SoHo's young owner gets it right

808wise from honolulu - November 29, 2009 at 9:21 PM

@VanHerk hmm.. could you possibly be an insecure 'nightclub' owner yourself? why all of the controversy and so much to say? weird, news FLASH: as a patron and customer of many night clubs that honolulu has to offer... soho is what it is. seems like you stick to the SKYLINES of waikiki and honolulu.. leave china town to those of us who can see vision, art, media and hard work with bare hands. you know, real people?

kgray from eleele - August 29, 2009 at 6:54 AM

there's always someone in the crowd that has something bad to say about anothers good fortune. remember the saying "if you havent got anything good to say DONT SAY NOTHING AT ALL" it always warms my heart when i see young people bettering themselves and the community around them. CONGRATULATIONS on a JOB WELL DONE! good things come from hardwork and good genes!!!!

dgray from Chinatown - July 31, 2009 at 2:01 AM

@VanHerk: Actually, Mall Cafe did not lose it's license because of a health code violation, and the "hard work of the professional community," meaning a petition opposing the renewal of their license, wasn't even considered at the hearing. The motion to transfer the license was made before the consideration of pending violations AND the petition, which, according the the liquor commission, was probably going to get thrown out anyway. I, on the other hand, went around Chinatown and got the support from all surrounding business owners to show that they supported the transfer of the license to me. I took the time to go to the first friday and ADMA meetings, getting to know the people of the community, and sharing my vision for SoHo with them. Just a suggestion, but perhaps you should consider doing some actual research before you make comments.

jdelacruz1543 from Wahiawa - July 27, 2009 at 9:21 AM

i love SoHo!!.....and loove all your hater comments (makes me laugh) ..grow up douche bags! :))

VanHerk from Honolulu - July 25, 2009 at 6:28 PM

As far as the removing the, "nexus of crime" Mall Cafe did need to go, but it was hardly a hard won fight on Gray's part. Mall Cafe lost their license because of a health code violation and the hard work of the professional community; Gray saw the opportunity to leave Loft and pursue his own venture. He didn't reclaim a spot against the dark forces, please. Either way the unsavory clientele of Mall Cafe has now moved to another part of Chinatown, hardly cleaning things up but simply shoving them in a different direction. If he really wanted to change the atmosphere, he would have opened a soup kitchen with a drug treatment facility, not another bar. Let's not fool ourselves, the scene is seedy, that is Chinatown, to try and claim to change it for the better is a joke. What would Chinatown be without the Samuel L. and the wheelchair lady? Like I said before, Gray deserves some credit, as any entrepreneur does, but SoHo is mediocre at best.

VanHerk from Honolulu - July 25, 2009 at 6:26 PM

Despite the seemingly abundant flow of philanthropic deeds that Gray touts he is accomplishing, bottom line is SoHo mediocre, plain and simple regardless of friend status. Instead of actually opening a well done place, with or without Italian couches, which is ridiculous, patrons of Chinatown are expected to celebrate a subpar environment with a less than professi onal staff. Can't we have a place that is built by a local person that meets a certain level? Why are the people expected to be grateful for handmade construction? It seems that Gray either A) Didn't put enough time into opening B) Couldn't get a loan to open right or C) Just expects people to accept whatever he gives. Regardless of the motive, SoHo is what it is, a thrown together space that some will like simply because they like the promotions. Very few will go to SoHo simply to have a drink, that could be because they are hardly open.

VanHerk from Honolulu - July 25, 2009 at 6:25 PM

Despite the seemingly abundant flow of philanthropic deeds that Gray touts he is accomplishing, bottom line is SoHo mediocre, plain and simple regardless of friend status. Instead of actually opening a well done place, with or without Italian couches, which is ridiculous, patrons of Chinatown are expected to celebrate a subpar environment with a less than professi onal staff. Can't we have a place that is built by a local person that meets a certain level? Why are the people expected to be grateful for handmade construction? It seems that Gray either A) Didn't put enough time into opening B) Couldn't get a loan to open right or C) Just expects people to accept whatever he gives. Regardless of the motive, SoHo is what it is, a thrown together space that some will like simply because they like the promotions. Very few will go to SoHo simply to have a drink, that could be because they are hardly open.

seneca from kaimuki - July 24, 2009 at 2:13 AM

ps. had a blast last night and I dont know gray. thanks soho. kekereeree lighten up francis

seneca from kaimuki - July 24, 2009 at 2:06 AM

Moving the bar makes a huge difference. The place isnt even done right? I think the warehouse feel reminds anyone that travels of something unique that isnt in hawaii. Either way, Wed nights in there are super fun, and if you cant have fun on Wed night in Soho well you probably should stay home with a glow stick in your behind because the rest of us will be rocking out to mj and more glowing with fun.God bless eskae, vegas mike and crew. I like soho!

