{"id":4349,"date":"2026-07-12T14:11:00","date_gmt":"2026-07-12T14:11:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=4349"},"modified":"2026-07-12T14:11:00","modified_gmt":"2026-07-12T14:11:00","slug":"change-at-the-bank-longstanding-saratoga-bar-gets-a-facelift","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=4349","title":{"rendered":"Change at The Bank: Longstanding Saratoga bar gets a facelift"},"content":{"rendered":"<div>\n<div>\n<p>While it may occupy the same footprint as the dive bar of old, The Bank in downtown Saratoga has undergone a much-needed refresh.<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=4347\">They said it: Senator\u2019s proposed check on Alameda County nonprofit funding<\/a><\/p>\n<p>The Bank Lounge &amp; Wine Bar, as it is now known, features a cozy little fireplace and upgraded seating in its 1913 brick building. There are large-screen TVs above the bar, visible from all corners of the tiny place.<\/p>\n<p>Another significant change at this longstanding watering hole is that it\u2019s no longer cash only, so don\u2019t worry about finding an ATM before you stop in.<\/p>\n<p>Other changes are being made to Saratoga\u2019s dining landscape. After many years of sustaining the traditional French food restaurant his parents started at La M\u00e8re Michelle in 1972, executive chef and co-owner Marc Masek\u00a0has sold the building to Parviz Sahbaee, who owns a Negeen, a Persian restaurant on Hamilton Avenue in Campbell.<\/p>\n<p>The former Cinnabar Winery tasting room in downtown Saratoga recently became a specialty coffee spot called Pop Haus. Featuring fun cold and hot drinks like orange marzipan latte and ube matcha latte, along with a variety of fancy toasts and pastries, Pop Haus assumes a wine bar format in the afternoons featuring Georgian wines.<\/p>\n<p>Other rumored changes are not in fact happening. Bella Saratoga is not changing hands, says owner Clyde Zaya, who has operated the place since 2007 with his business partner Claudio Nicosia. He welcomes all the positive changes they\u2019ve seen since 2020.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe town is definitely becoming more lively,\u201d says Zaya. \u201cThings are definitely getting better since the pandemic. You\u2019re seeing more businesses coming in, which is good. The more, the merrier.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>One new business is Scarlett Cocktail Room &amp; Lounge, which opened on May 22 next to to the Bell Tower Caf\u00e9 on Saratoga-Los Gatos Road.<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=4346\">Latest line: A good week for Tom Gibson, a bad week for Ro Khanna<\/a><\/p>\n<div>\n<\/div>\n<p>Silvia Petrova and her family, longtime residents of Saratoga, acquired Bell Tower Caf\u00e9 last year and transformed the adjacent building into a riff on a speakeasy, featuring craft cocktails. The space formerly operated as Claudine\u2019s Wine Experience, which closed during the COVID-19 pandemic.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOur vision was to create a Prohibition-style speakeasy cocktail lounge with an intimate, timeless feel,\u201d says Petrova. \u201cThe centerpiece is a 100-plus-year-old Irish back bar imported from Dublin.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Petrova says lead bartender, Jacqueline (\u201cJackie\u201d) Aguirre is an experienced and creative mixologist known for her passion and attention to detail.\u00a0\u201cSome of our most popular cocktails include the Scarlett No. 9 and Velvet Orchard, both bourbon-based favorites,\u201d says Petrova. Other guest favorites include the Golden Mirage, Sin and Silk and Crystal Garden.<\/p>\n<p>Popular food items include corn riblets, the Scarlett slider trio and bruschetta. As for wine, Petrova says they currently serve California wines, but nothing from area wineries. However, she says they are always looking for opportunities to collaborate with local wineries as they continue to grow and enhance their wine program.<\/p>\n<div>\n<\/div>\n<p>They offer live music on Fridays and Saturdays, with the performance schedule at https:\/\/www.scarlettroom.com.<\/p>\n<p>Petrova says she hopes that Scarlett will be more than just a place to enjoy a cocktail, but can be a welcoming destination where people can gather, connect and experience something memorable.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSaratoga needs to focus on attracting more visitors to remain a vibrant village, by promoting its rich history, natural beauty and local businesses,\u201d she says. \u201cEncouraging tourism and supporting community events can help bring more people to the area while preserving Saratoga\u2019s unique character.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=4344\">Single-family home sells for $1.2 million in Oakland<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8216;Speakeasy&#8217; Scarlett Cocktail Room is a new arrival on the city&#8217;s drinking scene.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4348,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4349","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-things-to-do"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Change at The Bank: Longstanding Saratoga bar gets a facelift - Next City Digest<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=4349\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Change at The Bank: Longstanding Saratoga bar gets a facelift - Next City Digest\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"&#039;Speakeasy&#039; Scarlett Cocktail Room is a new arrival on the city&#039;s drinking scene.