This list of the oldest restaurants in the United States includes currently operating restaurants that were founded before 1900. Most of the establishments are located in the Northeastern United States, many of them predate the Civil War, and a handful predate the Revolutionary War.
Samuel Cole opened Cole's Inn on March 4, 1634, the first tavern in America. It was on Washington St. (now Downtown Crossing) in Boston, Massachusetts. The building was destroyed by fire in 1711.[1]
The Jacob Wirth Restaurant, founded in 1868, operated for 150 years in Boston before permanently closing on June 9, 2018, after a fire damaged the building.[2] [3]
On January 12, 2019, Boston landmark Durgin-Park closed its doors after operating for nearly 192 years, one of America's oldest restaurants founded in 1827.[4]
Jules Maes Saloon had been open since 1888 and was possibly the oldest restaurant in Seattle, but it closed permanently in July 2020 as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.[5] [6]
Buckman Tavern was built around 1709–1710 by Benjamin Muzzey (1657–1735). His license was granted in 1693, and it was the first public house in Lexington, Massachusetts. His great-granddaughter and her husband John Buckman owned it at the time of the Battles of Lexington and Concord (April 19, 1775). Several dozen militiamen gathered there to await the arrival of the British troops. It is now a museum.
Year of opening | Age (years) | Restaurant | Opened by | City | State | GPS | Claim to fame | Sources | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1673 | White Horse Tavern | William Mayes, Sr. | Newport | Rhode Island | 41.4913°N -71.3138°W | Oldest restaurant in America (non-continuous) | [7] [8] [9] [10] | ||
1686 | The Wayside Inn | David Howe as "Howe's Tavern" | Sudbury | Massachusetts | 42.3578°N -71.4681°W | Titular inn in Longfellow's Tales of a Wayside Inn; oldest restaurant in America (continuous) | The inn's archive has documents from 1686 onward, including the official inn license granted to the first innkeeper, David Howe, in 1716.[11] | ||
1706 | Ye Olde Centerton Inn | unknown | Pittsgrove | New Jersey | 39.5254°N -75.1676°W | Widely known as one of the oldest restaurants in NJ | [12] | ||
1716 | Concord's Colonial Inn | unknown | Concord | Massachusetts | 42.4618°N -71.3495°W | One of the Inn's original buildings was used as a storehouse for arms and provisions during the Battles of Lexington and Concord | [13] | ||
1737 | Stage House Tavern | John Sutton | Scotch Plains | New Jersey | 40.65137N-74.39857W | Originally called the Stage House Inn. It’s rumored that Gen. George Washington enjoyed a pint or two there. | [14] | ||
1742 | Black Horse Tavern & Pub | Ebenezer Byram | Mendham | New Jersey | 40.776°N -74.6013°W | Started out as just an Inn | [15] [16] | ||
1743 | The Clinton House | unknown | Clinton | New Jersey | 40.6352°N -74.9145°W | ||||
1745 | Rocky Hill Inn | Harrison family | Rocky Hill | New Jersey | 40.3998°N -74.6368°W | [17] | |||
1754 | The '76 House | Casparus Mabie | Tappan | New York | 41.0197°N -73.942°W | Oldest restaurant New York | The '76 House, Retrieved August 8, 2021 | ||
1762 | Fraunces Tavern | Samuel Fraunces | New York | New York | 40.703429, −74.011386 | Oldest standing structure in Manhattan | [18] [19] | ||
1775 | The Horse You Came In On Saloon | unknown | Baltimore | Maryland | 39.2815°N -76.5942°W | Oldest continuously operating saloon in the United States | |||
1776 | The Griswold Inn | Sala Griswold | Essex | Connecticut | 41.351399, −72.386863 | Oldest Inn in America | [20] [21] | ||
1779 | Old Talbott Tavern | George Talbott | Bardstown | Kentucky | 37.8091°N -85.4675°W | Oldest western stagecoach stop still in operation | |||
1780 | The Cranbury Inn | unknown | Cranbury | New Jersey | 40.30811321249676, -74.51682993345747 | Built in 1750 and 1765 as a place to eat, drink, get horses and rest. | [22] [23] | ||
1780 | Warren Tavern | Eliphelet Newell | Charlestown | Massachusetts | 42.3741°N -71.0633°W | [24] | |||
1785 | Gadsby's Tavern | John Wise | Alexandria | Virginia | 38.805556, −77.043889 (second tavern on site built 1785, enlarged in 1792, first tavern on site Mason's Ordinary opened in 1749) | Historic Confederation/Federalist Period tavern & ballroom | [25] | ||
1795 | Bell in Hand Tavern | Jimmy Wilson | Boston | Massachusetts | 42.36166, −71.05712 | Oldest continuously operating tavern in US (except for Prohibition) | [26] | ||
1803 | The Golden Lamb | Jonas Seaman | Lebanon | Ohio | 39.433611, -84.208333 | Oldest continuously operated inn and restaurant in Ohio | [27] | ||
1826 | Union Oyster House | Hawes Atwood | Boston | Massachusetts | 42.361264, −71.056972 | Oldest continuously operated restaurant in America | [28] | ||
