The American Bank Building (Now Bank Club Café)
The last original building on this block of San Pablo Avenue is this former bank at 3900 San Pablo Avenue occupied by the Bank Club Café with Wally’s Cafe tucked away in the rear.
In 1922, the American Bank, headquartered in San Francisco, began expansion into the East Bay and announced an Emeryville branch. They took up a temporary home across the street at the Stoer building until their new building was completed in 1925. Steb Teal was hired as the banks first branch manager.
The elegant two-story neoclassical structure was adorned by four pilasters in the front, a bold archway over the entrance, and a tiled mansard roof. The ground floor operated as a bank, while the second floor provided office space.
The 1920s were a time of rapid expansion and consolidation in the banking industry and by 1927, the bank became a Bank of Italy branch. Founded in SF’s North Beach neighborhood in 1904, the Bank of Italy served the area’s predominantly Italian clientele. The bank “outgrew” their name and changed to “Bank of America” in 1930. The Emeryville branch closed in the mid-1950s.
In 1960, Greek immigrant Nikolaos Nikitaras purchased the building with the intent of opening a card room. The city ordinance at the time called for a maximum of 6 permits, or one for every 500 residents, and an amendment to the ordinance that would allow for a seventh was denied.
Instead, Nikitaras transformed the ground floor of the building into a bar and restaurant named the Bank Club Café.
After Nicolaos’ death in 1976, his son Andreas took over operating the bar and restaurant.
Around 1983, the Bank Club finally secured a card club permit. Nikitaras leased the upstairs space to Vietnamese operators who ran a card room specializing in Pai Gow.
The operation proved short-lived. Violence erupted after an alleged member of the Chinese Wah Ching gang fired multiple shots into the building following a dispute over the extension of credit. Nikitaras terminated the lease and removed the tenant the following day.
In the late 1980s, the upper floor was converted into an apartment where Nikitaras’ and his wife Angeliki raised their four children.
Andreas was known for his incredible work ethic, often working 16-hour days, seven days a week, and keeping the bar open on holidays, where loyal patrons could congregate.
The City attempted to acquire the building for redevelopment, as they did with the two adjacent properties, but Nikitaras held out. When the city ultimately redeveloped the block for affordable housing, it absorbed the section of Yerba Buena that previously ran from San Pablo to Adeline.
In 2007, Lebanese-Mediterranean restaurant Wally’s Café opened in the rear of the Bank Club by restaurateur Walid Matar. Its elite Yelp reviews helped make it a foodie destination contributing to the venue’s cultural draw and making 3900 San Pablo Ave a destination not just for drinks, but also for food.
Andreas Nikitaras passed away in 2018 at the age of 76. He was honored in a proclamation by the city for his 42 years as a small business owner.
The bar is now in its third generation of family ownership, run by Nikolaos’ granddaughter Anna Nikitaras.
The bar continues to thrive, serving a diverse, multi-generational group of locals who converse while watching live sports and playing pool. The jukebox is gone, but music still permeates the historic bar that has operated for over six decades and is among the city’s oldest bars and longest running family-run businesses.
The building is on the city’s list of significant structures protecting it from demolition.
