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Merle's Drive In - Pacific Coast Highway

by Steve
Friday, December 07, 2007

Merle's Drive In Coffee ShopWe've had a couple people send us messages about their memories of Merle's Drive In, located on the corner of MacArthur Blvd and Pacific Coast Highway. Merle's goes back to the 1950's. I don't have the exact date when it opened.

In the 1960's, it became the "The Zoo" drive in, and then in the early 1970's, it closed down, and was leveled. Today, it's the location of shopping center, and another restaurant, the Gulfstream Restaurant.

Here's a letter we received from Ron & Anna Winship on August 25, 2007, regarding their memories of Merle's Drive In...

Steve,

Before it was the ZOO....with the big gorilla waving at all the people....It was Merle's Drive-In....on the corner of MacArthur Blvd. and PCH on the land they call Corona Del Mar Plaza these days.

Meanwhile, this came to mind because we were watching a PBS special with Ralph Story about "What isn't there anymore!" in Los Angeles.

So, it got us thinking: The Clock Restaurants ...especially the one on the Circle in Long Beach. The Clock in Whittier too! Van De Kamps.....and we can't remember what cities they had those! Remember the Windmill in Neon? Harvey's Broiler in Downey! Was in Mel's on Sunset Blvd. or was it something else...can't remember. That one was the most famous of them all. My mom used to hang out there in the 40's.

Anyway, we had a great place for burgers and the best tachitos on the planet. It was located near Poppy and PCH in Corona Del Mar.....where the Sandwich Place is now..next to the empty parking lot.

So, Steve if you can remember the name of the famous Drive-in on Sunset in Hollywood...please let us know.

Ron & Anna Winship

Here's another message I received from Matt Keto as a comment on the Submit a Memory page...
In Corona del Mar, at the corner of MacArthur Boulevard and East Pacific Coast Highway, once stood some kind of a drive-in.

I thought it was called The Zoo in the early 70s.

An acquaintance remembers it from her childhood as Merle's.

Can anyone fill in the blanks?

Cheers,
Matt Keto
Costa Mesa

If you have something to contribute regarding Merle's Drive Inn, or The Zoo, please click on "Post a Comment" below, and share them with us.

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8 Comments:

  • Merle's was a BIG car cruising spot for most of Orange county in the '50s & early '60's, and included car-hops. We all stopped going when it got stupid as the ZOO. The following will get you to a photo of the day.

    http://cgi.ebay.com/1951-Vintage-Ad-MERLES-Coffee-Shop-CORONA-del-MAR-Ca_W0QQitemZ220084761825QQihZ012QQcategoryZ850QQcmdZViewItem

    By Blogger CoxPilot, at December 10, 2007 3:28 PM  

  • I believe the Drive-In on Sunset was called "Tiny Naylors"

    By Anonymous Anonymous, at December 12, 2007 12:11 PM  

  • if anyone is interested, i have an original Merle's menu from the 50s. I am selling it on Ebay soon unless someone out there wants to buy it. let me know.
    thanks, Patti

    By Blogger patti, at March 15, 2008 9:46 PM  

  • Hey Patti, make digital scans of the menu, and send them to me. I'll post them here. E-mail me here...

    http://www.octhen.com/2005/01/contact-us.htm

    By Blogger Steve, at March 15, 2008 11:47 PM  

  • In Visalia, we also had a Merles Drive in..but sadly it caught fire and now going under new ownership and they claim they will make it like the old one. It is located on Mooney blvd.

    By Anonymous Anonymous, at March 17, 2008 5:12 PM  

  • Hey Steve,

    I cant get through to your email via Internet Explorer. I have had a problem with IE. for quite awhile.My browser is Firefox. Is there a direct email address that I can send you the scans or I can even send them via US Mail. Let me know.

    Patti

    By Blogger patti, at March 18, 2008 12:19 AM  

  • You mean you can't send an e-mail to: steve@cleardigitalmedia.com ??

    Try it first.

    Or send via snail mail to:

    P.O. Box 3622
    Quail Valley, CA 92587

    By Blogger Steve, at March 18, 2008 12:28 AM  

  • Kau Kau Corner was the name of the
    small drive-in near Poppy in CDM...
    Additionally, Tiny Naylor's was the
    name of the Famous Drive-in up on
    Sunset Blvd. We had forgotten, but
    they also had Hody's Drive-in and
    we think they were up in Long Beach
    or Los Alamitos. Let's just say...in the old days...we really wore out the seats of our cars....a
    lot faster than they do today!

    By Blogger Ron & Anna Winship, at April 24, 2008 11:24 AM  

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