Clifton's Cafeteria#Founding branch: Clifton's Pacific Seas

The Clinton family's five generations

{{cite book

|last=Friedman

|first=Jan

|title=Eccentric California

|publisher=Bradt Travel Guides

|page=138

|year=2005

|isbn=978-1-84162-126-5

|accessdate=May 19, 2009

|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=m5RItbVQZdIC&q=%22clifton%27s+cafeteria%22&pg=PA138}} as California restaurateurs began when David Harrison Clinton came to Los Angeles from Missouri in 1888 and purchased the Southern Hotel and its dining room in downtown Los Angeles. David's son Edmond settled in San Francisco, where he and his wife Gertrude became co-owners of a group of cafeteria-style restaurants named Dennets.

Clifford, one of Edmond's five children, learned the restaurant trade while working in his father's restaurants. Along with two partners, he bought his father's interest in Dennets. Due to differences in opinion over business practices, he relinquished ownership to his partners and moved to Los Angeles in 1931.

Establishing his restaurants during the height of the Great Depression, and using knowledge gained from working in his family's cafeteria chain in San Francisco,{{cite book

|last=Langdon

|first=Philip

|title=Orange roofs, golden arches

|publisher=Knopf

|year=1986

|pages=27, 57, & 79

|isbn=978-0-394-54401-4

|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=UjVUAAAAMAAJ&q=clifton's-cafeteria

|accessdate=May 20, 2009}} Clinton made a point to never turn anyone away, even if they had no money, seeking to average only a half-cent profit per customer.{{cite news

|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2003-nov-05-fo-cafeteria5-story.html

|title=The cafeteria: an L.A. original

|last=Perry

|first=Charles

|date=November 5, 2003

|work=Los Angeles Times

|access-date=May 21, 2009}} During one 90-day period, 10,000 people ate free before he was able to open an emergency "Penny Caveteria" in a basement (hence the modified name) a few blocks away to feed two million patrons during the next two years.{{Cite book|last1=Wong|first1=Cecily|url=http://worldcat.org/oclc/1162356675|title=Gastro obscura: a food adventurer's guide|last2=Thuras|first2=Dylan|publisher=Workman Publishing Co., Inc.|year=2021|isbn=978-1-5235-1187-7|location=New York|pages=308|language=en|chapter=Depressing dishes of the Great Depression|oclc=1162356675}}

The restaurants had been cafeteria style with each dish sold on a pay-per-item basis. Featured were fountain soft drinks and classic American fare such as roast beef, brisket, meatloaf, and turkey, with a wide assortment of traditional sides. Revolving daily specials often included a fish plate and a fried chicken plate, both of which came with mashed potatoes and vegetables, and in keeping with the eatery's retro spirit, there was also a selection of Jello salads, soups, vegetables, breads, and classic desserts such as cakes and pies. Additionally, Clifton's offered vegan options. Clifton's desserts were voted "Best Desserts" by Los Angeles Downtown News{{'}} readers in 2001.

Circa 1939, the WPA-sponsored American Guide Series Los Angeles guidebook described the chain thusly: "Clifton’s Brookdale, 648 S. Broadway, and Clifton's Cafeteria of the Golden Rule, 618 S. Olive St. Organ music and singing attendants. A novel feature at both places is the bulletin board just outside the entrance, where listings are displayed for employment, barter, sightseeing, and appeals for congenial friendship. At Brookdale a 'country' atmosphere has been created with artificial trees, vines, brook, and waterfall. Inexpensive."{{cite book|author=Work Progress Administration |date=1939 |title=Los Angeles: A Guide to the City and Its Environs |asin=B00XZS6OG8 }}

File:Aloha- Clifton's Pacific Seas, 618 So. Olive St., Los Angeles (90819).jpg

In 1931, Clinton leased a "distressed" cafeteria location at 618 South Olive Street in Los Angeles and founded what his customers referred to as "The Cafeteria of the Golden Rule". Patrons were obliged to pay only what they felt was fair, according to a neon sign that flashed "PAY WHAT YOU WISH."{{cite news

|title=The Cafeteria of the Golden Rule

|date=November 1, 2003

|accessdate=May 19, 2009

|first=Russ

|last=Rymer

|author-link=Russ Rymer

|work=Los Angeles Magazine

|url=http://www.lamag.com/longform/the-cafeteria-of-the-golden-rule/

|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150217162836/http://www.lamag.com/longform/the-cafeteria-of-the-golden-rule/

|archive-date=February 17, 2015

|url-status=unfit}}{{cbignore}} The cafeteria, at the western terminus of U.S. Route 66, was notable for serving people of all races, and was included in The Negro Motorist Green Book.{{cite news |last1=Taylor |first1=Candacy|author-link=Candacy Taylor |title=The Roots of Route 66 |url=https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2016/11/the-roots-of-route-66/506255/ |accessdate=28 September 2020 |work=The Atlantic Monthly |date=November 3, 2016}}

