Flabob Airport Cafe - Riverside, CA

The Flabob Airport Cafe is in a building which was originally the cookhouse of the NCO Club at Camp Haan, the anti-aircraft auxiliary of March Field during WWII. When Camp Haan was closed after the war, its buildings were offered to farmers for a buck a building. Flavio Madariaga had his picture taken with some borrowed barnyard animals, and convinced the sergeant that he was a farmer. He dragged the building to Flabob, added the spacious porch and stone fireplace, and created the social heart of the airport. Many aircraft designs and improvements first saw the light as sketches on napkins at the cafe. Its walls are filled to capacity with old photos, memorabilia and airplane junk, and big model airplanes hover overhead. The Out to Eat television show came to visit and you can see their segment on the Flabob Airport Cafe here.