Amarillo to Williams, Az. tips on best photo opps & eating

[southpoint]

Will soon be making a return RV trip out west. Will be seeing sections of old Route 66 from Amarillo to Williams. Looking for suggestions on best photo opps. (old buildings), historic museums, and burger place (with homemade shakes) & restaurants to stop in at that have memorable dishes...Am familiar with those in Williams.
Also, is it relatively safe to boondock along 66?

[JNB]

southpoint

If you get as many replies as usual, you should get a lot of suggestions.

But...A few for a start:
Restaurants:
Mid Point Cafe at Mc Lean, Texas
Del's Restaurant at Tucumcari, New Mexico
Joseph's Restaurant at Santa Rosa, New Mexico
Route 66 Diner at Albuquerque, New Mexico (Some mixed reports lately that has gone down hill, though)
Turquoise Room Dining at La Posada at Winslow, Arizona

Just what aspect of "boondock" do you mean ? Private property and Indian Reservations are places to avoid or inquire about before proceeding.

[southpoint]

Thanks, I've heard of a few of those. Just wondering if there were places along the route that are ok to boondock overnight.

[JNB]

Not sure about your usage of the term "boondock" ....I've usually heard it referred to as "the sticks" , "hick town" or "some remote area."

If you mean camping or staying overnight, most private properties such as those listed and other restaurants prohibit this. Some states permit camping overnight at Interstate Highway Rest Areas and some do not; Also most truck stops and some Wal-Mart parking lots permit camping.

It's also not best to stop or camp overnight at just some remote area off the highway....In the 1939 movie,' "The Grapes of Wrath", the Joad Family just camped overnight at some point at the end of the day where they pulled off Route 66, but that was in the 1930's and things have changed a bit since.

[southpoint]

That's for sure! We have camped on BLM land out around Quartzsite, but not sure if there was any along Route 66.

[TheEditor]

If you like abandoned buildings, you'll find a couple of old Williams Brothers gas stations along the way, as well as the famous Painted Desert Trading Post portrayed here:

http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl= ... %26hl%3Den

If you REALLY like the trading post, you can buy it and the surrounding land -- I've seen a real estate ad online.

As for great burger places, I heartily recommend the Red Ball Cafe in Albuquerque. It's historic and located on Route 66 (4th Street just south of downtown).

My advice is to order the Wimpy Burger, which costs only about 99 cents and is small but not tiny ... and tell them to leave off the usual red chile and instead serve you both red and green chile on the side.

New Mexico is famous for chile (which usually comes in a form resembling salsa), and I have to admit I really liked the extra kick it gives food. You can even order a Green Chile Cheeseburger Pizza at the Pizza Hut in Grants, New Mexico.

But if it's a great burger you're looking for, the Red Ball Cafe served me the freshest, juiciest one I've had in recent memory -- like something off the grill.

[Charlie]

Any list of Route 66 Restaurants must include Rod's Steakhouse in Williams, AZ - we were just there earlier this week and it was just as good as ever.

[southpoint]

Ate there years ago. Great place.

[mustang190]

Full Moon Diner at Santa Rosa NM.

[southpoint]

We visited along Meteor Crater, Two Guns, Flagstaff, and Gallup in NM...
Great time. Here are some of our recent blog posts..www.southpoint.com/blog

[JNB]

P.S. Add to your list of photo ops, the scenic overlook at about Mile 113 westbound on I-40 overlooking Laguna, New Mexico. Great views of the old town and also looking west.

Then if you're not already on Historic Route 66 you can exit and get on Historic Route 66 for a close up look of Laguna...adobe houses...old Mission, etc. There may be photography restrictions in town since this is on part of an Indian Reservation.