In 1939, the founders of Clifton's remodeled the restaurant to change it from a conventional dining establishment to a more exotic setting and renamed it "Clifton's Pacific Seas". The exterior and interior were decorated with 12 waterfalls, volcanic rock, and tropical foliage.{{cite web |title=Cliftons Cafeteria |url=https://restaurant-ingthroughhistory.com/tag/cliftons-cafeteria/ |website=restaurant-ingthroughhistory.com |accessdate=14 February 2019}} Tiki historian Sven Kirsten claims it had a "sherbert-gushing volcano".

Brightly illuminated in the evening, it became a mecca for tourists and Angelenos alike, often being referred to in the same category as other prominent landmarks of downtown Los Angeles, such as Angels Flight, Olvera Street, and Pershing Square. Initially, the Los Angeles Architectural Commission was so unhappy with the facade and the decor that they threatened suit.

One of the many interior themes of the Pacific Seas included "The Garden" as a setting done in the period AD 33. The Garden was first conceived by Clifford E. Clinton in 1943 as an interpretation of the famous artist Heinrich Hofmann's Christ in Gethsemane. Clinton commissioned sculptor Marshall Lakey to fashion a life-sized figure of Christ, kneeling in prayer. The mural behind Christ, depicting the city of Jerusalem and the Garden of Gethsemane was painted by artist Einar C. Petersen.{{cite news

|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2003-jan-19-tm-oppetersen3-story.html

|title=And They All Lived Whimsically Ever After

|last=Chien

|first=Ginny

|date=January 19, 2003

|work=Los Angeles Times Magazine

|page=2|access-date=May 19, 2009}}

Clifton's Pacific Seas was visited by Jack Kerouac who wrote in On the Road of visiting "a cafeteria downtown which was decorated to look like a grotto, with metal tits spurting everywhere and great impersonal stone buttockses belonging to deities and soapy Neptune. People ate lugubrious meals around the waterfalls, their faces green with marine sorrow".{{cite news

|url=http://travel.latimes.com/articles/la-tr-kerouacroad2sep02

|title=Revisiting sites from 'On the Road'

|last=Reynolds|

first=Christopher

|date=August 30, 2007

|work=Los Angeles Times

|accessdate=May 19, 2009}}

In 1960, although the three-story structure with its cascading waterfall facade had become a landmark over the preceding 29 years, the original Clifton's Pacific Seas was closed, the building was razed, and the location turned into a parking lot.{{cite news

|url=http://www.calendarlive.com/dining/96532,0,7993213.venue

|title=Clifton's Cafeteria

|work=Los Angeles Times

|accessdate=May 20, 2009}}

A much smaller version in the form of a side-room bar and named the Pacific Seas resides at their still existing location and pays homage to the original and its history.{{cite web |title=Clifton's Pacific Seas |url=https://www.cliftonsla.com/pacific-seas/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160702180906/http://www.cliftonsla.com/pacific-seas/ |archive-date=July 2, 2016 |url-status=usurped |website=Clifton's LA |access-date=14 February 2019}} It is viewed by some as being one of southern California's best Tiki bars.{{cite web |title=6 Best Tiki Bars in LA |url=https://www.purewow.com/food/best-tiki-bars-los-angeles |website=www.purewow.com |accessdate=14 February 2019}}

