Oldest McDonald's restaurant

McDonald's Restaurant #3
The McDonald's in Downey, California is almost unchanged in appearance since it opened in 1953. Photo taken in 2007.
Oldest McDonald's restaurant is located in California
Oldest McDonald's restaurant
Location10207 Lakewood Blvd., Downey, California, United States
Built1953; 71 years ago (1953)
Architectural styleGoogie architecture
Modern architecture
NRHP reference No.84003893[1]

The oldest McDonald's restaurant that is still in business operation is a drive-up hamburger stand at 10207 Lakewood Boulevard at Florence Avenue in Downey, California, United States. Opened on August 18, 1953, it is the third McDonald's restaurant outlet to be opened and is the second restaurant franchised by Richard and Maurice McDonald, before the involvement of Ray Kroc in the company. The outlet still retains the original, standardized Golden Arches façade design and is one of Downey's main tourist attractions. Along with its sign, it was deemed eligible for addition to the National Register of Historic Places in 1984, although it was not added at the time because the owner objected.[1]

The site of the first McDonald's restaurant in San Bernardino, California is now occupied by an outlet that is the de facto headquarters of the Juan Pollo chicken restaurant chain, with an unofficial museum nearby.[2][3]

  1. ^ a b "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
  2. ^ "Entrepreneur channels San Bernardino's history". Marketplace.org. Archived from the original on December 5, 2014. Retrieved August 24, 2014.
  3. ^ "San Bernardino: McDonald's museum pays homage to the hamburger". The Press-Enterprise. Retrieved August 24, 2014.