In 1937, Route 66 in New Mexico was rerouted from the “Santa Fe Loop” to a route running straight across the state. In Albuquerque, this meant that Route 66 moved from 4th Street to Central Avenue. Today there’s still an amazing collection of early and mid-20th century buildings along Central Avenue, many of which have been restored or rehabilitated. There’s so much to see along Central Avenue that I’m doing 2 separate posts on it. This post is a 2022 driving tour of the eastern half of Central Avenue, up to where Central Avenue crosses Broadway downtown. My next post is a driving tour of the western half of Central Avenue.
A note about Central Avenue addresses: The addresses of buildings in this post on the north side of Central are called Central Avenue Northeast, while on the south side they’re called Central Avenue Southeast.
One of the first historic places you’ll see as you drive Central Avenue from the east is La Puerta Lodge at 9710 Central Avenue Southeast. La Puerta was built in 1949 and still has its original sign. This would be an amazing motel if it were restored.
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| La Puerta Lodge in Albuquerque |
The Luna Lodge
is at 9119 Central Avenue Southeast.
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| Luna Lodge in Albuquerque |
The Luna was built in 1949 in Pueblo Spanish Revival style. The buildings have been beautifully restored, and the motel rooms are now apartments.
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| Some of the Luna Lodge's restored units |
The Luna still has its original office with sign.
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| Office of the Luna Lodge (note sign under overhang on left) |
The Tewa Lodge is at 5715 Central Avenue Northeast. It was built in 1946 in Pueblo Revival style. The neon sign is not original.
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| Tewa Lodge in Albuquerque |
The 1950 or 1952 Hiland Theater and Shopping Center (sources give varying dates) are at 4800 Central Avenue Southeast.
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| Hiland Theater in Albuquerque |
Loyola’s Family Restaurant is at 4500 Central Avenue Southeast.
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| Loyola Family Restaurant in Albuquerque |
My husband is a huge fan of the series Breaking Bad and was thrilled when we were seated at a booth where some scenes were shot! We had a really nice lunch at Loyola’s, with classic diner food and very friendly service.
By the way, Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul were filmed at dozens of locations all around Albuquerque. If you’re a fan, it’s easy to find an online list of filming locations and do your own driving tour of the locations. We did this a few years ago, and it was a lot of fun!
The De Anza Motor Lodge was once at 4301 Central Avenue Northeast.
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| De Anza Motor Lodge sign and building in Albuquerque |
The De Anza was built in 1939 in Spanish Colonial Pueblo Revival style. It was once the largest motel on Central Avenue, and a rare motel where African Americans were welcome. Today the sign has been restored. Just a few motel units remain, and they’ve been turned into offices.
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| What remains of the De Anza Motor Lodge |
The former Premiere Motel at 3820 Central Avenue Southeast was built in 1941. It still has its dramatic sign, now advertising apartments.
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| Former Premiere Motel in Albuquerque |
The former Johnson Service Station is at 3523 Central Avenue Northeast. It was built in 1946 in Streamline Moderne style. It has been rehabilitated into a restaurant.
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| Former Johnson Service Station in Albuquerque |
Nob Hill Shopping Center is at 3500 Central Avenue Southeast. It was built in 1947 and was one of the country’s earliest strip malls.
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| Nob Hill Shopping Center, now Nob Hill Business Center |
The former Jones Motor Company is at 3222 Central Avenue Southeast. It was built in 1939 as a Ford dealership and was once one of the most modern service stations in the West. In recent years it’s been rehabilitated into a restaurant.
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| Former Jones Motor Company in Albuquerque |
The Monte Vista Fire Station is at 3201 Central Avenue Northeast. It was built in 1936 in Pueblo Revival style. Today it houses a restaurant.
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| Former Monte Vista Fire Company in Albuquerque |
The Hiway House Motel at 3200 Central Avenue Northeast still has a great sign.
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| Hiway House Motel in Albuquerque |
A former 1940s Valentines Diner at 2901 Central Avenue Northeast is now the Triangle Substation of the Albuquerque Police Department. About 2000 Valentine Diners were built in Kansas. This is one of only 3 left along Route 66.
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| Former Valentine Diner in Albuquerque |
The former Pig & Calf Lunch is at 2132 Central Avenue Southeast. The business began here in 1924; this building was constructed in 1935.
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| Former Pig & Calf Lunch in Albuquerque |
The adorable former Cottage Bakery is at 2004 Central Avenue Southeast. It was built in 1937.
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| Former Cottage Bakery in Albuquerque |
The 66 Diner is at 1405 Central Avenue Northeast.
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| 66 Diner in Albuquerque |
The 66 Diner was once a service station, but the building has been altered so much over the years that today only about 30% of the building was once the service station. Today the Streamline Moderne style diner is a fun tribute to Route 66. We had a great lunch there with super-friendly service.
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| Part of the interior of the 66 Diner |
The Hotel Parq Central at 806 Central Avenue Southeast was once a hospital, built in 1926.
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| Hotel Parq Central in Albuquerque |
The (now closed) restaurant at 725 Central Avenue was originally a Denny’s Restaurant, and the sign was once a Denny’s sign.
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| Former Denny's in Albuquerque |
A former 1938 Texaco station is at 320 Central Avenue Southeast. It was rehabilitated into the Standard Diner. Today it’s the Range Café Downtown.
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| Former Texaco station in Albuquerque |
The Standard Diner was featured on Guy Fieri’s Diners, Drive Ins, and Dives show. The Range Café still serves the meatloaf that Guy Fieri raved about…and it was really good!
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| "DDD Meatloaf" at Range Cafe Downtown |
The Range Café is just a couple of doors away from Broadway, which marks the center of Albuquerque and divides eastern and western Central Avenue. My next blog post explores the western half of Central Avenue.
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