Adrian and Glenrio, Texas, and Endee, New Mexico

Route 66 in the western Texas Panhandle is a study in contrasts: the thriving Midpoint Café in Adrian and the ruins of Glenrio.

From Amarillo’s Route 66 Historic District, we continued west on 6^th Avenue, which becomes Bushland Boulevard and then Southwest 9^th Avenue. Immediately after the Bell Street underpass, we turned left (southwest) on Amarillo Boulevard (Business I-40). Just before Amarillo Boulevard bends southwest to join I-40, we turned right (west) on Indian Hill Road. When Indian Hill deadends at Blessen Drive, we doglegged left then right to join the North Frontage Road of I-40.

We continued on the North Frontage Road about 20 miles into Vega, Texas, where we saw Rooster’s Mexican Restaurant, originally a service station built in 1945, at 1300 Vega Boulevard.

Rooster's in Vega, Texas

We stayed on the North Frontage Road another 14 miles into Adrian, Texas. Our first stop was the Bent Door Cafe.

Bent Door Cafe in Adrian, Texas

The Bent Door Café was built in 1948 and, as you can see, it was once a Phillips 66 gas station. And, yes, it has a bent door!

The Bent Door Cafe's bent door

Legends say that the windows next to the door were from a surplus World War II airport control tower and that the door was added in the 1970s.

There’s also an old Coke machine out front.

Old Coke machine in front of the Bent Door Cafe

There’s also a cool milepost—the Bent Door Café is definitely a great photo stop!

Signpost at the Bent Door Cafe

Sadly, the western half of the building looks in danger of collapsing.

Bent Door Cafe in Adrian, Texas

A few hundred feet past the Bent Door Café is one of the most famous cafes along Route 66: the Midpoint Café.

Midpoint Cafe in Adrian, Texas

Inside, the Midpoint Café has a great retro vibe and friendly service.

Midpoint Cafe

The Midpoint Café is especially famous for its pies, so we had pie for lunch! My husband had the coconut cream pie.

Coconut cream pie at the Midpoint Cafe

We definitely weren’t hungry when we left!

On the left side of the Midpoint Café is the Fabulous 40 Motel

Fabulous 40 Motel in Adrian, Texas

And on the right is an old gas station.

Gas station next to the Midpoint Cafe

Across the street is a sign marking the midpoint of Route 66.

Midpoint on Route 66 in Adrian, Texas

And, in case you have any doubts about where you are, there’s also a shield in the road!

Route 66 road shield in Adrian, Texas

Obviously Adrian is a must-stop for any Route 66 enthusiast!

We continued on the I-40 Service Road another five miles to Gruhlkey Road (TX 18). The service road peters out after here, so we got on I-40. We stayed on I-40 about 18 miles to the Glenrio exit, just before the New Mexico state line.

If you’re intrigued by ghost towns, Glenrio, which straddles the Texas-New Mexico state line, is a fascinating stop on Route 66. In the 1920s it had a railroad depot, hotel, and newspaper. It thrived until I-40 was built in 1975 then, like so many other small towns along Route 66, went into decay. Today about 15 abandoned buildings remain, and the population is about 5.

You’ll start to see ruins as soon as you exit I-40. The interchange has the ruins of an old Chevron station and an old Texaco station.

Abandoned Chevron station at the Glenrio interchange on I-40

Abandoned Texaco station at the Glenrio interchange on I-40

Cross I-40, then turn right (west) into Glenrio. There’s a cluster of ruins here.

The building pictured below was once the State Line Bar.

Former State Line Bar in Glenrio

The ruins pictured below were once the State Line Cafe.

Former State Line Cafe in Glenrio

The sign once said the cafe and the motel behind it were the first or last in Texas, depending on the sign’s direction.

A couple of months before we visited, there were announcements that Glenrio had been purchased by a developer. The demolition pictured above looked fairly recent to us.

The building below is the motel part of the State Line Café and Motel.

Former State Line Motel in Glenrio

The building pictured below was built in the 1950s as a Texaco gas station. There are some Streamline Moderne curves along the canopy and above the roof.

Former Texaco station in Glenrio

The diner next door also has Streamline Moderne curves. I've heard it called the Little Juarez Diner and the Brownlee Diner.

Former diner in Glenrio

If I could choose one building to restore in Glenrio, it would be this diner! It's a gem.

Just past Glenrio, Route 66 becomes a gravel road. This was Route 66 until 1952, and it WAS paved in the 1930s. The macadam was supposedly removed by the county to make the road easier to maintain. Drive slowly along this 18-mile gravel stretch, so you don’t kick up stones and damage your vehicle. And if it’s rained recently, take I-40 instead; you don’t want to get stuck in mud.

