The 1965 gas station will transform into Maggie’s, offering old-fashioned service. (photo courtesy of Maggie’s)

The story of Route 66 is fueled by gasoline. From Chicago to L.A., gas stations dotted the Mother Road, powering travelers as they journeyed across America. With the rise of Route 66 also came the transformation of the gas station. Before the legendary highway took shape, motorists often purchased fuel from hardware stores or simple curbside pumps. As Route 66 helped popularize a new type of travel – the road trip – gas pumps transformed into sprawling, drive-in facilities where drivers and their passengers could fill up on not just gas – but food, beverages, snacks and travel products.

A newly married couple might hop out of their lipstick-red Cadillac Eldorado, tossing the keys to a neatly-uniformed pump attendant, while a family of 10 spills out of a wood-trimmed Ford Country Squire station wagon, running inside one by one for an ice-cold malt, the driveway bells dinging on each arrival. The ideal Route 66 gas station was as much a destination as any sightseeing stop or roadside attraction – a necessary stop made into a full-service experience.

An example that has stood the test of time in Beverly Hills – the Union 76 Gas Station on the “Little” Santa Monica stretch of Route 66 – will soon receive a refuel of its own, at the hands of a familiar name in Los Angeles hospitality.

With a massive curvilinear canopy that swoops toward the sky from its convenience store base, the Union 76 Gas Station at the corner of North Crescent Drive and South Santa Monica Boulevard boasts the iconic “googie” style that was a hallmark of mid-century modern Southern California. According to the Los Angeles Conservancy, architect Gin Wong of Pereira and Associates originally planned for the building to be part of LAX, mirroring the space-age Theme Building designed by William Pereira, Charles Luckman, Paul R. Williams and Welton Becket. Though the gas station never landed at the airport, the design was repurposed in Beverly Hills, and the building was completed in 1965.

(photo courtesy of Maggie’s)

Alex Canter – the fourth-generation member of the family behind one of L.A.’s famous deli institutions, Canter’s – recently purchased the historic site at 427 N. Crescent Drive. Along with a group of investors, he hopes to transform the Route 66 roadside locale into “Maggie’s,” a new kind of gas station that provides high-quality food and household products while maintaining convenient service.

“We believe that the food and beverage experience at gas stations has been overlooked for a while, and we see an opportunity to bring a fresh, hospitality-driven mindset and approach to curation and the coffee and food program,” Canter said.

In 2018, the city of Beverly Hills designated the property a historic landmark, protecting it from demolition or any significant alterations to its architecture. Though Maggie’s will transform the inside of the property, Canter said a goal will be to preserve its unique history.

“It’s a very legendary location. They call it the gas station of the stars. It is a landmark, and the iconic roof – we’re not going to be touching or altering it at all. We couldn’t, but we wouldn’t change it, even if we could,” Canter said. “Our goal is to make the inside match the epicness of the outside by making a really awesome experience where you can get everything from great soft serve to a great cup of coffee, latte, matcha –  modernizing and taking a new approach to curating and filling shelves with a lot of fun things.”

Canter said the previous owners’ history with the location reminded him of his own family’s deli legacy.

Soft-serve ice cream will be on the menu at Maggie’s. (photo courtesy of Maggie’s)

“We looked at a lot of locations across Southern California. This is a site that I always felt would be the perfect location to bring Maggie’s to life,” he said. “The family that had owned it previously [have an] old school family legacy. They’ve been in business for 60 years. Canter’s Deli is approaching 100 years, and it’s just a very natural fit for us to come in and transition and take over this business that they’ve been running for the past 60 years.”

The shelves at Maggie’s will be stocked with local, regional and national brands, Canter said, with a mix of classic convenience store snacks – M&M’s, Diet Coke – and higher-end products one might find at Whole Foods, Erewhon or Eataly – especially pastries, coffee and ice cream.

“We want to be known for having the best soft serve in Los Angeles,” he said.

In addition to the gas station’s historic exterior, the new concept will maintain another one of the Union 76 location’s unique features – a full-service approach where attendants handle the refueling process. Maggie’s will also maintain the 76 brand of gasoline.

“It’s one of the last full-service stations in Los Angeles, which is sort of a lost art or a dying breed of hospitality,” Canter said. “We plan on continuing that forward with Maggie’s, and love to be able to offer a white glove experience.”

Canter said that Maggie’s – named for his dog – is expected to open in 2027.

“We’re turning this errand and chore into something that we hope people look forward to doing,” Canter said. “We want Maggie’s to be a destination and a place where people really enjoy and look forward to coming to, because they can get their favorite little treat inside.”