File:Clifton's Cafeteria-03.jpg

With a motto of "Dine Free Unless Delighted", Clifton's second Golden Rule was opened in 1935 when Clifford Clinton purchased the lease of the former Boos Bros. Cafeteria at 648 S Broadway in Los Angeles.{{cite web

|url=http://www.foodmuseum.com/fhsDiningHalls.html

|title=Food heritage sites: Clifton's Brookdale Cafeteria

|publisher=The Food Museum Online

|accessdate=May 20, 2009

|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090823040915/http://www.foodmuseum.com/fhsDiningHalls.html

|archive-date=August 23, 2009

|url-status=dead

}}

Having himself spent time as a youth the Santa Cruz Mountains not far from the Brookdale Lodge, he chose to redecorate the facility in 1939 to pattern it after the lodge. Working with rock sculptor Francois Scotti, Clifford created a 20-foot waterfall "cascading into a quiet stream" which then "meandered" through the dining room, past faux redwood trees used to conceal the room's steel columns.{{cite book

|last=Butko

|first=Brian

|title=Roadside Attractions: Cool Cafés, Souvenir Stands, Route 66 Relics, & Other Road Trip Fun

|publisher=Stackpole Books

|year=2007

|pages=80

|isbn=978-0-8117-0229-4

|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-p9HerXN0ZcC&q=clifton%27s-cafeteria&pg=PA80

|accessdate=May 20, 2009}} Renowned Los Angeles muralist, Einar C. Petersen, created a life size forest on canvas to cover one wall, and a small chapel was set among the crags to fulfill Clifford's desire to feed the soul as well as the body of depression-weary Angelinos. After refurbishment, he renamed the location "Clifton's Brookdale".{{cite news

|url=http://www.boston.com/travel/getaways/us/california/articles/2008/07/13/bunker_hill_doesnt_live_here_anymore/

|title=Bunker Hill doesn't live here anymore

|last=Austerlitz

|first=Saul

|date=July 13, 2008

|work=The Boston Globe

|accessdate=May 19, 2009}} The interior included a stuffed moose head, animated raccoons, and a fishing bear.{{cite book

|last=Alleman

|first=Richard

|title=Hollywood: the movie lover's guide: the ultimate insider tour to movie L.A.

|publisher=Random House

|pages=191–192

|year=2005

|isbn=978-0-7679-1635-6

|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=LK-920mh3QEC&q=%22clifton%27s+cafeteria%22&pg=PA191

|accessdate=May 19, 2009}}

In 1979, when the Broadway Theater and Commercial District was added to the National Register of Historic Places, Clifton's Cafeteria listed as a non-contributing property in the district.{{cite web|title=California SP Broadway Theater and Commercial District|publisher=United States Department of the Interior - National Park Service|url=https://catalog.archives.gov/id/123858983|date=May 9, 1979}}

The restaurant was described as one of the last vestiges of Old Broadway in downtown Los Angeles, with an interior that looks like a "slightly down-at-the-heels Disney version of a twilight forest".{{cite news|url=http://theguide.latimes.com/downtown-la/restaurants/cliftons-cafeteria-venue |title=Clifton's Cafeteria: Times Description |work=Los Angeles Times |accessdate=May 19, 2009 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20090225213716/http://theguide.latimes.com/downtown-la/restaurants/cliftons-cafeteria-venue |archivedate=February 25, 2009 }} In June 2006, co-owner Robert Clinton took final steps to purchase the Broadway building they had been leasing for 71 years.{{cite news |url=http://www.downtownnews.com/articles/2006/07/03/news/news03.txt |title=A Home of Its Own: After 71 Years of Renting, Clifton's Cafeteria Has a Permanent Place Downtown |last=Moyle |first=Andrew |date=July 3, 2006 |newspaper=Los Angeles Downtown News |access-date=July 10, 2022}} With over 600 seats on three floors, and known as "Clifton's Cafeteria", it was noted as the oldest cafeteria in Los Angeles and the largest public cafeteria in the world in 2009.

{{cite news

|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2009-feb-04-fo-cliftons4-story.html

|title=Clifton's cafeteria: The place where L.A. finds itself

|last=MacVean

|first=Mary

|date=February 4, 2009

|work=Los Angeles Times

|access-date=May 19, 2009}} The third floor included a party room, a banquet room, and many pictures of Clifford and Nelda Clinton. There was a secret room on an upper floor. There was also another set of restrooms down the stairs in the bottom basement. The restaurant's busiest period was in the 1940s, with as many as 10,000 customers forming lines down Broadway, but by 2009 Clifton's regularly serves 1,800 to 2,000 daily.

