THERE’S A HORSE IN THE ALLEY

My wife and I moved to Bakersfield, California in 2012. Back then, we didn’t have high expectations for our new digs. Mainly, we were there because that is where my job as an oilfield machinist took me. As a nurse, my wife can work anywhere and, as a machinist, I have that option as well. But an OILFIELD machinist limits my options significantly. I will say, after 10 years, Bakersfield has been a surprise. Some bad (sorry Oildale, and then there is mid-June through mid-September with triple didget temperatures most days), mostly good (the people, cost of living, variety of things to do). One of the most pleasant surprises, which I have commented on before, is the wide variety of GOOD dining experiences.

Last week, my wife and I discovered a new place to enjoy a great meal, The Horse in the Alley. The restaurant, appropriately, can be found in an alley in downtown Bakersfield, located off Chester Avenue between 17^th and 18^th streets. The building has quite a history, and so does downtown Bakersfield, for that matter. We took the opportunity to take a walking tour of some of the more historic buildings downtown. Fortunately, it was a rare July afternoon where the temperature stayed below 100 degrees, a bamy 95. If you grew up in Bakersfield this may be old information, or not. It’s amazing how little some people know of the town where they live. If you are a transplant, recent or little longer like us, you may find some of this history interesting.

We started at the Fox Theater, located on the corner of 20th and H streets. Originally built in 1930 for $325,000, the Fox was just one of several theaters designed, built, and owned by Twentieth Century Fox. Yes, THAT Twentieth Century Fox! Back then, motion picture studios tended to own movie theaters where they could exclusively show their own pictures. Is it just me or does anyone else see the irony of the Fox Theater being located on 20th street (although the address is on H street)? The theater opened on Christmas Day 1930 showing the musical comedy ‘Just Imagine’ featuring Maureen O’Sullivan and taking place 50 years in the future…all the way to 1980. Wow! Included in the price of admission was a Mickey Mouse cartoon and the famous Movietone newsreel. Premium seats went for 65 cents and seating for children 12 and under, 15 cents. Double Wow! At eight times the size of most west coast movie theaters, The Fox was the epitome of opulence, including decoration features such as inlaid beams, oil paintings, and tapestries. The walls of the auditorium were decorated with murals depicting Spanish village motifs. The exterior design of the theater was based on the Spanish Colonial Revival style and included a unique Moorish tower rising over downtown Bakersfield. Between 1930 and 1948 the theater played host to tens of thousands, if not hundreds of thousands, of moviegoers. The theater featured live performers as well, including the LA Philharmonic Orchestra among other popular acts. In 1948 the United States Congress handed down an antitrust ruling, barring movie companies from actively owning movie theaters. After that, the West Coast Fox movie theaters changed owners several times. Eventually, the Bakersfield Fox Theater became a part of the Mann movie chain. The theater withstood the 1952 earthquake which leveled much of downtown and in1953 it was remodeled, adding a neon marquee and a concession bar. In addition, the painted village motif in the auditorium was replaced with heavy draperies and gold leaf plumes. A new Cinemascope screen was also added. With the advent of multiplexes, The Fox theater was forced to close its doors in 1977. But, with the idea of renovating it into a four-screen multiplex. A concept that, fortunately, never materialized. The Mann company sold the building to the Martinez family in 1979. In 1984 the Martinez family leased the building to an investor hoping to transform it into a performing arts center. That plan proved too expensive, and the Fox remained closed for another decade. With the wrecking ball imminent, the nonprofit Fox Theater Foundation purchased the theater in June of 1994. Just four months later, in October, the Fox re-opened its doors. Since then, the theater has become a downtown landmark, showcasing a variety of entertainment. They recently hosted a screening of the Wizard of Oz which I think is very cool. I have been there to attend a charity tequila tasting event and also seen Jeff Dunham and the band Kansas perform there. Even seen a few movies there as diverse as It’s a Wonderful Life with Jimmy Stewart, the original Planet of the Apes starring Charlton Heston, Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey, and the Marx Brothers in Duck Soup.

