Hamburgers are an American icon, and so are hot rods. These two icons will come together on the Miracle Mile on September 19, 2009. The world renown Petersen Automotive Museum will hold a Grand Opening Celebration for the new Johnny Rockets restaurant located in the Museum right on the corner of Wilshire Boulevard and Fairfax Avenue. Order food all day on the 19th with 1986 prices! Purchase $20.00 or more worth of food and receive a 2 for 1 discount to the Petersen Automotive Museum. One hour validated parking with purchase.
Legendary oldies radio station K-EARTH 101's own Charlie Tuna will be broadcasting live from the Johnny Rockets patio at the Petersen Automotive Museum from 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. during the event. Answer Charlie's trivia questions on site to win great prizes!
The celebration will also coincide with a new exhibit celebrating the hot rods and race cars of SO-CAL Speed Shop including the 1:00 p.m. debut of ZZ Top frontman Billy F. Gibbons' latest ride, a customized 1958 Ford Thunderbird. A SO-CAL Speed Shop satellite store will also open that day and will be stocked full of vintage-styled hot rod shirts and memorabilia. SO-CAL Speed Shop Founder and 2008 Robert E. Petersen Lifetime Achievement Award Winner, Alex Xydias and its current President, Pete Chapouris will be on hand to autograph a new poster commemorating the exhibit.
The Johnny Rockets at The Petersen is The Great American Burger Restaurant at The Great American Automotive Museum. Its motif is meant to capture all of Americana. The décor includes juke boxes, chrome accents, and red leather seats, while the walls are adorned with images of America's past. Customers are served by waiters and waitresses dressed in period attire. The staff is known to sing, dance, twirl straws, and make ketchup smiley faces!
Fittingly, Johnny Rockets is located on the first floor of The Petersen Automotive Museum, which contains a walk-through diorama known as "The Streetscape". This area allows visitors to experience automotive history as it relates to Southern California instead of viewing it from afar. It gives a very authentic experience, much like the dining experience at Johnny Rockets!
Johnny Rockets at The Petersen is a family-oriented eating establishment. We strive to keep our prices affordable. Have your child's next birthday party at The Petersen catered by Johnny Rockets! Looking for a place to hold your car club meeting? Come on down! Work nearby and can't get away for lunch? Just phone or fax in your order and get a nice, juicy burger or other menu items delivered to your office! (limited delivery area, call for details). Have an executive meeting and you need a dozen meals? We even have an executive boardroom on premises for your executive needs. Give us a call or visit us at www.JohnnyRocketsLA.com! We are located in The Petersen Automotive Museum at 6060 Wilshire Boulevard, Los Angeles, California, 90036. One hour validated parking is available in the Museum parking structure with Johnny Rockets purchase. Enter Johnny Rockets either through the lobby of the Museum, or through the Johnny Rockets patio entrance on Fairfax Avenue.
On the day of his discharge, March 3, 1946, using borrowed money, Alex Xydias opened the first SO-CAL Speed Shop on Olive Avenue in Burbank, California. With the war over, there was incredible pent-up demand from all those returning GIs to do something and racing hot rods on the dry lakes was just what the doctor ordered. Alex quickly realized that the way to make an impression on these guys was to go racing. His success on the dry lakes of Southern California and at the Bonneville salt flats in Utah became legendary. It wasn’t long before the cars that bore the SO-CAL logo became known as “America’s No.1 racing team.” They campaigned the first single engine hot rods to run 170, 180, 190, 200 and 210 mph. A few years later drag racing had taken over from the dry lakes as the sport of choice for hot rodders. To be competitive Alex fielded a severely chopped ’34 Ford that the editors of Hot Rod Magazine tagged the “Double-Threat Coupe.”
Pete Chapouris, a well established hot rod builder in his own right had a great relationship going with Alex. One afternoon, with fingers crossed, he suggested Alex entertain the idea of licensing him the SO-CAL name. Alex jumped at the chance and together they hit the road running and have never looked back. What started as a crazy idea in November of '97 spawned a 30,000 square foot facility in Pomona boasting 30 plus employees and 8 retail stores coast to coast. A lot of ground has been covered over the last 10 years but none more exciting than SO-CAL's return to Its Bonneville roots. Pete and the SO-CAL team built 4 land speed cars for GM Performance and in the last 5 seasons, set a half dozen records putting 4 drivers in the 200 MPH Club.
The high standards set in the early days are just as strong today if not stronger. For over 60 years Alex and the SO-CAL Speed Shop crew have built a solid reputation as one of the world’s leading hot rod shops…building, restoring and racing some of the coolest cars around. We are the real deal, a hot rod shop steeped in tradition and authentic to the core.
The Petersen Automotive Museum Foundation is a non-profit 501(c)(3) charity. The Museum is located at 6060 Wilshire Boulevard (at Fairfax) in Los Angeles. Admission prices are $10 for adults, $5 for seniors and students with ID, and $3 for children ages 5 to 12. Museum members and children under five are admitted free. Covered parking is available for $2 per half hour with an $8 maximum for Museum visitors. Museum hours are Tuesday through Sunday from 10am to 6pm. For general Museum information, call 323/930-CARS or visit the Museum’s Web site address at www.petersen.org.