File:Re-opening of Clifton's Cafeteria (21632844946).jpg, Councilman Jose Huizar, June Lockhart, and new owner Andrew Meieran at the re-opening of Clifton's Cafetaria in 2015. It was replaced by a Clifton's-themed bar in 2018.]]

In September 2010, Clifton's Brookdale was sold to nightclub operator Andrew Meieran, who stated that he intends to preserve the food and atmosphere of the establishment. On September 26, 2011, the cafeteria closed for remodeling, planned then to last three to six months while the restaurant gets a new kitchen and a redesigned serving area.{{cite news | first = Roger | last = Vincent | title = Landmark downtown L.A. cafeteria to close for remodel | date = September 19, 2011 | url = https://www.latimes.com/business/la-xpm-2011-sep-19-la-fi-0919-property-report-20110919-story.html | work = Los Angeles Times | access-date = 2011-09-27}} In February 2012, the remodeling process continued with the "unveiling" of the original 1904 building facade, revealed through the removal of the 1963 aluminum facade. Meieran estimated that the cafeteria would reopen in about 18 months. During renovations, a partition wall was removed, revealing a neon light that was still switched on, apparently having been lit continuously for 77 years. It may be the oldest continuously illuminated neon light in the world. The director of the Museum of Neon Art called the discovery "incredible".{{cite news|url=http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-old-neon-20120526,0,7105298.story|title=At Clifton's Cafeteria, someone left a light on. For 77 years|author=Bob Pool|work=Los Angeles Times|date=2012-05-26|accessdate=2012-05-26}}

The revamped restaurant had multiple eating and drinking establishments inside the building, including a bakery, a version of the original 1935 classic cafeterias on the ground and second floors, an old-school steakhouse on the third floor, and a tiki themed bar on the fourth floor, to be named "South Seas" in honor of the original 1931 facility. The combined-use building will also include a museum called "Clifton’s Cabinet of Curiosities".{{cite news|last1=Vincent|first1=Roger|title=s Andrew Meieran has ambitious vision for Clifton's Cafeteria|url=https://www.latimes.com/business/la-xpm-2013-feb-16-la-fi-himi-meieran-20130217-story.html|access-date=September 28, 2014|work=Los Angeles Times|date=February 16, 2013}} While restoration of Clifton's at 648 S. Broadway had many delays, the initial goal of Andrew Meieran was to re-open the facility in early 2015.{{cite news

|last1=Kang

|first1=Matthew

|title=Clifton's Update, Three Clubs Upgrade, Baz Lurhmann [sic] at DBA, More!

|url=http://la.eater.com/2014/9/25/6847473/cliftons-update-three-clubs-upgrade-bar-lurhmann-at-dba-more

|accessdate=September 28, 2014

|publisher=LA Eater

|date=September 25, 2014}} The restaurant reopened on October 1, 2015. The cafeteria closed permanently in November 2018 and was replaced by a bar called Clifton's Republic.{{cite news |url=https://laist.com/2018/11/28/cliftons_closed_its_cafeteria_and_no_one_noticed.php |title=Clifton's Closed Its Cafeteria And Nobody Noticed |website=LAist |date=November 28, 2018 |first=Elina |last=Shatkin |access-date=October 26, 2020 |archive-date=October 28, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201028211320/https://laist.com/2018/11/28/cliftons_closed_its_cafeteria_and_no_one_noticed.php |url-status=dead }}{{cite news |url=https://www.lamag.com/digestblog/cliftons-cafeteria-food/ |title=Clifton's Needs to Be a Restaurant: The legendary cafeteria loses the food, and its soul |magazine=Los Angeles Magazine |date=November 28, 2018 |first=Chris |last=Nichols}}{{cite news |url=https://la.eater.com/2019/11/22/20978107/former-wolves-bartender-cliftons-the-edison-radio-room-guest-bartender-expansion |title=Downtown's Quiet Clifton's Republic Plans Big New Bar Expansion: Kevin Lee, formerly of the Wolves, is on as Director of Spirits |website=Eater LA |date=November 22, 2019 |first=Mona |last=Holmes}} It closed in 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and reopened in February 2022.{{cite web | url=https://la.eater.com/2022/2/9/22923960/morning-news-los-angeles-restaurants-am-intel-cliftons-republic-reopening-super-bowl | title=Whimsical 90-Year-Old Clifton's Republic Reopens Downtown for Dinner and Drinks | date=February 9, 2022 }} It closed again in June 2023, due to a plumbing issue. It is set to reopen in early 2024.{{cite web | url=https://www.instagram.com/p/CuGPXRirfD3/?hl=en | title=Instagram }}

