Club San Rafael, publicly known as Pete’s 881 Club, is a small poker cardroom, restaurant, and bar at 721 Lincoln Avenue in San Rafael, California. Its strongest appeal is an evening card game with food and drinks close at hand. Its biggest limitation is scale: the state regulator lists four tables, and not every advertised game is guaranteed to run. I’d put it on a local poker player’s shortlist, not treat it as a full casino-resort destination.
Club San Rafael quick facts
| Public-facing name | Pete’s 881 Club |
|---|---|
| Address | 721 Lincoln Avenue, San Rafael, CA 94901 |
| Property type | Poker-focused cardroom with a restaurant and bar |
| License status | Active with Conditions in the supplied state record |
| Regulatory table count | Four, not a count of games currently running |
| Posted poker hours | Monday through Friday: 6 p.m. to 2 a.m.; Saturday and Sunday: 4 p.m. to 2 a.m. |
| Advertised bar hours | Daily, 10 a.m. to 2 a.m. |
| Poker | Daily Hold’em advertised, plus selected Omaha and limit games |
| Tournaments | Sunday and Monday no-limit Hold’em advertised |
| Phone | (415) 453-5888 |
| Official website | Pete’s 881 Club |
| Source material collected | October 11, 2026 |
Bar hours are not poker hours. Being able to buy a drink at 10 a.m. does not mean you can sit down in a poker game then.
Property overview: a neighborhood cardroom
Think neighborhood poker room with a bar, rather than a miniature Las Vegas casino. The attraction is having cards, cocktails, and a meal in one place without making a larger casino outing of it.
The name can be confusing. California’s gambling regulator uses Club San Rafael, while the business website and restaurant listings use Pete’s 881 Club. The state owner lookup connects Club San Rafael with PETE’S 881 CLUB INC, Karen Pellolio, and The Robert and Karen Pellolio Trust. These are gambling-establishment licensees, not a statement about ownership of the building.
The California Gambling Control Commission’s establishment listing shows license GEGE-000962 as Active with Conditions, with four tables and an expiration date of November 30, 2027. The supplied records do not explain those conditions, so I would not speculate about them.
For comparison, the same regulator lists 16 tables at Napa Valley Casino in American Canyon and 30 at Oaks Card Club in Emeryville. The supplied calculation puts Napa Valley Casino’s licensed table capacity at four times Club San Rafael’s. That measures licensed scale, not games currently running, but it helps explain why calling ahead matters here.
Poker games, schedule, and seating
The official poker-room page advertises Hold’em every day and asks players to call ahead for seating. I’d take that advice seriously: a schedule tells you what the room intends to offer, not what has enough players to run tonight.
Advertised $2.00/$5.00 no-limit Hold’em is the backbone of the weekly lineup. Additional choices are tied to particular evenings:
- Tuesday: $5.00/$10.00 no-limit Hold’em with stack match is also advertised.
- Wednesday: $6.00/$12.00 Omaha Hi-Lo 8 with a full kill.
- Thursday: $5.00/$5.00 pot-limit Omaha.
- Friday: $4.00/$8.00 limit Hold’em with a half kill.
- Saturday: the $2.00/$5.00 Hold’em listing includes stack match.
If you want Omaha, call about Omaha. Asking whether “poker is running” could get you an accurate answer that still leaves you without the game you came to play.
Stakes are not your buy-in
A $2.00/$5.00 listing does not mean $5.00 buys you a useful session. Blinds, betting limits, minimum buy-ins, and house charges are different things.
Ask about the minimum and maximum buy-in, rake or collection, jackpot drop, waiting list, and stack-match rules. Those details are not established in the published information. Kill games can involve higher betting limits when the kill applies, so ask for the house rules if the format is unfamiliar.
Sunday vs. Monday poker tournament costs
The useful question is not simply which tournament is cheaper. It is which commitment fits your evening and bankroll. The advertised prices and structures differ enough that entry cost alone does not settle it.
