Michael Harrah One Man’s Blueprint
How visionary developer Michael Harrah rescued Orange County’s biggest city from urban blight This article tracks Mike Harrah’s involvement with development in Santa Ana, starting with his first real...
View ArticleAmbrosia: an icon Reborn
The re-creation of an Orange County classic in downtown Santa Ana OC Metro dining critic, Patrick Mott, calls Ambrosia “unapologetically sumptuous.” Mike Harrah has reopened Ambrosia, the fine dining...
View ArticleThe Quintessential Self Made Man: Michael Harrah
He was penniless when he first resolved to buy a jet. Not anymore. Thirty five years after launching his career with nothing but competitive zeal and a carpenter’s tool kit, Michael Harrah is the sole...
View ArticleThe Story of Big Mike
Mike Harrah is a daredevil and a developer. Sometimes, he is both at once. Now, he wants to make a lasting mark in Hawaii Mike Harrah can’t help but make a big impression. He’s 6’6, 300 pounds and, as...
View ArticleWonderland Original Mike’s is a feast for the senses
Owner Mike Harrah has always defied convention but his unique vision for Original Mike’s continues to solidify Santa Ana’s place on the dining map. First a Packard dealership then an empty and...
View ArticleTruly an Original
Whether building hot rods or high rises, Mike Harrah only knows how to go full throttle In a profile for Velocity, a magazine targeted at car enthusiasts in Orange County, Mike Harrah shared stories of...
View ArticleHarrah Builds Lavish Theater—With Office Tower in Mind
Originally budgeted at $5 million, the OC Pavilion has been finished with a price tag of $22 million. Owner and developer, Michael Harrah, designed the theater with himself in mind, hence the $3.5...
View ArticleOriginal Mike’s
From Ruins to Restaurant “When Big Mike Harrah, the largest tenant improvement contractor in Orange County, California, spotted what was left of the United Auto Building in Santa Ana, California, he...
View ArticleOC 50 2009
Profiles of the County’s Most Influential Business People Mr. Big in county’s biggest city Mike Harrah’s 2009 profile in the Orange County Business Journal highlights some of Harrah’s latest...
View ArticleBuilding the American Dream: “Big Mike” Harrah
Mike grew up in middle class Whittier and like most California kids in the early sixties loved surfing, playing music (drums) racing cars, motorcycles and boats. In 1969, just after high school he had...
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