"The reopening of the Oakland Athletics Club has made a positive impact on the whole of the Oakland community"--Jo Norstad, 6th grade
The Oakland Athletics Club is a beloved sports bar and restaurant, where people can be a community, watch sports, and eat delicious food. It is located on the corner of Grand Avenue and Webster Street. It was first opened by Ezra Berman and Miles Palli in 2018, but with COVID, many sports teams leaving Oakland, and financial issues, they had to close down. But now the space has been given another chance under new ownership.
Locals were very upset when the club closed, because it was such a big part of the community. Ian Norstad, a regular, said, “It was a place where we could get up sometimes at 6:30 in the morning, because they would open up the place for us to watch Arsenal games, and to lose that, and that sense of community [it’s such a shame.]”
In May, six people, Angela Tsay, Aaron Higgins, Chris Pastena, Adi Taylor, Fred, and Jesse, [who decided not to share their last names], decided to reopen the club. “When the Athletic Club Oakland closed on Super Bowl Sunday, we mourned the loss alongside of you. Then we made some calls. Then we made a decision to bet on Oakland.” Said Chris Pastena in an interview with KRON 4 news. People were very happy to hear that one of their favorite sports bars was reopening. When asked why he thought [the owners] reopened this space, 6th grader Jasper Yearwood answered with, “For so many reasons. It’s a very nice place to socialize and you can watch games there.“
Since many of the new owners have a connection to the food industry, they decided to make it a restaurant as well. Adi Taylor is one of the co-owners and founders at the restaurant Sandbar. He mainly developed new additions to the menu, and worked on the beach-y aesthetic of the restaurant. Chris Pastena is a co-owner and co-founder at Calavera restaurant, and has helped shape the menu to what it is today, although he is not a day-to-day chef.
The Athletics Club Oakland (the old Oakland Athletics Club) mainly focused on foods that you would normally find at a bar, while the new Oakland Athletics Club is more restaurant-based. For example, the Athletics Club Oakland sold chicken wings, and burgers, whereas the Oakland Athletics Club sells vast meat options, like brisket, chicken and shrimp, as well as breakfast items, like eggs, waffles, and french toast. The Oakland Athletics Club also has salads, mac and cheese, and many types of sandwiches.
Although the food isn’t the only reason people love the Oakland Athletics Club. Matt, [who did not share his last name], is a server at the restaurant. He says that most people come in to watch sports like the soccer Premier League. He says, “Our first week we were open, we were doing all of the world cup… the amount of people in the building was pretty wild.” He also says he wants to do other events, like game night, trivia night, and even a dance party.
The reopening of the Oakland Athletics Club has made a positive impact on the whole of the Oakland community. It is a space made for not only sports fans, but for everyone.
https://m.yelp.com/biz/oakland-athletic-club-oakland
https://www.cbsnews.com/sanfrancisco/news/oakland-athletic-club-reopens-new-ownership/
https://www.oaklandathleticclub.com/
https://oaklandside.org/2026/05/27/athletic-club-sports-bar-uptown-new-ownership/
https://www.kron4.com/