Gamboool original analysis
We assembled the comparison below from published information and our calculations. These are selected examples, rather than measured gambling sessions or a representative survey.
| Detail | Published information |
|---|---|
| Club San Rafael: Regulatory status, licensed table count, and expiration | The regulator lists license GEGE-000962 as Active with Conditions, with four tables and an expiration date of November 30, 2027. These are licensing details, not a guarantee of live games at a particular time. |
| Club San Rafael: Licensed entity connecting the cardroom to Pete’s 881 Club | The owner lookup names PETE’S 881 CLUB INC under Club San Rafael and lists its entity license as Active with Conditions. |
| Napa Valley Casino: Published licensed-capacity comparison | The regulator lists 16 tables at Napa Valley Casino in American Canyon, compared with four at Club San Rafael. This compares licensed scale, not poker tables currently running. |
| Oaks Card Club: Published licensed-capacity comparison | The regulator lists 30 tables at Oaks Card Club in Emeryville, providing another larger Bay Area cardroom comparison. This does not establish its current game selection. |
| Pete’s 881 Club: Address and telephone | The San Rafael Chamber listing gives 721 Lincoln Avenue, San Rafael, CA 94901, and (415) 453-5888. |
| Pete’s 881 Club: Bar hours versus food-service hours | The Chamber listing says the bar opens at 10 a.m. and closes at 2 a.m., while food is served until midnight, or until 1 a.m. Thursday through Saturday. These hours should not be substituted for the poker schedule. |
| Pete’s 881 Club poker room: Daily Hold’em advertising and seating instructions | The operator advertises Texas Hold’em every day and asks players to call ahead for live-game seating. |
| Sunday poker schedule: Hours, tournament cost, starting chips, re-entry policy, and cash game | Sunday lists poker hours of 4 p.m. to 2 a.m., a 4:30 p.m. no-limit Hold’em tournament, a $220.00 entry with 20,000 chips, unlimited $100.00 re-entries before the first break, 20-minute rounds, and a 2-5 no-limit Hold’em cash game. The payout field contains no usable percentage. |
| Monday poker schedule: Hours, tournament cost, starting chips, optional purchase, and cash game | Monday lists poker hours of 6 p.m. to 2 a.m., a 6 p.m. no-limit Hold’em tournament, a $100.00 entry with 10,000 chips, an optional $20.00 re-buy/add-on for 10,000 chips before the first break, 15-minute rounds, and a 2-5 no-limit Hold’em cash game. The payout field contains no usable percentage. |
| Tuesday poker schedule: Higher-stakes Hold’em option | Tuesday lists 6 p.m. to 2 a.m. hours, 2-5 no-limit Hold’em, and 5-10 no-limit Hold’em with stack match. The source does not supply buy-in limits or define stack-match terms. |
| Wednesday poker schedule: Omaha Hi-Lo option | Wednesday lists 2-5 no-limit Hold’em and 6-12 Omaha Hi-Lo 8 with a full kill, during 6 p.m. to 2 a.m. poker hours. |
| Thursday poker schedule: Pot-limit Omaha option | Thursday lists 2-5 no-limit Hold’em and 5-5 PLO, during 6 p.m. to 2 a.m. poker hours. |
| Friday poker schedule: Limit Hold’em option | Friday lists 2-5 no-limit Hold’em and 4-8 limit Texas Hold’em with a half kill, during 6 p.m. to 2 a.m. poker hours. |
| Saturday poker schedule: Earlier opening and stack-match game | Saturday lists poker hours of 4 p.m. to 2 a.m. and 2-5 no-limit Hold’em with Stack Match Saturday. Ask the room for the applicable buy-in rules. |
| Pete’s 881 Club: Covered patio and smoking amenity | The operator describes a covered patio for smokers. This passage does not establish an indoor smoking policy. |
| Monday tournament: Tournament of Champions qualification benefit | The operator says the Monday winner gains entry into a Tournament of Champions held every 30 weeks. No cash value or complete qualification terms are supplied. |
| Tournament sign-up: Dealer-appreciation chip bonus | The operator advertises a tournament chip bonus for dealer appreciation at sign-up but does not state the contribution amount or bonus size. |
| Pete’s 881 Club guest feedback: Aggregated service, atmosphere, and food themes | Wanderlog’s review summary describes welcoming service and a local-bar atmosphere, but mixed food feedback. Treat these as secondary review themes about the venue, not a direct assessment of poker dealing or game quality. |
| Pete’s 881 Club parking: Guest-reported free street parking | One review reproduced by Restaurant Guru reports plenty of parking and free street parking. This is a customer report, not an official parking entitlement or confirmation of current restrictions. |
| Pete’s 881 Club dining costs: Third-party per-person price range | Restaurant Guru lists a $20.00–$30.00 per-person price range. This is a rough third-party planning reference, not a current itemized menu quote, and its inclusions are unspecified. |
| Calculation | Result | Takeaway |
|---|---|---|
| Sunday versus Monday tournament entry cost | $120.00 | Monday has the lower published entry cost, while Sunday starts players with more tournament chips. Neither entry price establishes the prize pool or payout. |
| Monday entry with one optional chip purchase | $120.00 | Budget for the optional chip purchase separately from entry, and confirm whether the room treats it as a rebuy or an add-on. This scenario excludes any dealer appreciation, food, transportation, and other spending. |
| Sunday entry followed by one re-entry | $320.00 | A re-entry increases the session budget beyond the advertised initial entry. Set a re-entry limit beforehand; the published passage does not specify the re-entry chip allocation. |
| Monday chip allocation with one optional purchase | 20000 tournament chips allocated | The optional purchase adds another starting allocation of chips. This is cumulative chips issued, not a guaranteed stack after play, cash value, or expected winnings. |
| Monday scheduled blind-round time before the first break | 60 scheduled playing minutes | Use the round structure to understand the optional-purchase window, not as a guaranteed clock-time deadline. Confirm the actual cutoff with tournament staff. |
| Sunday scheduled blind-round time before the first break | 80 scheduled playing minutes | Sunday’s longer rounds provide a longer scheduled playing window before the first break than Monday’s structure. Delays and staff decisions can affect the actual cutoff. |
| Napa Valley Casino versus Club San Rafael licensed table capacity | 4 licensed table-capacity multiple | Club San Rafael is the smaller licensed operation in this comparison. Licensed capacity does not establish how many tables are running, game availability, or waiting times. |
Research references: cgcc.ca.gov, cgcc.ca.gov, srchamber.com, petes881club.com, wanderlog.com, restaurantguru.com.
