On a Tank of Gas: October

Community Comments

    The Ryde is rumored to once have been a bordello and a watering spot for celebrities. It’s lower level was a speakeasy offering bootleg whiskey and jazz and featuring a floor trapdoor to a tunnel that led to a hidden doorway at the river’s edge. For reservations and more information, visit its website at www.rydehotel.com or phone 916/776-1318 or 888/717-RYDE.

Like a Phoenix
From the ashes of a century-old fire near the Ryde rose the small enclave that now is Locke, originally called Lockeport. After a blaze consumed the Chinese quarter of Walnut Grove, the immigrants moved and in 1915 birthed their own community, naming it Locke.
    Levee construction brought the Chinese to Locke, the only town in the United States built exclusively by Chinese for the Chinese. With a heritage connected to a heavy Chinese influence and the river culture, the town drips with history.
    Now with only 80 to 90 residents (about 10 of them Chinese) left from what was once a booming town of nearly 2,000, Locke flirts between being a ghost town and tourist magnet. Visit www.locketown.com for more information.
    One of its more famous eateries is Al’s Place, noted for its steaks, hamburg- ers and pasta, but also well known as “Al the Wop’s,” opened in 1934 by Al Adami, and an associate. Both came up the river from Ryde. Built in 1915 as a Chinese restaurant, Al’s was the only non-Chinese business in town. 

A Real Cut-up
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