Thee Stork Club

Oakland’s Stork Club – one of the Bay Area’s oldest dive bars – will be reincarnated as a new bar and music venue called Thee Stork Club on July 1st. The space has been resurrected by an all-local dream team including Marc Ribak and Amy Carver of Mosswood Meltdown, Billy Agan and Matt Patane of Eli’s Mile High Club, and Tony Bedard of Hemlock Tavern/Talent Moat. Thee Stork Club taps into its Oakland predecessor’s DIY-trash ethos while infusing an entirely new energy (and an extra ‘E’) into the space. To welcome the new venue, cultural icon John Waters will appear at the July 1st grand opening alongside Shannon Shaw and DJ Chris Owen (Budget Rock).

Thee Stork Club will feature a full bar, separate from the main stage area, with a cocktail menu that celebrates the tacky drinks of the ‘70s, ‘80s and ‘90s, and a design motif that harkens back to 1972. Thee Stork’s formerly neglected outdoor space will get the treatment it deserves, too. Complete with a custom-designed sound system, Thee Stork gives its predecessor a welcomed refresh, but maintains the energy of a blue-collar, family-run, local operation that even John Waters himself would visit.

Thee Stork’s new owners are longtime members of Oakland’s music and dive bar scenes. For over a decade, Marc Ribak and Amy Carver have produced the event currently known as Mosswood Meltdown; the annual Oakland music festival that’s hosted by John Waters and has featured incredible acts like Iggy Pop, Devo, The Mummies, The Jesus & Mary Chain, and more. Meanwhile, Billy Agan and Matthew Patane revamped the historic Eli’s Mile High Club in 2015, preserving the bar’s legacy while offering a new food program and a back patio featuring a separate bar, pool tables, and pinball.

Join this historic occasion and dance to new beginnings at one of Oakland’s most storied establishments!