Oldest McDonald's restaurant
The oldest McDonald's restaurant is a walk-up serving stand at 10207 Lakewood Boulevard at Florence Avenue in Downey, California, United States. 1953 is when its story starts. A drive of 13 mi reaches SoFi Stadium.
A museum inside Downey
One of the most looked-up attractions in the U.S.
About 119K people a year read its Wikipedia article, more than for 97% of the 7,770 attractions we track.
You can stay in Downey
Oldest McDonald's restaurant is inside Downey, which has 12 places to stay, so you won’t need a base farther out. Where to stay ↓
Best months: Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, May, Jun, Oct, Nov and Dec
January, February, March, April, May, June, October, November and December are the mild months, with highs of 68–80°. When to go ↓
An airport 9 miles away
Long Beach (LGB) has airline service, about 9 miles from Oldest McDonald's restaurant.
Established in 1953
Oldest McDonald's restaurant dates from 1953. About ↓
Written from NOAA 1991–2020 normals, Overture places to stay, Census town figures, Wikidata and Wikipedia.
Highs and lows by month
Each month’s highs and lows around Oldest McDonald's restaurant are below.
Oldest McDonald's restaurant
The oldest McDonald's restaurant is a walk-up serving 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 its 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.
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.
- Type
- Museum
- Established
- 1953
- Listed
- National Register of Historic Places
- Wikipedia readers
- 119K a year
Bases for Oldest McDonald's restaurant
Rooms are nearest in Downey (12) and Los Angeles (841).
- 1SoFi Stadium
- 2Disneyland
- 3Hollywood Walk of Fame
- 4Lucas Museum of Narrative Art
- 5Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum
- 6Crypto.com Arena
- 7Knott's Berry Farm
- 8USS Iowa
Compare 8 towns
| Town | From Oldest McDonald's restaurant | Drive | Places to stay | People | Typical home | Safety |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Downey | in town | — | 12 9 hotels · 3 motels | 108,468 | $797K | — |
| Los Angeles | 18 mi west | 25 min | 841 554 hotels · 169 motels · 39 inns & B&Bs · 17 lodges & cabins · 36 hostels · 17 campgrounds · 9 RV parks | 3,869,089 | $921K | D |
| Long Beach | 12 mi south | 20 min | 125 77 hotels · 36 motels · 5 inns & B&Bs · 2 lodges & cabins · 3 campgrounds · 2 RV parks | 450,469 | $807K | D |
| Anaheim | 22 mi east | 30 min | 189 149 hotels · 34 motels · 1 inn or B&B · 1 hostel · 2 campgrounds · 2 RV parks | 341,008 | $831K | D |
| South Gate | 4 mi west | 5 min | 22 5 hotels · 16 motels · 1 lodge or cabins | 90,071 | $636K | D |
| Bellflower | 4 mi south | 5 min | 21 8 hotels · 11 motels · 2 lodges & cabins | 74,719 | $706K | D |
| Inglewood | 13 mi west | 20 min | 49 31 hotels · 13 motels · 2 inns & B&Bs · 2 hostels · 1 RV park | 101,662 | $793K | D |
| Buena Park | 9 mi southeast | 15 min | 26 21 hotels · 5 motels | 81,741 | $839K | C− |
Day trip from
Straight-line miles.
Getting there
Nearest airports with airline service
Make a day of it near Oldest McDonald's restaurant
More places people know lie within 17 miles.
Big draw113 mi Stadium & arenaSoFi Stadium
Big draw215 mi Theme parkDisneyland17.4M visitors a year
Big draw317 mi LandmarkHollywood Walk of Fame10.0M visitors a year
Big draw411 mi MuseumLucas Museum of Narrative Art
Big draw511 mi Stadium & arenaLos Angeles Memorial Coliseum
Big draw611 mi Stadium & arenaCrypto.com Arena
Big draw710 mi Theme parkKnott's Berry Farm4.3M visitors a year
Big draw817 mi MuseumUSS IowaPhoto credits
SoFi Stadium: Thank You (21 Millions+) views, CC BY 2.0 · Disneyland: HarshLight from San Jose, CA, USA, CC BY 2.0 · Hollywood Walk of Fame: BenSherman, Public domain · Lucas Museum of Narrative Art: Kriddl, CC0 · Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum: CanonStarGal, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Crypto.com Arena: Troutfarm27, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Knott's Berry Farm: Phydend at English Wikipedia, Public domain · USS Iowa: PH1 Jeff Hilton, Public domain
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Your questions on Oldest McDonald's restaurant
Is Oldest McDonald's restaurant in Downey?
Yes. It’s inside Downey, CA.
When is the best time to visit Oldest McDonald's restaurant?
January, February, March, April, May, June, October, November and December, with highs of 68–80°.
How far is Oldest McDonald's restaurant from Santa Ana and Irvine?
About 20 miles southeast of Santa Ana and about 27 miles southeast of Irvine, as the crow flies.
What is the closest airport to Oldest McDonald's restaurant?
Long Beach (LGB), about 9 miles away.
Where should I stay near Oldest McDonald's restaurant?
Los Angeles (18 mi, 841 places to stay), Long Beach (12 mi, 125 places to stay) and Anaheim (22 mi, 189 places to stay).
Tips from Downey
Tips will appear here once someone posts in Downey’s Town Square.
Sources: National Park Service · ski areas © OpenSkiMap / OpenStreetMap contributors · Wikidata · Wikipedia readership · NOAA climate normals · U.S. Census.