Method: Published inputs collected 2026-10-11. Illustrative assumptions are labeled, and the full calculation inputs remain in the saved research record. These examples support planning; they do not predict a particular session.
Gamboool assembled the public-source observations and supplied calculations for this comparison. It is a compilation and analysis, not a firsthand tournament test or an exclusive underlying dataset.
- Sunday: a 4:30 p.m. no-limit Hold’em tournament with a $220.00 entry, 20,000 starting chips, and 20-minute blind rounds. Unlimited $100.00 re-entries are advertised before the first break.
- Monday: a 6 p.m. tournament with a $100.00 entry, 10,000 starting chips, and 15-minute rounds. An optional $20.00 re-buy/add-on provides another 10,000 chips before the first break.
Monday’s initial entry is $120.00 less than Sunday’s. In the supplied illustrative budget scenarios, Monday entry plus one optional chip purchase costs $120.00, while Sunday entry plus one re-entry costs $320.00. These are selected scenarios, not all-in visit prices. They exclude food, transportation, any dealer-appreciation contribution, and other spending.
Monday’s optional purchase brings cumulative chips issued to 20,000, not a guaranteed 20,000-chip stack after play. Tournament chips are not cash, and this does not make Monday identical to Sunday: the rounds are shorter, and the purchase terms differ.
the calculations give 60 scheduled playing minutes before Monday’s first break and 80 before Sunday’s. These are structure comparisons, not guaranteed clock-time deadlines. Confirm the actual purchase cutoff with staff.
I’d favor Monday for the lower initial commitment and Sunday for the longer advertised rounds and earlier start. Neither can be judged for prize-pool value from this information: the website’s payout fields do not provide usable percentages or a clear fee breakdown.
Slots, other table games, and sportsbook expectations
The current supplied material focuses on live poker. It does not establish a slot or video poker inventory, or a lineup of blackjack, baccarat, roulette, or craps. The previous Gamboool listing describes no slots. The practical advice is simple: do not choose this property for machine gambling.
Televisions and a sports-bar atmosphere do not make a sportsbook. No retail betting counter or wagering kiosks are established by the supplied sources. Come to watch a game or play cards, not on the assumption that sports wagering is available.
For a broader selection of property types, see our guide to California casinos.
Restaurant, bar, and amenities
The San Rafael Chamber listing advertises food until midnight, extending to 1 a.m. Thursday through Saturday, and bar hours of 10 a.m. to 2 a.m. Confirm kitchen service before planning a late meal.
I see this as casual dining around a poker session, rather than a restaurant worth building a special trip around. Guest summaries mention burgers and French dip favorably, but food impressions are not uniformly positive.
Restaurantji lists a Thursday-night prime rib special with creamed spinach and a baked potato. It gives Thursday visitors another dinner option to ask about, but confirm availability and the current price.
Restaurant Guru’s third-party dining estimate is $20.00 to $30.00 per person. Displayed guest spending bands vary more widely, and the estimate’s inclusions are unspecified. Treat it as a rough reference, not a menu quote or a cap on dinner with drinks, tax, and tips.
The official page describes a covered patio for smokers, but does not establish indoor smoking rules. Guest summaries describe televisions and a sports-bar setting; the supplied information does not establish a current entertainment calendar.