This is a beautiful stretch of Route 66—the road seems to go on forever.

Route 66 west of Glenrio

In a few miles, we reached Endee, another ghost town. Here there are just a handful of buildings.

Endee, New Mexico

The building pictured below was once a motel.

Former motel in Endee, New Mexico

The most famous building in Endee is an outhouse ironically described as Modern Restrooms (apparently they DID flush).

Endee's "Modern Rest Rooms"

After Endee, the gravel alignment of Route 66 continues.

Route 66 west of Endee, New Mexico

Outside of San Jon (pronounced San Hone), Route 66 is once again paved. About 6 miles past San Jon is the remains of the Cedar Hill Grocery Store.

Former Cedar Hill Grocery Store west of San Jon, New Mexico

Past Cedar Hill, we could see Tucumcari Mountain in the distance.

Route 66 east of Tucumcari with flat-topped Tucumcari Mountain to the left

For us it would be, as billboards once proclaimed, “Tucumcari Tonight!”

Amarillo and Its Historic 6th Avenue

We loved our visit to Amarillo, especially the time we spent exploring the extraordinary stretch of Route 66 on historic 6^th Avenue.

Like many large cities, Amarillo had multiple alignments of Route 66. The 1926 alignment approached Amarillo from the east on what’s now Northeast 8^th Avenue (TX 2575), continuing west on Amarillo Boulevard (Business I-40). The 1926 alignment turned south (left) on North Fillmore Street into downtown Amarillo, then west (right) on what’s now Southwest 6^th Avenue (TX 279).

In 1956, a second Route 66 alignment was created to bypass downtown Amarillo. Instead of turning south on North Fillmore Street, the “Beltline Route 66” alignment continued west on Amarillo Boulevard (Business I-40). Amarillo Boulevard curves south and rejoins the 1926 alignment on the western edge of the city. When the Beltline Route 66 was created, the 1926 alignment on North Fillmore Street and Southwest 6^th Avenue became known as “Business Route 66.”

Another change to Route 66 came in the 1940s or 1950s (I haven’t been able to find the exact date), when Amarillo’s airport and air force base, along the north side of Northeast 8^th Avenue west of Amarillo, expanded runways across Northeast 8^th Avenue, cutting off the 1926 Route 66. Route 66 was rerouted along what’s now Business I-40. It then turned left (southwest) on US 60, passing the north side of the airport and merging into Amarillo Boulevard west of the airport.

Obviously there are a lot of choices on which Route 66 alignments to see! We wanted to stick with the 1926 alignment as much as possible, so when the I-40 frontage road from Groom, Texas, ended at Business I-40, we continued straight onto TX 2575, which became Northeast 8^th Avenue.

My husband went to Amarillo Air Force Base for basic training in the 1960s, so he was interested in seeing what remained of it (it closed in 1968). So in about 3 miles, we turned right (north) on F Avenue, which was looked like it might have been a main road through the base. Everything was gone except the roads. 

Site of Amarillo Air Force Base, looking north (from Google Maps)

Site of Amarillo Air Force Base, looking west (from Google Maps)

 

Some of the land is now the East Campus of Amarillo College.

 After driving around, we took B Avenue to rejoin Route 66 on US 60 (Business I-40) into Amarillo. There are a number of old motels along US 60.

The 1926 alignment took Fillmore Street south into downtown Amarillo, but it’s now one way north, so we took Taylor Street south downtown, then turned right (west) on 6^th Avenue to continue on Route 66. At the corner of 6^th and Polk was our hotel for the night: The Barfield.

Entrance to the Barfield

The Barfield, at 600 South Polk Street, was built in the early 1900s and restored and reopened in 2021. It’s really beautiful. We stayed there because it’s on the original Route 66 alignment and only a bit over a mile from Amarillo’s Route 66 historic district.

The Barfield's lobby

In the Barfield’s basement is the Paramount Recreation Club, a restored speakeasy. I’ll give away a secret: To open the door, push the lever for Paramount Cigarettes on the vintage cigarette machine.

Outside the entrance to the Paramount Recreation Club in the Barfield

The next morning we started our day by visiting one of the highlights of our entire trip: Amarillo’s Route 66 historic district. It’s on 6^th Avenue between Georgia and Western Streets. Confusingly, the street and historic district are referred to as 6^th Street, not 6^th Avenue, by the National Park Service  and even local displays.