In January 1955, it was announced that the Lakewood Center in Lakewood, California, would in 1956 become the location for the third Clifton's cafeteria.{{cite news

|url=https://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/latimes/access/435058522.html?dids=435058522:435058522&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:AI&date=Jan+02%2C+1955&author=&pub=Los+Angeles+Times&desc=Cafeteria+Slated+for+Location+in+Lakewood+Center&pqatl=google

|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121020181625/http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/latimes/access/435058522.html?dids=435058522:435058522&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:AI&date=Jan+02,+1955&author=&pub=Los+Angeles+Times&desc=Cafeteria+Slated+for+Location+in+Lakewood+Center&pqatl=google

|url-status=dead

|archive-date=October 20, 2012

|title=Cafeteria Slated for Location in Lakewood Center

|date=January 2, 1955

|work=Los Angeles Times

|accessdate=May 19, 2009}} In 2001, after 44 years of service, the restaurant closed the branch due to a business slowdown.{{cite news

|url=http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_text_direct-0=0EAE8BE4827F2552&p_field_direct-0=document_id

|title=Clifton's serves its last customer

|date=January 28, 2001

|accessdate=May 19, 2009

|work=Long Beach Press-Telegram}}

In 1958, a Clifton's opened in West Covina, California at the Eastland Shopping Center.{{cite news

|url=http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=SGVB&p_theme=sgvb&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_topdoc=1&p_text_direct-0=0FFB187548C33784&p_field_direct-0=document_id&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D&s_trackval=GooglePM

|title=Clifton's Cafeteria chain to close W. Covina location

|last=Roemer

|first=Diana L.

|date=December 25, 2003

|work=San Gabriel Valley Tribune

|accessdate=June 26, 2011}} In 1978 Clifton's moved to the West Covina Fashion Plaza, now called Westfield West Covina, where it stayed in business until 2003.

The Greenery

In 1978, after moving from its original West Covina location due to an expiring lease, Clifton's relocated to inside the Westfield Shoppingtown West Covina and renamed itself "The Greenery" for its garden theme.{{cite news

|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2003-dec-31-me-cliftons31-story.html

|title=Final Tab for Historic Restaurant; With the closing today of the location in West Covina, only the downtown venue will remain of eight Clifton's Cafeterias

|last=Sciaudone

|first=Christiana

|date=December 31, 2003

|work=Los Angeles Times

|access-date=May 19, 2009}} In 2003 the branch closed, leaving "Clifton's Brookdale" at 7th and Broadway as the last of what was once an 8-store chain.

In 1965, ground was broken in Century City, California, for a 1966 opening of a new branch.{{cite news

|url=https://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/latimes/access/485073892.html?dids=485073892:485073892&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:AI&desc=Clifton%27s+Cafeteria+to+Open+in+Spring

|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130131141305/http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/latimes/access/485073892.html?dids=485073892:485073892&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:AI&desc=Clifton's+Cafeteria+to+Open+in+Spring

|url-status=dead

|archive-date=January 31, 2013

|title=Clifton's Cafeteria to Open in Spring

|date=August 19, 1965

|work=Los Angeles Times

|accessdate=May 19, 2009}} The outlet operated for over 20 years before closing at the end of 1986.{{cite news

|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1986-12-07-we-1267-story.html

|title=Customers Saddened to See End of the Line at Clifton's Cafeteria

|last=Baird

|first=Barbara

|date=December 7, 1986

|work=Los Angeles Times

|access-date=May 19, 2009}}

In 1975, the company opened "Clifton's Silver Spoon" at 515 W. 7th Street, Los Angeles. The Marshall Lakey statue of Christ, which had been placed in storage upon closure of Pacific Seas in 1960, was returned to display when a new Garden was created in the new location. In 1997, the Silver Spoon location was closed {{cite news

|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1997-04-11-me-47588-story.html

|title=Clifton's Serves Last Course of Memorabilia

|last=Pool

|first=Bob

|date=April 11, 1997

|work=Los Angeles Times

|access-date=May 19, 2009}} and in 1998 the Lakey statue of Christ was relocated to The Holyland Exhibit in Los Angeles. Scenes for the Brad Pitt film Fight Club were shot in the Silver Spoon's location.{{cite web|url=http://www.seeing-stars.com/locations/FightClub3.shtml|title=The Actual Southern California Locations where|work=seeing-stars.com|accessdate=2009-05-20}}

