In which California city did the first McDonald’s restaurant open along Route 66?

The first McDonald’s restaurant opened in San Bernardino, California, along the historic Route 66 corridor. Richard and Maurice McDonald opened their original restaurant there in 1940, beginning the business that later became the global McDonald’s chain.

The brothers initially operated a barbecue restaurant before changing to a limited menu focused on hamburgers, fries, and beverages. In 1948, they reorganized the business around speed and standardization, a system they called the “Speedee Service System.” That approach became a major foundation of modern fast-food restaurants.

The original San Bernardino location was not the first restaurant to use the famous modern Golden Arches design; that later design became associated with the expanding franchise system. Ray Kroc joined the story in the 1950s as a franchise agent and eventually acquired the company. The original site is commemorated by the Route 66 McDonald’s Museum, although it is not the same operating restaurant as the later chain locations.