[QUOTE=Tourmaline;6683700]
Seating for 725?
Have to wonder about "Walt's" exterior depicted above. Could the image be an artist's rendering rather than the real thing? Not that Disney wasn't forward thinking but restaurant pictured and its angularity smacks of a era later than '35 or possibly even later than '45. Googies before Googies? (Of course that doesn't mean Googies or McDs or Burger King couldn't have adapted a good idea.)
Could "Walt's" have been known by another name? A cursory look through a few directories has not been productive. One might imagine there are photographs and souvenirs from this three-story establishment on popular Hollywood Blvd. I can't recall seeing any unless it was in the Mueller Bros.' customer waiting room.
Graubstein’s Peruvian Theater is another unknown. (Not clear that Graubstein has a listing either.
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That's what struck me about that article. I thought, "How could Walt Disney have had a popular diner on Hollywood Blvd for 16 years and I've never heard of it, nor seen any evidence of it (ashtrays, menus, photos)???" I suspect your theory that there was a name change somewhere along the line is quite possible.
The photo of the place does look like it could have been photoshopped, but the article did include a link to the place's menu
But now that I look at the original article again, the photos seem to look more and more fake. Plus, I can't imagine NOT having heard of a Walt Disney diner that stood on Hollywood Blvd for 16 years.
Conclusion: It's a fake.
Unanswered question: Why bother???