Oldest Operating McDonald's Restaurant

[Hector]

^ That actually looks pretty good!

- Ian

Pretty darn tasty too...

However, I hear some people wanting regular mustard...as Dijon mustard can be pretty strong for some people. Many are requesting regular mustard over Dijon on the Signature burgers...

[Hector]

^The Pico/Guacamole combo topping is good too. I've had it on both the grilled and crispy chicken. You can do a burger as well.

Picking a "recipe" then picking your protein is actually a pretty novel idea. McD's needs something to give them an edge. Even their toys are pretty lame nowadays.

Chris

I'm going to try the chicken pico/guacamole next time...

[samurainoir]

Man, that is so cool that it still has the original look with the arches...Im assuming those are current shots anyway....I wonder how that one still has the original design when most or all the others have all upgraded over the years

it was explained in the linked article that this location was among the very first franchises given out by the McDonald's brothers, and operated independently of the chain until 1990's, with it's own menu.

ox’s brothers-in-law and business partners, Roger Williams and Bud Landon, were the franchisees for the third McDonald’s, and used their expertise in siting gasoline stations in choosing the Downey location. Like the McDonald brothers’ other franchisees, they were required to use Meston’s design.

The purchase of the chain from the McDonald brothers by Ray Kroc did not affect the Downey restaurant, as it was franchised under an agreement with the McDonald brothers, not with Kroc’s company McDonald’s Systems, Inc., which later became McDonald’s Corporation. As a result, the restaurant was not subject to the modernization requirements that McDonald’s Corporation placed on its franchisees.

Its menu came to differ from that of other McDonald’s restaurants, and lacked items such as the Big Mac that were developed in the corporation. In part due to these differences, as well as a corporate McDonalds opening in the mid 70’s less than a half mile away, the restaurant came to suffer poor sales, and was finally acquired by McDonald’s Corporation in 1990, when it was the only remaining McDonald’s that was independent of the chain.

With low sales, damage from the 1994 Northridge earthquake, and the lack of a drive-up window and indoor seating, the restaurant was closed, and McDonald’s planned to demolish it and incorporate some of its features in a modern “retro” restaurant nearby. However, it was listed on the National Trust for Historic Preservation’s 1994 list of the 11 Most Endangered Historic Places. With both the public and preservationists demanding the restaurant be saved, McDonald’s spent two years restoring the restaurant and reopened it. Customers today can visit the original restaurant and an adjoining gift shop and museum.