Clifton's opened a branch in Woodland Hills, California and currently operates as an event venue open to the public.{{citation needed|date=July 2022|reason=See https://theneverlands.com/cliftons-republic/ for current status.}}

In 1987, Clifton's opened a branch in Laguna Hills, California across from the main entrance to Leisure World. For the 12 years of its operation, senior citizens accounted for 90% of the restaurant's clientele. It closed in 1999, to the dismay of local long-time patrons who frequented it as a gathering place.

{{cite news

|url=https://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/latimes/access/42823631.html?dids=42823631:42823631&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&desc=End+of+the+Line;+Community:+Clifton%27s+Cafeteria+closes+today,+much+to+the+dismay+of+its+Leisure+World+clientele.

|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130131151854/http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/latimes/access/42823631.html?dids=42823631:42823631&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&desc=End+of+the+Line;+Community:+Clifton's+Cafeteria+closes+today,+much+to+the+dismay+of+its+Leisure+World+clientele.

|url-status=dead

|archive-date=January 31, 2013

|title=End of the Line; Community: Clifton's Cafeteria closes today, much to the dismay of its Leisure World clientele

|last=Harris

|first=Bonnie

|date=June 30, 1999

|work=Los Angeles Times

|accessdate=May 19, 2009}}

In 1971, Clifton's opens at the Whittier Quad shopping center, offering more than 100 à la carte menu items. The theme was Holland, and it was called The Holland House. It featured windmill murals, and a quaint ambiance reminiscent of old Holland.{{citation needed|date=October 2020|reason=Did this location actually existed?}}

In 1974, Clifton's opened in San Bernardino at the Inland Center Mall.{{citation needed|date=October 2020|reason=Can this be confirmed?}}

The restaurant has made an impression on many who have visited. LA Weekly: "...Clifton's Cafeteria, that Depression-era palace of retroville."{{cite news

|url=http://www.laweekly.com/2006-04-20/news/urban-agent/

|title=Urban Agent

|author1=James Rojas |author2=ewis MacAdams

|date=April 20, 2006

|work=LA Weekly

|accessdate=May 20, 2009}} Los Angeles Downtown News: "...Clifton's Cafeteria, the kitschy cool L.A. establishment that has been around since 1931".{{cite news

|url=http://www.ladowntownnews.com/no-cook-turkey-dinners/article_bd84e575-9d36-5b15-a171-9efc93a96b50.html

|title=No-Cook Turkey Dinners: Relax While Downtown Eateries Do All the Work This Thanksgiving

|last=Ziemba

|first=Christine N.

|date=November 12, 2007

|work=Los Angeles Downtown News

|access-date=July 10, 2022}}

In Los Angeles Off the Beaten Path, author Lark Ellen Gould describes Clifton's as "part national park kitsch, part Disney nightmare, part Grandma's house with fake squirrels, taxidermied deer, stuffed moose, and faux waterfalls",{{cite book

|last=Gould

|first=Lark Ellen

|title=Los Angeles Off the Beaten Path

|publisher=Globe Pequot

|year=2005

|edition=2, illustrated

|pages=18

|isbn=978-0-7627-3523-5

|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kVU3QqlMUoAC&q=Clifton%27s+Cafeteria&pg=PA18

|accessdate=May 20, 2009}} and it is described by Los Angeles Times as one of the last vestiges of Old Broadway in downtown Los Angeles, with an interior that looks like a "slightly down-at-the-heels Disney version of a twilight forest".

