Roy’s Sign Barstow

Taking a friend to California in December 2012, I just happened to notice a sign in an unusual location. I knew the Roy’s Café and Motel sign belonged in the town of Amboy, California. The unusual thing about noticing this recognizable sign is the fact that I wasn’t in Amboy, I was in Barstow 80 miles north and west of where I would have expected the sign to be.

I thought it strange since I never heard about the moving of the sign, a Route 66 icon.

This is what I did know: the town of Amboy was for sale on ebay for 1.9 million dollars but didn’t sell in 2003. The town was repossessed and in 2005 a restaurant owner bought the town for $425,000.

Later I found out that the restaurant owner is the owner of the Juan Pollo Restaurant Chain.

I pulled the car over to the side of the road downtown Barstow and took a few pictures as well as having my friend take a photo of me.

   

Juan Pollo Restaurants owns, operates and is in the process of restoring the historic town of Amboy. For more information about Roy’s Café, Amboy, Juan Pollo, and Route 66 visit the Juan Pollo Website.

Check out a previous post entitled, “A Harley Ride through Amboy.”

Ride Through Amboy

Blue Whale, Catoosa Oklahoma

The Blue Whale is one of the most recognizable icons on Route 66. The attraction was built by Hugh Davis in the early 1970s as an anniversary gift to his wife Zelta, who collected whale figurines. The gentleman in the photo is Blain Davis, son of Hugh and Zelta. Photo taken September 7, 2013.

Blain Davis in front of the Blue Whale, Catoosa Oklahoma

Amboy is Famous

According to Wikipedia, “Amboy is famous as a genuine Route 66 landmark.”

Located in the Mojave Desert, Amboy is nearly a ghost town.

Amboy was established in 1858 and is one of the oldest towns in California. More recently, Albert Okura, owner of the Juan Pollo restaurant chain, purchased the entire town in 2005 for $425,000 and a promise to restore and preserve the town.

The reason I’m writing about the this little town located on the old Mother Road, is because I recently received an email from my younger sister with photos from a recent trip her and her husband took on their “his and her” Harley’s.

Here is what she said, “The pictures of me and Hugh are from our trip to Laughlin two weeks ago. We had a great time and rode home on old route 66. The picture with the signs are from Amboy an old boon town from the 50s.”

She sent photos taken in front of Roy’s Cafe which will be included in another post.

She went on to say, “It was an awesome little town. We took Route 66 home from Laughlin and went the long way through 29 Palms past Joshua Tree. It was so much fun.”

“We also hit Route 66 in Kingman, Arizona and stopped at a restored cafe. I didn’t take pictures but wish I had, I noticed other people taking pictures.”