The Hale Kai (House by the Sea) operated during the 1960s and was located at the Brant Inn in Burlington, Ontario. John Murray Anderson was the owner and director.

The original Brant Hotel opened in 1900 and burned to the ground in 1925. It was reconstructed that same year. Anderson and his partners, Kendall and Cec Roberts, purchased the property in 1939. Anderson became sole owner in 1954, having bought out the others.

Anderson is credited with being the first to bring big bands and floor shows into Canada and specifically with getting the popular Sky Club, which extended out over Lake Ontario, built at the Inn. There was Sophie Tucker, Victor Borge, Lena Horne, Louis “Satchmo” armstrong, Ella Fitzgerald, Johnny Mathis, Andy Williams, Liberace. And the big American bands came through — Goodman, Les Brown and his band of renown, and Stan Kenton, who packed 1,600 people into the place.

Poor health led Anderson to sell the Inn in 1964 to a firm called the International Atlas Development and Exploration Ltd.

In 1968, the decision was made by the owners of the Inn to close the entertainment landmark following the New Year’s Eve celebration. Demolition took place in 1969.

A commemorative plaque marks where the Inn once stood, located at the western end of Spencer Smith Park close to Maple Avenue.

*Today not much is known about the Hale Kai. Focus seems to be on the 1940s and 50s which are considered the high point of the Brant Inn. So, the Hale Kai may have only been around for a very brief time in the 1960s.

Details

Type

Bar & Restaurant

Address

Burlington, Ontario, Canada

Closed?

Yes (Permanently)