Al’s Route 66 Cafe at 219 E. Dewey (Route 66) in Sapulpa, Okla., has closed but will soon reopen as a Granny’s on Route 66 restaurant.
The owners of a Steak & Eggs restaurant in Sapulpa bought the downtown building, which also houses a barbershop and bail bonds office. Paul Palladino, who once ran a couple of Wings To Go restaurants in the Tulsa metro area, is leasing the restaurant.
Palladino said during a telephone interview that he planned to reopen the restaurant the week of Nov. 17. Hours will be from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. every day but Sunday. A Web site is forthcoming.
Palladino noted that the owners also have a Granny’s restaurant with a similar logo in Stroud, Okla.
Allen and Susan Shamburg moved to Sapulpa from Colorado and bought the restaurant, then called Rivett’s Route 66, a few years ago. The cafe dates to 1927, and the Shamburgs oversaw renovations that restored many of its historical touches, including a long-concealed tin ceiling.
Al’s also was the home of the Big Daddy Challenge, which was a 66-ounce hamburger, three pounds of fries and a 32-ounce milkshake. To get the $35 meal for free, you had to eat it all in 66 minutes.
But Allen encountered serious health problems and put the business up for sale in early 2007.