Some restaurants have a past you can see in the building. These eight in our directory have dates we could verify.
1910: Casey Moore's Oyster House, Tempe
Casey Moore's Oyster House occupies a house built in 1910 for William and Mary Moeur, converted to a restaurant in 1973 and known as Casey Moore's since 1986. Ghost stories about its original owners go back decades.
1918: Rock Springs Café, Black Canyon City
Rock Springs Café began as a general store for motorists traveling between Prescott and Phoenix, and by 1930 had a hotel and restaurant. It sells about 100,000 pies a year.
1919: The Arcade Restaurant, Memphis
The Arcade Restaurant is the oldest restaurant in Memphis, founded by Speros Zepatos, an immigrant from Cephalonia, Greece. The Greek Revival building dates to 1925, and the sweet potato pancakes are the best-known dish.
1929: Joe's Real BBQ, Gilbert
The brick building at 301 N Gilbert Road dates to 1929 and has been a grocery, a movie theater, a lamp factory and a church. Joe's Real BBQ opened there in 1998.
1933: Best Cafe & Bar, Hot Springs
Best Cafe & Bar has served visitors to Hot Springs National Park since 1933, and the building was restored to its original look.
1942: Lambert's Café, Ozark
Earl Lambert started the original café in Sikeston, Missouri, in 1942. His son Norman began the roll-throwing tradition in 1976. Lambert's Café in Ozark opened on March 7, 1994 and keeps the format: servers throw hot rolls across the room and walk the dining room with pans of side dishes.
Early 1980s: Silver Saddle Steakhouse, Tucson
Silver Saddle Steakhouse occupies the former Pickwick Inn and has been run by the Alva family, who kept the original style of the building. A road-widening project on Interstate 10 made it hard to reach for more than a year, and it kept going.
1998: Snow City Cafe, Anchorage
Snow City Cafe is the newest on this list, opened in 1998. It has won Best Breakfast from Anchorage Press readers every year since 2003, which makes it a young landmark by comparison.
A note on age
A long history does not guarantee a good meal, but it usually means a restaurant has solved the hard problem of staying relevant. Use the dates as a reason to visit, then judge by the plate.
Hours, menus and prices change. Each restaurant page lists the phone number we have; call ahead before a long drive, especially on holidays.