Wikipedia

Julius' Castle

Julius' Castle is a castle-shaped building that sits at 1541 Montgomery Street on Telegraph Hill in San Francisco. It served as a visual landmark and as a restaurant for many years, originally opening between 1924 and 1928. Since 1980, the building has been listed as a San Francisco Landmark Number 121.[2] The architecture is described by the San Francisco Planning Department as, "primarily derived from the Gothic Revival and Arts & Crafts Styles".[3]

Julius' Castle
Julius' Castle, side view, beside the Greenwich Steps
Julius' Castle is located in San Francisco County
Julius' Castle
Location of Julius' Castle in San Francisco County
Julius' Castle is located in California
Julius' Castle
Julius' Castle (California)
Julius' Castle is located in the United States
Julius' Castle
Julius' Castle (the United States)
37°48′11″N 122°24′18″W / 37.80306°N 122.40500°W / 37.80306; -122.40500
Location1541 Montgomery Street, San Francisco, California
History
Builtc.1924–1928
Site notes
ArchitectLuigi "Louis" Mastropasqua
Architectural styles
Gothic Revival/Arts and Crafts
Governing bodyPrivate
Designated10 May 1980[1]
Reference no.121

History

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In 1886, the lot originally housed Michael Crowley's two-story grocery store and later it was replaced with a family home which burned down in a fire in 1917.[4] In 1923, Julius Roz (1869–1947) started the construction process with architect Luigi "Louis" Mastropasqua (1870–1951).[2][4][5] The design of Julius' Castle was to pay tribute to Layman's Wooden Castle (also known as Layman’s Folly) a former German-style castle building that was a tourist attraction on Telegraph Hill from 1882 to 1903.[2][5][6] Both Roz and Mastropasqua had emigrated from Italy to San Francisco a year prior to the closing of Layman's Folly.[5] The Panama–Pacific International Exposition demolition in 1919 provided salvaged redwood and maple for the construction of Julius' Castle.[7] In the 1920s the castle was painted pink.[8] It operated as a speakeasy for a time during Prohibition.[8]

Julius' Castle stayed open after Roz died in 1947. The interior was decorated in Victorian-era parlor style with views of the San Francisco Bay.[7] It was very popular with celebrities, politicians and businessmen such as Robert Redford, Cary Grant, Sean Connery, Marlon Brando, Ginger Rogers, Sir Edmund Hillary, and the entire cast of the film The Empire Strikes Back.[2][5] Julius' Castle makes appearances in Dashiell Hamett's novels.[8] The 1951 film, The House on Telegraph Hill was filmed at Julius' Castle.[9] It was designated a city landmark in 1980.

After being operated by a series of restaurant owners and managers, Julius' Castle closed in 2007.[10] It was purchased in a 2012 bankruptcy sale by attorney Paul Scott, whose only restaurant experience had been working as a busboy as a teenager.[11] In 2017, the City Planning unanimously approved the reopening of the eatery, "despite a litany of complaints."[10] The Board of Supervisors rejected an appeal and affirmed the approval in 2018.[12] A lawsuit brought by the Friends of Montgomery Street, a nonprofit, unincorporated group of neighbors opposed to the castle's reopening, was dismissed in early 2019; the court order rejected the noise, traffic and parking complaints, and found "no inappropriate environmental impacts."[13] In 2020, just before the pandemic, it was reported that Scott was seeking operating partners to open the restaurant later that year.[14] In 2024, it was reported that Scott had hired staff and was seeking a chef, with hopes of opening later that year.[11][15] As of May 2026, the restaurant remained closed.[16]

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See also

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References

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  1. ↑ "City of San Francisco Designated Landmarks" (PDF). City of San Francisco. Retrieved July 18, 2017.
  2. 1 2 3 4 "San Francisco Landmark #121: Julius' Castle". Noe Hill of San Francisco. Retrieved July 19, 2017.
  3. ↑ "Certificate of Appropriateness Case Report" (PDF). City of San Francisco. September 19, 2012. Retrieved August 10, 2017.
  4. 1 2 Accardi, Catherine (2011). "Julius' Castle, "Castle on the Hill"". FoundSF. The Semaphore #196, Fall 2011. Retrieved July 19, 2017.
  5. 1 2 3 4 Marinelli, Nickolas (December 14, 2012). "The Castles of Telegraph Hill in San Francisco". L'Italo-Americano. Retrieved July 19, 2017.
  6. ↑ Zoellner, Tom (November 27, 2000). "Telegraph Hill Story / Now-rare history of S.F. neighborhood being republished". SFGate. Retrieved July 19, 2017.
  7. 1 2 Unterman, Patricia (September 8, 1995). "Reincarnated Julius' Castle is a joy". SFGate. Retrieved July 19, 2017.
  8. 1 2 3 McGrane, Sally (March 28, 2001). "Places in Time / A toast to the Bay Area's historic 20th century-and-still-going watering holes". SFGate. Retrieved July 19, 2017.
  9. ↑ Viall, Tim. "Venture off the beaten path to find San Francisco's hidden gems". The Record. Retrieved October 22, 2021.
  10. 1 2 "Julius' Castle restaurant gets the OK to reopen on Telegraph Hill". SFGate. Retrieved July 19, 2017.
  11. 1 2 Mullaney, Alex (August 23, 2024). "Wanted: Head chef for legendary Telegraph Hill restaurant. Must love castles, quirk". The San Francisco Standard. Retrieved May 14, 2026.
  12. ↑ Batey, Eve (December 19, 2019). "NIMBY Battles Won, Telegraph Hill Restaurant Julius' Castle Is Set to Reopen". Eater SF. Retrieved May 14, 2026.
  13. ↑ Falstreau, Nathan (March 18, 2019). "Julius' Castle likely to reopen after judge throws out neighbors' lawsuit". Hoodline San Francisco. Retrieved May 14, 2026.
  14. ↑ Caen, Stacey (March 20, 2020). "San Francisco's Urban Castle". Retrieved May 14, 2026.
  15. ↑ Jones, Justine (August 23, 2024). "Julius' Castle Wants to Hire You (If You Can Cook)". Eater SF. Retrieved May 14, 2026.
  16. ↑ "Julius' Castle - Closed - Updated May 2026". Yelp. Retrieved May 14, 2026.
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