Huell Howser, host and producer of the KCET series Visiting...with Huell Howser, featured Clifton's in one episode,{{cite episode |url=https://www.kcet.org/shows/visiting-with-huell-howser/episodes/cliftons |title=Clifton's (video) |series=Visiting with Huell Howser |station=KCET |airdate=September 19, 2000 |season=8 |number=32 |first=Huell |last=Howser |network=PBS}} ([https://blogs.chapman.edu/huell-howser-archives/2016/12/07/cliftons-visiting-832/ Alternate link] @ Chapman University) where in 2001 he shared "Nestled in the bustling setting of historic Broadway, Clifton's Cafeteria is truly a 'jewel in the heart of the Jewelry District'". Howser returned in 2009, only to find little change.{{cite episode |url=https://www.pbssocal.org/programs/visiting-with-huell-howser/survivors-quttne/ |title=Survivors (video) |series=Visiting with Huell Howser |station=KCET |airdate=November 7, 2008 |season=16 |number=16 |first=Huell |last=Howser |network=PBS}} ([https://blogs.chapman.edu/huell-howser-archives/2016/12/06/survivors-visiting-1616/ Alternate link] @ Chapman University)

Benji Lanyado of The Guardian lists Clifton's as among LA's top 10 cult locations and notes that it "survives as an astonishing woodland fantasia".{{cite news

|url=https://www.theguardian.com/travel/2008/aug/14/losangeles.top10.culture?page=2

|title=LA's top 10 cult locations

|last=Lanyado

|first=Benji

|date=August 14, 2008

|work=The Guardian

|location=London

|pages= 2

|accessdate=May 20, 2009

}}

Michael Stern of Roadfood wrote that the surviving location of Clifton's was "an amazing place to eat", with a food line that was "immense", noting that choices included fried chicken with buttermilk biscuits, oxtail stew, turkey and dressing, and side dishes ranging from whipped or fried potatoes to 'cranberry jewel gelatin'. He wrote that for those with "fond memories of school lunch", Clifton's offers simple fare such as "grilled cheese sandwiches cooked crisp and pressed flat as a pancake". He remarked that its current location was in a part of Los Angeles that was once fashionable and wrote, "Once you arrive at Clifton's, though, you can feel the magic that used to be".{{cite web

|url=http://www.roadfood.com/Restaurant/Review/6283-6434/cliftons-cafeteria

|title=Clifton's Cafeteria

|last=Stern

|first=Michael

|authorlink=Jane and Michael Stern

|publisher=Roadfood

|accessdate=May 19, 2009}}

The restaurant's uniqueness has also found its way into many books and novels, including The Long Embrace,{{cite book

|last=Freeman

|first=Judith

|title=The Long Embrace: Raymond Chandler and the Woman He Loved

|publisher=Random House, Inc.

|year=2008

|edition=Reprint, illustrated

|pages=78–82

|isbn=978-1-4000-9517-9

|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=nHtEf6GjuJEC&q=Clifton%27s+Cafeteria&pg=PT91

|accessdate=May 20, 2009}} Violin Dreams,{{cite book|last=Steinhardt|first=Arnold|title=Violin Dreams|publisher=Houghton Mifflin|year=2008|pages=57|isbn=978-0-547-08600-2 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=f15y5nm-T5MC&q=Clifton%27s+Cafeteria&pg=PA57}} Don't spit on my corner,{{cite book

|last=Durán

|first=Miguel

|title=Don't Spit On My Corner

|publisher=Arte Publico Press

|year=1992

|pages=35

|isbn=978-1-55885-042-2

|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ErxSmC-m6f4C&q=Clifton%27s+Cafeteria&pg=PA35}} A Few Good Women,{{cite book

|last=Ferris

|first=Inga Fredriksen

|title=A Few Good Women

|publisher=Trafford Publishing

|year=2006

|pages=183

|isbn=978-1-4251-0181-7

|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=f7VdGoqmNxEC&q=Clifton%27s+Cafeteria&pg=PA183|accessdate=May 20, 2009}} Deep Heet!,{{cite book

|last=Williams

|first=Anthony L.

|title=Deep Heet!: The Ultimate High

|publisher=iUniverse

|year=2002

|pages=324

|isbn=978-0-595-21499-0

|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=44xHRZUop-IC&q=Clifton%27s+Cafeteria&pg=PA324|accessdate=May 20, 2009}} and Remain Silent,{{cite book

|last=Denton

|first=Jamie

|title=Remain Silent

|publisher=Kensington Books

|year=2007

|pages=21

|isbn=978-0-7582-1014-2

|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=H3HqfhQ2iUEC&q=Clifton%27s+Cafeteria&pg=PA217|accessdate=May 20, 2009}} among many others. In the novel Strange Angel, author George Pendel describes Clifton's as "a bizarre experience", and a "kitsch cafeteria provided millions of low-priced meals to the out-of-work and destitute during the darkest days of the depression", and that it provided a "surreal sanctuary from a broken world".{{cite book

