The Williams family

It was the third building to go up on Third Avenue in what was the de Guigne Payson tract, that was to be developed into a wide thoroughfare connecting to El Camino Real in the 1920s. It was part of a movement to extend downtown from its prior focus on B Street. That happened to be where Williams’ first business, “Noah’s Cafeteria,” was located. At 139 B St., to be exact. That is now home to Zhangliang Malatang. The location’s history includes another Asian restaurant, Osteria Coppa and a vacuum cleaner sales and repair location. It makes sense that Zhangliang is popular because the location was also quite busy when Williams ran his famous cafeteria there in 1920. People stood in a long line for its opening at that time, as seen in the “San Mateo: A Centennial History” book by Mitch Postel, president of the San Mateo County Historical Association, from which much of this information was sourced.

Williams reportedly had the magic touch with diners with his famous fried chicken and Missouri baked ham. His father, Noah Williams Sr., worked as a chef for Illinois’ Rock Island Railroad, eventually becoming personal chef for its owner. Williams Jr. first gained notoriety in San Francisco around 1915, toiling at a cafeteria across from the Palace Hotel in San Francisco. Williams Jr. followed in his father’s footsteps as head chef for Southern Pacific Railroads coast line.

Once Noah’s Cafeteria opened in San Mateo, it quickly drew from his faithful San Francisco contingent of customers. When he moved to the new location on Third Avenue, the customers came with him.

The opening proved to be the civic event of the season, with the mayors of San Mateo, Burlingame and Hillsborough attending. Noah’s Ark served more than 1,500 people during its first weekend of business alone. The Ark surpassed Noah’s Cafeteria in popularity, quickly becoming the place to eat and gather. Everyone ate at Noah’s Ark, including stars staying at the nearby Benjamin Franklin Hotel, such as Ginger Rogers and Laurel & Hardy. Even the governor of California, Friend W. Richardson, was quoted as saying he “longed for some of Noah’s specially cooked ham.”

The decor of Noah’s Ark is part of the lore of downtown San Mateo, with oversize paintings of animals now in the possession of the San Mateo County History Museum. The decor was not limited to the walls as the ark was embossed on the every dish, fork, glass and napkin ring, with iron animal figurines dangling from the chandeliers.

As San Mateo’s first successful Black businessman, he became a leader in the community, offering employment and opportunity in an era presenting little of either to people of color. Williams was reportedly loved and recognized throughout town. He could be seen cruising around San Mateo in his huge Lincoln convertible touring car, top down, waving to pedestrians.

Noah’s Ark was done in by the Depression and a later business that opened on El Camino Real never quite reached the popularity of the original cafeteria and ark. He died in 1962 at the age of 74.

His surviving family included his son, Les Williams, who achieved his own claim to fame as a performer, dance instructor and former member of the Tuskegee Airmen, which broke the color barrier of the military in World War II. The Tuskegee Airmen were an elite group of Black fighter pilots in the U.S. Army Air Corps. Williams earned his wings in 1943 but missed the opportunity to fly in overseas combat as the war ended before the full crew was trained and ready. In 2007, he was presented the Congressional Gold Medal by President George W. Bush at the White House with other members of the group. The Tuskegee Airmen were the subject of several movies including “Red Tails” and “The Tuskegee Airmen.”

Les Williams ran a dance studio in San Mateo, and practiced law for 20 years. He died in 2015 at the age of 95.

The Williams family has a long and storied legacy in San Mateo. Successful in business, in the military and as part of the fabric of this city. Not only was Noah Williams present during the founding stage of downtown San Mateo, when it was firmly anchored by the railroad, but he was there when it expanded to El Camino Real. San Mateo’s downtown is large, with several distinct sections. The original is rooted in the 1800s, the other, the march toward El Camino Real, is rooted in the 1920s and 1930s, when the city was becoming more of what it is today.