Loyola's Family Restaurant
4500 Central Ave SE
1958
Ferguson, Stevens & Associates
Armet and Davis, Consulting Architects
Of the many architectural mysteries Modern Albuquerque has encountered, how Loyola's came to be is perhaps the most enduring. Opened as Sherm's in 1958, this Googie diner with a folded eave sunscreen would not be out of place in Southern California. Armet and Davis, a Los-Angeles architectural firm famous for their 50s and 60s coffee shops and eateries, are identified on the restaurant's plans as consulting architects, yet neither firm has a record of collaboration. Sherm's/Loyola's appears to have been inspired by the now-demolished Holly's Diner/Hawthrone Grill, a Hawthorne, California fixture that opened in 1956.
Since opening, the restaurant has been expanded, a vestibule has been added, and a drop ceiling installed. It has been featured in "Breaking Bad" and "Better Call Saul."
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