Elite Cafe
Waco, McLennan County, Texas
Marker Inscription
The first Elite cafe opened in downtown Waco in 1919 and was acquired by the Greek immigrant Colias family in 1920. The Colias brothers opened this Elite cafe in 1941 on "The Circle," a traffic hub built on Waco's suburban edge in the early 1930's. A highly recognized local landmark, and one of the best remaining regional examples of mid-20th century roadside architecture, the building exhibits a distincitve Spanish Colonial style popular in the southwest.
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
The first Elite cafe opened in downtown Waco in 1919 and was taken over by the Greek immigrant Colias family a year later. In 1941 the Colias brothers built this location on "The Circle," a traffic hub laid out on Waco's growing suburban edge, in an eye-catching Spanish Colonial style. It survives as one of the region's best examples of mid-20th-century roadside architecture.
Why it matters
The cafe captures the rise of automobile culture and the immigrant-run diners that fed a newly mobile America.
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Related people
- · Colias family
Themes & tags
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