Mel’s Drive-In opens at Route 66 western terminus

The newest site of Mel’s Drive-In restaurant opened Tuesday, and it happens to be at the official western terminus of Route 66 in Santa Monica, California.

The iconic 1950s-themed restaurant already has locations at Sherman Oaks, Hollywood, West Hollywood and Los Angeles, and countless movies and television shows were shot there.

The long-anticipated latest site stands at Lincoln and Olympic boulevards, which happens to be the western end of Route 66 since the Mother Road was extended from downtown Los Angeles to Santa Monica in 1936.

Eater Los Angeles, which broke the story about the Mel’s opening, reports:

This newest location in Santa Monica is particularly special because of its engaging diner past as the Penguin Coffee Shop, which dates to 1959. The building is easy to see thanks to its location at the terminus of Historic Route 66, and its proximity to the beach and the Expo Line. Thankfully, ownership even decided to keep the beloved penguin sign out front, a nod to the building’s origins over the years even as the property got converted into a dental office.

Owner Colton Weiss told Eater the latest Mel’s Drive-In will be open from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., then go to a typical 24-hour schedule once kinks are worked out during the coming weeks.

The Mel’s Drive-In website elaborated on the restoration of the newest place:

After spending the last 25 years entombed beneath a dull drop ceiling and the beigest of beige drywall, Santa Monica’s vintage 1959 Penguin coffee shop is being restored to its Googie glory now Mel’s Drive in!

The original Penguin featured high ceilings, huge windows, and sparkling terrazzo floors — all of which plans to include in the new Mel’s, which will also feature a juice bar, craft beers on tap, and phone charging stations at every table.

Here is an image of the interior at Mel’s Drive-In in Santa Monica:

Though Mel’s long has been associated with L.A., it started in 1947 in San Francisco and was featured in the 1973 hit film, “American Graffiti.”

A bit of clarification: Though the Santa Monica Pier about a mile away has been reported as the western end of Route 66, the highway never officially ended there. The Lincoln and Olympic terminus was so dull, however, travelers sought a more exciting and symbolic ending at the pier and the Pacific Ocean.

But with the Mel’s Drive-In opening, the real western terminus got a lot more interesting.

(Images of the new Mel’s Drive-In in Santa Monica, California, via Facebook)