RustyGold
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Rare Token from 1938. Bradley’s 5 & 10. I found this in Huntington Beach. It was in a tiny dirt patch next to a recently blacktopped parking lot. At first, I thought it was a nickel but when I washed it off and I was surprised at what I found.
After some research I was able to find some history on this token.
One of the coolest finds I’ve found and this was an eyeball find.
Bradley’s Puka-Puka
(1938-1970)
Published on August 3, 2017. Updated November 14, 2024.
Bradley’s Puka-Puka was a high-end rum bar located on the mezzanine level of Bradley’s 5 & 10 (1938-1970) at Plaza and Third [Horton Plaza], San Diego. The main gimmick of Bradley’s ‘five and dime,’ other than its amusing callback to inexpensive hardware stores, was that all drinks served on premises were priced at five or ten cents each! Beers and short pours, mixed drinks, bar food. The original building was demolished, but rebuilt when Horton Plaza took over the downtown area in the 1980s. It is now known as the Bradley Building.In 1936 the building housed a swanky Art Deco nightclub built by Alex Cardini’s (Alex and Paul’s, Original Caesar’s Place, Tijuana) ex-partner Paul Della Maggiora (Alex and Paul’s, Paul’s Duck Press) and owned by the Stylianos.
After the Stylianos went bankrupt, ex-deputy sheriff and band leader Matt J Howardmade it his wildly popular dine-dance nightclub.
“From High Silk Hat to Working Cap, Bradley’s is for Everybody”
Frank L Bradley (1880-1964) had successful 5 & 10s in San Francisco, Hollywood, and expanded down into San Diego, snapping up the property. The bar in San Francisco was said to be the longest in the world. Bradley’s frontman, San Francisco hotelier Heck Church (Ambassador Hotel) quickly remodeled the nightclub, anticipating large summer crowds. It was written that the Bradley’s chain had served 3 million thirsty folks in 1937!Bradley’s Puka-Puka menu offered 150 varieties of rum — oh to try a Myer’s Mona 1906Jamaican — it was 30 years old back then! Thirty liquors… And then there were 75 ‘drinks of the tropics,’ priced at 25¢ to $1.50… Demerara Dry Floated, El Diablo ‘the devil drink of Mexico,’ Pi Yi served in a baby pineapple, Zombie Punch, Vicious Virgin, Puka-Puka Punch (the most expensive, ‘positively only one to a person’) and many more. If you wanted a ‘Skull and Bones’ cocktail, looks like you had to ask general manager Heck Church first…
In the 1950s, Bradley’s was managed by Abraham J Kahn, who had run for years a string of bars throughout San Diego. Kahn was put on trial for tax evasion, gambling and bookmaking. When he violated probation, US District Court judge James Carter had a few things to say about the man. ‘I think it might be very healthy for Mr Kahn to see the inside of a jail.’ Abe’s three sons became very successful as builders and restaurateurs — Irvin Kahn, Julius Kahn (Clairemont, University City, Rancho Peñasquitos, Mira Mesa) and Yale Kahn (Algiers, Bradley’s, Top’s, Roaring 20’s, Chuck Wagon).
Eventually, Bradley’s became a pizzeria, serving up quick pies to busy Plaza transit crowds and downtown workers.
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