I’ve always been fascinated with Amboy California. Roy’s may very well be my favorite place on Route 66. I once met its owner Buster Burris, and he was nice enough to sit and talk to my wife and I and talk about route 66.
Just East of Amboy and before Chambless is Roadrunner Retreat. It’s a ruin of a place that begs questions of it’s story. It does to me.
The roadrunner retreat is as classic as Roy's
I can’t find alot of information on the Roadrunner Retreat. Today I found some clues.
Vintage 1960's Postcard of Roadrunner Retreat
This section of route 66 was bypassed in 1972, and not much later it began to dry up. I’m sure RR could tell us some stories. Do you have any? I’d love to have pictures and info on this place. there’s just not a lot on the internet.
Roadrunner Retreat 2008
Today I contacted the Northern Arizona University Library and they gave me a picture of this awesome area:
Roadrunner Retreat in 1989 - The Expressway Diner.
Roadrunner Retreat 2005
Amboy survived for years. Even though Buster Burris bulldozed much of the town to avoid having to pay taxes on it after the 1-40 bypass, Roy’s stayed open for almost 25 years. Buster was tougher than boiled owl.
I don’t know how much longer Roadrunner Retreat lasted. I’d love to know it’s story. I’ve been here probably 8-10 times, and I don’t know anything about it. If you know ANYTHING about this cool place, stories or history, please post or email me at MrZip66@gmail.com .
View Larger Map Tags: Amboy California, Roadrunners Retreat, Route 66 California
Come check out Route 66 in Oklahoma some time. If you’re ever in the Edmond, OK area, say “Hi.”
You bet. I’d love that.
Hi Mr. Zipper Man: My sister lives in 29 Palms which is a hell of a place to live…I don't get it….BUT when we go to Vegas (we live in Corona and Irvine) we take the back route there and I make whom ever I am traveling w/ stop at Roy's. I just LOVE that place, I LOVE route 66, I LOVE the history behind it. My husband thinks I'm weird and he it right. So that makes you weird too!!! Welcome to the club! ha-ha. I don't have any info to what you are looking for, but just felt compelled to say what a Roy's Cafe lover I am. You're not alone dude. Good luck to you and I hope you find what you are looking for. : )
Howdy. I am a professional archaeologist in Phoenix, and I am doing a free presentation on the history of Mohave County and the Big Sandy Valley on March 24 2011 for Arizona Archaeology month at one of our museums. I love your photos of the hackberry general store, and was wondering if I could use your ca. 1990 and the 2008 photos in my powerpoint presentation. i would give you full credit and would reference your website. please feel free to contact me at ggage@northlandresearch.com. Thanks in advance, and great website!
Cheers,
Gina
This was just sent to me by a Lady who worked at roadrunners retreat back in the 60s. Its awesome!!
I ran across your pictures on Facebook of the Road Runners Retreat restaurant. I just wanted to say that I worked as a waitress in the restaurant and my husband at the time (no more) worked in the gas station in 1965-66. The postcard picture (vintage 1960's) really brought back some memories, I would swear that the car out front in the picture was ours, but I can't be sure. I was just 21 at the time and we lived in a trailer out in back of the restaurant (as did most of the employees). Although the desert seems desolate and distant, it was amazing how many people you got to know and how quickly information would spread from town to town.
One of my favorite things was that the owner had built a small lagoon with a fence around it that had a small pond and a lot of trees and ducks off to the side of the restaurant, it was nice to be able to sit in the shade and cool off. At night we would sit outside the restaurant at picnic tables and watch the scorpions crawl by on the brick wall.
Other things I remember was driving out into the desert and meeting various characters who lived out there. One person we met had built his house out of junk…bottles, cans, etc. It was a true work of art.
Before we went to the Roadrunner, we worked at Roy's in Amboy. My memory of that restaurant is not as clear as the Roadrunner with the exception of the time there was smoke coming out of the crater in Amboy (I believe some kids had thrown some burning tires in the crater).
It is so sad to see how deteriorated everything has become. Those restaurants were true icons.
Just wanted to pass on a little bit of history….not much, but mine. Thank you for posting those pictures.