1942-1943 1
The Kozy Cafe was a restaurant and bar at 1783 - 7th Street, run by Charles A. Smith, proprietor, and Elizabeth Smith, chef.
It's not clear how long it was around. It appears in a 1942-1943 directory, 1 and a 1942 legal notice says they were applying for a cabaret license, 2 but few other mentions have been found. In 1945, C.E. Cooper and George Drummond applied for a cabaret license for 1783 - 7th St.
The book Prophets of Rage calls it Kozy Kafe, and says that the Smiths "had operated Smith's Buffet, an eatery frequented by railroad works, before the war, but after the arrival of thwe war workers, they opened the Kozy Kafe at 1783 - 7th Street. The nightclub employed a large black staff, including musicians for its orchestra, entertainers for a floor show, a master of ceremonies, a chef, waitresses, bartenders, a porter, a cashier, and several photographers." 3
That block of 7th Street is now gone, and is covered by BART tracks and a parking lot for the nearby post office distribution center.
Links and References
- ad Official Negro Directory and Classified Buyers Guide 1942-1943
- legal notice Oakland Tribune May 14, 1942
- Prophets of Rage: The Black Freedom Struggle in San Francisco, 1945-1969 by Daniel E. Crowe (Routledge, 2000)
