If you’ve ever heard whispers about the Cotati Crawl or wondered what made 8 Ball such an iconic spot in Sonoma County, here’s some good news: the nearly 90-year-old tavern just got new life breathed into it, and it’s all thanks to three women who know the place inside and out.

Julie LaMalfa Black, Jenafer Keys, and Audrey De Vere Hunt officially took over the historic bar in January, making it a woman-led and -owned business. Their unofficial motto? “The girls are calling the shots”. Black, who’s been bartending at 8 Ball for the past eight years, watched the bar change hands a few times and decided she wanted to be the one steering the ship. “Alan wanted to sell, and the three of us girls hit him up for it,” she said. “I wanted to own the bar because of the history, the area, and the locals. I’ve been here through two owners and built up a really good customer base”.

What makes this takeover special is that Black and De Vere Hunt bring over 30 years of combined bartending experience from San Francisco, Petaluma, and Cotati. Keys, meanwhile, is the numbers person keeping everything running smoothly behind the scenes. According to De Vere Hunt, “Jen is super skilled at being able to crunch numbers and make things make sense. She’s been the hero of the last week as we’ve been setting up”.

Don’t expect a complete overhaul, though. The new owners are keeping the dive bar vibe intact, weirdly sized doors, low ceilings and all. “It takes a long time for a bar to look the way this one does,” De Vere Hunt explained. “We’re not really going to change much”. They’re keeping the Monday karaoke and Tuesday open mic nights, but they’re also planning to host rotating food trucks Thursday through Saturday to support local cooks.

Maybe the biggest win for longtime fans? The Cotati Crawl is making a comeback. The legendary bar crawl had slowed down in recent years, but De Vere Hunt is determined to revive it. “We’re ready to bring that back. We want to work together with our community to make sure it’s safe,” she said, adding that the response from the community has been amazing.

Local business owners have been incredibly supportive too. The landlord, Debbie Blankenship, whose family has owned the building since 1972, said the bar has been packed since the women took over. “I’m very happy. Their personalities are just fantastic and they’re really wanting to bring back the old times again,” she said.

Regular Eric Kinsman, who’s known Black for 20 years, summed it up perfectly: “They’ve brought back a better feeling to the community. It’s tough owning a bar, man, but they’re doing it and they’re killing it so far”.

The official grand opening started at noon on Saturday at 8 Charles Street, with food trucks and local vendor support making it clear that this community bar is back in business.