Lyon's Coffee Shop (Now a China Buffet)
Hayward, CA
Photo courtesy Heather David

This former Lyon's in Hayward, CA is now home to the China AA Buffet. The architects for this gem is Armet and Davis. Many thanks to Heather David for info. 07-08

Here’s the former Lyon’s Coffee Shop along Mission Boulevard in Hayward. The broad windows, low roofline, and deep overhang made its coffee shop origins easy to recognize, even after the signs changed and a Chinese buffet moved into the dining room.

Lyon’s operated here under the chain’s familiar 24-hour format, serving breakfast at nearly any hour along with plenty of coffee, fried zucchini, and other late-night diner food. The restaurant also had a full bar, making it a regular stop for the after-hours crowd. Across Mission Boulevard stood another Hayward roadside landmark, Emil Villa’s Hickory Pit.

Lyon's Coffee Shop (Now a China Buffet)
Hayward, CA
Photo courtesy Heather David

After the Lyon’s chain faded, the building became China AA Buffet, sometimes listed as AAA China Buffet. The new restaurant changed the menu and signs but left the old coffee shop shell largely intact. Those wide windows and the projecting roof continued doing most of the architectural work.

UPDATE: China AA Buffet has permanently closed, and the former Lyon’s building is vacant and boarded. Its original roadside sign is gone, but the mid-century coffee shop structure remains standing. Recent reuse ideas have included converting the building into a children’s daycare center. 09-26

Ho-Sy-Guy (Gone)
Sacramento, CA
Photo by RoadsidePeek.com

Here’s Ho-Sy-Guy, a Sacramento Chinese restaurant housed inside a former Denny’s. The angled roofline, broad windows, and coffee shop silhouette made the building’s earlier life fairly easy to spot beneath the later restaurant signs.

The original Denny’s was constructed during the postwar coffee shop boom, when roadside restaurants were designed to attract motorists with dramatic rooflines and large expanses of glass. Its appearance followed the familiar Googie-style prototype associated with Armet & Davis, giving Sacramento drivers a recognizable place to stop for coffee and a late-night meal.

After Denny’s moved out, Ho-Sy-Guy adapted the old building for Cantonese and Chinese-American food. The existing booths, counters, and open dining room made the transition relatively easy. Add a new sign, change the menu, and the former coffee shop was ready for another round of hungry customers.

Ho-Sy-Guy
Sacramento, CA
Photo by RoadsidePeek.com

Ho-Sy-Guy eventually closed as well, and the building sat vacant for an extended period. Without landmark protection or a new restaurant willing to take over the unusual structure, its days became numbered.

UPDATE: Ho-Sy-Guy and the Denny’s that preceded it are both gone. The vacant mid-century building and its roadside sign were later demolished to clear the property for modern commercial development. The exact Sacramento street address has not yet been confirmed. 09-26