From The Fox Theater it is a short walk to the Kern County Land Company building, aka the Tevis block, located at 1712 19^th Street. The Land Company was formed in 1890 by James Haggin with his brother-in-law, Lloyd Tevis and was instrumental in developing areas around the Kern River. Back then, apparently, the river flowed through town continuously. These days, so much of the water is diverted for power and agricultural use the riverbed is dry more often than not. The two were so successful that they commissioned the construction of the Land company building just four years later, in 1894. The building became an instant landmark, helping to open up and develop downtown Bakersfield west of H street. It was one of only a few buildings to survive the devastating 1952 earthquake, mostly intact. Later, it was reinforced and renovated to a close approximation of its original design and in 1984 it was placed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Continuing along 19^th Street, we came to another historically significant building. This is the Jastro building, located at 1800 19th Sreet. It was the culmination of the Standard Oil Company’s foray into the Kern County oil industry. Kern county was, and still is, one of the largest oil producing counties in the United States. In 1902 Standard Oil began to develop its holdings on the Kern River oil field. When the Jastro building was constructed, in 1917, Standard Oil moved its Central California operations to Bakersfield. The building was the first commercial building in the newly formed downtown commercial district. Like many of the other buildings on this list, it survived the 1952 earthquake intact. Of course, had these buildings not survived the earthquake, we couldn’t very well be looking at and discussing them now anyway.

Crossing 19^th Street and doubling back, we came to the old Nile Theater at 1721 19^th Street. We had spotted the theater marquee while looking at the Tevis block, just across the street, and were wondering about it as it was located so close to the competing Fox Theater. Back in the day, most communities had one, if not more, movie theaters. These were elegant affairs with comfortable seating complete with plenty of legroom, wide screens, and ornate lobbies serving up popcorn, hotdogs, dots, Junior mints, and soft drinks, all at reasonable prices. (Although, even then it was less expensive to sneak snacks from home.) Their glory days were in the 50s and 60s but they began to disappear in the 70s when theater owners realized they could make more money with 4 (or more) small screening rooms than with one large screening room on the same property. This coincided with the advent of the shopping mall. (There are no coincidences.) Not to mention the demise of the drive in theater one or two decades later. I was (un)lucky enough to witness the end of the community movie theater, but I still remember seeing a fair number of movies at old-school theaters. Anyway, The Nile began life in 1906 as the Bakersfield Opera House. With the growing popularity of motion pictures, it was re-purposed and renamed as a movie theater in 1924, a full six years before the Fox Theater opened its doors. In 1937 it received a brand-new Marquee and was renovated in an art moderne style. Then, in the 70s, it befell the fate The Fox had managed to avoid, when it was split into two smaller theaters. In 1994 it closed it’s doors and stood empty for a dozen years. 2006 saw it reincarnated as The Nile Bar and Grill. At least the new owners were able to save money on signage. After a little over 10 years, in 2017, it morphed into it’s latest incarnation, as the Resurrection Church, which is what it remains to this day. At least, thankfully, they left the old marquee.

Another block east on 19^th Street found us at one of the newest restaurants in town, Cask Strength. This was previously the location of The Mark, a high end steak house. We had eaten there once and the food wasn’t bad, just a little pricey. It’s my understanding that The Mark was owned by a local doctor. Apparently he was a better doctor than he was a restauranteur. We haven’t sampled Cask Strength yet but, according to owner Bryan Oberg, the menu features entrees of filet mignon, salmon, and lamb chops. There is also pastas and specialty burgers. The maple bacon burger sounds life threateningly good. The bar will feature cocktails featuring American-made bourbons and whiskeys. The primary reason I brought up Cask Strength was not it’s menu, which definitely warrants a future visit (and blog?), but the distinctive murals painted on the outside front of the building and on the side of the building which borders an alley. Actually, this whole part of downtown is replete with murals. I think it gives the area a lot of character and hopefully the city sponsors more of this type of urban artwork.

We continued East on 19th Street for half a block and turned right on Eye Street. After another half a block we turned left onto Wall Street, which is really an alley. There are more murals here as well as a couple of quintessential “dive” bars that deserve a mention. First, there is Two Goats & The Goose located at 1529 Wall Street. Opened in January 2020, this was formerly Muertos. Before that it was Suds Tavern and Paco’s Tacos. It managed to survive the pandemic even though it opened just a few months before the country closed. This is probably due, in part, to the fact that, while the name changed, ownership did not. The menu remains mostly intact which is good news as Muertos had a well deserved reputation for serving one of the best burgers in town.

Right across the alley and a few paces further East, at 1514 Wall Street, is Guthrie’s Alley Cat. Established in 1940 as Oscar’s Alley Cat, it is the oldest bar in Bakersfield and features a unique, old style, neon blinking Cat outside the main entrance. I have never been inside but have been told good things about the place. Including the fact that there are distinctive murals painted on the interior walls, including a reproduction of a mural by famed caricaturist Al Hirshfield. Although, as a true dive bar,  it serves no food, it is conveniently located across the alley from Two Goats with Mama Roombas around the corner on 19th and Wall Street.

