1611 E Main St, Barstow, CA 92311
McDonald’s at The Old Railway Train Station
Years and years ago, as my wife and I were a few hours into what would become a few weeks road trip, we pulled off just after dark to get some gas and something caught my eye. It was what appeared to be an old train station and train cars, now being used as a McDonald’s. We stopped in real quick and checked it out. I remember thinking about how cool and interesting it was. Over the years, this McDonald’s had popped into my head a few times as we traveled, but even when I asked my wife, neither of us could begin to remember where it was. It never bothered me enough for me to actually look it up, but it still intrigued me.
Last year, as we were leaving the Mojave National Preserve late in the evening, with our now 1 year old daughter, we decided to stop and sleep at a motel 6 in a nearby town before finally making our way home the following morning. The close by town we ended up deciding to stay in was Barstow. As we drove into town, towards the motel 6, I couldn’t help but laugh as we passed the McDonald’s that we had stopped at nearly 10 years ago. In the morning, before heading home, I talked my wife into stopping and eating there to get our daughter some food and to check it out.
Exploring The McDonald’s Train Station
I thought it was so cool that we were back here and that it just so happened by complete chance. As we walked up, there were three train cars adorning the grounds, all McDonald’s colors.
I thought it was super unusual, but cool at the same time. Once we entered into the inside, we saw the food area and a rather large souvenir shop behind it. The location of this McDonald’s is an actual old railway station. On both ends of the dead end train tracks, train cars were installed and serve as dining rooms. The center of the restaurant is located in the restored building of the original station.
My wife, daughter and I sat and ate our breakfasts in one of the train cars as we discussed our favorite parts of our previous trip.
After eating we took a quick stroll to check the entire place out. On top of the souvenir shop inside, there was also a neat Zoltar machine and a Ronald McDonald sitting on a bench. I walked my daughter over to the bench and tried to introduce her to Ronald.
She was a bit scared and I didn’t want to force it on her, so I pulled her away after a few seconds. I never thought I would be excited to eat at a McDonald’s but as it turned out this was a pretty cool place. We had a great time on this morning and visiting this unique McDonald’s brought a huge smile to our face and was a unique way to end our trip.
