Foster's Bighorn Bar and Restaurant was established in 1931 by Bill Foster, designed as a trophy haven where the public could view the animals of the world. Foster passed on in 1963, his wife in 1975, but current management maintains the exhibits and atmosphere. This famous collection of wild game trophies shows off 300 wild animals, birds, and fish. Just their heads, natch. Moose and snarling wild boar heads stare down bar patrons.
Every head is accompanied by a helpful identifying label.
Black and white photos, tightly arranged near the bar, chronicle African vacations where Foster cheerily posed with a variety of carcasses. It is supposedly the largest mammal trophy in any collection in existence. Families ask to be seated under the elephant, which is posed, trunk extended, as if roaring in anger and mortal pain. Between our occasional visits, nothing seemed to change in Rio Vista, but that may be ending. Silicon Valley and the boom time Bay Area housing crunch could transform Rio Vista into a place where Main Street rents force a Foster's out.