The Downey McDonald's became the oldest surviving McDonald's location with the Golden Arches when it opened in 1953.
The restaurant is in Downey, California, and was built by franchisees Roger Williams and Burdette Landon. Its distinctive yellow arches were part of the architectural identity designed for the growing chain in the 1950s. The arches later evolved into the familiar golden “M” used across McDonald's branding.
The Downey site is often called the oldest surviving McDonald's restaurant, although the chain's first restaurant opened earlier in San Bernardino in 1940. The San Bernardino building was later converted into a museum, while the Downey restaurant continued operating as a McDonald's. This distinction explains why “oldest McDonald's” can refer either to the first site historically or the oldest surviving operating location.