Many of the new owners , like boating enthusiast Greg Wellman , had frequented Al ’ s regularly . Some of the group ’ s friendships go back 20 years , and they all knew of Locke because of its proximity to the popular tourist loop in the Delta region .
“ It ’ s nice and curvy ; it ’ s nice and flat ,” Heath says , describing the route that links to other Delta destinations including Hood , Clarksburg and the popular Foster ’ s Bighorn restaurant and bar in Rio Vista . “ It ’ s a common car club , bike club or group ride route , with stops all along the way .”
Located in the heart of Locke , Al the Wop ’ s Place was opened in 1934 by renowned bootlegger Al Adami the year after Prohibition ended . Much of Locke ’ s and Al ’ s history is depicted on the walls of the famed establishment , which is packed with old photos and memorabilia . Al ’ s was the only non- Chinese business in the agricultural community , hence the name ( a pejorative derived from the Southern Italian slang word “ guappo ”) that highlighted his Italian ethnicity . Adami died in 1960 , and Al ’ s has changed hands several times since but kept its name . “ We were looking around for investment opportunities , especially in the Delta ,” says Wellman , who really became interested after a visit to Al ’ s in October 2020 with another eventual owner . Ads announcing the sale stipulated a cash-only transaction . “ We started putting together the idea of actually buying the place and it snowballed from there , getting the ownership group and funds together .”
The new owners purchased the building , restaurant and bar , and after obtaining a liquor license and securing staff , officially opened in March 2021 . The owners kept familiar aspects of the business intact , including its friendly biker bar reputation , somewhat controversial name , decor and steakhouse-style food menu . The unique Al ’ s tradition of throwing money up on the ceiling — attached to tacks , where it sticks until it ’ s harvested and given to charity — will also remain , the owners say .
“ Between January and March ( of 2021 ), we basically said that since we bought the whole thing , since we had the building , let ’ s do what we can to clean the place up and make sure the things that weren ’ t working were fixed ,” Heath says , noting that since Al ’ s is on the National Registry of Historic Places , a complete overhaul wouldn ’ t have been allowed anyway . “ So we fixed the electrical , we cleaned the kitchen , and because of the pandemic , there wasn ’ t a lot of traffic to turn away anyway .”
Wellman says that Al ’ s antique feel was a big selling point for the owners .
“ We all have an appreciation for old things because we like vintage vehicles ,” he says . “ We ’ ve studied the history , and several of us had a preservationist kind of angle . The Delta is an iconic place and was appealing as a whole .”
Wellman says since Al ’ s fully reopened , they ’ ve been more aggressive on social media platforms and have noticed a significant increase of people “ investigating what we ’ re all about ” online , which he says has resulted in customer visits as well .
“ We ’ ve seen a pretty good jump in the number of patrons coming into the bar ,” he says . “ It was kind of a gamble because of the pandemic . We didn ’ t know what was going to happen . But it was , in retrospect , a good gamble .”
Steve Martarano was a reporter at the Sacramento Union for 10 years before working in public affairs for both state and federal agencies in Sacramento . On Twitter @ MartArchives .
“ We all have an appreciation for old things because we like vintage vehicles . We ’ ve studied the history , and several of us had a preservationist kind of angle . The Delta is an iconic place and was appealing as a whole .”
Greg Wellman , co-owner , Al the Wop ’ s
Al the Wop ' s Place , also known as Al ' s Place , is located in the heart of Locke , The tradition of customers throwing money up to the ceiling with tacks , which is collected for charity , continues under its new ownership group .
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