Mels Drive-In

Architects Howard Lane and E. Ray Schlick designed this building in 1962 as Ben Frank's. The restuarant became a premier late-night hangout for rock musicians, celebrities, and even served as the unofficial headquarters of the youth culture during the Sunset Strip Riots. A 1965 actor search for The Monkees TV show, it specifically requested "spirited Ben Frank's types"; maybe someone evoking the presence of its frequent patrons Jim Morrison, Andy Warhol and Frank Zappa. Facing demolition in 1997, Ben Frank's was rescued and preserved as Mel's Diner, carrying the legacy of the drive-in pioneers Mel Weiss and Harold Dobbs who opened the original Mel's in San Francisco decades earlier. That first location introduced carhop service to America, with its bright neon lighting, servers on roller skates, and 110 cars parked under open sky, capitalizing on California's perfect weather for outdoor dining.

A dramatic white steel spire soaring thirty feet high, floor-to-ceiling windows wrapping the corner, making the interior visible from every angle. This is Googie architecture, the space-age aesthetic manifests in the vertical drama created by the A-framed composition designed to capture attention from those cruising the Sunset Strip. Inside, gallery walls display photographs of the building's own history, while natural flagstone paving in sandstone and limestone tones spreads beneath. Tropical landscaping creates an unexpected atmosphere, palm fronds against steel spires, blending roadside architecture with resort fantasy in a distinctly L.A. manner. The 24-hour neon still glows, and the building functions as its own museum.