Hotel expectations
No on-site hotel offering is established in the current source material. Plan this as an evening stop and arrange lodging separately, rather than expect a room package, resort amenities, or a casino shuttle.
For an out-of-town player, the return trip deserves as much thought as the game. A late poker schedule is convenient only if you have a sensible way home.
Parking and practical visit information
Use 721 Lincoln Avenue, San Rafael and the Pete’s 881 Club name when looking for the business. Call (415) 453-5888 to confirm your game and seating before setting off.
Displayed guests report free street parking, and one also mentions a free lot. These are guest reports, not an official parking policy. Check signs, time limits, and whether any nearby lot is available to customers.
A third-party listing describes wheelchair accessibility, but no detailed official information about entrances, restrooms, parking spaces, or table accommodations was supplied. Call about the specific access you need.
Keep your poker bankroll separate from food, drinks, tips, and transportation. Set a loss limit and, for tournaments, a re-entry limit before sitting down. If drinks are part of the evening, arrange a sober driver or another safe ride.
Rewards and promotions
No conventional points-based rewards program is established in the published information. The poker page advertises jackpot and tournament benefits, including Tournament of Champions entry for the Monday winner and a dealer-appreciation chip bonus.
I would not assign either a dollar benefit without the full terms. The dealer contribution and bonus size are unspecified, and the jackpot banner and dated championship notice need confirmation before being treated as current offers.
Guest praise, complaints, and limitations
What guests tend to like
The supplied Restaurant Guru listing and displayed comments repeatedly highlight friendly bartenders, welcoming staff, and an easygoing neighborhood atmosphere. Guests also appreciate poker paired with late-night food, and some praise quick food service.
That helps describe the venue’s social appeal. It does not establish the quality of dealing, floor decisions, games, or wait-list management. Most available feedback concerns the bar and restaurant.
Where expectations need restraint
The Wanderlog review summary describes mixed food impressions, with praise for particular dishes alongside meals characterized as hit or miss. It also notes that the unassuming exterior and neighborhood appearance can discourage first impressions, although some visitors find the interior more inviting.
For poker players, the clearest limitation is scale. Four licensed tables leave less room for game variety than a larger cardroom, although the record does not establish actual waiting times.
The two aggregators may overlap in their Google-derived material, only a few individual comments were visible, and most review dates and circumstances are incomplete. Restaurant Guru’s August 15, 2026 update does not make every underlying review recent. These are useful themes, not a representative survey or proof of today’s conditions.
Who Club San Rafael is best for
Best fit: local poker players seeking an evening game, food, and a neighborhood-bar atmosphere, especially those willing to confirm the lineup before leaving home.
Weaker fit: slot players, resort travelers, visitors expecting retail sports betting, and anyone making a long trip for a specific Omaha game without confirming it first.
My take: the attraction is convenience and character, not breadth. If your game is running and the setting appeals to you, the compact operation can be the point. If you need several alternatives when one game falls through, look toward a larger cardroom.
Club San Rafael FAQ
Is Club San Rafael open?
The supplied state record lists its license as Active with Conditions, and the official website advertises daily poker. Call to confirm the current game and seating; a license listing is not a live-game guarantee.
Is Club San Rafael the same as Pete’s 881 Club?
Yes. Club San Rafael is the regulator’s establishment name, while Pete’s 881 Club is the public-facing business name. The matching address and state owner record connect them.
What time does poker start?
The posted schedule lists 6 p.m. on weekdays and 4 p.m. on weekends, with closing at 2 a.m. The bar’s advertised 10 a.m. opening is separate.
Does Club San Rafael offer Omaha?
The schedule advertises Omaha Hi-Lo on Wednesday and pot-limit Omaha on Thursday. Call to confirm that the game will run and that a seat is available.
What is the minimum gambling age?
A current property-specific age rule is not established in the supplied sources. Confirm entry requirements directly and bring valid government-issued identification.
What is the smoking policy?
The official website advertises a covered patio for smokers. The supplied passage does not establish the indoor smoking or vaping policy.
Sources and research note
This guide uses supplied official property information, state licensing records, a chamber listing, dining listings, and review summaries. The main property-source collection is dated October 11, 2026. External sources are linked once at their relevant use. Comparisons use supplied calculations, with illustrative spending scenarios distinguished from published prices.
No firsthand visit, meal, gambling session, or interview by Steve Beauregard is claimed. The existing Gamboool photograph is retained without a new attribution or reuse-license claim. No new image has been created or approved. Changing schedules, costs, policies, and media rights remain for the owner’s editorial review before the separate publication action.
Poker room and sportsbook
There is no on-site sportsbook.