall’s “The Companies We Keep 5” book contains stories from the last three years of Rearview Mirror. “The Companies We Keep 1 and 2” are also back in print. Email Sigall at Sigall@yahoo.com.
