A Sacramento nonprofit is taking the helm at Empress Tavern on The Kay downtown
A local nonprofit organization will be taking over restaurant operations at the Empress Tavern on The Kay downtown starting in the coming weeks.
In June, Alchemist Community Development Corp. is taking the reins of the restaurant as part of a partnership with the owner of Crest Theatre, which sits on top of Empress Tavern at 1013 K St., said Shannin Stein, special projects manager for the nonprofit.
Stein said the organization wants to turn the tavern into a community gathering space while supporting budding restaurateurs who Alchemist CDC works with as part of its Alchemist Kitchen Incubator Program.
The program supports low-income Sacramento food entrepreneurs from low-income communities with coaching and commercial kitchen space at a discount, according to the organization’s website. Businesses like Pasta Therapy and Sugar Coated Cupcakes are incubator alumni.
Stein said the Empress Tavern venture is a small-scale version of Alchemist CDC’s major upcoming plan: Alchemist Public Market, a $12.5 million development in the River District with various food-centered operations, including a large commercial kitchen that can hold 40 ventures at the center of the campus, according to CapRadio. The project is set to open by mid-2026, Stein said.
To support the organization’s partner businesses in the interim, Alchemist CDC is planning to sublease the Empress Tavern kitchen on a monthly basis to some of the “more developed” incubator alumni, Stein said. Additionally, the restaurant space is going to be primarily used for special events, private events and catering operations, she said.
Empress Tavern’s revival will have an opening event sometime in mid- to late July, Stein said.
Once Alchemist CDC settles into the space, Stein said she hopes to be able to host bigger events, such as quarterly fundraisers for community organizations across the Sacramento region and specialty programming featuring incubator program participants from across the Valley. Eventually, the organization may open the restaurant up for lunch specials if downtown Sacramento worker traffic picks up enough, she said.
Stein, who worked at Empress when it first opened in 2015, said Alchemist CDC began a partnership with the Crest Theatre when owner Robert Emerick reached out to her for help revitalizing the tavern space after its post-COVID reopening didn’t hit the targets he had hoped for.
In 2020, Empress Tavern shut down indefinitely after five years on The K Street Mall due to dwindling foot traffic. It reopened in January 2023 under new management with a new, “bistro-style” menu, The Bee reported at the time.
In June, Emerick put the Crest Theatre property up for sale, according to previous Bee reporting. However, Stein said Emerick was not able to find a suitable lessee for the prime real estate.
Currently, Alchemist is hosting pop-up events in Empress’ space for some of its kitchen incubator graduates on evenings when the Crest is hosting a show. According to Stein, the pop-ups will continue through June while Alchemist CDC works on finalizing transition paperwork and doing some minor interior touch-ups to the restaurant ahead of its July opening.
Stein said the organization is planning on keeping the aesthetic charm of Empress Tavern’s sloping brick arches and intimate seating, but after 10 years, it needs a bit of a clean-up.
“It’s still the most beautiful space in town,” she said.
This story was originally published May 20, 2025 at 6:00 AM.
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