Restaurant With Storied Past To Be Auctioned

EAST GRAND FORKS, Minn. (AP) -- A restaurant with a storied past in northwestern Minnesota will be auctioned for sale.

Chicago gangsters and Hollywood legend Clark Gable are said to be among the early visitors at Whitey's. The East Grand Fork landmark subsisted through a fire in the 1940s and flooding in the 1990s, but closed in February after the new owners said they couldn't make a go of it. One of the owners, Dave Norman, said a competitive marketplace hampered efforts to revive the restaurant, established by Edwin "Whitey" Larson at its current location in 1930.

Once known as Whitey's Wonderbar for its stainless steel horseshoe bar, the legendary restaurant was featured in Time magazine and the Saturday Evening Post for its art deco style.

Now called Whitey's Steaks & Seafood, the property will be auctioned May 15. The Grand Forks Herald says seven second-floor apartments are part of the deal.

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