Mikado Inn "Real Photo" Postcard, circa 1920

This post showcases a "real photo" postcard of the Mikado Inn in Harmon-on-Hudson from around 1920. The establishment invited visitors to "take a stroll in the beautiful Japanese gardens" and enjoy either exotic oriental cuisine or familiar American fare, including a "$5.00 Porterhouse Steak for two."

The inn was constructed circa 1920 by "Admiral" George T. Moto (also known as "Data Moto" and "Toshiyuki Moto"), a former employee of Clifford Harmon. Following a disagreement, Moto purchased land across from the Nikko Inn—which he had previously managed—and built the competing Mikado. Both establishments, along with the Tumble Inn elsewhere in town, operated as speakeasies during Prohibition. In 1921, the Admiral was acquitted in what newspapers called "the first case to be tried in Westchester County for alleged violation of the New York State liquor law."

The postcard represents a "real photo postcard"—an actual photograph printed on postcard stock rather than a halftone reproduction. Kodak introduced this process in 1903 with the No. 3A Folding Pocket Kodak camera, enabling small businesses to produce and sell their own promotional postcards. The Mikado Inn likely produced this card itself.

Musician Oscar Levant performed there as a teenager.