Directory of businesses along 6th Avenue in Amarillo

If you want to look up an address, note that the street here is officially Southwest 6^th Avenue—there are other 6^th Avenues in Amarillo!

We started our visit to the historic district with a great breakfast at Meme’s D.O.C. at 3700 Southwest 6^th Avenue.

Meme's D.O.C. in Amarillo

Photos can’t capture Meme’s warm, friendly atmosphere and service. Our breakfast was one of the most memorable on our trip!

Interior of Meme's D.O.C.

We then walked up and down the historic district. It’s about a mile and is full of interesting shops, restaurants, and sights, making it a great walk. From east to west, here’s what we saw.

On the southwest corner of 6^th Avenue and Georgia Street is a large building constructed in 1922 as a natatorium: an indoor swimming pool.

The Nat in Amarillo

The Gothic Revival building became the Nat Ballroom in 1926. Today it’s an antique mall and often called simply the Nat.

 Just south of the Nat is the former San Jacinto Fire Station at 610 South Georgia Street. 

Former San Jacinto Fire Station in Amarillo

 The fire station was built in 1926 in Mission Revival style.

 Across 6^th Avenue from the Nat, the building at 2700 6^th Avenue has a beautiful Art Deco entrance.

2700 6th Avenue in Albuquerque

The buildings at 2713-2727 6^th Avenue are called the Bussey Buildings, built in the late 1920s. At 2719 6^th Avenue is Lile Art Gallery.

Lile Art Gallery in Amarillo

Bob Lile is one of Route 66’s great enthusiasts! Stop in to say hi and get answers to all your Route 66 questions.

At 2819 6^th Avenue is a former gas station.

Former gas station on 6th Avenue in Amarillo

At 2903 6^th Avenue is Smokey Joe’s Café.

Smokey Joe's Cafe in Amarillo

At 2906 6^th Avenue is the GoldenLight Cafe and Cantina, a Route 66 institution since 1946.

GoldenLight Cafe and Cantina in Amarillo

At 3000 6^th Avenue is a former Sinclair gas station, with a dinosaur still on top.

Former Sinclair station on 6th Avenue in Amarillo

At 3120 6^th Avenue is the former Borden’s Heap-O-Cream.

Former Borden's Heap-O-Cream in Amarillo

The Heap-o-Cream was—you guessed it—an ice cream shop. It was built in 1941 in Art Deco Streamline Moderne style.

We thought this building at 3211 6^th Avenue was really cool.

3211 6th Avenue in Amarillo

At 3215 6^th Avenue is OPH Furniture & Antiques. I’d love to learn about what was obviously once a cool neon sign.

3215 6th Avenue in Amarillo

At 3301 6^th Avenue is another former gas station with some cool Mission Revival accents.

Former gas station at 3301 6th Avenue

Between Mississippi and South Carolina Streets, at 3300-3310 6^th Avenue,  is a delightful strip of vintage shop buildings.

Amarillo's 6th Avenue between Mississippi and South Carolina Streets

When we visited in April 2022, Texas Ivy Antiques was at 3511 6^th Avenue.

Texas Ivy Antiques in Amarillo in April 2022

Sadly, Texas Ivy Antiques was heavily damaged by fire in August 2022. We wish the best for Dora as she recovers!

At 3514 6^th Avenue is the former Taylor’s Texaco Station.

Former Taylor's Texaco Station in Amarillo

It was built in 1950 in Art Deco Streamline Moderne style. Today it’s The Handle Bar & Grill.

At 3515 6^th Avenue is a former Cities Service station, now Moe's Dogs.

Former Cities Service station in Amarillo, now Moe's Dogs

We loved our walk up and down the historic district, but we learned an important lesson. We arrived in Amarillo late in the afternoon and visited 6^th Avenue early the following morning, when virtually everything was closed. So don’t plan overnight stops in towns with sights you want to see.  A midday stop in Amarillo would have let us browse the businesses along 6^th Avenue. We have to come back!

We left Amarillo on 6^th Avenue, heading west toward Adrian, Texas.

By the way, if you think we missed a couple of Amarillo sights that many Route 66 enthusiasts consider iconic, you’re right! We didn’t visit the Cadillac Ranch or the Big Texan Steakhouse. Neither of them is on any of Amarillo’s Route 66 alignments, and we weren’t interested in making a detour to see either of them. As I explain in my page on Setting Priorities, there is so much to see along Route 66 that you can't see it all unless you have unlimited time. So one of the keys to a great Route 66 road trip is deciding what you're most interested in seeing. For us, 6th Avenue was our priority in Amarillo. As you can see, we were really happy with our decision!