|last=Pendle

|first=George

|title=Strange Angel: The Otherworldly Life of Rocket Scientist John Whiteside Parsons

|publisher=Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

|page=123

|year=2006

|isbn=978-0-15-603179-0

|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=sRFkFGsIyjoC&q=%22clifton%27s+cafeteria%22&pg=PA123

|accessdate=May 19, 2009}}

Science fiction author Ray Bradbury ate at Clifton's as a struggling writer, often taking advantage of the policy that anyone who couldn't afford to pay didn't have to, and in the 1930s attended meetings of the Los Angeles Science Fiction Society, which met for years at the restaurant. Author/agent/fan/collector Forrest J Ackerman later wrote, "...we moved to Clifton's Cafeteria, a feature of which was their free limeade and lime juice. Some of the members who didn't have more than a nickel or dime to spend guzzled a lot of that free juice."[http://jophan.org/mimosa/m23/ackerman.htm Ackerman, Forrest J "Through Time and Space with Forry Ackerman: Part VIII"] Mimosa 23, p. 31 Bradbury celebrated his 89th birthday at the downtown eatery in 2009.Mary MacVean Ray Bradbury still looks to the future page A1,A3 September 19, 2009 Los Angeles Times

Charles Bukowski mentions Clifton's Cafeteria in his novel Ham on Rye: "Clifton's Cafeteria was nice. If you didn't have much money, they let you pay what you could. And if you didn't have any money, you didn't have to pay. [...] It was owned by some very nice rich old man, a very unusual person."Charles Bukowski, Ham on Rye, Canongate Books, Edinburgh, 2001, p. 242

The Distillers mention Clifton's in the song "City of Angels" on the album Sing Sing Death House: "Emptiness never sleeps at Clifton's 6 am, with your bag lady friend and your mind descending."

The restaurant was featured in Visiting...with Huell Howser Episode 832.{{cite web |title=Clifton's – Visiting (832) – Huell Howser Archives at Chapman University |date=December 7, 2016 |url=https://blogs.chapman.edu/huell-howser-archives/2016/12/07/cliftons-visiting-832/}}

Michel Butor's 1962 book Mobile includes text from three Clifton's Cafeteria pamphlets.{{Cite book|last=Duffy|first=Jean H.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=c1CgfS5boKoC|title=Signs and Designs: Art and Architecture in the Work of Michel Butor|date=2003|publisher=Liverpool University Press|isbn=978-0-85323-788-4|language=en}}

• Ransom M. Callicott, partner with Clinton and co-owner of Clifton's
• List of defunct restaurants of the United States

{{Reflist}}

• {{cite book |last1=Samudio |first1=Jeffrey |author2=Portia Lee |title=Los Angeles |publisher=Arcadia Publishing |year=2006 |pages=97 |isbn=978-0-7385-2486-3 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=sihzmfS6RhEC&q=clifton%27s-cafeteria&pg=PA97 |accessdate=May 20, 2009}}
• {{cite book |last1=Moore |first1=Charles Willard |last2=Becker |first2=Peter |last3=Campbell |first3=Regula |title=The City Observed, Los Angeles: A Guide to Its Architecture and Landscapes |publisher=Random House |pages=7, 33, 55 |year=1984 |isbn=978-0-394-50474-2 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NvVPAAAAMAAJ&q=%22clifton's+cafeteria%22 |accessdate=May 19, 2009}}

{{Commons category|Clifton's Cafeteria}}

• {{Official website|https://web.archive.org/web/20181025231520/https://www.cliftonsla.com/|Last snapshot of archived official website}}
• [http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-cliftons-sale-pano,0,673990.htmlstory LA Times: "Panorama: Clifton's Cafeteria "]

{{Downtown Los Angeles}}

{{LABTCD}}

{{Authority control}}

Category:1931 establishments in California

Category:2018 disestablishments in California

Category:Defunct restaurant chains in the United States

Category:Buildings and structures in Downtown Los Angeles

Category:Restaurants established in 1931

Category:Restaurants disestablished in 2018

Category:Restaurants in Los Angeles

Category:Defunct restaurants in Los Angeles

Category:Broadway (Los Angeles)