dgray from Chinatown - July 22, 2009 at 10:58 PM

It's great to see that when someone has the courage to take a nexus of crime and violence and try to transform it into a venue that supports art and culture, that the community is so supportive of their efforts and hard work.

dgray from Chinatown - July 22, 2009 at 10:57 PM

SoHo is definitely not a unique name, but unlike the 24,700,000 results, mine actually fits. I lived and worked in SoHo for about 5 months and did a fair amount of research on the history of SoHo, what it was and how it became what it is today. Chinatown is going through a very similar change right now. South of Houston ---> South Hotel. I thought it was pretty clever, as did everyone but the haters commenting here. @kekereeree I'm sorry i'm not a millionaire who can afford to buy brand new Italian leather decor and i'm sorry the Whitlow Building was completed in the early 20th century and has less-than-standard plumbing that we are working on replacing. Thank you for your silly comment about me creeping customers. My staff and i laughed for about 37 minutes straight. The only people who like SoHo are my friends? I had no idea i had that many friends. AWESOME!

chant808 from Chinatown - July 22, 2009 at 3:50 PM

@ likemufflersinhawaii: I think Gray was referring to SoHo in and before the early 1990s, before it got "gentrified" and many of the artists were forced to move out. @ kekereeree: I agree, there are some problems with the club; work definitely needs to be done on the plumbing to keep it from leaking all over the floor. But honestly... given that I'm familiar with the unsavory history of Mall Cafe/Club Pauahi, I think Gray's taking over is a vast improvement.

seadub from Honolulu - July 22, 2009 at 12:27 PM

kekereeree ok ok ok you're right you're right people should go where they're happy or comfortable. i'm just kind of tired of seeing people with bitchface or being mean/etc when they're out somewhere. it's so lame - why even go out? i don't see that a whole lot downtown but seeing these opinions about this place is just like, fine. it's not for you. don't go there. i'm truly sorry you guys had bad experiences and yes i'm close with those people and see all their hard work and it hurts to see the negative comments. the only thing i don't agree with is drawing out the negative or whatever as being diplomatic. why even address it really. luckily i get to choose whatever i write and i choose to focus on the better things. you could probably say crap about anything if you really wanted to. i just don't think it's necessary. my opinion.

kekereeree from Diamond Head - July 21, 2009 at 9:53 PM

The only people that actually like this place are the ones that are friends with Gray. It's like when a friend throws a lame theme party but everyone goes anyways because you gotta be good to that friend. Hey, we get it but just because other people have opinions on it doesn't mean they are sending off "negative vibes." No one could ever mistake Honolulu nightlife writers/reporters as being diplomatic that's for sure.

likemufflersinhawaii from East Village - July 21, 2009 at 9:18 PM

we dont even have to be there the bar is already a clutter anyways...

likemufflersinhawaii from East Village - July 21, 2009 at 9:17 PM

we dont even have to be there the bar is already a clutter anyways...

christacw from honolulu - July 21, 2009 at 2:21 PM

cool. that's one, two... four people i don't need to worry about standing around in downtown cluttering up the bar with their negative vibing. sorry it's not a fit for you guys tho :(

likemufflersinhawaii from East Village - July 20, 2009 at 10:07 PM

Soho is not art, music and culture its H&M, Topshop, Uniqlo, Victoria Secret, Forever 21..and so on..

kekereeree from Diamond Head - July 19, 2009 at 5:41 PM

pegasus808 I was kidding. Sarcasm dude. Everyone appreciates your insightful opinions, Oh Well-Traveled One, I bow down. To any other confused Metromix readers I obviously don't think much of this "Mixed Media Bar."

pegasus808 from Honolulu - July 19, 2009 at 3:56 PM

Are you kidding, SoHo a unique name??? SoHo is a very very popular name for a nightclub or restaurant...Just search "SoHo Club" and you will see around the world the name saturates the market. 24,700,000 results. Unique--not at all. Gosh you must live in a cave or have not traveled at all to think it is a unique name....this is one of the things that bothered me--having such a boring over-used name for a new nightclub....blah!

kekereeree from Diamond Head - July 18, 2009 at 11:44 PM

Yes I LOVE SoHo. The name is so unique. The ambience in this place is top notch. Everything is pure class from the puddles covering the floor to the dirty white pleather couch in front. Wow, what a great addition to downtown. Bonus: Owner, Daniel Gray, creeping every customer that walks in with no "hi" or even a smile. Can't wait to come back!

VanHerk from Honolulu - July 18, 2009 at 6:03 PM

Although Gray deserves credit, SoHo is anything but mediocre at best. It seems that Metromix has succumbed to the avalanche of undue hype that SoHo has somehow bought.