TheBuzz
TheBuzz
The time and trauma of getting to a function at Hilton Hawaiian Village frustrates people trying to get in and out for a business event. (It took TheBuzz 40 minutes to get from Waterfront Plaza to the hotel's valet desk Thursday for a luncheon.) Pre-lunch
traffic tanglesMaking a right turn from Ala Moana Boulevard onto Kalia Road is time-consuming as one lane of Kalia approaching Hilton Hawaiian Village is closed. Add to that drivers cutting into the right-turn lane because their schedule is more important than yours and traffic backs up.
Hilton spokeswoman Bernie Caalim-Polanzi said the lane closure is necessary while the hotel is "redesigning the sidewalks to meander through the Kalia Tower landscaping."
Once on the property traffic flow is altered but smooth. Hilton Hawaiian Village Senior Vice President Peter Schall told TheBuzz entrances and exits are being added to the parking garage, and by July, the hotel will have increased ability to contraflow traffic into and out of the garage.
New de rigeur phrase
KDDB FM (102.7) morning show host Paul Ogata may have been the first Honolulu emcee to use the new pop culture "phrase that pays."At the American Marketing Association's marketer of the year luncheon this week he asked attendees to hold applause until previous years' winners were introduced. He zeroed in on one that didn't comply, informing him he was "The Weakest Link" dismissing him with a terse "Goodbye."
The payoff for Ogata -- audience laughter from those familiar with pop icon Anne Robinson, condescending hostess of "The Weakest Link" game show.
Not a salt store
The 10,000-square-foot space at Ala Moana Shopping Center that will bear the name Morton's is a restaurant named after Hard Rock Cafe founder Peter Morton."They're a premiere operator, specializing, of course, in steak," said Ala Moana Center General Manager Dwight Yoshimura.
The restaurant will be on the makai side, near Banana Republic.
Erika Engle is a reporter with the Star-Bulletin.
Call 529-4757, fax 529-4750 or write to Erika Engle,
Honolulu Star-Bulletin, 500 Ala Moana Blvd., No. 7-210,
Honolulu, HI 96813. She can also be reached
at: eengle@starbulletin.com