Julius’ Castle, the historic San Francisco restaurant perched near the foot of Coit Tower, is still battling to reopen to diners. Although the Planning Commission has already recommended conditional use authorization to return the vacant city landmark to its roots as a restaurant, they issued a continuance last week, delaying their final approval until July 6, 2018.
A registered local landmark and among the city’s longest-running eating establishments, Julius’ Castle operated from 1922 until 2007, when its then property owner tried to rent it out as a non-restaurant space. No would-be royalty moved in, and current owner Paul Scott bought the property in 2012 to return it to its former use.
Julius’ Castle:
The present owner of Julius’ Castle wishes to retain the “old school” interior, which includes wood paneling purchased from the city’s 1915 Panama Pacific International Exposition. In addition, the view from 302 Greenwich Street has always been unique, luring such celebrities as Cary Grant, Marlon Brando, Robert Redford, Sean Connery and Ginger Rogers. But the king of the“castle” was longtime proprietor Julius Roz, an Italian immigrant restaurateur. According to a 1939 city guide, “To taste [Roz’s] fish sauce supreme, his tagliarini and his banana soufflé is to have a glimpse of an epicure’s heaven.” Today, however, some neighbors prefer the peace and quiet of life without the restaurant and are willing to bring their fight to City Hall.
For more on the area, go to https://www.johnmccarty.org and scroll down the page & click “Telegraph Hill”. You also may want to think about subscribing to Fellow Book Benders, a free online magazine loaded with historical tidbits and photos of old San Francisco and the Russian River. For samples, click on anyone of the dates under “Newsletter Archives”. Have fun exploring!