The Keeper of the Keys

story by ROBIN TODD      photos by PAUL NURNBERG

If you have been in Beaufort for a couple of decades, you may remember a little place down on Bay street called Harry’s. It was the local gathering place for merchants, local officials, travelers, fishers, and played host to ladies lunches following Belk shopping trips. It was where the High Sheriff of the Lowcountry would hold court at the round table over a five-cent coffee. The story of Harry’s is with Harry Chakides Jr. himself, the man behind the counter.

Born and raised right here in Beaufort, Harry Jr. was the son of Greek parents who initially made a home for themselves in Savannah after meeting at the local Orthodox church. During the depression, they moved to Beaufort and settled right on Bay Street, where his mother had Harry Jr. in their home across from what is now the Beaufort Elementary school, to which Harry claims, “he was late to every day.” His Father, Harry Chakides, was the owner of a local restaurant, The Ritz.

“Growing up in Beaufort was a special thing, so much has changed.” Harry recounts his childhood navigating the rivers by boat and water skis with buddies, attending Beaufort Carnivals, and riding the bus to the air station to play baseball for high school. “Everyone knew everyone, everywhere I went, I was Little Harry.”

“Little Harry” found himself at a Citadel vs. Carolina game in high school, after being mesmerized by the Summerall Guard he set his ambitions on becoming part of this elite group of individuals. After graduating high school, he did just that, following in the footsteps of his older brothers, and with a lot of determination and hard work, he landed one of the coveted positions on The Summerall Guard at The Citadel. “It was the hardest thing I ever did in my life,” he explains that only fifty of four hundred students earned the privilege.

Following the passing of Harry’s father during his senior year at The Citadel, he received a phone call that it was time to come home and take care of the family. Being the youngest and the only sibling who had not yet started a family meant he was up to bat. After graduating from The Citadel, he returned to his beloved hometown of Beaufort. Upon getting re-established and realizing the shortage of career opportunities in this small town, he decided to follow in his father’s footsteps and open up a restaurant. He would call it Harry’s.

When Harry shared his passion for the idea of opening up a restaurant to his family, they were hesitant. “What do you know about the restaurant business they asked me. I responded, ‘Nothing!’ and then I walked down to the bank without two nickels to rub together and got the funds and opened Harry’s.” On a Thursday in 1960, the doors to Harry’s restaurant opened up, and floods of well-wishers came to cheer him on and support the grand opening. After days of being sick every morning from the stress, logistics, and unknown that comes with opening a new business, things fell into place, and Harry’s became a town staple. His motivation kept pushing him despite any obstacles that came before him. “If there is one thing I learned from The Citadel, it was that if you start something, you finish it. No matter what it takes.”

Harry’s became a local gathering place and was crowded with Bay Street Merchants, locals, and tourists. The High Sherrif of the Lowcountry often sat at the “round table” overlooking Bay Street having coffee. He said of Sherrif McTeer, “He was one of the sharpest men I had the privilege of knowing and learning from, we became close.” Joe Frazier would often come in for ice cream, and Pat Conroy could also be found enjoying his lunch and catching up with the locals.

After years of success with Harry’s, Harry decided to utilize the space overhead of the restaurant for another venture in the business, the hardest part, telling his wife. “She was a school teacher, and you know how the restaurant business is, it took me away all the time. I was scared to tell her I wanted to add to it. After I got up the courage and told her my idea, she responded with, ‘What are you going to call it?’ John Cross Tavern I told her, and she just said, ‘I like it!’ I wiped the sweat off and got to work.” John Cross Tavern was one of the first places in Beaufort to serve alcohol. Harry petitioned for this action as Beaufort was often bypassed for the ports in Georgia and Savannah for this reason.      Harry shared that he has been asked why he did not go to travel the world, he responds, “have you looked at the map of the intercoastal waterway? The Beaufort River flows right behind the restaurants. I don’t have to travel the world. The world comes to me.” This is the magic behind our little town of Beaufort. These establishments have held a safe gathering place for travelers and locals since they opened.

Asking Harry about all of the people he was able to build relationships with and all of the stories he was able to be part of and listen to, he states, “It was their club, I was just the Keeper of the Keys.”

In 2007 Harry decided it was time to call quits. “My legs had a long talk with me, and polio came back. It was time.” Harry’s restaurant and John Cross Tavern will live on through passed down stories for generations to come.