The oldest restaurant in San Pedro, Walker’s Cafe was founded in 1946 by Raymond and Bessie Mae Walker, a Navy veteran who was stationed at nearby Fort MacArthur during WWII and a Dust Bowl migrant from Oklahoma. Bessie went on to run the cafe for nearly fifty years with a sharp tongue, an iron fist and a huge heart.

Perched on the Point Fermin cliffs, Walker’s is a homey seaside cafe where everyone–from longshoremen and fishermen to bikers, tourists and families–can rub shoulders, enjoy a famous Bessie Burger and the stunning view of the ocean and Catalina Island. 

An amazing time capsule, Walker’s Cafe boasts its original neon sign outside, a hand-painted menu board inside, the original horseshoe-shaped bar, chromium stools and four-door icebox, as well as linoleum tile flooring and wooden wainscoting.

It has featured in travel guides all over the world and countless movies, including Chinatown, Inherent Vice, HBO’s Perry Mason and many more.

The campaign to save Walker’s Cafe has garnered over 3,000 signatures from community members as well as support from Hollywood Teamsters Local 399, the LA Conservancy, Chinatown screenwriter Robert Towne and many others.