iN PHOTOS: Take a look inside this retro 1950s diner near Kamloops
Have you ever wanted to step back in time to the 1950s? Think James Dean, motorcycle clubs, jukeboxes, Rock 'n Roll and burger franchises.
A diner on the main highway in Westwold offers all of these things and more, and while many travellers continue to pass by the unique gem, others have been returning year after year to indulge in homemade burgers and milkshakes, get their photos taken in front of vintage cars, and put another dime in the jukebox.
“The diner serves people from all over the world, we get a lot of repeat customers we’ve met throughout the years,” said co-owner of Route 97 Diner, Selene Conquergood. “Some are people who have been driving by for years and finally stop in, and they’re glad when they do. They love it.”
Route 97 Diner is a gathering place for tourists, bikers, truckers, families and vintage car lovers. The interior is full of 1950s memorabilia, retro booths and wall-to-wall posters of all the old stars like Marilyn Monroe, Betty Boop and Elvis Presley, to name a few.
The menu is built around burgers, old-fashioned milkshakes and homemade fries - and yes, you can order a grilled peanut butter and banana sandwich.
“The burgers are famous, it’s the best burger in B.C. and well known,” Selene said. “The Route 97 Burger is a 6-ounce homemade burger with meat sourced from local farms. We make a real coffee milkshake, a pie milkshake, we make whatever old-fashioned milkshake you want with whipped cream and a cherry on top.”
Vintage cars and trucks can be seen parked around the diner from Ford Model A’s to 1950s pickup trucks, and Allan has a hot rod shop and store in the back. People pose for photos in front of the vintage vehicles, and “lots of people pose in front of the hot rods.” Allan plans to build couches out of the trunks of cars, and make seats out of them.
A more recent addition to the property is a heated patio.
“When COVID came there were some regular gentlemen who lived alone so Al decided to build an outdoor patio for them,” Selene said. “When it got too cold he didn’t want them sitting at them alone so he put in gas heaters. Now we have a beautiful patio.”
There are also picnic tables and playground for kids, so “parents can have a break”.
One of the couple’s favourite customers are seniors that come in busses from care homes in Vernon and Kamloops.
“The seniors light up, some make sounds they never made before and some start dancing all around,” Selene said. “It brings them to life.”
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Allan built Route 97 Diner when he moved to Westwold in 2005, prompted by his love for vintage cars and the 50s era. He built it with his dad, who passed away a year after completion. What started as an empty building “with green shag carpet” turned into a unique dining experience with 50s memorabilia still being added now and then.
“It was hard to find the fifties décor, it took awhile,” Allan said. “You always add something when you find something cool but there is only so much room to put stuff in there.”
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Typically the diner is closed for the coldest months of the year, but for the first time, they’ll be open all winter long.
Located at 4901 on the Kamloops–Vernon Highway, Route 97 Diner is open from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Wednesday to Sunday. It’s roughly 40 minutes from Kamloops and 45 minutes from Vernon.
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