After announcing that after almost 140 years of serving comfort food, Jan. 4 would be the final day for The Original Saugus Cafe, it looks like the Santa Clarita diner may get a second chance at life.
According to a report posted on Jan. 5 by Santa Clarita radio station KHTS-FM, the cafe, which was established in 1886 and is Los Angeles County’s oldest restaurant, will reopen under new ownership.
The station’s post cited the incoming managing owners of the Saugus Cafe, who according to the station spoke on condition of anonymity until the ownership transition is finalized. The story stated that renovations are expected before the restaurant reopens under the same name.
Phone calls and emails to the restaurant were not answered and as of Tuesday afternoon the restaurant had not posted an update on its social media. The diner’s closure was originally posted on its Facebook page.
On Sunday diners flocked to the restaurant for what was to be its final day in business but by Monday a person posted a picture on the Cafe’s Facebook page of a sign at the diner by the new owners that read “Reopening under New Ownership Soon!”
“We appreciate your patience during this brief transition period as we finalize our preparations. Please join us soon for our GRAND REOPENING to see what we’ve been working on!” the statement continued.
Located at 25861 Railroad Ave. in Santa Clarita, the cafe was founded during the construction of the Saugus train station by James Herbert Tolfree. It was originally named the Saugus Eating House.
Due to its location on what was then a major transit hub and filming spot for Hollywood, the cafe served presidents such as Theodore Roosevelt, who reportedly had a steak there in 1903, as well as movie stars such as Douglas Fairbanks, Charlie Chaplin and Mary Pickford.
The news comes after other Los Angeles landmark restaurants have announced their closures yet remained open, like Cole’s French Dip, which announced in the summer that it would close on Aug. 3 after 117 years in business. Cole’s Instagram page currently states that the restaurant will be open through January.
Another long running restaurant also faced hard times but later survived. In early 2025, The Pantry, which opened in downtown Los Angeles in 1924, abruptly shut down. But after it was purchased by real estate entrepreneur Leo Pustilnikov, it was announced in September that the Pantry will eventually reopen.
The Saugus Cafe has changed owners several times over the decades and has even gone through a couple of short closures including one in 1943 during World War II and again in 1983.