1831 | New Hudson Inn | Unknown | New Hudson | Michigan | 42.511601, −83.614844 | Oldest business in Michigan | [29] | ||
1834 | J. Huston Tavern | Joseph Huston, Sr. | Arrow Rock | Missouri | 39.0675, −92.945 | Oldest continuously serving restaurant west of the Mississippi River | [30] [31] [32] | ||
1838 | Arnold's Bar and Grill | Susan Fawcett | Cincinnati | Ohio | 39.1051°N -84.5101°W | Oldest continuously operating bar in Ohio | [33] [34] | ||
1840 | Antoine's | Antoine Alciatore | New Orleans | Louisiana | 29.956685, −90.066437 | Oldest family-run restaurant in America | [35] [36] | ||
1849 | Tadich Grill | Nikola Budrovich Frano Kosta Antonio Gasparich | San Francisco | California | 37.793401, −122.399463 (moved here in 1967) | Oldest continuously running restaurant in San Francisco | [37] | ||
1852 (August 23) | Breitbach's Country Dining | founder unknown | Balltown | Iowa | 42.639032, −90.869178 | Oldest restaurant in Iowa | [38] | ||
1854 | McSorley's Old Ale House | John McSorley | New York City | New York | 40.728860, −73.989610 | [39] | |||
1856 | Old Ebbitt Grill | William Ebbitt | Washington | District of Columbia | 38.897996, −77.033393 (moved here in 1983) | Oldest saloon in Washington | [40] | ||
1857 | Gluek's Restaurant & Bar | Gottlieb Gluek | Minneapolis | Minnesota | 44.979311, −93.274256 | Oldest continuously operated business in Minneapolis | [41] | ||
1860 | McGillin's Olde Ale House | Catherine McGillin William McGillin | Philadelphia | Pennsylvania | 39.950271, −75.162615 | Oldest bar in Philadelphia | [42] | ||
1861 | The Old Clam House | founder unknown | San Francisco | California | 37.743160, −122.404898 | Began as a bar in 1891. Became a restaurant in 1940. | [43] [44] | ||
1863 | Jack's Restaurant | George Voges | San Francisco | California | [45] | ||||
1864 | Pete's Tavern | founder unknown | New York | New York | 40.736475, −73.986755 | Oldest continuously operated bar in New York City | [46] | ||
1866 | Scholz Garten | August Scholz | Austin, Texas | Texas | 30.2778°N -97.7364°W | Oldest restaurant in Texas | [47] | ||
1867 | Sam's Grill & Seafood Restaurant | Michael Bolan Moraghan | San Francisco | California | [48] [49] | ||||
1870 | Claudio's | Manuel Claudio | Greenport | New York | 41.101850, −72.358967 | Oldest restaurant continuously owned by the same family (until 2018) | [50] | ||
1870 | Original Oyster House | Hugh Lynn | Pittsburgh | Pennsylvania | 40.4407°N -80.0024°W | Oldest bar and restaurant in Pittsburgh | [51] | ||
1870 | Weidmann's | Felix Weidmann | Meridian | Mississippi | 32.363°N -88.699°W | Oldest restaurant in Mississippi | [52] | ||
1879 | Huber's | Huber | Portland | Oregon | Oldest restaurant in Oregon | [53] | |||
1885 | Tivoli Bar and Grill | San Diego | California | Oldest bar/restaurant in San Diego | [54] [55] | ||||
1885 | Keens Steakhouse | Albert Keen | New York | New York | 40.750799, −73.986423 | Only remaining business of what was the Herald Square Theater District | [56] | ||
1886 | Fior d'Italia | Angelo Del Monte | San Francisco | California | 37.8062223, -122.40789 | The current restaurant at the San Remo Hotel (2237 Mason St.) is the seventh location for the former bordello and eatery, including a tent operation for nearly a year after the 1906 earthquake and fire. | [57] | ||
1887 | Browne's Irish Market & Deli | Ed and Mary Flavin | Kansas City | Missouri | 39.0676°N -94.5929°W | Oldest Irish business in North America Oldest retail business in Kansas City | [58] [59] [60] | ||
1887 | Peter Luger Steak House | Peter Luger | Brooklyn | New York | 40.709863, −73.962486 | New York's top-rated Zagat steakhouse | [61] | ||
1888 | Katz's Delicatessen | Morris Iceland Hyman Iceland | New York | New York | 40.722324, −73.987324 (moved here in 1970) | New York's oldest deli | [62] | ||
1893 (November 17) | Buckhorn Exchange | Henry Zietz | Denver | Colorado | 39.732268, −105.005193 | First liquor license in Colorado | [63] | ||
1893 | Commander's Palace | Emile Commander | New Orleans | Louisiana | 29.928764, −90.084240 | Oldest continuously operated restaurant in Uptown New Orleans | [64] [65] | ||
1898 | Louis' Lunch | Louis Lassen | New Haven | Connecticut | 41.306439, −72.930445 | Inventing the hamburger | [66] | ||
1895 | The Berghoff | Herman Berghoff | Chicago | Illinois | 41.8793°N -87.6284°W | German restaurant | [67] | ||
1896 | Rao's | Raos | New York | New York | 40.7939°N -73.9342°W | One of the country's oldest family-owned restaurants running in its original location. | [68] | ||
1917 | 107 | Manago Hotel | Kinzo and Osame Manago | Captain Cook | Hawaii | The oldest continually operating restaurant in Hawaii. | [69] |