The Secret Past of the Brick Cafe

Hidden in the midst of a residential area and sharing a border with Malverne and Lynbrook, lies one of the area's oldest buildings and establishments. 

The Brick Café, on the corner of Lakeview Avenue and Rolling Street, has been a part of the community for about 90 years and Malvernite Hank Maier, the current owner, has been at the helm for half that time.

Maier, who purchased the then-failing saloon in 1966, has turned it from a modest business experiment into a successful restaurant and a pillar of the community. In the 45 years that he’s owned “The Brick,” which is the longest of any of the owners — the original owners, Charlie and Paul Beck, owned the restaurant for 33 years — he has seen families grow, generation after generation, and many of them still come to eat at his restaurant.

His family has grown during that time too. Maier's daughter, Karen, also of Malverne, now works there as a manager.

“We’re into now third-generation people,” he said. “People come in here and they bring their kids, and those people now bring their kids.”

According to Maier, the building that is now home to the Brick Café dates back to the 1920s, and was originally an apartment before it became a bar and restaurant in the early 1930s. This period of time in American history, known as Prohibition, was disastrous for anyone in the liquor industry, and it hurt whether the business was making alcohol or selling it.

During Prohibition, drinking was illegal, but it didn’t stop people from trying. In this era of gangsters and bootlegging, the speakeasy — an illegal bar and social club — was the only way to have a drink with some friends. Given the nature of the activity, and that it was against the law, speakeasies were almost always hidden away.

During this era, patrons who craved a drink and socialization could get both in the speakeasy that was located underneath the main barroom of the Brick. One would get to the room by accessing a secret staircase that was located by the front door, near the window that looks out onto Lakeview Avenue.       

In this room, there was a wooden bar that would act as the conduit between thirsty patrons and their vice. The walls are red and still retain their vibrant color, despite being painted over 80 years ago. Hand-painted frescos decorate these walls, though one has been completely covered by a walk-in unit. One and a half are still visible and depict scenes of beach fun and fine dining.

On the opposite side of this room still stand the remains of a fake fireplace. The purpose of which is undetermined, but Maier said it is probably there to “give it some atmosphere.”

He said that little by little they improved upon the ambiance of the room, but speakeasies were illegal, and the look of the place wasn’t a top priority. “People didn’t really care what the décor was,” he said. “They just wanted to drink.”

The remnants of the stairway that acted as an entrance to the speakeasy can still be seen in the ceiling beams. The notches that connected the top stair to the first floor are still visible and serve as a reminder of what once was; that during a time in American history when it was against the law to have a drink with friends, the Brick Café was there to serve as a gathering place for neighborhood regulars. 

And now, nearly nine decades later and above ground, it serves the same purpose — legally, of course.