La Ronde (restaurant)

La Ronde was a restaurant[1] in Honolulu,[2] Hawaii. Built in 1961[3][4] and designed by John Graham,[5] it was the first revolving restaurant in the United States[6] (preceding the "Eye of the Needle" restaurant in Seattle) and the third[7][8] of its kind (after[9][10] the Florian Tower and the Cairo Tower) in the world. The restaurant is now closed.

Not to be confused with La Ronde at Chateau Lacombe Hotel, Edmonton, Canada.
La Ronde (atop the Ala Moana Office Building)
La Ronde (atop in center of image)

Building

The restaurant was situated at 1441[2] Kapi'olani Boulevard[5] in the Ala Moana district at the 23rd floor[6][1] of the Ala Moana Building[3] adjacent to the shopping mall Ala Moana Complex.

The restaurant was 72 ft (22 m) in diameter with a 16-foot-wide (4.9 m) revolving carousel which rotated around a fixed core[5] and had a seating capacity of 162 guests. The office building has a total height of 25 floors and 298 ft (91 m)[2] including an observation deck at the top.[5] The rotational speed was 1 rotation per hour.[4]

History

The building was designed by John Graham Jr.[3] of the architectural firm John Graham & Company. The building was completed in 1960[3] and inaugurated 21 November[6][1] 1961.[4] At that time, it was the highest building[4] in Honolulu.

Graham later received a patent for the revolving design in 1964 (US patent-nr 3125189[11]).

Later, the restaurant was renamed "Windows of Hawaii"[5] but closed completely[4] in the mid-1990s.[5] The premises were converted to office space, and the floor was welded into place.[1]

There was another revolving restaurant in Hawaii, called Top of Waikiki. It was closed in 2020 due to the pandemic. [12]

References
  1. Going ’round Waikiki, 2006 Star Bulletin (accessdate 31 July 2016)
  2. Ala Moana Center Emporis (accessdate 31 July 2016)
  3. Towering Ties Archived 9 August 2016 at the Wayback Machine Briale Morand (accessdate 31 July 2016)
  4. Ala Moana Building Ala Moana Center (accessdate 31 July 2016)
  5. Ala Moana Center, Architectural History Report page 37-39 Archived 10 May 2017 at the Wayback Machine Mason Architects (accessdate 31 July 2016)
  6. Some Construction and Housing Firsts in Hawaii, 72nd Annual Report, 1963, page 108 (11) Hawaiian Historical Society (accessdate 31 July 2016)
  7. A Brief History of Buildings That Spin Anthony Paletta, Gizmodo (accessdate 31 July 2016)
  8. A Moveable Feast: A Brief History of the Revolving Restaurant J S Graboyes, Duckpie (accessdate 31 July 2016)
  9. Revolving Restaurants in the Americas Archived 6 August 2016 at the Wayback Machine Phil Dotree, Interesting America (accessdate 31 July 2016)
  10. Pie in the skies – revolving restaurants Jan Whitaker, Restaurant-ing through History (accessdate 31 July 2016)
  11. patent Graham 1964 Google patents (accessdate 31 July 2016)
  12. Kato, Nicole (November 11, 2012). "Top of Waikiki". Honolulu Star-Advertiser. Retrieved November 20, 2018.

21.29271°N 157.84306°W / 21.29271; -157.84306

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