Route 66 Stop: The Palms Grill Cafe

Category: Food Drink

The Palms Grill Café in Atlanta, Illinois, was a Route 66 hotspot from the 1930s to the 1960s, the place locals and travelers along the Mother Road gravitated to for five-cent coffee, home-cooked meals, and waitresses with a bit of sass.

Now, roughly 40 years after the restaurant closed, it’s open once again—looking much as it did in its heyday and offering a hearty menu sure to satisfy the appetite of any wanderer or local. Slide onto a stool at the counter or grab a table and see for yourself.

The Setting
Located right on Arch Street, the main drag in Atlanta, the Palms is conveniently situated next door to the local museum annex and across the street from a rather tall Paul Bunyan clutching a hot dog, just two of the many Route 66 sites you’ll find downtown.

The grill originally opened in August 1934 and was named for the palm trees Atlanta local Robert Adams admired in California while on vacation there.

When it first opened, The Grill (as the locals call it) was known for its home-cooked meals, BINGO, and weekly dances in the backroom (which is now filled with additional tables). Schoolchildren frequented the restaurant for its 45-cent plate lunches and travelers stopped there while they waited to catch the bus. (The restaurant doubled as a bus stop, and people waiting to hop on would flip the switch for the light at the bottom of the grill’s large neon sign to let drivers know they were inside.)

The restaurant, which re-opened on April 28, 2009, looks much like the original—right down to the position of the small, square tables on the left and the L-shape bar with its spinning stools on the right. It’s a no-nonsense sort of place, with just a hint of nostalgia evident in the white-painted tin ceiling overhead, the old-fashioned cash register sitting next to a modern one, and the glass bottles of Coca-Cola served from a cooler behind the counter.

The Food
You won’t find light fare at the Palms Grill Café—unless you consider a cup of chicken and dumpling soup, followed by hot roast beef with mashed potatoes and gravy (all for less than $7), light.

The restaurant offers Blue Plate specials, such as lasagna or meatloaf loaded with gravy, for lunch. The specials go fast, so if you arrive late expect to order from the menu—no loss, since it’s loaded with a classic selection that includes burgers, grilled Spam, fried bologna, corned beef sandwiches, tenderloins, hot dogs, and soup.

If you save room for dessert, the waitresses (who call you “hon” and will ensure your coffee cup never empties) will tempt you with a milkshake or a selection of homemade pies (for $2.95, or $3.95 a la mode). Go ahead and have a slice so you can perch on a stool at the counter a bit longer and soak in the last few minutes of your trip back to the ’30s.

Get There
Palms Grill Cafe
110 SW Arch St.
Atlanta, IL 61723
217.648.2233

Tags: Palms Grill Cafe | Atlanta | Route 66 | Central Illinois | Food & Drink |

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