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=4349\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Next City Digest\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-07-12T14:11:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=4349#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=4349\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/13065d40d633843429ac57d4e5c06f9b\"},\"headline\":\"Change at The Bank: Longstanding Saratoga bar gets a facelift\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-07-12T14:11:00+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=4349\"},\"wordCount\":610,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=4349#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/6083afadb3141268751434b14d33430a.webp\",\"articleSection\":[\"Things To Do\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=4349#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=4349\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=4349\",\"name\":\"Change at The Bank: Longstanding Saratoga bar gets a facelift - Next City Digest\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=4349#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=4349#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/6083afadb3141268751434b14d33430a.webp\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-07-12T14:11:00+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/13065d40d633843429ac57d4e5c06f9b\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=4349#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=4349\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=4349#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/6083afadb3141268751434b14d33430a.webp\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/6083afadb3141268751434b14d33430a.webp\",\"width\":1024,\"height\":768},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=4349#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Change at The Bank: Longstanding Saratoga bar gets a facelift\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/\",\"name\":\"Next City Digest\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/13065d40d633843429ac57d4e5c06f9b\",\"name\":\"admin\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"admin\"},\"sameAs\":[\"http:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\"],\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?author=1\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Change at The Bank: Longstanding Saratoga bar gets a facelift - Next City Digest","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=4349","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Change at The Bank: Longstanding Saratoga bar gets a facelift - Next City Digest","og_description":"'Speakeasy' Scarlett Cocktail Room is a new arrival on the city's drinking scene.","og_url":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=4349","og_site_name":"Next City Digest","article_published_time":"2026-07-12T14:11:00+00:00","author":"admin","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"admin","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=4349#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=4349"},"author":{"name":"admin","@id":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/#\/schema\/person\/13065d40d633843429ac57d4e5c06f9b"},"headline":"Change at The Bank: Longstanding Saratoga bar gets a facelift","datePublished":"2026-07-12T14:11:00+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=4349"},"wordCount":610,"commentCount":0,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=4349#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/6083afadb3141268751434b14d33430a.webp","articleSection":["Things To Do"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=4349#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=4349","url":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=4349","name":"Change at The Bank: Longstanding Saratoga bar gets a facelift - Next City Digest","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=4349#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=4349#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/6083afadb3141268751434b14d33430a.webp","datePublished":"2026-07-12T14:11:00+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/#\/schema\/person\/13065d40d633843429ac57d4e5c06f9b"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=4349#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=4349"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=4349#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/6083afadb3141268751434b14d33430a.webp","contentUrl":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/6083afadb3141268751434b14d33430a.webp","width":1024,"height":768},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=4349#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Change at The Bank: Longstanding Saratoga bar gets a facelift"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/","name":"Next City Digest","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/#\/schema\/person\/13065d40d633843429ac57d4e5c06f9b","name":"admin","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"admin"},"sameAs":["http:\/\/nextcitydigest.com"],"url":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?author=1"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4349","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=4349"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4349\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/4348"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=4349"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=4349"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=4349"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}