Issue 188, Summer 2009 - Telegraph Hill Dwellers

North Beach Saloon Culture continued from page 5restoratives. William Saroyan, who knew a thing ortwo about San Francisco saloons, immortalized IzzyGomez’s establishment in The Time of Your Life, his1939 Pulitzer Prize-winning drama.So we’ve established that San Francisco hasalways been a thirsty town. But how about NorthBeach? The answer, of course, is that North Beach hasbeen an especially convivial neighborhood for saloonculture. In fact, it is in this favored enclave where manyof the city’s finest saloons are located. The ingredientsof the fine saloon we’ve already mentioned, as well assome of its other characteristics, are present in manyNorth Beach drinking establishments.Longevity seems a characteristic of goodsaloons. The oldest, continuously operated saloon inSan Francisco is on Upper Grant Avenue at FresnoStreet. It’s called, naturally enough, The Saloon andopened back in 1861 as part of the Fresno Hotel. Butother saloons go way back, or far enough back to haveestablished the cache of permanence. There’s Tosca, onColumbus Avenue. The original Tosca opened elsewherein North Beach in 1919 by two brothers fromItaly. Specs, at 12 Adler Place, right off Columbus, wasa speakeasy during Prohibition. La Rocca’s Corner onColumbus dates back to the 1930s; Gino & Carlo, onGreen Street, goes back to 1942, and Capp’s Corner, atPowell and Green, was established in 1963.And the Washington Square Bar & Grill, foundedby Ed Moose and Sam Deitsch in 1973, just keepsBreakfast& Lunch7 days a week7:30-3:30being reincarnated. The present WSB&G, lovinglyrestored, is under the direction of folk singer-publicanLiam Tiernan.History and myth are ingredients of saloonculture. The story goes that The Saloon was savedin the 1906 earthquake and fire by a water brigadethat refused to put the hotel’s resident hookers outof business. And it’s not hard to believe that, back inthe 40s, a gangland hit took place in the basement atLa Rocca’s.Fine saloons have fine saloon keepers. SpecsSimmons took over this eponymous establishmentin the 1960s. Simmons is a gregarious, left-overbohemian from the days when bohemians stalkedcontinued on page 76 Issue #188 • Summer 2009