Emerging from the alley and turning left, just around the corner from Guthrie’s at 1817 Chester Street, is Jerry’s Pizza. Owner Jerry Baranowski is one of the early leaders of the downtown Bakersfield revival movement. A Polish immigrant, he opened Jerry’s in 1992 serving good pizza and providing live entertainment in the basement on the weekends. The pizza place quickly became a Bakersfield icon for the next 26 years. Jerry sold the restaurant to a former employee in 2018 and, by all accounts, the transition has been seamless. It still offers good pizza, live entertainment, and most importantly, that downtown Bakersfield vibe. Jerry even occasionally hangs out at the place.

Over time that look either fell out of style or someone with incredibly bad taste decided to cover the sandstone facade with stucco. It had been in a fire and the resulting structural damage caused the roof to collapse. Abandoned and unusable, it became a home to pigeons and vagrants and was scheduled for demolition. Enter Foti and his wife, Maya, Tsiboukases who purchased the building in 2017. For two years they had the stucco painstakingly removed to reveal the underlying sandstone facade, all but forgotten. They refurbished the building and in 2019 it opened as The 1800 Restaurant. A very trendy, upscale establishment that became an instant hit.

The Californian sits at the corner of 17th and Eye Streets. We continued one block west on 17th, turning right onto H Street and walked another block to the corner of H Street and 18th Street. There we found ourselves at the historic Padre Hotel. The eight-story Spanish Colonial Revival hotel was built in 1928 during California’s notorious oil rush days, lending to the hotel’s colorful history. Especially when it was purchased in 1954 by Milton “Spartacus” Miller, who had, shall we say, an antagonistic relationship with the city fathers. For forty-five years he was constantly at war with the city on a variety of issues, going so far as to mount a faux missile atop the Padre’s roof aimed directly at city hall. His energy may have been better spent maintaining the hotel as it fell into disrepair, becoming a derelict in the 60s. It wasn’t rescued until after Miller’s death in 1999. Even then, the top floors remained condemned while the downstairs bar  became a meeting place for misfits and barflies. It wasn’t until 2010 that the Padre was rescued and renovated into what it is today, a luxurious boutique hotel. It offers a choice of five restaurants, a luxurious rooftop lounge or a casual bar at street level. It includes shops and plush rooms for the many guests it hosts. Stopping here we enjoied a refreshing drink at the lobby bar before dinner.

Clyde installed the horseshoe shaped mahogany bar, still in use today, and used the dishwashing room as a makeshift kitchen for sandwiches. He named his establishment The Office and most of his clientele consisted of doctors, lawyers, and judges who worked next door at the Haberfelde Building (built in 1927). It became a popular watering hole and many nights, a patron, realizing he was very late for dinner, would use the phone booth to call the wife to explain they were sorry but were still at “the office”. Clyde also began taking bets on sporting events as a side operation. It wasn’t long before he became known as a popular book maker and a judge of his acquaintance suggested he apply for a card table license. Soon a room downstairs became known as a high stakes poker room. The action in the room continued even when, some time later, Clyde’s license was revoked, only occasionally interrupted by police raids. One such raid caused the arrest of not only the Mayor of Bakersfield but the Chief of Police as well. Sometime in the late 1950s or 1960s the dining room was added. At the same time the marble steps at City Hall were being replaced and some of the old marble was re-purposed into the kitchen remodel where it still exists until this day. Clyde Barbeau is long gone and The Office has seen many incarnations over the past 20 years or so. For awhile it was The Basque Tradition, then Dave’s Deli, The Swing, Joe’s Place, Frank’s Office Bar & Grill, and most recently TL Maxwell’s.

The dining room was small but elegant with high arched ceilings and hanging crystal chandeliers. Lightning was subdued with soft music in the background, adding to the overall ambience. We were seated at a comfortable leather booth in the back. The dining area was full with lively conversation but the high ceilings must have an effect on the acoustics because we could carry on a conversation without raising our voices to be heard. That’s something of a problem with newer restaurants with boxlike dining rooms.

We started off with fresh bread supplied by Pyrenees, a local basque restaurant known for their baked breads. This was followed by clam chowder. My wife wasn’t impressed but I thought it was fine. I have long said Uricchios serves the best clam chowder in Bakersfield. This was no Uricchios but it was passable. For dinner my wife had the port wine grilled salmon. I had the prime New York Strip steak with whiskey peppercorn sauce. Both came with loaded baked potatoes and steamed vegetables. The salmon had a flaky texture, as properly cooked salmon should, and a tasty sweet flavor from the port wine. My wife thoroughly enjoyed it. The steak was cooked just right, which can be a challenge with thin cuts of meat. The whiskey peppercorn sauce added a tangy robust flavor. The vegetables were not over cooked but had a nice crunch when you bit into them. I hate soggy, overcooked vegetables. I was feeling adventurous and ordered a lemon drop, a drink I’ve heard of but never sampled. It was very good, like lemonade with vodka.