PEZ candy, penicillin and the common car radio. Joe Jost’s, the iconic bar on Anaheim Street in Long Beach’s Zaferia neighborhood, predates them all.
On Aug. 10, the bar will celebrate 100 years in business, with $30,000 in ticket sales for the centennial event going to the Long Beach Century Club for scholarships to support amateur athletes.
From 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., patrons who purchased a $30 ticket for the day’s events will get a beverage of choice, a Joe’s Special sandwich and one of the bar’s famous pickled eggs along with a commemorative coin stating “I was there.”
Originally founded by Hungarian immigrant Joe Jost in 1920 on Main Street in Newport Beach, the business landed in Long Beach in 1924 as a combination barber shop that also offered billiards and poker.
When prohibition was repealed in late 1933, the bar began serving beer along with Joe’s Special Polish sausage sandwiches with a slice of Swiss cheese, a pickle and mustard on rye bread.
During its 100-year history, the bar has changed hands twice — all in the family. The latest owner is Jost’s grandson Ken Buck, a lifelong Long Beach resident who currently resides by Marine Stadium.
Buck, 74, has been involved in the business for nearly 50 years. His mom inherited half of Joe Jost’s in 1975, but the family had to choose whether to sell his dad’s beer distributorship or Joe Jost’s.
They kept the now iconic bar and Buck eventually bought out the other half to become the sole owner.
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“Joe Jost’s is a Long Beach institution and part of the fabric of our city,” the area’s councilmember, Cindy Allen, said. “For 100 years, this establishment has been serving some of the coldest beers and tastiest sandwiches and snacks in the city. I have countless great memories there, and I’m thrilled they are still here after all these years, operating successfully and serving our community.”
Starting Monday and continuing for five consecutive days, Joe Jost’s will donate 50% of all food and beverage sales to local nonprofit organizations. The beneficiaries include Fisher House Southern California, the Long Beach Fire Fighters Association, the Long Beach Police Officers Association, the Long Beach Ronald McDonald House and Pathways to Independence.
“We knew that we wouldn’t be able to get everyone in here in one day and I wanted to give everybody an opportunity to come down and support their charity of choice,” Buck said.
To this day, all of the bar’s offerings are written on a chalkboard menu. There’s no paper menus or QR codes.
The aforementioned Joe’s Special sandwich runs you $3.70. A hot dog is $2.95 and a schooner of beer ranges from $5.75 to $8.50.
The bar’s pickled eggs ($1.95 each or nine for $17.60) have also been a staple since the mid-1930s.
Marmion’s peanuts — Grade AA jumbo Virginia peanuts served in the bar for $4.95 a pound — date back to 1907. In the mid-80s, Buck bought the peanut roaster from the Marmion family. It’s still in operation pumping out nuts.
Buck estimated that the bar sells roughly 1,200 to 1,500 pounds of peanuts a month.
“People feel comfortable here,” Buck said. “Because we have maintained it as it was, as much as possible, it makes them feel comfortable to come back.”
Over the years, countless actors have set foot in Joe Jost’s to film. Notable names include Kevin Costner, Tom Cruise, Angelina Jolie and Robert DeNiro.
During the centennial celebration, the bar’s TVs will show historic B-roll footage with the earliest photos dating back to the 1950s.
In the 1930s, the local barber’s commission forced Jost to make a choice after finding out he was cutting hair in the same place he served beer.
It’s safe to say he made the right one.
Joe Jost’s is open every day from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. at 2803 E Anaheim St.