The Original Saugus Cafe in Santa Clarita, founded 1886. Like many eateries at the time of this photo, the restaurant offered outdoor dining during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic. Photo from Google Maps, Copyright 2020 Google.
Also see:
-- Origins of Some Local Food Empires in Los Angeles County
-- Food & Beverages Straight Out of Los Angeles (and Pasadena).
| Restaurant | Established | Location |
|---|---|---|
| Original Saugus Café | 1886 | 25861 Railroad Ave, Santa Clarita |
| Big Dean’s Ocean Front Café | 1902 | 1615 Ocean Front Walk, Santa Monica |
| Philippe the Original | 1908 | 1001 North Alameda, Downtown Los Angeles |
| Cole’s | 1908 | 118 East Sixth St, Downtown Los Angeles |
| Fair Oaks Pharmacy & Soda Fountain | 1915 | 1526 Mission St, South Pasadena |
| Magee's Kitchen* | 1917/1934 | 6333 West Third St, Farmers' Market (Fairfax, Los Angeles) |
| Musso & Frank Grill | 1919 | 6667 Hollywood Blvd, Hollywood |
| Barney's Beanery | 1920 | 8447 Santa Monica Blvd, Hollywood |
| Mijares Mexican Restaurant** | 1920 | 145 Palmetto Dr, Pasadena, CA |
| The Tam O'Shanter | 1922 | 2980 Los Feliz Blvd, Atwater Village (Los Angeles) |
| Mary's Market & Canyon Cafe | 1922 | 561 Woodland Dr, Sierra Madre |
| The Derby | 1922 | 233 East Huntington Dr, Arcadia |
| The Original Pantry Cafe | 1924 | 877 South Figueroa, Downtown Los Angeles |
| Joe Jost's | 1924 | 2803 East Anaheim St, Long Beach |
| Formosa Cafe | 1925 | 7156 Santa Monica Blvd, West Hollywood |
| Bay Cities Italian Deli | 1925 | 1517 Lincoln Blvd, Santa Monica |
| Greenblatt's Deli-Restaurant & Fine Wine Shop | 1926 | 8017 Sunset Blvd, Hollywood |
| Lanza Brothers Market | 1926 | 1803 North Main St, Los Angeles |
| Millie's Cafe | 1926 | 3524 Sunset Blvd, Silverlake (Los Angeles) |
| El Cholo | 1927 | 1025 Wilshire Blvd, West Los Angeles (also 1121 South Western Ave, Midtown LA) |
| Taix French Restaurant (originally Les Freres Taix) | 1927 | 1911 Sunset Blvd, Silverlake (Los Angeles) |
| The Prince (originally The Windsor) | 1927 | 3198 7th St, Koreatown (Los Angeles) |
| Rock Inn | 1929 | 17539 Elizabeth Lake Rd, Lake Hughes |
| Wendill's Chicken House | 1929 | 10337 San Fernando Rd, Pacoima |
| Casa La Golondrina*** | 1930 | Olvera Street, Downtown Los Angeles |
| El Paseo Inn | 1930 | Olvera Street, Downtown Los Angeles |
| Brighton Coffee Shop | 1930 | 9600 Brighton Way, Beverly Hills |
| Canter’s Delicatessen & Bakery | 1931 | 419 North Fairfax Ave, Fairfax (Los Angeles) (originally in Boyle Heights) |
| Halfway House Cafe | 1931 | 5564 Sierra Hwy, Santa Clarita |
| Cielito Lindo | 1934 | Olvera Street, Downtown Los Angeles |
| The Galley | 1934 | 2442 Main St, Santa Monica |
| Tom Bergins | 1936 | 840 South Fairfax Ave, Fairfax (Los Angeles) |
| Damon's Steak House | 1937 | 317 North Brand Blvd, Glendale |
| Lawry’s The Prime Rib | 1938 | 100 North La Cienega Blvd, Beverly Hills |
| Phoenix Bakery | 1938 | 969 North Broadway, Chinatown (Los Angeles) |
| Du-Pars | 1938 | 6333 West Third St, Farmers' Market (Fairfax, Los Angeles) |
| The Derby | 1938 | 233 Huntington Dr, Arcadia |
| Pink's Hot Dogs | 1939 | 709 North La Brea Ave, Fairfax (Los Angeles) |
| Hawkins House of Burgers | 1939 | 11603 Slater St, Watts (Los Angeles) |
| Newcomb's Ranch | 1939 | Angeles Crest Highway 2, La Cañada Flintridge |
| Vince's Market | 1939 | 3250 Silver Lake Blvd, Atwater Village (Los Angeles) |
* Originally opened in Grand Central Market in Downtown Los Angeles in 1917, then moved to Farmers' Market in 1934.
** Mijares Mexican Restaurant in Pasadena appears to be Los Angeles County's oldest Mexican restaurant. It was opened in 1920 as a small tortilla factory by Jesucita Mijares, who migrated from Mexico and settled in Pasadena.
*** Restaurateur Consuelo Castillo de Bonzo first opened "La Mision" in 1924 at the current site of Los Angeles City Hall. She was advised to call it a "Spanish" restaurant, rather than Mexican, but insisted, as later crowds enthusiastically affirmed, on calling it "Mexican cooking." She was later forced to close to make way for the building of city hall. She then invited to open a new Mexican restaurant on newly restored Olvera Street and opened Casa La Golondrina there in 1930. It is the oldest restaurant on Olvera Street and said to be the first Mexican restaurant within the city of Los Angeles. It is located in the Pelanconi House (ca. 1855), the oldest brick house in Los Angeles.
And we wish to mention...
Miceli's, opened in Hollywood in 1949, claims to be the oldest Italian restaurant in Los Angeles.
Otomisan, opened in Boyle Heights in 1956, claims to be the oldest Japanese restaurant in Los Angeles.
The Almanac mourns the closing of Clifton's Cafeteria, also once known as Clifton's Brookdale. The restaurant, located at 648 S Broadway in Los Angeles, opened in 1935 as the second of eight Clifton's Cafeterias. It was closed in late 2018 to be reopened as "Clifton's Republic," a high-end bar.
