Mitla Cafe is more than somewhere to stop for Mexican food. Open since 1937, it is part of San Bernardino’s Route 66 history and one of the city’s most interesting links between local Mexican-American food culture and the story of American fast food.
The restaurant became famous partly because the McDonald brothers, whose early restaurant stood nearby, encountered the hard-shell tacos served here. That connection has attracted plenty of attention, but Mitla deserves to be visited as a restaurant rather than merely a historical footnote.
Why I would include it
On a Route 66 trip, it is easy to spend the day photographing signs and old buildings without actually experiencing much. Sitting down for a meal changes the pace.
Order what appeals to you rather than trying to reconstruct a food-history documentary at the table. The point is that you are eating in a business that has been part of the neighborhood for generations.
Combine it with nearby history
Mitla Cafe fits naturally with the Original McDonald’s Site and other Route 66 stops in San Bernardino. Together they provide a fascinating contrast between a longstanding local restaurant and the beginnings of a business model that eventually spread around the world.
Check current opening hours before making a special trip. Historic does not mean frozen in time, and restaurants still have ordinary schedules, busy periods and days off.