Plaza Bar turns 60!
On July 9th the Plaza Bar celebrates its 60th year in business in the same location by the same owners. On June 28 Manuela, proprietor of the bar, was surprised with a party in Hornitos. With sons Poncho and Richie Ortiz, along with Poncho's daughters Keri and Myshel with husband Jarrod Pimentel and Poncho's wife Delores Cabezut-Ortiz, the party was planned and all were invited. They hosted over 100 people at a tri-tip lunch to celebrate the bar's birthday and to provide Manuela with her due. Tapas were served in the bar all day in honor of Manuela's Spanish heritage. The Hornitos Patrons Club helped in the kitchen and special thanks went out to Dorothy Bauer, Cecelia Bryson, and Ruth Latona and son David.
Family History:
Carlos and Manuela Ortiz were natives of a small village in northeast Spain. Carlos came to California via Ellis Island in the early 1900’s. He worked for a number of years before returning to Spain to visit his family where he met and married Manuela Aostri. On coming to California, they purchased the Plaza Cafe in Hornitos. At the time the Mt. Gaines mine was in full operation and many miners frequented the town. In the Plaza Cafe the couple served ham and eggs for breakfast, hamburgers for lunch, and steak and fries for dinner. In the 1960’s they closed the cafe part of the business and settled down to just a bar. The Plaza Bar’s liquor license allows both on-sale and off-sale sales of alcohol. Manuela and Carlos have three children, Carlos (Poncho), Mary Louise, and Richard. Their sons are area cattlemen. Richie remains single, but Carlos is married to Delores Cabezut. They have two daughters, Myshel and Keri. Myshel is married to Jarrod Pimentel of Atwater. Mary’s son Derrek Dean is married to Eva Reynolds and the couple has two daughters, MacKenna and Kamille. Derrek, Eva, Delores, Myshel, Keri, and Jarrod are all teachers.
Bar Back:
One of the grand features of the Plaza Bar originally came from Germany via ship around the horn to San Francisco in 1852. From there it was shipped via wagon to Virginia City, Nevada. When the mines in Virginia City began to fail, the bar back was sold and shipped to Merced, CA where it stayed in a bar on Canal Street for 46 years (El Canal or Souza’s Place). Once again the bar back was sold and this time it came to its present home in Hornitos. The pillars, mirrors, and carved decorations give life to the building.The bar has been the feature of many newspaper articles over the years, most notably in the weekend section of the San Francisco Chronicle. The Plaza Bar building was constructed in 1852 with two foot thick adobe walls. It has housed a variety of businesses and has now been in the same family for 60 years.
Photos will be posted at a later date.
